Abstract
The rise of interest in the orality of eddic poetry has tended to view the preserved corpus as oral poems without considering their transition into writing and its potential implications. The pres ...
Highlights
Eddic1 poetry exhibits what I have described as an inclination to non-vari ation in its use of phraseology (Frog 2011: 58–72; 2021)
The present study focuses on passages where the inclination to non-variation is predicted as a social ideal for a repeating formula or series of lines
The role of memory is greater where poems are remembered as texts, rather than composed freely in situ, and less-than-ideal verses may be recogn ized and improved in repetitions. This type of process is reflected in Alvíssmál, where formulae only vary on their first use, and a more ideal form on their second use remains consistent thereafter. This does not mean that poems were invariable, but remembering formulae or whole lines and systems of lines plays a significant role in such poetry, and difficulty calling up the customary phrase for a particular passage can cause a presenter to stumble no less than any of us might when, mid-sentence, we find we cann ot recall a key word or phrase
Summary
Eddic poetry exhibits what I have described as an inclination to non-vari ation in its use of phraseology (Frog 2011: 58–72; 2021). More deliberation on alternative expla nations and false tracks is required in the main text or in notes than in a study concerned with a more familiar issue where frameworks are estab lished for how to interpret types of evidence or it is possible to lean on findings of earlier studies After both cases have been examined, discus sion turns to the question of why the documented poems would retain lines and passages where something seems to have gone wrong when it was first formulated – i.e. why ‘blunders’ were not corrected – and what this suggests about how people conceived the written poems, with impli cations for their use as sources in research
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
