Access to the Margins: Outlawry and Narrative spaces in medieval Icelandic outlaw sagas.

Authors

  • Marion Poilvez

Abstract

Abstract The legal and historical aspect of Icelandic outlawry in the Middle Ages has been widely studied and commented by scholars, either by following formal indications from the Grágás or through the use of literary examples spread in the sagas. The two main Icelandic outlaw sagas, Grettis saga Ásmundarsonar and Gísla saga Súrssonar have been so far mainly discussed in connection with other tales on outlaws from Europe (Robin Hood, Hereward), but surprisingly not often together. Through the analysis of the concepts of exile and liminality, this paper will attempt to relocate the two sagas in their specific Icelandic context and underline the specific nature of the Icelandic full outlawry as well as its consequences in the narrative. Icelandic medieval outlaws were excluded from the social space of the island, yet forbidden to leave it (óferjandi). The fact to be stuck on the island but out of the public scene leads to the creation of new original and individualized narrative spaces: the supernatural wilderness for Grettir, the tortured dreams for Gísli. Keywords: Medieval Iceland, Outlaws, Liminality Résumé L’aspect historique et légal de la proscription islandaise au Moyen-Âge a été largement étudiée et commentée, soit en référence aux indications formelles du Grágás, soit à travers l’utilisation d’exemples littéraires éparpillés dans les sagas. Les deux principales sagas de proscrits islandais, Grettis saga Ásmundarsonar et Gísla saga Súrssonar, ont été jusqu’à présent principalement discutées en rapport avec d’autres récits européens de hors-la-loi (Robin-des-Bois, Hereward), mais très peu l’une par rapport l’autre. A travers l’analyse des concepts d’exil et de liminalité, ce papier tente de relocaliser les deux sagas dans leur context islandais et de souligner la nature spécifique de la proscription islandaise, ainsi que ses conséquences dans la production d’un texte narratif. Les hors-la-loi de l’Islande médiévale étaient exclus de l’espace social de l’île, mais cependant avaient l’interdiction formelle de quitter cette dernière (óferjandi). Le fait d’être enfermé sur une île et hors de l’espace public conduit à la création de nouveaux espaces narratifs, originaux et individualisés : le sauvage couplé au surnaturel pour Grettir, les rêves torturés pour Gísli. Mots-clés: Islande Médiévale, Hors-la-loi, Liminalité

Downloads

Published

2012-07-22

Issue

Vol. 12 No. 1 (2012)

Section

Artigos/Articles

License

Declaração de Direito Autoral / Copyright:

Os artigos publicados na revista BRATHAIR não podem ser reproduzidos ou copiados para fins comerciais. Os autores conservam os direitos autorais sobre seus artigos e qualquer cópia ou reprodução que não se destine ao estudo e à pesquisa só poderá ser feita mediante a consulta e aquiescência dos próprios autores.


***

The copyright of any article published in the BRATHAIR magazine will belong to the authors of the articles, who will not receive any remuneration, since the BRATHAIR magazine is not for profit ,. When sending originals for publication, the authors are expressing their acceptance of this condition.


The papers published by BRATHAIR cannot be reproduced or copied for commercial purposes. The contents of BRATHAIR can only be used for academic purposes.



Direitos Autorais / Rules for Publication:

Os direitos autorais de qualquer artigo publicado na revista BRATHAIR pertencerão aos autores dos artigos, que não receberão qualquer remuneração, pois a revista BRATHAIR não tem fins lucrativos,. Ao enviar originais para publicação, os autores estarão manifestando a aceitação desta condição.


***

Authors retain the full copyrights of their papers. Therefore, permissions for reprint must be obtained from the authors. Authors are asked to cite the BRATHAIR versions of their papers if related versions are published elsewhere.