A late medieval Icelandic romance about the ‘maiden-king’ of France, Nítída saga generated interest in its day and grew in popularity in post-Reformation Iceland, yet until now it has not received the comprehensive scholarly analysis that it much deserves. Analysing this saga from a variety of perspectives, this book sheds light on the manner in which Nítída saga explores and negotiates the romance genre from an Icelandic perspective, showcasing this exciting saga’s strong female characters, worldviews, and long manuscript tradition. Beginning with Nítída saga’s manuscript context, including its reception and transformation in early modern Iceland, this study also discusses how Nítída saga was influenced by, and also later influenced, other Icelandic romances. Considering the text as literature, discussion of its unusual depiction of world geography, as well as the various characters and their relationships, provides insights into medieval Icelanders’ ideas about themselves and the world they lived in, including questions about Icelandic identity, gender, female solidarity, and the literary genre of romance itself. The book also includes a newly revised reading edition and translation of Nítída saga.
- Cover
- Table of Contents
- Manuscript Abbreviations
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction
- Synopsis
- Women and Worldviews
- Manuscript Witnesses
- Organization and Conventions
- Part I. Romance Contexts
- 1. Manuscript Witnesses
- Different Versions, Different Worldviews
- Different Versions
- JS 166 fol.
- Add. 4860 fol.
- Lbs 3941 8vo
- Conclusions
- 2. Intertextuality
- Communicating with Other Romances
- Shared Motifs in Sigurðar saga þǫgla, Gibbons saga, and Nítíða saga
- Nítíða saga Drawing on Clári saga
- Nikulás saga leikara Drawing on Nítíða saga
- Conclusions
- 3. Setting the Scene
- Geography and Space
- Global Space
- Social Space
- Conclusions
- Part II. Romance Characters
- 4. The Hero and her Rivals
- Heroes
- Livorius and Nítíða
- Rivals
- Conclusions
- 5. Women Helping Women, and Other Minor Characters
- 6. Romance through the Eyes of the Narrator
- Conclusion
- Appendix. Nítíða saga Text and Translation
- Index
- List of Figures
- Figure 1 Map of Manuscript Locations
- Figure 2 Map of Manuscripts from the Dales and Westfjords
- Figure 3 Map of Manuscripts from the Eastfjords
- Figure 4 T-O Map
- Figure 5 Alternative T-O Map
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