The Prose Edda: Norse Mythology (Penguin Classics)

This book was incredible. Snorri manages to construe every story with such eloquence and subtle humor is amazing.

One of the most important texts available for the study of Icelandic culture and mythology.

Be forewarned when purchasing this edition of the Prose Edda; while it is attractive and reasonably priced, it contains a mutilated Skáldskaparmál and Háttatal. These texts provide unique information about the gods that you don't find elsewhere - very important for a heathen, or, really, anyone interested in the subject.

Further, these sections give insight into not only the beautiful work of the skalds that forms the basis of this text (some of these skalds are not attested anywhere else!) but also the intricacies and beauty of their work. It's really a shame this edition is missing these things, the work deserves better treatment than this.

Otherwise, you do get a very readable and uncensored (well, as uncensored as Snorri gets) translation of the introduction and Gylfaginning, a could-be-better and simplistic but accurate little map showing the nine worlds/Yggdrasil, and some of the figures associated with the cosmology of it, a suitable introduction, and a map of the Nordic countries (and what would become the UK).

Snorri Sturluson (1179-1241) was a famous Icelandic author, statesman, and one of Iceland's wealthiest men. During Snorri's time Iceland was increasingly dominated by Norway and Norwegian culture. Snorri's Prose Edda was written in response to these new trends as a handbook for those "aspiring Icelandic skalds [poets] who wanted to master the traditional forms of verse and the older stories essential to the imagery of Old Norse Poetry" (xi). The Prose Edda's stories were based on the oral tradition from the Viking Golden Age (800-1000). The Edda is divided into four parts (the Prologue, the Gylfaginning, the Skaldskaparmal, and the List of Meters). Sadly, this volume only includes a sample stanza of the List of Meters due to its dense didactic content. For me the Prologue is by far the most interesting part of the entire Edda. Firstly, Snorri might not have been the author which raises some interesting questions about later additions to his text. Secondly, the Prologue consciously attempts to reconcile Norse myth with Christian beliefs. For example, the Prologue states that after the Fall Norse myth was developed in an attempt to understand the world and that they "understood all matters in an earthly way because they had not been granted no spiritual wisdom (ie. of the Christian God's existence)" (4). Also, Graeco-Roman myths are fitted into the Norse mythology and pantheon for the author states that Odin was descended from the Trojans.

The second section, the Gylfaginning, consists of a dialogue between King Gylfi and the Aesir (Mysterious God people). King Gylfi asks questions to the three manifestations of Odin about the All Father, The Primeval Cow Audhumla, the origins of the Gods, Ice Giants, the Birfrost bridge to Heaven, etc. This is the core of the Edda and is a virtual encyclopedia of Norse Mythology. The third section, called the Skaldskaparmal, gives background for references and allusions found in Old Norse verse. This section gives thousands of kennings (words substituted for other words - for example, whale road = ocean). However, this the Skaldskaparmal is not simply a list of kennings for poets but also provides the background and stories from which the kennings come from. For example, the story about the origin of poetry (a mead made from a man created from the spittle of the Gods) introduces tens of kennings created from obscure details of each story. This section is a treasure trove of poetic lore as well as important Norse stories.

This Penguin edition is absolutely wonderful (besides the lack of the List of Meters). The introduction covers all pertinent information including the historical background about Iceland and Norway, a brief section on Snorri Sturluson, questions of the Edda's authorship, analysis of each section, and the text's Christian influences. Also included are three illuminating Appendixes (about the Norse Cosmos, Kennings, and the sources of the Gylfaginning), a diagram of the World Tree, and a useful map. Although the Prose Edda often seems to didactic and encyclopedic for easy reading the myths are absolutely fascinating and clearly the Prose Edda is not only "Scandinavia's best known work of literature" but also "the most extensive source for Norse Mythology" (ix). A must buy for anyone interested in Norse Mythology and Medieval Icelandic Literature and history.

This is a really fantastic book and the very best starting point for anyone interested in Old Norse stories. I read this much more quickly than I thought I would and I was very disappointed to get to the end - I wanted more!

Well written, good translation. Only problem with this text is the endnotes are a bit distracting - there are too many of them and in reading them they break up the flow of the text. This small distraction is well compensated for by the magic of the text as a whole.