SAGA-BOOK - Viking Society Web Publications

Treatment of Sources in the Volsunga saga 3Z3
that no poetic or semi-poetic expression for 'prince' or
'warrior' is ever retained (such expressions are particularly
numerous in HH): (HH Z/3) polingi : honum (VS 14/1Z);
(HH 2(5) fylki : hann (VS 14(12); (HH 2(7) bualwnga :
konunga (VS 14/1Z).
There follow a few of the compiler's equivalents for
more general words which he apparently thought too
poetic: (HH 21/1) dro : menn (VS IS/Z0); (Fm. 8/3)
[eormunom : [rcendum (VS 31/ZZ); (Sg. 15/6) fioroi : tif
(VS 57/18); (Gor. II 38(7) hior : suerai (VS 64(ZO); (Akv.
1z/6) erfivpror : sonr (VS 67/33).
It is, moreover, not merely a question of the substitution
of a prose equivalent for a word that has a wholly or
largely poetic flavour. The poetic language of the Eddaic
poems evinces a widespread use of adjectives, of
descriptive expressions of all kinds, for the sole purpose of
embellishment. It is here that the pattern of the
compiler's ruthlessness in the matter of poetic diction
clearly emerges (d. (16) and (Z3) above). Certainly, there
are examples of the retention of attributive adjectives, or
more often of their replacement by others, which are
purely decorative in character: (Fm. z8/3) hvassa hior :
snarpa svero (VS 33/II-1Z); (Gor. II 36/z) hdrar borgar :
hciri h(Jll (VS 64(13); (Ghv. 7(5) sioar brynior : storar
brynjur ok g60ar (VS 76/z6); (Ghv. 13/6) hduar bdror : storar
bdrur (VS 74(Z4) - but they are far from numerous. Of
course, equivalents of 'large', 'great', 'much', 'many',
'most', 'such' occur on nearly every page of the saga, and
as might be expected in a saga, the first, or even a subsequent
mention of a prince or warrior often includes
a description, more or less stereotyped, of his qualities,
and this even though there may be no equivalent in the
source. An example is the description of Hunding (VS
14/Z2 f., indicated in the source, HH 10) and with it
might be compared those of Helgi (VS 17/27, not in the
source, the conclusion of HH), Atli (VS 65/6, not in the
source, Am. z), and jonakr (VS 74/ZS, indicated in the