The Origin and Structure of “Middle Earth" Flashcards
The Old Norse creation myths related by Snorri and earlier Norse sources start with a scene of?
Chaos and disorder that precede the arrival and existence of gods who will come to rule over the world. Matter first, divine spirit later.
It is in all likelihood under the experience of the glaciologist-volcanic features of Iceland that Snorri has the world and its finest inhabitants arise out of a muster of ….?
Extreme heat and extreme cold in the great “yawning abyss” called ginnugagap.
No life can exist in the Extreme heat and extreme cold so the creation of sufficiently temperate intermediate zone (between Niflheim and Muspelheim) becomes important. This idea is expressed in the idea of?
Midgard (Mistranslated as Middle-Eath) but more closely related to middle yard, enclosure, or homestead.
The world created revolves around a central axis in the shape of?
the tree Yggdrasil
There is talk of how many worlds located on the different levels of Yggdrasil?
9
But this may be learned addition by Snorri to showcase his classical knowledge.
There is a tendency to spatially segregate or separate races or beginnings, into?
And the spatial distance is often enhanced by?
gods (two distinct families), giants, elves, dwarves (sometimes referred to as “black elves,” through the designation is not clear), and humans are each housed in their own world.
The spatial distance is often enhanced by natural barriers (seas, mountains). As in Greek mythology, the world is surrounded by a great sea.
As in many other mythologies the early stage of the world is marred by conflicts between groups vying over control of the earth. In Norse Mythology we learn of an early struggle between?
God and giants, especially the first original frost giant Ymir, in the course of which almost all giants are exterminated in a great flood.
Looking at the genealogy of the first gods (Odin Vili and Ve) you will notice that they are genetically speaking both … ?
But the Aesir gods put a lot of effort into … ?
Giants and gods!
Odin is the son of the giantess Bestla who descends from Ymir.
But the Aesir gods put a lot of effort into constructing a social distinction between themselves the the giants that is then enshrined as a racial distinction.
Just as many languages are related because they descend from a common parent language, so are …. ?
The related mythologies!
It is possible to relate Norse creations myths to myths from other cultures and geographical regions because they are all descended from one common parent culture, the Indo-Europeans
What killing reinforces the spilt between the gods and the giants?
Odin is a giant on his mother’s side. Odin and his brother kill an older generation thereby reinforcing the slip between god and giants.
The Old Norse cartoon story of the original frost giant Ymir, Buri/Odin and the cow Auôumbla is related to?
A variation of an original PIE creation myth, which is more clearly on display in the great Sanskrit and early Iranian/Avestan accounts.
This story also has two closely related beings (“twins”) where one sacrificed the other and uses the body to create an ordered world.
This sacrifice is the first in a series: for the purpose of all following sacrifices is to renew the original act and thus keep the world as it was created.
Basic features of the PIE creation/ordering myth?
- There are two closely related figures (“twins).
- Very often, one has a spiritual function (like Odin), the other a more worldly function (like Ymir).
- The core importance of a cow (Auômbla). This is not surprising given that we are dealing with either pastoralist or agricultural societies. In Iceland, cows are a status symbol.
- One of the twins is sacrificed by the other (the sacrificer). Frequently, the body of the former is instrumental in creating the world.
- Ever subsequent sacrifice re-enacts the original sacrifice.
Why is the cow Auômbla important?
Without the cow Ymir would not have survived and Buri would not have come to ife.
How does the PIE creation story related to the Romans?
The myth of the (twin) brother Romulus and Remus (the killing of the latter by the former) is not about the creation of the world but about the foundation of the city Rome. And a cow is just not mach enough! So they replace it with a she-wolf
Which races/being do not have their own realm in Norse mythology and why?
The antisocial ones like trolls and ogres.
Which being are between humans and gods?
Elves. There are superior to humans but do not belong to the gods
Why are elves difficult to define?
Over time they’ve gotten mixed up with fairies.
Tolkien tried to amend this by making them more formidable, but it is unknown is this is closer to what the Norse believed.
Why should we not apply ‘scientific’ taxonomic categories to mythical beings?
These concept did not exist at the time.
We should not project Linnean categories back into the Middle Ages and earlier.
Why do we have to be mindful of the agendas and biases of the accounts of Northen mythology?
The old pagan Scandinavian societies left virtually no written testimony of their native believes. So we have to depend on outsider accounts, most of which few written after Norse Paganism had passed into history.
Describe the seemingly shamanistic practice, Thornier Thorkellson (The speaker of the Law) used to decide which religion Iceland should follow and how this was later used?
Thornier Thorkellson withdrew into his booth, crept under an animal skin, and stay there for 24 hours before announcing his decsion. He chose Christianity, but though the process he used it could be interpreted that the contacted the gods (Odin, Thor etc.) and that they informed him that they would willingly step aside.
What is the most important source for our knowledge about the Norse gods?
Snorri Sturluson, in particular his Prose Edda.
Tell us a little bit more about Snorri?
He was a prominent chieftain and a “Speaker of the Law”.
He was an accomplished poet at the time.
He was killed due to political intrigues.
Iceland’s three main export products in Snorri’s days? And what kind of power did this give
- Fish
- Wool
- Poetry (especially skaldic poetry full of kennings)
It is a kind of soft power = particularly in international politics, the ability to co-opt rather than coerce. It involves shaping the preferences of through through appeal and attraction.
Why was Snorris skaldic poetry difficult to understand?
It was full of kennings, which are figurative compounds made up of densely packed metaphors. You must be familiar with Norse mythology to understand these kennings.
