Njal's Saga

by Anonymous; Cook, Robert; Cook, Robert; Cook, Robert; Cook, Robert

• ISBN13: 9780140447699
• ISBN10: 0140447695
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2002-05-28
• Publisher: Penguin Group

Summary

Written in the thirteenth century, Njal's Saga is a story that explores perennial human problems-from failed marriages to divided loyalties, from the law's inability to curb human passions to the terrible consequences when decent men and women are swept up in a tide of violence beyond their control. It is populated by memorable and complex characters like Gunnar of Hlidarendi, a powerful warrior with an aversion to killing, and the not-so-villainous Mord Valgardsson. Full of dreams, strange prophecies, violent power struggles, and fragile peace agreements, Njal's Saga tells the compelling story of a fifty-year blood feud that, despite its distance from us in time and place, is driven by passions familiar to us all. This Penguin Classics edition includes an introduction, chronology, index of characters, plot summary, explanatory notes, maps, and suggestions for further reading.

Author Biography

Robert Cook, born and raised in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, was educated at Princeton, Zurich, and Johns Hopkins and taught English medieval literature at Tulane University in New Orleans for twenty-seven years. In 1990 he moved to Reykjavik to serve as professor of English literature at the University of Iceland.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements	vi
Introduction	vii
Further Reading	xxxiv
A Note on the Translation	xxxvii
Chronology of Njal's Saga	xl
Njal's Saga	1	(310)
Notes	311	(33)
Plot Summary	344	(10)
Maps	354	(4)
Family Trees	358	(4)
Glossary	362	(7)
Index of Characters	369