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_haggis_'s review
challenging
informative
slow-paced
3.5
This is a really good translation with lively and informative notes.
cryo_guy's review
3.0
“Gloom occasionally ends in joy and inauspicious beginnings turn into brilliant conclusions.”
Good ol' Saxo, or as I like to call him: Good ol' Rocky Schoolteacher. I don't think it's right to begin a discourse on Saxo that doesn't feature Michie's rousing ode:
Huggery-muggery
Saxo Grammaticus
As a historian
Hadn't much flair;
One might have said he was
Supererogatory
Had he not mentioned the
Hamlet Affair.
--James Michie, self-proclaimed master of dissing obscure authors in history
And it's true! Saxo's claim to fame is largely because of that Hamlet story he retells, although for those in the know (of which I can now count myself) it was not Hamlet but Amleth! However, as Peter Fisher, the translator of this book goes on to explain in the introduction, actually Saxo has some other insights to offer as well. And Davidson, for her part, rigorously-perhaps too rigorously and not rigorously enough (the constant companion complaint of any commentary)-supports Saxo's relevance with ample notes.
Rather than starting at the beginning, let's start with the most famous stuff. Hamlet! So this is probably where Shakespeare was inspired *cough* stole *cough* his story of Hamlet or at least from a French summary of it or something. It's a decent story, certainly one of the better organized of the lot. There's a ghost and avenging the father by killing the uncle. The nice old switcheroo with the letter that says kill the messenger. But it also contains tropes reused from other chapters or from older poetic or prose works that make it a bit flavorless.
The other most famous thing is Ragnar Lothbrook! or Regner Lothbrog as Saxo likes to call him. According to him, Lothbrog was a nickname based on his ratty clothes. Regner does some of the most famous things like marrying Lagertha (Lathgertha), uniting Denmark under peaceful rule (though he is a dirty pagan!), and dying by being bitten by poisonous snakes. He also says that famous line about the boar dying and the piglets coming to avenge him. And they do! They blood eagle poor old King Aella (Ella) like good Viking sons. Again, a decent story, some of his sons have some character to them, but aside from having similar tropes, Saxo spends less time on the story. Davidson says this (Book IX) was written last and so it could be indicative of the late work of Saxo or that he was ready to end this. Whatever the case may be, I think Regner deserves a little more attention. Oh and King Knut comes up briefly. I think I saw him in a museum once.
Okay those are the two most famous things; everything else is pretty run of the mill-some combination of I'm a real scholar so I'm writing in LATIN and imitating the CLASSICAL authors, trying to make a Danish history for Danish people to be excited about, appeasing his patron, making sure the pagans don't look too cool cuz Christianity is the true faith, a dash of Euhemerism because the pagan gods were really just exaggerated stories about mortals although he's totally fine with wizards and magic, giants, dragons, and herculean feats of strength (Come on, Anders, there's gotta be some fun in the age of heroes!). Like I said, lots of tropes and when it's not tropes it's almost like a catalogue of people ruling, doing some challenge to get a wife, enduring some form of betrayal or suffering, and then passing on the lineage. Always, however, there is the endgame of Denmark being really cool. Some of the other Scandinavian countries get some play. Sweden gets almost the coolest hero in the work, Erik the Eloquent. Norway does some stuff. Iceland is where a lot of the stories that Saxo pulls from have been preserved. Finland is that spooky place on the fringe where Danish heroes go to kill people and become even cooler (Same for Russia and the Hellespont, although less spooky and more contemporary).
Overall, the stories are really not that compelling. Most of the book readings like a flimsily organized mishmash of history, stories cobbled together, lineages recited, tropes repeated. Based on merely that, Saxo is not held very high in my estimation as an author or historian. Herodotus does similar sorts of ethnographic stuff but better. Be that as it may, a few of the stories are gems-Starkather's book is maybe the best, but it takes a while to warm up and never really hits a stride. Starkather also features some of the best written poetry while the rest of the poetry of the work is hit or miss. And then there is the simple fact that Saxo did do a lot of research. His text lets us know all of the stuff he knew about, even though he changed the names to fit his jumbled narrative. If I knew more about the Scandinavian tradition of folktales and history I might be more impressed. As it is, reading Saxo just makes me want to go back to the original sources which I assume are better written and, focusing on just one thing and being of quite a different style and period, are more cohesive as works themselves like the Prose or Poetic Edda, Njal's Saga, The Volsungs, The Saga of King Hrolf Kraki, even The Nibelungenlied. But I don't think this was a total waste of time by any means. I've had this book on my shelf for a long time; so long I don't even remember the circumstances of getting it. I know my parents got it for me for some Xmas or another. I keep thinking it must have been before I went to college and said gotta hold off on the Scandinavian stuff until I've read all of the Greco-Roman world (yes I know, an inestimably feasible goal). But it would have been a peculiar book for me to read in high school. I vaguely do remember starting it and then putting it down 10 pages in-which sounds like exactly what I would have done based on reading it now. “Wait this is supposed to be awesome Danish legends? Why is it so boring and random?” Hello teenager Anders.
Anyway, I'm glad I got around to reading it and now it can rest comfortably on my shelf, having been read. Some final miscellaneous comments: Peter Fisher's translation seems competent if a bit bland. I'd have to look at the Latin to say more or be more critical. Davidson's commentary is useful for some things. She certainly does a great job telling you what sources Saxo is mining and, for the most part, helpfully summarizing scholarly conclusions about dubious details. On the other hand, it gets a bit too chockablock with random bits where at points I just skipped whole books of the commentary- a sin I know, but I was running out of patience with dear old Rocky Schoolteacher. Davidson clearly knows her stuff and I'm sure if I were more acquainted with 13th century Denmark or the tradition of Danish histories, legends, folktales, and mythology, I would appreciate it more. Like I've already said throughout it's a bit jumbled and only comes together for 3 or 4 narrative arcs, but along the way there are some charming aphorisms evocative of Viking customs.
This book is rather difficult to recommend being so niche, so take that as you will! My final verdict is not quite supererogatory, but you have to know some stuff for it to be relevant. Otherwise it's a bit of a slog and only has a few arcs that pull you in.
My absolute favorite quote:
“When inconsolable grief falls on people they often make for strange and unknown retreats as though these might provide an antidote to their sadness; swamped by misery they are unable to cope with the society of men, for solitude is generally a friend to the heart-sick.”
Davidson unwittingly describing all of Saxo:
“How far this was a mainly literary exercise, based on Roman prototypes, and how far it may have been taken from Saxo's own [military] experience, is one of the most tantalising of the many problems which he has left for us to solve”
Saxo's Euhemerism:
“That the gods were overcome by men might strain belief, but ancient report testifies it. We say 'gods' more from supposition than truth, and give them the title of 'deities' by popular custom, not through their nature.”
Viking morals:
“Weakness is generally recognised by the way it needs others' help.”
“Everyone sets life before property, for nothing is dearer than breath to mortal creatures.”
“In general, Fortune takes revenge savagely for underhand achievements.”
Good ol' Saxo, or as I like to call him: Good ol' Rocky Schoolteacher. I don't think it's right to begin a discourse on Saxo that doesn't feature Michie's rousing ode:
Huggery-muggery
Saxo Grammaticus
As a historian
Hadn't much flair;
One might have said he was
Supererogatory
Had he not mentioned the
Hamlet Affair.
--James Michie, self-proclaimed master of dissing obscure authors in history
And it's true! Saxo's claim to fame is largely because of that Hamlet story he retells, although for those in the know (of which I can now count myself) it was not Hamlet but Amleth! However, as Peter Fisher, the translator of this book goes on to explain in the introduction, actually Saxo has some other insights to offer as well. And Davidson, for her part, rigorously-perhaps too rigorously and not rigorously enough (the constant companion complaint of any commentary)-supports Saxo's relevance with ample notes.
Rather than starting at the beginning, let's start with the most famous stuff. Hamlet! So this is probably where Shakespeare was inspired *cough* stole *cough* his story of Hamlet or at least from a French summary of it or something. It's a decent story, certainly one of the better organized of the lot. There's a ghost and avenging the father by killing the uncle. The nice old switcheroo with the letter that says kill the messenger. But it also contains tropes reused from other chapters or from older poetic or prose works that make it a bit flavorless.
The other most famous thing is Ragnar Lothbrook! or Regner Lothbrog as Saxo likes to call him. According to him, Lothbrog was a nickname based on his ratty clothes. Regner does some of the most famous things like marrying Lagertha (Lathgertha), uniting Denmark under peaceful rule (though he is a dirty pagan!), and dying by being bitten by poisonous snakes. He also says that famous line about the boar dying and the piglets coming to avenge him. And they do! They blood eagle poor old King Aella (Ella) like good Viking sons. Again, a decent story, some of his sons have some character to them, but aside from having similar tropes, Saxo spends less time on the story. Davidson says this (Book IX) was written last and so it could be indicative of the late work of Saxo or that he was ready to end this. Whatever the case may be, I think Regner deserves a little more attention. Oh and King Knut comes up briefly. I think I saw him in a museum once.
Okay those are the two most famous things; everything else is pretty run of the mill-some combination of I'm a real scholar so I'm writing in LATIN and imitating the CLASSICAL authors, trying to make a Danish history for Danish people to be excited about, appeasing his patron, making sure the pagans don't look too cool cuz Christianity is the true faith, a dash of Euhemerism because the pagan gods were really just exaggerated stories about mortals although he's totally fine with wizards and magic, giants, dragons, and herculean feats of strength (Come on, Anders, there's gotta be some fun in the age of heroes!). Like I said, lots of tropes and when it's not tropes it's almost like a catalogue of people ruling, doing some challenge to get a wife, enduring some form of betrayal or suffering, and then passing on the lineage. Always, however, there is the endgame of Denmark being really cool. Some of the other Scandinavian countries get some play. Sweden gets almost the coolest hero in the work, Erik the Eloquent. Norway does some stuff. Iceland is where a lot of the stories that Saxo pulls from have been preserved. Finland is that spooky place on the fringe where Danish heroes go to kill people and become even cooler (Same for Russia and the Hellespont, although less spooky and more contemporary).
Overall, the stories are really not that compelling. Most of the book readings like a flimsily organized mishmash of history, stories cobbled together, lineages recited, tropes repeated. Based on merely that, Saxo is not held very high in my estimation as an author or historian. Herodotus does similar sorts of ethnographic stuff but better. Be that as it may, a few of the stories are gems-Starkather's book is maybe the best, but it takes a while to warm up and never really hits a stride. Starkather also features some of the best written poetry while the rest of the poetry of the work is hit or miss. And then there is the simple fact that Saxo did do a lot of research. His text lets us know all of the stuff he knew about, even though he changed the names to fit his jumbled narrative. If I knew more about the Scandinavian tradition of folktales and history I might be more impressed. As it is, reading Saxo just makes me want to go back to the original sources which I assume are better written and, focusing on just one thing and being of quite a different style and period, are more cohesive as works themselves like the Prose or Poetic Edda, Njal's Saga, The Volsungs, The Saga of King Hrolf Kraki, even The Nibelungenlied. But I don't think this was a total waste of time by any means. I've had this book on my shelf for a long time; so long I don't even remember the circumstances of getting it. I know my parents got it for me for some Xmas or another. I keep thinking it must have been before I went to college and said gotta hold off on the Scandinavian stuff until I've read all of the Greco-Roman world (yes I know, an inestimably feasible goal). But it would have been a peculiar book for me to read in high school. I vaguely do remember starting it and then putting it down 10 pages in-which sounds like exactly what I would have done based on reading it now. “Wait this is supposed to be awesome Danish legends? Why is it so boring and random?” Hello teenager Anders.
Anyway, I'm glad I got around to reading it and now it can rest comfortably on my shelf, having been read. Some final miscellaneous comments: Peter Fisher's translation seems competent if a bit bland. I'd have to look at the Latin to say more or be more critical. Davidson's commentary is useful for some things. She certainly does a great job telling you what sources Saxo is mining and, for the most part, helpfully summarizing scholarly conclusions about dubious details. On the other hand, it gets a bit too chockablock with random bits where at points I just skipped whole books of the commentary- a sin I know, but I was running out of patience with dear old Rocky Schoolteacher. Davidson clearly knows her stuff and I'm sure if I were more acquainted with 13th century Denmark or the tradition of Danish histories, legends, folktales, and mythology, I would appreciate it more. Like I've already said throughout it's a bit jumbled and only comes together for 3 or 4 narrative arcs, but along the way there are some charming aphorisms evocative of Viking customs.
This book is rather difficult to recommend being so niche, so take that as you will! My final verdict is not quite supererogatory, but you have to know some stuff for it to be relevant. Otherwise it's a bit of a slog and only has a few arcs that pull you in.
My absolute favorite quote:
“When inconsolable grief falls on people they often make for strange and unknown retreats as though these might provide an antidote to their sadness; swamped by misery they are unable to cope with the society of men, for solitude is generally a friend to the heart-sick.”
Davidson unwittingly describing all of Saxo:
“How far this was a mainly literary exercise, based on Roman prototypes, and how far it may have been taken from Saxo's own [military] experience, is one of the most tantalising of the many problems which he has left for us to solve”
Saxo's Euhemerism:
“That the gods were overcome by men might strain belief, but ancient report testifies it. We say 'gods' more from supposition than truth, and give them the title of 'deities' by popular custom, not through their nature.”
Viking morals:
“Weakness is generally recognised by the way it needs others' help.”
“Everyone sets life before property, for nothing is dearer than breath to mortal creatures.”
“In general, Fortune takes revenge savagely for underhand achievements.”
littlepanda's review
2.0
I had a hard time reading this book... I was a bit lost with all the names.
vidholf's review
2.0
If you need to read Saxo, then this is the edition to get. I'd rate Davidson's commentary at 4 stars. It's just Saxo himself that I dislike. ;-)
bibliophiliadk's review
4.0
Et godt råd til alle, der har tænkt sig at give sig i kast med den her bog: Start op med at læse om danske middelalderkonger! Saxo er så absolut ikke god til årstal eller genealogi, derfor er det en god hjælp, at have læst lidt op på kongerækken først. Ellers bliver du stik-tos-rund-forvirret! Så er det sagt.
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