Edda Discussions Intro

First, to be clear, this is not intended to be a scholarly discussion. It is simply my desire to read and attempt to understand the topic of discussion. It is opinion and personal interpretation that could change from day to day. As such, both supporting and opposing ideas are welcome.

Second, the subject of this discussion is a collection of works referred to as "The Poetic Edda." Others much better informed than I have written on this subject. They have described the history of these documents, and their importance to our understanding of the ancient Nordic people. I will leave the explanation of these documents to them. You may start here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poetic_Edda#Original_text

Third, there is no set format for these discussions. I hope to find the time to read and write frequently, weekly, I suppose. I will try to break off the reading in manageable chunks that are consistent in subject and theme. I will then mount my personal digital global soapbox and share my fairly meaningless opinions. Feel free to jump in and discuss.

Finally, one should keep in mind that these poems were written down for a reason. They are the written form of an oral tradition that passed the ideas of religion, mysticism, and cultural values from generation to generation. They are intended to convey information beyond that which is simply in the words themselves. With that in mind, one cannot really over analyze what the words might mean. That analysis may be wrong, but the fact that there was intended to be something behind the words is probable.

My own personal copy of The Poetic Edda is the 2nd edition translation by Lee M. Hollander, available from the University of Texas press. Not knowing the Old Norse language, I have no idea how true this version is to the original, but the reading seems fairly accurate, and I tend to believe that it is closer to the original than many of the other translations that are available. Should you decide you're interested in having your own version, but not interested in buying it, search on google. There are several translations available in the public domain. With that said, I've got some reading to do.