Studying at York
Viking Poetry - MST00019M
Module summary
In Viking Age Scandinavia, poetry was embedded in social practice and public performance. Composed in the Old Norse language, a great quantity of Viking poetry – originally oral, but later written down in manuscripts – survives to the present day, and it is an amazing body of work, full of interest and surprises.
Some Old Norse poetry – usually called ‘Eddic’ by modern scholars – was anonymous, and told mythological stories of the Norse gods and legendary heroes. But much more of the poetry that survives – now called ‘skaldic’ – is attributable to named poets, and was composed on specific, datable occasions; as early medieval poetry, the potential for reconstructing its literary history is unusually high. Skaldic poetry had many purposes: it was used to glorify rulers (‘King, another lord loftier than you will never be born’); to commemorate friends (‘I have piled a mound of praise that long will stand without crumbling in poetry’s field’); to insult enemies (‘Bjorn the windbag remains a useless loser’); and even to woo sexual partners (‘I looked at the ankles of the finely grown woman – this yearning will not die from me all my life’).
This module will examine a wide range of poetry, both Eddic and skaldic, composed in Old Norse between about 850 and 1050, and due attention will also be paid to its later preservation in Icelandic sagas and poetic treatises. Each seminar will address a different theme or topic, and will be structured around the close and detailed engagement with two or three particular poems (copies of which will be supplied). All texts studied will be available in translation as well as the original, and the module can be taken by students with no prior knowledge of Old Norse.
Module will run
| Occurrence | Teaching period |
|---|---|
| A | Semester 2 2024-25 |
Module aims
The aims of the module are to introduce students to a wide range of Old Norse poetry and its cultural contexts, and to develop skills in the close reading of such poetry.
Module learning outcomes
On successful completion of the module, you should be able to:
- Demonstrate an advanced understanding of and engagement with the main features of Old Norse poetry
- Demonstrate an advanced understanding of and engagement with the cultural contexts of Old Norse poetry
- Demonstrate skills in the close reading of Old Norse poetry
- Evaluate key debates within the relevant critical fields dealing with Old Norse poetry
- Produce independent arguments and ideas which demonstrate an advanced proficiency in critical thinking, research, and writing skills.
Indicative assessment
| Task | % of module mark |
|---|---|
| Essay/coursework | 100 |
Special assessment rules
None
Indicative reassessment
| Task | % of module mark |
|---|---|
| Essay/coursework | 100 |
Module feedback
Students have the opportunity to submit a formative essay of up to 2,000 words and receive written or oral feedback, as appropriate, from a tutor. For the summative essay (3500-4000 words), students will receive their provisional mark and written feedback in line with the University's turnaround policy. The tutor will then be available during student hours for follow-up guidance if required.
Indicative reading
- Carolyne Larrington (trans.), The Poetic Edda (Oxford World’s Classics, rev. ed., 2014)
- Diana Whaley (ed.), Sagas of Warrior-Poets (Penguin Classics, 2002)