Iceland in Tolkien's Work?

[Lalwendë]

Now play nicely.

I s'pose I have the responsibility to say something as I started the fire...I did start this up to discuss similarities between Icelandic (Norse) Sagas and the life depicted therein to Tolkien's work - specifically Numenor and The Shire, though this does not exclude other Tolkienian cultures if you spot anything interesting there. Mostly as we are reading the Sagas and want to woden (I left the typo in as that's a bit eerie - I meant widen though) discussion beyond oor hoose. Course, a bit of discussion of other associated literature to the Icelandic Sagas can also add to this (things in culture do not exist in a vacuum after all), as can a little discussion of main 'themes' and where else we might better find them (as Bethberry brings up the Atlantean theme which cannot be ignored - now where might this appear in the Sagas?). But the wild horses need some harnesses.

We have got an ace thread somewhere started by Rune about wider Norse influences too: http://forum.barrowdowns.com/showthr...ighlight=norse At the risk of me own thread going cold, some of the mythological stuff might be more fruitfully pursued on Rune's thread.

It's not so useful in terms of a topic for things to get too baggy around the edges so that's why I have interjected - not to stop anyome discussing certain stuff but just to say that there is of course the risk that when looking at an influence someone is going to jump up and say 'but such and such' is also an influence!' We know. But I'm not pretending to say that this is THE influence - just want to have a look at it as its not really been done before.

So, have some fun, this is not a thread intended to 'get at' fixing upon a source or a meaning because we know there isn't a specific one - if you've read any of the sagas or know a little of old Iceland and Norse culture have a pop at it. From Fordim's great post on the style to my meanderings about random stuff I pick up on as I begin to read the Sagas, it's good.

Originally Posted by Bethberry

I would like to see Lalaith elaborate a bit on her post about how 'the feeling' of CoH is closer to the Eddic poems than the Sagas. What are those differences between the Eddas and the sagas? And, frankly, I would enjoy a bit more discussion of just CoH before we jump into the literary forebearers. After all, I want to explore the reading experience before I break it apart.

I would like to see more discussion of CoH too before we go into what influenced it or not, I agree. That might warrant its own thread sometime soon? Maybe a Chapter by Chapter in the near future? Hint. Hint.