Wisdom of the North

Wisdom of the North studies how and for what purposes proverbs were used by the composers of the sagas, thereby demonstrating how awareness of proverbial occurrences in these narratives can enable us to engage in more penetrating literary criticism of these works. The methods offered here have already been applied to the reading of other medieval texts, particularly those originating in societies marked by the presence or persistent influence of preliterate culture.

Richard L. Harris is Professor in the Department of English at the University of Saskatchewan. He is the editor of A Chorus of Grammars.