The Saga of Burnt Njal
by Anonymous · Brennu-Njáls saga
Assigned by 1 of the 9 reading lists, catalogue entry only
- Written
- c. 1280
- Era
- Medieval
- Form
- Epic poetry
- Language
- Other
- Length
- Long · 350 pp300 to 700 pages
- Difficulty
- Demanding3 of 5 for a first-year reader
We recommendNjal's Saga, translated by Robert CookPenguin Classics, 2001The most recent scholarly translation, with maps, genealogies and notes on the law.
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The longest of the Icelandic family sagas, written in prose around 1280 about events of about 960 to 1020. Its first half follows the friendship of the wise lawyer Njal and the warrior Gunnar of Hlidarendi, whose wife Hallgerd's feud with Njal's wife Bergthora runs through a chain of killings and settlements until Gunnar is outlawed and killed at his home. In the second half Njal's sons kill their foster-brother Hoskuld; the resulting suit at the Althing collapses into violence, Njal and his family are burned alive in their house by Flosi, and Kari pursues the burners across Iceland and abroad until the feud ends in reconciliation.
No reading guide yet
The catalogue entry above is complete: the dates, the form, the themes and every program that assigns The Saga of Burnt Njal are verified against each program's published list.
What is missing is the part that takes real work: the summary, the key passages, and a recommended translation. The edition named below is the one most programs assign, so the buy links are useful already.
