(Back to the main Havamal
Analysis page ) (Go to the Next
Stanza
)
The
discussion and analysis presented after these
translated stanzas is our
opinion. Read the translations for yourself and our analysis, but also seek
out varied sources and come to your own conclusions.
STANZA 22 OF THE
HAVAMAL
Auden & Taylor:
An ill tempered, unhappy man Ridicules
all he hears, Makes fun of others, refusing always To see
the faults in himself
Bellows:
A paltry man | and poor of mind At all
things ever mocks; For never he knows, | what he ought to
know, That he is not free from faults.
Bray:
The miserable man and evil minded makes
of all things mockery, and knows not that which he best should
know, that he is not free from faults.
Chisholm:
Ill tempered the wretch, who laughs at
everyone. He cannot recognize, as he should, that he is not
without faults.
Hollander:
The ill-minded man who meanly
thinks, fleers at both foul and fair; he does not know, as
know he ought, that he is not free from flaws.
Terry:
An evil-tempered, small-minded man is
scornful of what he sees; he alone is unaware that he's not
free from faults.
Thorpe:
A miserable man, and
ill-conditioned, sneers at every thing; one thing he knows
not, which he ought to know, that he is not free from faults.
DISCUSSION AND
ANALYSIS OF STANZA 22
OK. Who are we talking about
here? We're talking about a man who is miserable,
small-minded, evil-tempered, ill-minded, mean-thinking,
and paltry.
And what does this ill-tempered man do?
The man sneers and is scornful of everything and everyone,
regardless of whether it is deserved or not. He mocks and
ridicules everything
he sees.
But, why is this jerk so clueless?
Well, though he's in the best place to know he's not perfect, he is
completely unaware that he
has faults.
He's a bitter, cranky, grump about
everyone and everything, whether it is deserved or not...but he is
completely blind to his own faults. In other words,
he thinks he's perfect and (pardon my language) his own
"shit
doesn't stink."
I think we've all known people...and we're
certainly all encountered people on-line...who spend all their time
criticizing and attacking others as though they are perfect and
everyone else is worthless. I think the stanza refers to this
sort
of person.
I think it is further suggesting that our
time is better spent addressing our own faults, and working on
those, rather than inflicting unjust criticisms on everyone and
everything
around us.
(
Back
to the main
Havamal Analysis
page ) ( Go
to the Next Stanza
)
|