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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 31 OF THE
HAVAMAL
Auden & Taylor:
The wise guest has his way of dealing
With those who taunt him at table: He smiles through the
meal, not seeming to hear The twaddle talked by his foes
Bellows:
Wise a guest holds it | to take to his
heels, When mock of another he makes; But little he knows |
who laughs at the feast, Though he mocks in the midst of his foes.
Bray:
A guest thinks him witty who mocks at a
guest and runs from his wrath away; but none can be sure who
jests at a meal that he makes not fun among foes.
Chisholm:
He is wise who leaves the flyting when
guest mocks guest. He who grins at the feast does not know
that he chatters among foes.
Hollander:
A wise man he who hies him betimes from
the man who likes to mock; for at table who teases can never
tell what foe he might have to fight.
Terry:
A man is wise to be far away when one
guest goads another; he may sit at the table in friendly
talk and then learn he laughed with foes.
Thorpe:
Clever thinks himself the guest who
jeers a guest, if he takes to flight. Knows it not certainly
he who prates at meat, whether he babbles among foes.
DISCUSSION AND
ANALYSIS OF STANZA 31
This is another stanza (like stanza 30) that
is approached in a variety of ways by the translators, making it a
little more difficult to
pin down.
Auden and Taylor have a very easy to
understand translations, BUT it differs in meaning from what all the
other translators came up with. So, while I like Auden and
Taylor's translation and think that it contains some great advice,
I'm not sure it actually translates the stanza correctly.
Basically, Auden and Taylor suggest that the wise guest deals with
those who mock him at feast, by smiling his way through it and
ignoring their taunts. In other words, the wise man refuses to
take the bait when his enemies are attempting through words to drive
him to anger or to a fight. Again, good advice...but based on
the other translations, this one seems a
bit off.
Bellows, Bray, and Thorpe all suggest that
the man who mocks another at feast thinks it is wise to then take to
his heels, run from his wrath, or take flight after doing so.
And he thinks it wise, because one never knows if you are feasting
among friends or foes. In other words if you engage in mockery
(or flyting) at a feast, it is best to be careful and flee, for even
though everyone laughs, they may actually be your enemies and take
action against you for what you have done. Bellows, Bray, and
Thorpe seem to be giving advice to the one doing the
mocking itself.
Chisholm, Hollander, Terry go a different
direction, and give advice directly to a person who is simply
present during mockery or a flyting. They suggest that it is
wise to leave the feast once guests begin mocking guests or once one
guest begins to goad another guest. They suggest it is wise to
leave, because you may laugh along and think you are having fun, but
the situation may be very different than you think. You may be
sitting among foes, and by going along with what is happening you
may suffer
for it.
While the various translations make this one
a hard one to pin down. We can take a few very clear meanings
from this. You never quite know who you sit with, and should
be careful not to engage in or go along with what appears to be
friendly mockery or goading. While you think it is all fun and
games, you might sit among enemies or make enemies through your
actions. At the very least, if you do engage in or go along
with what appears to be friendly mockery, flyting, or
goading...don't be surprised when things go badly. You are
better off to leave or refuse to participate when such
activity begins.
I think this is interesting, because we know
that flytings, or structured mockery or verbal challenging did take
place among our ancestors. It was a traditional
practice. But, in an honor-based culture, it probably did not
always go exactly as planned. If one dishonored another, or
went too far, it is possible that they could seek some sort of
vengeance for what was said. They may even laugh along with
you to save some face at the time, and then regain their honor later
through various means. Even among our Gods and Goddesses,
Loki's flyting did not go well for him. He verbally mocked our
Gods and Goddesses in Aegir's hall, and based on his words and
actions there, he was hunted down and bound in the most drastic
of ways.
In modern terms, things have not really
changed much. What was true then is
true today.
Stanza 32 further explains the ideas in
Stanza 31.
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