Beyond the Codex Regius, Larrington’s 2014 revised edition contains eight non-Codex Regius poems, whereas Crawford’s contains a scant four. Crawford’s videos, often short, feature him discussing Old Norse topics dressed in western wear at scenic locations around the Rocky Mountains.Īlthough Crawford regularly produces content for his YouTube channel, Crawford’s translation is perhaps most notable for what it lacks: Remarkably, like Jeramy Dodds's translation published a year before his own-and unlike most other translations of the Poetic Edda-readers will find no notes in Crawford’s translation. Additionally, Crawford forgoes a Codex Regius poem, Atlamál, in favor of his original composition “Cowboy Hávamal”. However, except in a few cases in the introduction, in which specific systematic changes in orthography and spelling are brought to the reader’s attention, none of these editorial decisions will be visible to the casual reader.Īmerican scholar Jackson Crawford is a former instructor at the University of Colorado Boulder who operates a widely viewed YouTube channel supported by a Patreon account. In almost all cases it should be sufficiently clear to specialists that these changes have been made for purposes of clarity and accessibility, though one might question many individual choices.
In terms of faithfulness to the source material, Crawford has taken various liberties in simplifying and streamlining the text. Saga-Book of the Viking Society for Northern Research, 2017. That being said, a casual reader will likely embrace this volume.
The translation reads well, and it is a great pity that Crawford apparently did not consult other scholarly editions and translations, which would have helped avoid some of the most egregious pitfalls. īecause of the many inaccuracies and mistakes, this is unfortunately not a translation that can be recommended for academic purposes, neither for research nor for teaching. “Review: The Poetic Edda by Jackson Crawford”.
I will most certainly be using this translation when I teach Norse mythology in the future and will recommend it to anyone looking for an approachable introduction to the subject. 22, pp.153-155.Ĭrawford’s knowledge of and passion for the topic is clear throughout, and he strikes an excellent balance between approachability and authenticity. The Poetic Edda: Stories of the Norse Gods and Heroes.” Scandinavian-Canadian Studies/Études Scandinaves au Canada.
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