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From: jpexg@mit-hermes.ARPA (John Purbrick)
Newsgroups: net.books
Subject: Re: NJAL'S SAGA
Message-ID: <2209@mit-hermes.ARPA>
Date: Fri, 2-Nov-84 12:37:25 EST
Article-I.D.: mit-herm.2209
Posted: Fri Nov  2 12:37:25 1984
Date-Received: Sat, 3-Nov-84 22:02:58 EST
References: <197@hocsj.UUCP>
Organization: The MIT AI Lab, Cambridge, MA
Lines: 10


	Funny you should mention the Sagas--I just read Njal's, Egil's and the
Laxdaele Sagas (all in successsion) over the summer. Yes, they're entertaining,
as you say, but the sheer volume of violence is astonishing. Every page is
full of action, like a nice ambush, a pitched battle or two or the cozy 
domestic burning of Njal and his family. All vividly described in a slightly
stylized way. Of the 150-odd characters, maybe three quarters end up dead.
	Did you notice the similarity in style with "Lord of the Rings"?
Tolkien was, of course, a noted expert on Northern European mythology and
folklore.