A Work in Progress

Reading Kristin Lavransdatter - Week 1

One week down.  130+ pages read.  I have a feeling that it might not take three months to read Kristin Lavransdatter--all three books.  I'm not sure if it is Tiina Nunnally's excellent translation, but I have found it quite easy to lose myself in Kristin's story.  Rather than stopping at my one chapter a day, I am finding myself wanting to continue on and read more. 

The first book of the novel (there are three: The Wreath, The Wife and The Cross) is made up of three sections.  I am now working on the second section of the first book.  The story of Kristin Lavransdatter is played out against the rich tapestry of 14th century Norway.  According to the reader's guide:

"The trilogy is more than a journey into the past. Undset's own life—her familiarity with Norse sagas and folklore and with a wide range of medieval literature, her experiences as a daughter, wife, and mother, and her deep religious faith—profoundly influenced her writing. Her grasp of the connections between past and present and of human nature itself, combined with the extraordinary quality of her writing, sets her works far above the genre of 'historical novels'."

The story begins with a 7-year old Kristin traveling with her father to their mountain pastures where she will encounter the "elf maiden".  This is a frightening experience for her and her father.  Although Christianity is already emerging, pagan/Norse myths must also have still been rampant.  I get the feeling that Christianity is going to be an underlying theme throughout the novel.  Undset herself was a convert to Catholicism.  Kristin seems to have a particularly strong bond with and respect for her father.  As always, I hate to give away too many details of the story.  I will say Kristin is about 15 when she meets the man she will fall in love with, despite the fact that she is already betrothed.  You can already see trouble ahead, which will no doubt play out in the next two novels.  This is where I am at in my reading.

Undset wrote these novels in the early 1920s--the modernist era of literature.  I thought it was interesting when I read (also in the reader's guide) that Undset's approach was that of realism rather than romanticism.

"In depicting her country's vanished culture, Undset, like others in the Modernist era, rejected the romantic view of the past prevalent in mid-nineteenth century literature, music, and art—from Tennyson's fanciful retelling of the Arthurian legends, Idylls of the King to Wagner's musical interpretations of Germanic myths to the dreamy paintings of the Pre-Raphaelite artists. Her realistic, unvarnished approach, as A.H. Winsnes notes in his biography, Sigrid Undset: A Study in Christian Realism, has led many scholars to call her 'The Zola of Middle Ages'. Undset's ability to present a meticulously accurate historical portrait without sacrificing the poetry and narrative drive of masterful storytelling was particularly significant in her homeland."

For those who are also reading, how is it going?  Are you finding the writing easy and accessible?  Are you enjoying the story?  I will post the questions from the reader's guide for The Wreath below, as they might come in handy to think about while we read.  I actually have only read some of the questions as I'm not sure if there are any spoilers.

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The Wreath

1. The Wreath is set at a time of transition in Norway: Christianity, which had been introduced in the late tenth century, was spreading, but the older pagan forms of worship and belief lingered. How does Undset's description of Kristin's encounter with the elf maiden [p. 19]—and Lavrans' reaction to it—epitomize the collision of the old and new belief systems? What other examples are there of the family's inability to abandon age-old traditions and superstitions despite their devout Christianity? For instance, what is the significance of Fru Aashild's attempt to cure Ulvhild when the prayers of the parish priest fail to work the miracle Rangfrid longs for?
    
2. Does Kristin acquiesce too readily to her father's selection of Simon as her future husband? Does she agree to the betrothal because she feels genuine affection for Simon or is she primarily motivated by her love and respect for her father? How does Kristin's relationship with Arne deepen your understanding of the social attitudes and assumptions she lives by? Why does Simon's sympathetic and compassionate reaction when her reputation is questioned increase Kristin's ambivalence toward him?
    
3. Discuss Undset's use of elements drawn from medieval ballads, chivalric legends, fairy tales, and other traditional stories in her depiction of Kristin and Erlend's meeting and courtship. What particular motifs do you recognize? What themes, events, or characters represent Christian beliefs? How do these "archetypal scripts" enrich the story for readers? In what ways do Undset's narrative style, her depiction of the natural world, and her language create further links to the past and its storytelling traditions?
    
4. Which one of Kristin's two suitors appeals to you more and why? How do their attitudes about Kristin—and about love and marriage—differ? In what ways are they similar? Are there contradictions between traditional standards of morality and those imposed by the Church? Does Erlend take advantage of Kristin's innocence and inexperience or does she share equal responsibility for initiating their love affair? To what extent does the very secrecy of their relationship strengthen the tie between Kristin and Erlend? Why does Lavrans finally to consent to the marriage? What impact do the pleas—as well as the suggestive comments—of Erlend's noble kinsmen [p. 250] have on his decision? Why does Kristin begin to have doubts after her betrothal to Erlend is announced?
    
5. Kristin, Aashild, and Eline all sacrifice their reputations and moral integrity when they give into their sexual longings. Were their transgressions justified in the light of subsequent events? Do their lovers suffer to the same extent from the condemnation of society and the pangs of conscience? Does Undset's depiction of the consequences of adultery reflect the moral conventions of the time or does it represent a more universal truth?

Kristin L. and a Note on Translations

I had hoped to finish a few more books before starting KL than I've managed, but I'm ready to go anyway.  I might jump in tonight and read a little, but tomorrow I will officially begin dragging it about with me!  I will be reading the new translation by Tiina Nunnally.  Nunnally won the PEN/Book-of-the-Month Club Translation Prize for this.  There is another translation out there, however.  I always find it interesting comparing translations.  So here goes:

"When the earthly goods of Ivar the Younger of Sundbu were divided up in the year 1306, his property at Sil was given to his daughter Ragnfrid and her husband Lavrans Bjorgulfson.  Before that time they had lived at Skog, Lavrans manor in Follo near Oslo, but now they moved to Jorundgaard, high on the open slope at Sil.

Lavrans belonged to a lineage that here in Norway was known as the sons of Lagmand.  It originated in Sweden with a certain Laurentius Ostgotelagman, who abducted the Earl of Bjelbo's sister, the maiden Bengta, from Vreta cloister and fled to Norway with her.  Herr Laurentius served King Haakon the Old, and was much favored by him; the king bestowed on him the manor Skog.  But after he had been in this country for eight years, he died of a lingering disease, and his widow, a daughter of the house of the Folkungs whom the people of Norway called a king's daughter returned home to be reconciled with her kinsman.  She later married a rich man in another country.  She and Herr Laurentius had had no children, and so Laurentius's brother Ketil inherited Skog.  He was the grandfather of Lavrans Bjorgulfson." (Tiina Nunnally translation)

My library has the older translation by Charles Archer:

"When the lands and goods of Ivar Gjesling the younger, or Sundbu, were divided after his death in 1306, his lands in Sil of Gudbrandsdal fell to his daughter Ragnfrid and her husband Lavrans Bjorgulfson.  Up to then they had lived on Lavran's manor of Skog at Follo, near Oslo; but now they moved up to Jorundgaard at the top of the open lands of Sil.

Lavrans was of the stick that was known in this country as the Lagmandssons.  It had come here from Sweden with that Laurentius, Lagmand of East Gothland, who took the Belbo Jarl's sister, the Lady Bengta, out of Vreta convent, and carried her off to Norway.  Sir Laurentius lived at the Court of King Haakon the old, and won great favour with the King, who gave him the Skog manor.  But when he had been in this country about eight years he died in his bed, and his widow, who belonged to the Folkunga kindred, and had the name of a King's daughter among the Norwegians, went home and made matters up with her relations.  Afterwards she made a rich marriage in another land.  She and Sir Laurentius had no children, so the heritage of Skog fell to Laurentius' brother, Ketil.  He was father's father to Lavrans Bjorgulfson."  (Charles Archer translation).

In the translator's introduction to my edition Nunnally writes:

"The three volumes of Kristin Lavransdatter were translated into English in the 1920s, but the translaters chose to impose an artificially archaic style on the text, which completely misrepresented Undset's beautifully clear prose.  They filled her novels with stilted dialogue (using words such as 'tis, 'twas, I trow, thee, thou, hath, and doth), and they insisted on a convoluted syntax."

It sounds as though the original translators also may have left out passages they thought too sexually explicit for readers at that time.  Nunnally says there were a total of eighteen pages left out, some with key passages.  I am glad to hear this modern edition has not left out anything from the original, and tone of the author's original intent and prose is as it reads in the Norwegian.  Is everyone else reading the Nunnally translation?

Ready to Start: Reading Kristin Lavransdatter

I pulled Sigrid Undset's Kristin Lavransdatter off the shelf last night.  I am still planning on reading it now that I have finished Don Quixote.  I thought I would save it for September and plan to finish by the end of the year (if not sooner).  I think, however, that with two challenges starting September 1st and two book club books up for discussion as well, I might as well start sooner and get a little head start on it.

It will be my new "bus" book (I'll be reading it on my morning ride to work), taking Don Quixote's place.  It's a bit hefty with just over 1,100 pages.  The deluxe edition is really gorgeous, though.  I hope it doesn't get too beat up with my dragging it about.  The cover and pages are heavier than those of DQ.  Actually the pages are nice and have a glossy feel to them, which makes it a pleasure to hold.  And I love the cover design.  The photo really doesn't do it justice.  It has a folkish sort of illustration that you might see on Scandinavian furniture.  Although it might seem a little overwhelming--the sheer size of it, I plan on keeping in mind that it is really three books in one edition.  I can easily take a break in between books if necessary.  They books run between 300-400 pages each.  I'm really looking forward to reading it.

I decided I would read the introduction--something I generally try and avoid.  The first section deals with the plot, and not surprisingly details are given away (so beware if you choose to read it before reading the book).  I really do wish editors would save these spoilers for after the story and put this section in the back of the book or give a warning ahead of time (I should have known better though).  I think it is the small details making up the story that will be more important to me rather than the bigger ones. 

What I was more interested in was reading more about in the introduction was Undset herself, who I know nothing about.  She was born in Denmark in 1882 to a Danish mother and a Norwegian father.  She grew up in Norway, however.  Her father was an archaeologist and her mother was his secretary and illustrator.  Sigrid likely was used to being around antiquities, and it was perhaps there that she picked up her love of writing historical fiction.  She published the first book of Kristin Lavransdatter in 1920 with the other books following shortly thereafter.  She won the Nobel in 1928 at the age of 46.

"...Undset received the Nobel Prize, chiefly for her medieval epics. She surmounted every obstacle.  In sales, number of translations, significant honors and reader loyalty, Sigrid Undset in 1928 was probably the most successful woman writer in the world."

I thought it was interesting to read that she gave all the Nobel Prize money she earned to charity.  Later when the Soviets invaded Finland she sold her Novel medallion to support a relief fund to help Finnish children.  She sounds like an intriguing person and I will have to see what else I can read about and by her that has been translated into English.  I'm not sure what else I'll be able to get my hands on.

Last time I mentioned I would be reading KL, there was some interest in reading along.  I realize there are all sorts of challenges in the works right now (a couple of which I have signed up for as well) and no doubt piles of other books waiting to be read.  Let me know if you are still interested, however. I'd like to start reading on Monday.  Of course is there is enough interest I'm sure we can work out some sort of a schedule or figure out a way to discuss the book online. 

Edited:  It looks like a few people might want to read in a group.  How would you like to approach this?  I'm not sure if there is enough interest to start a separate blog?  Honestly I am not always good at posting other places (rather than here) on a regular basis, though I do like reading the posts (like those on the Don Quixote Tilting at Windmills blog, but I would still be open to it if everyone would like to.  I could post here each Sunday (or whatever day would be easiest) and we could have a discussion via the comment section?  Or we could all choose a day to post and read each other's posts?  I'd like to keep it as simple as possible, so any ideas are welcome.  As there are three books I was thinking it would be nice to read one book a month, though it might read much faster than that.  Mostly I thought it would be nice to have some sort of group to keep everyone reading and be able to ask questions or talk about what we're reading.