On Fate, Doom, and Obedience in the Volsung cycle

The representation of kinship structure as a curse

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to contrast Vǫlsunga saga with the sources used by its author to develop his work. We will focus especially on Reginsmál and the differences presented by both narratives in the representation of Hreiðmarr’s family. It will be shown that the variations between both sources serve to emphasize two fundamental patterns of the saga: on the one hand, it accentuates the overestimation of kinship relationships and shows the obligations that arise from its structure as inexorable duties. Conversely, it highlights the harmful nature of the curse of Andvari’s treasure on the family structure. Later we will argue that these two dynamics do not act in isolation, but rather lend themselves to comparison. We will see that kinship structure is equated with doom, insofar as its obligations are as negative and inevitable as the curse of Andvari’s gold. Finally, the meaning of the work will be related to its context of production. It will be argued that the function of Vǫlsunga saga is to punish a certain order of things that threatens good practices as well as the ideologies of the system that it is intended to legitimize.