Norse mythology; or, The religion of our forefathers, containing all the myths of the Eddas, systematized and interpretedAnderson, Rasmus Björn
Religion
Norse mythology; or, The religion of our forefathers, containing all the myths of the Eddas, systematized and interpreted
Anderson, Rasmus Björn
Mythology, Norse; Northmen -- Religion; Old Norse literature; Tales, Medieval
It is, however, an encouraging fact that the Teutonic races are
indicating a tendency to emancipate themselves from the fetters of Roman
bondage, and happy should we be if our English words were emancipated
therefrom. We should then use neither _emancipate_, nor _tendency_, nor
_indicate_, but would have enough of Gothic words to use in place of
them. Ay, the signs of the times are encouraging. Look at what is being
done at Oxford and Cambridge, in London and in Edinburgh. Behold what
has been done during these later years by Dasent, Samuel Laing, Thorpe,
Carlyle, Max Müller, Cleasby, Vigfusson, Magnússon, Morris, Hjaltalin,
and others. And look at the publications of the Clarendon press, which
is now publishing Icelandic Sagas in the original text. This is right.
Every scrap of Icelandic and Anglo-Saxon literature must be published,
for we must see what those old heroes, who crushed Rome and instituted a
new order of things, thought in every direction. We must find out what
their aspirations were. To the credit of the Scandinavians it must here
be said, that they began to appreciate their old Icelandic literature
much sooner than the rich Englishman realized the value of the
Anglo-Saxon, and that the English are indebted to Rasmus Rask, the
Danish scholar, for the most valuable contribution to Anglo-Saxon
studies; but it must also be admitted, in the first place, that the
Scandinavians have done far too little for Icelandic, and, in the next
place, that without a preparation in Icelandic, but little progress
could be made in the study of Anglo-Saxon. But England, with its usual
liberality in literary matters, is now rapidly making amends for the
past. And well she might. In the publication of the Icelandic and
Anglo-Saxon literature she is the greatest gainer, for it is nothing
less than a bridge, that will unite her present and past history. Maurer
and Möbius are watching with Argos eyes the interests of Teutonic
studies in Germany.
Greek should be studied, for that is no imitation. It is indigenous. It
is a crystal clear stream flowing unadulterated from the Castalian
fountain of Parnassos. Our warfare, therefore, is not against Greek, but
against Latin. We have suffered long enough with our necks under the
ponderous Roman yoke in all its venous forms; take it as fetters forged
by the Roman emperors, as crosiers in the hands of the Roman popes, or
as rods in the hands of the Roman school-masters. The Goths severed the
fetters of the Roman emperors, Luther and the Germans broke the crosiers
of the Roman popes, but all the Teutons have submissively kissed the rod
of the Roman school-master, although this was the most dangerous of the
three: it was the deadly weapon concealed in the hand of the assassin.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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