Having ones way with a good looking woman means more than a peerage to the man in this verse. Interestingly, as this poem is called supposedly written by ‘The High One’, which is one of Odin’s names, it’s highly likely that this is how he feels about women, i.e. on some occasions he is almost besotted with them. Yet as some other verses attest to his attraction to them is tempered by his awareness of their character. Take these few lines from verse 90 for instance:
The love of women
who are deceitful in spirit
is like riding a smooth-shod horse
on slippery ice,
This shows that despite his occasional carnal desire for them he is well aware of what their character is like, meaning that he is not pedestalizing them like White Knights do.
97
Billings mey
ek fann beðjum á
sólhvíta sofa
jarls ynði
þótti mér ekki vera
nema við þat lík at lifa
[2] I found her in bed,
[1] Billingr's kinswoman,
sun-white, asleep;
a jarl's delight
seemed nothing to me,
unless I could live with that body.
[End.]
No comments:
Post a Comment