REDEFINING LIMINALITY IN THE READING OF ICELANDIC SAGAS
REDEFINING LIMINALITY IN THE READING OF ICELANDIC SAGAS

Summary/Abstract: Redefining Liminality in the Reading of Icelandic Sagas. This article introduces a revised and expanded definition of the concept of liminality, with the purpose of utilising it as a methodological tool in the study of the corpus of medieval Icelandic sagas. The paper proposes an alternative interpretation of liminality, distinct from that established in foundational works such as those of Arnold van Gennep and Victor Turner. It argues that liminality does not merely constitute an intermediate phase within a ritual system, but may also represent a state of continuous reconfiguration and metamorphosis, thus, a condition of ambiguity, fluidity, and uncertainty, which can be attributed to physical or mental spaces, individuals, or objects. The article further suggests, in essence, that liminality may manifest both intentionally and unintentionally. Therefore, a key term of this study is the “threshold”, understood as the core of ambiguity and transformation. The paper also analyses representations of the Otherworld within the context of Norse literary tradition, as well as the modalities through which it may be accessed, based on examples from a selection of fornaldarsǫgur, Íslendingasǫgur and þættir.

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