Red lines, once drawn, are meant never to be crossed. Grey lines, however, are a different matter altogether, as this paper intends to show. The first part analyses the becoming of order and its implications. The second part explores options of circumventing order and subduing chaos to achieve what would be impossible by any other means as well as the consequences of this. Examples from Old Norse sources will be used to illustrate these concepts.
Originally presented at the workshop Bad Guys and Wicked Girls in Munich, December 2015.
In this paper I examine the role space plays in taboo phenomena in Old Norse literature. After a brief overview of what constitutes a taboo, and how taboos can be grouped typologically, we will analyse taboo-related phenomena from a wide range of sources. This will also include examples of alleged spatial taboos that according to our typology must be dismissed as non-spatial or mere prohibitions. Finally, we shall look into how space in a metaphorical sense plays a role even in taboos that are not strictly spatial.
Originally presented at The 16th International Saga Conference in Zurich and Basel, August 2015.