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The
discussion and analysis presented after these
translated stanzas is our
opinion. Read the translations for yourself and our analysis, but also seek
out varied sources and come to your own conclusions.
STANZA 32 OF THE
HAVAMAL
Auden & Taylor:
The fastest friends may fall out When
they sit at the banquet-board: It is, and shall be, a shameful
thing When guest quarrels with guest,
Bellows:
Friendly of mind | are many men, Till
feasting they mock at their friends; To mankind a bane | must it
ever be When guests together strive.
Bray:
Oft, though their hearts lean towards one
another, friends are divided at table; ever the source of
strife 'twill be, that guest will anger guest.
Chisholm:
Many a man is being friendly when he
teases at the table. There is always strife when guest clashes
with guest.
Hollander:
Many a man means no ill, yet teases the
other at table; strife will ever start amongsth men when guest
clashes with guest.
Terry:
Even friends fond of each other will
fight at table; nothing will ever bring to an end the strife
of men at meals.
Thorpe:
Many men are mutually
well-disposed, yet at table will torment each other. That
strife will ever be; guest will guest irritate.
DISCUSSION AND
ANALYSIS OF STANZA 32
I think Stanza 32 further explains or
expounds on the same basic message of
stanza 31.
Lines 1 and 2 basically say, even two men
who are friends or who like each other, may end up fighting or
tormenting each other at the feasting table. Chisholm and
Hollander even suggest that men may tease or mock each other in a
friendly way, but it can still end badly regardless of their
friendly intentions.
Lines 3 and 4 suggest that strife always
results when a guest clashes with another guest. Bray's
translation suggests that the source of strife will always be when
one guest
angers another.
Again, in an honor based culture, one must
be careful about teasing or mocking one another publicly. If
you dishonor another guest, even with friendly intentions, they will
be forced to defend or regain their honor. And this can result
in conflict or
even bloodshed.
In modern terms, this is good advice.
We all like to give our friends a friendly ribbing now and
again. But, there is a time and place. It is one thing
to tease your friend or give him crap about something when you
are among your kin or kindred. In the right circumstance,
everyone will laugh including the person being teased...and it can
serve as a way that good friends bond with
one another.
But the exact same teasing or giving
someone crap in front of outsiders or those you don't know as
well can cause a completely different reaction. For instance,
in Jotun's Bane Kindred we give each other crap fairly often
when the kindred is gathered together. We laugh, trade a bit
of mockery, and no one has any problem with it. But, when we
hold a public event or travel to a heathen gathering, we don't mock
or tease each other in the same way in front of people we don't know
as well. To do so, would shift things from friendly joking to
insulting your friend in front of people he or she does not
know. And you just don't
do that.
You also have to be aware of the mood of
your friends or family when dishing out a bit of teasing. Even
more so if you are joking around with someone you don't know as
well. Being empathetic to the mood and mindset of someone
you are interacting with, is a key part of successful social
interaction
with them.
The same goes for spouses. Spouses
tease each other frequently, and chuckle about it. But if the
same things were said at a dinner party in front of near-strangers,
it would be inappropriate and likely lead to a fight. There is
a strong difference between teasing among friends and loved ones in
private, and tearing down a friend or loved-one in front of
other people.
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