Sprawa honoru albo o męskości w staroislandzkich sagach rodowych
A Matter of Honor. On Masculinity in the Old Icelandic Family Sagas

Summary/Abstract: The paper deals with the concept of masculinity in selected 13th-century Icelandic family sagas (Íslendingasögur). The author argues that the then ethos of aggressive masculinity, based on such values as honor, vengeance, subordination of women, and supremacy over other masculinities, oppressively infl uenced men who wanted to meet the exorbitant demands of medieval Icelandic society in order to avoid social stigmatization and accusations of eff eminacy. The author refers to the notion of “hegemonic masculinity”, a concept proposed by Raewyn Connell in her influential book Masculinities. In the paper, the model of hegemonic masculinity, characterized by the desire to sanction patriarchy and male domination, is confronted with other types of masculinities (subordinate and marginalized masculinities). Therefore, the following issues are also discussed: male initiation and code of honor, violence against women, emotions of the saga protagonists. The author concludes that unwritten orders and prohibitions that were supposed to protect men from dishonor and loss of social position contributed to a repressive system based on heroism and violence.

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