Havamal

In the Havamal, there was definitely a lot of "proverbial-esque" poems. I noticed that there was quite a bit of reference to what a 'wise man' does, and I chose my example from that genre. Also, since we all live in a college atmosphere, I would point out the multiple references to ale, alcohol consumption. From what I read in the Havamal, ancient Icelanders valued the ability to show restraint when consuming. However, from what I have read of the sagas, people often times drank excessively and got very drunk. This leads me to the conclusion that the ideal icelander was one who could drink huge amounts of alcohol, and stay sober enough that it appeared he was showing restraint.

Anyway, I took my example from stanza 57:

57. A brand from a brand | is kindled and burned,
And fire from fire begotten;
And man by his speech | is known to men,
And the stupid by their stillness.

I interpret this to mean that similar to how fire is made from flame, and a burn is left by a brand, the words one speaks, or doesn’t speak, determines the impression left on the minds of others. A man is known to others by what comes out of his mouth. As described in many of the other ‘proverbs,’ a wise man remains silent unless he has something of worth to say. The ‘stupid’ man is somewhat contradicted in this example though. In most cases, a stupid man rambles and babbles incessantly, rarely saying something of use. Here, he is still, a trait previously described as belonging to a wise man.