"Monopoly on violence" always sounds scary, but the alternative is what... A duopoly on violence? It's worth reading Njal's Saga from Iceland. They had a government with no monopoly on violence, and the saga is essentially about an endless blood feud. Short of eliminating violence altogether, restricting it to one institution,…
Njal's Saga was my favorite, so far. With others I've read (Canterbury Tales, Decameron, 1001 Nights) it was mainly the wow-this-is-pretty-different factor keeping me reading.
Tempting, thanks. Wasn't one of the original Norse sagas about Greenland? I haven't read it either, but I can say that Njal's Saga (mainly on Iceland) is very good.
…https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/69730 A few brief mentions: James Joyce's "Ulysses", though I had a tough time getting through it; some of Nathaniel Hawthorne's short stories (e.g. "The Minister's Black Veil"); "Njal's Saga" (I liked the Penguin edition with the translation by Magnusson and Pallson); the great works of classic fantasy (Lord Dunsany, E. R. Eddison, William Morris, Arthur Machen); the essays of Ralph Waldo…
…this theory supported by evidence? Actually I think that a monopoly on violence might be a good thing. The number of bodies that can engage in violence is either 0 or 1, or many. I read a translation of Njal's Saga which takes place in pre-literate Iceland. The erstwhile "government" had no monopoly on violence, except to assign cash damages in lawsuits. What the saga describes is basically a continuous blood feud.
It would be interesting to know how successful the system was. I read a translation of the Icelandic Njal's Saga which deals with the traditional Icelandic legal system. What the book describes is basically a decades long blood feud. They had a system of fines for offenses including murder, but the verdicts never…
“暴力垄断”听上去总是挺吓人，但替代方案是什么呢……双头垄断暴力？冰岛的《尼雅尔萨迦》（Njal's Saga）很值得一读。他们当时的政权没有暴力的垄断权，整部萨迦基本上就是讲一场无休止的血亲复仇。除非彻底消灭暴力，否则将暴力限制在单一机构内……
"Monopoly on violence" always sounds scary, but the alternative is what... A duopoly on violence? It's worth reading Njal's Saga from Iceland. They had a government with no monopoly on violence, and the saga is essentially about an endless blood feud. Short of eliminating violence altogether, restricting it to one institution,…
到目前为止《尼雅尔萨迦》是我的最爱。我读过的其他古典文学（《坎特伯雷故事集》、《十日谈》、《一千零一夜》），基本上只是靠那种“哇这个好新奇”的新鲜感支撑我读下去的。
Njal's Saga was my favorite, so far. With others I've read (Canterbury Tales, Decameron, 1001 Nights) it was mainly the wow-this-is-pretty-different factor keeping me reading.
很诱人，多谢。最初的北欧萨迦里是不是有一部是关于格陵兰的？那部我也没看过，不过我可以肯定地说，《尼雅尔萨迦》（主要讲冰岛）非常棒。
Tempting, thanks. Wasn't one of the original Norse sagas about Greenland? I haven't read it either, but I can say that Njal's Saga (mainly on Iceland) is very good.
……https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/69730 顺便提几部：詹姆斯·乔伊斯的《尤利西斯》，虽然我硬啃得相当痛苦；纳撒尼尔·霍桑的一些短篇小说（比如《牧师的黑面纱》）；《尼雅尔萨迦》（我很喜欢企鹅经典收录的马格努松和帕尔松合译本）；经典奇幻巨作（邓萨尼勋爵、埃迪森、威廉·莫里斯、亚瑟·玛臣）；拉尔夫·沃尔多·爱默生的散文……
…https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/69730 A few brief mentions: James Joyce's "Ulysses", though I had a tough time getting through it; some of Nathaniel Hawthorne's short stories (e.g. "The Minister's Black Veil"); "Njal's Saga" (I liked the Penguin edition with the translation by Magnusson and Pallson); the great works of classic fantasy (Lord Dunsany, E. R. Eddison, William Morris, Arthur Machen); the essays of Ralph Waldo…
……这个理论有证据支持吗？实际上我认为暴力垄断也许是件好事。能够使用暴力的实体数量，要么是 0，要么是 1，要么就是很多个。我读过《尼雅尔萨迦》的译本，背景设定在前文字时代的冰岛。当时的“政府”对暴力没有任何垄断权，顶多只能在诉讼中判决现金赔偿。萨迦所描绘的基本上就是一场连绵不绝的血亲复仇。
…this theory supported by evidence? Actually I think that a monopoly on violence might be a good thing. The number of bodies that can engage in violence is either 0 or 1, or many. I read a translation of Njal's Saga which takes place in pre-literate Iceland. The erstwhile "government" had no monopoly on violence, except to assign cash damages in lawsuits. What the saga describes is basically a continuous blood feud.
要是能知道这套体系到底有多有效倒挺有意思的。我读过冰岛《尼雅尔萨迦》的译本，讲的是冰岛传统的法律制度。书里描写的基本上是一场长达几十年的血亲复仇。他们对于包括谋杀在内的罪行有一套罚款制度，但判决结果往往从没……
It would be interesting to know how successful the system was. I read a translation of the Icelandic Njal's Saga which deals with the traditional Icelandic legal system. What the book describes is basically a decades long blood feud. They had a system of fines for offenses including murder, but the verdicts never…