Slow Havamal: 20

In the 20th verse, we’re cautioned that if he isn’t careful, a gluttonous man will harm himself by eating too much, and that wise men will make fun of the fool for his belly.

It’s important for me to remember that even while I get so much richness from these verses as allegory, they are also useful as straightforward, literal advice. An allegorical reading reveals more about the reader, while the literal words, pre-inference, are all I can really be sure of. Did the poet intend these verses purely as folk advice? Did he embed his own meanings in the metaphors? Or intend for them to be open-ended so that readers could find their own? We’ll never know, but my stance is that we all make our own meanings, even of literal words, and if I can benefit in an unintended way, what’s wrong with that?
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