The Saga of Gunnlaug Serpent-Tongue

Something I noticed very shortly into the saga was the usage of the serpent image. Besides Gunnalug's warrranting the same nickname as his grandfather, the serpent appears in some form in nearly every poem. since Gunnlaug and his arch-enemy Hrafn are both poets, there are many poems.

Originally, because Gunnlaug is made to seem like the protagonist, I tried to sympathize with him, and even like him. However, his arrogance and rebellion make him hard to like. I think these traits themselves may hae seemed romantic to Helga, though, and she may have seen him as ambitious, brave, and daring. In his desire for Helga, and his disobedience to Thorstein (who knew of the prophecy) and to his father (to whom Thorstien may have spoke of the prophecy) leads to his own imminent demise.

When Hrafn and Gunnlaug first meet in Sweden, they discover many similarities between themselves, and it also follows that they fall for the same woman. Sadly though, it is clear that Gunnlaug and Helga share a love relationship that Hrafn's greed will never allow him to enter into.

Reading response to the Tales

The Tales seem to be a snapshot of what daily life and auspicious characters were like in early Iceland. The values of the Icelanders are the underlying theme to many of the stories, and the stories slowly define what these people viewed as honorable. Their ideas of honor are slightly different from what I think of in modern America especially regarding revenge, gift-giving, pilgrimages, etc.