The Saga of the Confederates

This saga is, in addition to being a depiction of trickery in politics, a portrayal of a certain father-son relationship. Ofeig displays no interest, rather disdain for his son Odd in the beginning of the story and the two have nothing to do with each other. (Odd by the way means sharp edge of an arrow or axe, not wierd in old Norse.) Ofeig then comes to Odd in his time of great need and secures for him a future with possessions, a wife and honor in exchange for a sum of money. Now whether Odd wanted his help or not we don't know, but based on his little work for much gain ethic, he probably appreciated it. Ofeig possibly did all he did for the money, but more likely becuase he recognized that Odd had finally decieded to use his abilities to better himself and therefore his family in life.

The manners in which Ofeig goes about securing Odd's future do not match today's definition of honorable, although both he and Odd were remembered for this with great respect which i found interesting. He divided the confederates against one another as well as went behind the backs of Thorarin and Styrmir to ally with them. I didn't understand all of the technicalities of the saga becuase the legal procedures were not entirely clear to me, and also so many people were double crossing one another that it was difficult to determine what was actually happening. This must have been a very difficult saga to tell and remember accurately.

The Saga of Hrafnkel Frey's Godi

This saga I believe is very telling of the underhandedness and corruption in Viking Iceland. It seems to me that this issue could have been very easily resolved if there had been a judge of some sort to ensure that Hrafnkel never again took part in gross injustices. Also, it registered to me for the first time that there were no jails in Iceland.

I wondered as to why it was Thorbjorn who determined to steadfastly to oppose Hrafnkel when throughout the story he appears to be a rather weak character nonetheless with some great manipulation powers. I especially was curious: why did Thorbjorn choose not to accept his offer rather than eventually sacrificing the lives of his other two sons?

Hrafnkel reminds of a school bully on the playground who enforces the made up "playground rule" of "he who gives warning is not at fault"(ch. 4).

Havamal

Throughout this poem several common themes keep reoccuring. One is silence, and another is honesty. Silence is often referenced in regard to wisdom and the lack thereof. A man who is silent when confronted with unimportant quarrels or when drunk is thought wise, but a man who is always silent is regarded as stupid. Honesty is not assumed nor is it respected necessarily, but the man who discerns between liars and truth-tellers. This surprised me because you would think that in such a close community trust would be essential, but in fact quite the opposite is true.

The party etiquette, and rules for household guests mentioned at the beginning are both similar, and I think their mention bears noting because of the amount and importance of travelling in the Viking Age. Visitors were how knowledge was spread, and welcoming travellers was an essence of survival. The well-travelled were heroes and it also follows that they were thought wise as well.

Stanza 21
A coward believes he will live forever
If he holds back in the battle,
But in old age he shall have no peace
Though spears have spared his limbs

I like this stanza becuase of its timelessness. Even today taking risks and living a full life is highly encouraged, and I always try to take advantage of opportunities.

If you know a friend you can fully trust,
Go often to his house
Grass and brambles grwo quickly
Upon the untrodden track.

This is another timeless saga and is one of a few that actually reiderate the importance of trust and of good friends, not just of avoiding foes.

Saga of Gisli Sursson

This saga is the most interesting story we've read so far to me. At first it was very confusing because of the abundance of characters and places, but as the plot progressed the character development and parallelism became wonderful additions to the saga. Gisli's character is probably slightly exaggerated like the time he, "caught the spear mid-throw and threw it back to spear Outlaw-Stein." However, his character development surprised me in the context of the gore and revenge of the story. Gisli begins by referring to himself in his poems as the warrior and in his last poems as the poet showing the now more prominent side of his character that loves and cherishes. Despite his reputation for being a strong and fearsome warrior, he still holds one of the most universal values: love. His driving force for getting back home is to be with his wife Aud whom he loves, and they stay together until the very end despite all the travesty that has befallen them.