The Nordic Saga Essay

Erik the Red was a Norwegian Viking that was born in the 10th Century C.E, and his life contributed significantly to the outstanding legacy of the Vikings through his explorations. It is through the discovery of Greenland and its later settlement that cast Erik the Red’s legendary adventures into folklore. These two events are how Erik the Red played his role in Viking history, not through warfare, but through explorations. The adventures undertaken, and the feats achieved by Erik the Red cement his place in Viking History.

The Norse tale of Ragnarok presents an interesting example of apocalyptic literature by providing both an end and a unique beginning. The world which rises from the cosmic rubble seems to be essentially equivalent to that which the apocalypse destroyed, possessing the same creatures, features and Gods of times past. This considered, and by incorporating themes of time and fate, Snorri challenges the concepts of the past, present and future of Norse lore by providing a framework which allows for the potential reiteration of history. By reviewing The Prose Edda’s telling of the events surrounding Ragnarok, the relationship between fate, time and history provide a unique alternative to the standard eschatological timeline.

From a plethora of many authors and compilations over many centuries comes the fourteenth century The Thousand and One Nights, a Middle Eastern frame story during which there are as many as four implanted stories. In the outermost frame of this tale, a king who is betray by his wife vows to take a new wife each night and kill her the next morning in order to prevent further unfaithfulness. The main inner frame are stories from one of his wives which she continues each night to keep the king interested and thus postpone her death. Through these stories, the reader can examine the role of men and women in this time, specifically how women function in conjunction to men in the text. The reader may assume the men are superior while the woman are inferior, but through close reading of the text, the reader will discover that women in the text are only treated subordinately by men in the story but are revealed to the reader as the more powerful of the sexes. Authors reveal the power of women by their prowess at trickery or “women’s cunning” (The Thousand 1181), and their ability to force the actions of male counterparts. The reader can examine men’s attempt to stifle this power, which further acknowledges the women’s merit, through the excessively frequent occurring instances of men treating the women as insignificant, as well as instances when women are turned to ungulate animals, such

Did you know there is a great controversy with today’s society, putting men over women? It is sparking debates across the world on why men are thought to be stronger and be able to do more activities than women. There is an ongoing debate between men and women on equality. Beowulf and contemporary culture assert their masculinity through physical strength, financial wealth, honor, perseverance, reputation, and intelligence.

Beowulf is an epic tale written over twelve hundred years ago. In the poem, several different female characters are introduced, and each woman possesses detailed and unique characteristics. The women in Beowulf are portrayed as strong individuals, each of whom has a specific role within the poem. Some women are cast as the cup-bearers and gracious hostesses of the mead halls, such as Wealhtheow and Hygd, while others, Grendel's mother, fulfill the role of a monstrous uninvited guest. The woman's role of the time period, author's attitude, and societal expectations for women are evidenced throughout the poem.

     There are many similarities between the hero of the poem Beowulf and the heroes of the two Icelandic sagas, The Saga of The Volsungs and The Saga of King Hrolf Kraki. The former saga is an Icelandic saga representing oral traditions dating back to the fourth and fifth centuries, when Attila the Hun was fighting on the northern fringes of the Roman Empire; the latter is an Icelandic saga representing 1000 years of oral traditions prior to the 1300’s when it was written.

Women have had many different roles in the history of European literature but have generally been restricted to the roles assigned to them in a largely patriarchal society. As a result of this society, these roles have often been powerless ones. This calls into question the constitution of a powerful woman in literature: in Beowulf, being a powerful woman means becoming the bond between families and alliances; in Lanval, power comes from assertion and control-- a powerful woman is a woman in charge. The primary difference between the representation of women in Beowulf and Lanval is that the latter transcends overarching patriarchal boundaries, and the former does not; the reason for their respective representations lies in the literary time periods in which the stories were written. From this, one can see that the introduction of romance as a central theme gave way to new representations and roles of women in predominantly heteropatriarchal English literature and gives new meaning to the analysis of stories like these.

Although traditional Anglo-Saxon society emphasizes on patriarchal views, women play significant roles in “Beowulf”, challenging the masculinity presented. This is portrayed through Wealhtheow, Hildeburh and Freawaru, and Grendel’s mother through their hospitality, their peace weaving, and their anger. In contrast to the stereotype of women being submissive and compliant, “Beowulf” brings new light to the idea of women. An example of hospitality is when Wealhtheow, queen to Hrothgar, is a hostess for people in the hall, allowing all the nobles there to drink and have an appropriate celebration for the event.

Beowulf and “The Wife of Bath’s Tale” are both narratives in which gender acts as an important theme within their individual communities; yet they use different tools to define the roles of men and women within a good community. Or, in other words, both stories paint a vivid picture of the role of women, by suggesting that one gender had more power over the other. However, these two narratives vary in their expression of such views; Beowulf conveys its message through what is missing, while “The Wife of Bath’s Tale” incorporates satire and uses explicit narrative when relaying the experience of a woman that is highly different from that of other women of her time. Furthermore, another difference that is apparent to the reader is that men become the heroes in Beowulf, while “the wife” becomes

In her foundational study “Language, Sign and Gender in Beowulf,” Gillian Overing focuses on female signification into Anglo-Saxon culture. She states that since Anglo-Saxon culture is war and death-oriented, women are not a natural fixture of the heroic system—thus, none of the peace-weavers in Beowulf are successful at the task. She asserts that the women who function as peace-weavers are either silent, are not given acknowledgement for their work, or disappear

Wealhtheow is a strong character, shown to be both clever and capable in her responsibilities as peace-weaver and hostess, and plays a vital part in the epic. Conversely, Grendel’s mother is far from playing the part of the senseless fiend, as modern day readers may view her, and functions as both an incorporation of gender roles and, perhaps more significantly, a cautionary tale to society if the feuding becomes unmediated by the women whose role it is to keep the peace. If one is to comprehend the Beowulf Anglo-Saxon culture, it is necessary to avoid surface level analysis of both its women and men. A generalizing of the themes of Beowulf into a short quip of ‘men are powerful, women are weak’ does injury both to Beowulf as a piece of literature and Anglo-Saxon society as a whole. The theme and characters of the poem, even those who appear for only a handful of lines, are far too complex to be reduced to simple caricatures.

Yet again, we see political power among women when Hygd tries to pass the kingdom onto Beowulf. After his death, she steps in and tries to make important decisions that her late husband would have made. These examples all show that these women in the play are not benign at all. These women host men in the hall, give gifts, and even have a say in politics

As an epic tale of heroes and monsters, Beowulf gives its readers much excitement and adventure, but Beowulf's importance is more than just literary. It offers many insights into the beliefs and customs of seventh-century Anglo-Saxon culture. Among these insights is the Anglo-Saxon view of women and their role in society. Good Anglo-Saxon women are peaceful and unassertive, greeting guests and serving drinks to the warriors and other men in the meadhall. Wealhtheow, the queen of the Danes, represents a typical subservient Anglo-Saxon woman. As a foil to Wealhtheow, Grendel's mother is a strong and combative monster whom Beowulf must kill. By analyzing these two characters in Beowulf, we can understand the

During the Anglo-Saxon period, women were seen as inferior to the man, even though they had certain responsibilities to carry out that had a positive influence on the society. Aside from their specific responsibilities, they did whatever they were told by their husbands the women were not allowed to disagree or question him; any sign of insubordination would be considered in adequate. They were to attain dignity and give the upmost respect to their husband by taking on the role as a wife. In addition, many of the women, if mentioned in a story or conversation, would be referred to as “wife”, “daughter”, opposed to their actual name. An example of this is present where the narrator stated “He was four times a father, this father prince: one by they entered the world, Heorogar, Hrothgar, the good Halga and a daughter, I have heard…” (7).

Most readers of the famed Irish and Welsh tales focus on the male characters and their great feats. Celtic literature, however, features a full complement of female characters that deserve recognition; from warriors and rulers, to helpmates and daughters. These women function as either their own entity, or extensions of their male relations. All play crucial roles in their perspective texts, essentially driving the action of the plot and setting into motion a series of events that affect the male characters.