Ref The Sly And The Saga Of The Vikings

When one imagines a Viking, one may picture a large, brutish man who goes on raids and senselessly kills others. Vikings were much more complex than this, however. Vikings were traders, craftsmen, and farmers, and their actions were often dictated by practical necessity. The Vikings did murder others, sometimes in mass, but they often had reasons for doing so. The Icelandic sagas show how often fighting arose in Viking life, some senseless and some just. While the act of murdering someone ultimately results in the death of that individual, the murderers in the Viking sagas are driven by different forms of motivation. The murders in "The Saga of the Greenlanders," "The Saga of Ref the Sly," and "The Saga of Hrafnkel Frey's Godi" are committed

Some sagas mention the use of slander to sabotage those who had good reputations. In such cases, it was not uncommon for Vikings who had been slandered to act in defense of their reputation and their honor. In “The Saga of Ref the Sly,” Ref commits many murders in an effort to defend his honor and cease the slander going around about him. When Ref refuses to wrestle Gellir, Gellir hits Ref in the shoulders and head, bragging that he dealt two strong blows to Ref and saying Ref would not avenge it (604). Gellir’s bragging makes Ref seem weak, but Ref decides to act like nothing happened. Ref waits for the right moment to defend his honor, however, and he deals Gellir his death blow (604). Although this action is outright murder, Ref’s motivation is to defend his honor, and his uncle responds to his actions by saying, “When I heard…that Gellir had struck you two blows, I would have preferred that you respond like this” (605). In Greenland, Ref defends his honor against the Thorgilssons. Ref encounters a polar bear while weaponless, so he returns to his boat-shed to get his adze. The Thorgilssons, however, see this movement as Ref running away from the bear, so they begin calling him “Ref the Timorous” and “Ref the Effeminate” (607). These brothers continue to spread such slanderous names and tales around Greenland. After fashioning a large spear, Ref skillfully attacks Thorgils

Viking men such as these committed murders in order to get revenge or establish justice. King Harald sends his men after Ref following Grani’s death in “The Saga of Ref the Sly.” While these men do not get the better of Ref, their intention is to kill him to avenge Grani’s death. In “The Saga of Hrafnkel Frey’s Godi,” the Thjostarssons push Freyfaxi off a cliff because he was the source of the issue involving Einar’s death. Thorgeir says, “…this stallion doesn’t seem any better to me than any other horses…he is worse since he’s been the cause of so much trouble” (455). Although Freyfaxi is a horse, the Thjostarssons view killing him as a justified form of