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

by the characters to defend their honor, to avenge someone or establish justice, or to show their sheer ill will toward others.
A Viking’s reputation was crucial in their society because it influenced one’s dealings with others.

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

and his sons, killing them all in defense of his honor (608-609). Ref murders other men to defend not only his honor, but also his wife’s honor. When Grani attempts to sleep with Helga, Ref chases him away from the house and kills him. Helga tells Ref to let Grani go, but he is determined to defend her honor (619). In addition to killing others in defense of honor, some Vikings killed to keep their word and remain honorable individuals. In “The Saga of Hrafnkel Frey’s Godi,” Hrafnkel promises to kill anyone who rides Freyfaxi without his permission. Because Hrafnkel has promised half of Freyfaxi to Frey, the god, he is determined to keep his word by killing anyone who rides the horse. If he breaks his oath to Frey by letting a forbidden rider live, he will be a less honorable man. Hrafnkel kills Einar for riding Freyfaxi, but he is sorry he had to do so. He comments to Thorbjorn, “I regard this deed as one of the worst acts I have committed” (443). Although Hrafnkel regrets he had to kill Einar, he still finds it more important that he maintain his honorable status in his relationship toward Frey. While Hrafnkel and Ref killed many people, they did so in defense of their honor.
While Ref and Hrafnkel may have seen their murders as justified, those who sought revenge for the murders saw their own murders as justified.

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

revenge.
While killing for revenge and for honor are most common in the Viking sagas, some murders are committed out of sheer ill will. A unique example of killing out of ill will exists in “The Saga of the Greenlanders.” Freydis breaks an agreement with her brothers, and she refuses to let them stay in the houses Leif lends her. Her brothers remark that they “will never be a match for your ill-will” (649). Freydis lies to her men about her brothers and convinces them to kill all of their men. Her men refuse to kill the women, however, so she takes an axe and cuts them down herself (650). Killing a woman was dishonorable in Viking society because women were often merely homemakers. Freydis takes pride in her deception of her men and the killing of all her brothers’ men and women. The author writes, “Freydis was highly pleased with what she had accomplished” (650). The murders committed by Freydis are unique because they are malicious in nature, and they involve the relentless killing of innocent women.
Characters in "The Saga of the Greenlanders," "The Saga of Ref the Sly," and "The Saga of Hrafnkel Frey's Godi" commit murder to defend their honor, to avenge someone or establish justice, or to show their sheer ill will toward others. Regardless of the motivation for the murders, each murder has the same result. The Viking sagas provide examples of murders committed for different reasons, showing that Vikings were not ruthless brutes who murdered purely because they could. While the Vikings were in a way a warrior society, their main focus was not on murder and pillaging. When the Vikings did kill others, they usually had just reasons.