Vikings-- commonly thought of as barbaric marauders, who would steal one’s gold, sacrifice a goat to depraved nature gods and then have a hearty celebration with some ‘mead’. Though this is a very misconceived generalization, every stereotype has a grain of truth to its credit. The Norse tale, Egil’s Saga, sheds light on the realities of Norse life-- affirming and disproving Viking stereotypes.
Egil’s Saga reinforces the idea of a wide, warrior oriented culture. People seem to prize toughness, especially in battle, at the start Egil bragged about his accomplishments in the battlefield. Conversely, people seem to disregard weakness, even among elders-- very much in contrast to other theologies like Confucian principles-- when an aged Egil fell