Reading Response #6

I found this saga enjoyable. It was interesting to “watch” as Ofeig used the power of persuasion and manipulation against the very confederates that were trying to manipulate and ruin his son. Again, the importance of familial ties and loyalty is demonstrated at the lengths Ofeig goes to clear his son of a wrongful charge. It states at the beginning that Ofeig “treated Odd coldly most of the time and cared little for him,” but yet Ofeig still tries to obtain justice for his son (465).

Another element of previous sagas, advice, is also present in this saga. Ofeig tries to give Odd advice or hints at the right thing to do numerous times as the story unfolds, but Odd generally ignores him and learns his lesson the hard way.

The fact that this saga was written after the saga age can be seen in a few ways. First, there is no poetry. While poetry served to give insight into characters’ emotions and explanations for events in past sagas, this absence of emotional presence is made up for through a large amount of conversation between characters. Conversation was never a big aspect of prior sagas, but in this saga it allows the reader to follow the characters, understand their actions, and observe personality traits.

Another way this saga differs from others written during the saga age is the detailed attention it gives to the law and system of justice. Prior sagas, like “Hrafnkel Frey’s Godi,” mentioned the law system and even described it slightly in a few passages, but none went into the depth found in this saga. Much of it takes place during a hearing at the Allthing, showing us how this process worked as well as the corruption of its confederates at the prospect of money.