The Sagas

The Icelandic Sagas were written mostly between the late 12^th and 14^th Centuries. While some of the sagas concern Viking adventures or other heroic tales, many concern characters that are more common people and describe the farming-based economy of that era. Their themes are of justice and virtue as well as courage and bravado.

Often there is little indication of who authored any particular saga, and the works can be difficult to date accurately. Also, because the stories in the sagas were derived from oral histories, there has been extensive debate as to exactly what in them is fact and what is fiction. But regardless of such academic questions, the Icelandic Sagas do contain much material that is important in helping us understand what the lives and voyages of the Vikings were like.

Following in 3 parts is a dramatized account of several significant viking personages and their historic voyages to Vinland (the Viking term for North America.) The narrative takes the form of a monk interviewing an old seafarer named Thorfinn in order to write a saga about his tales. These stories resemble those found in the Vinland Sagas, which were actually two separate works (the Greenlander’s Saga and Erik the Red’s Saga) that were composed in the 13^th Century.

Part I tells the story of the fierce-tempered Erik the Red and his expeditions in Greenland. In Part II we meet Leif Eriksson, the son of Erik the Red, and learn about his voyage to Vinland. Finally, Part III describes the journey of Karlsefni and Gudrid and their adventures with the "skraelings."

Part I "Erik the Red" | Part II "Leif Eriksson" | Part III "Karlsefni and Gudrid"