Reputation in The Sagas
The figure which Eric became in the Norse sagas is a heady mix of history, folklore and political propaganda. He is usually portrayed as a larger-than-life Viking hero, whose powerful and violent performances bring him many short-term successes, but ultimately make him flawed and impopular as a ruler and statesman. The Heimskringla describes Eric as “a large and handsome man, strong and of great prowess, a great and victorious warrior," but also "violent of disposition, cruel, gruff, and taciturn." The synoptic histories (Theodoricus, the Historia Norwegiae and Ágrip) to some degree seek to excuse Eric’s cruelty and fall out of favour with the Norwegian nobility by pointing out another weakness, that of his naive faith in the evil counsels of his wife.
Read more about this topic: Eric Bloodaxe
Famous quotes containing the words reputation in and/or reputation:
“From the moment a child begins to speak, he is taught to respect the word; he is taught how to use the word and how not to use it. The word is all-powerful, because it can build a man up, but it can also tear him down. That’s how powerful it is. So a child is taught to use words tenderly and never against anyone; a child is told never to take anyone’s name or reputation in vain.”
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