The Myths and Realities of the Viking Berserkr

Description

The Viking berserkr is an iconic warrior normally associated with violent fits of temper and the notorious berserksgangr or berserker frenzy. This book challenges the orthodox view that these men went ‘berserk’ in the modern English sense of the word. It examines all the evidence for medieval perceptions of berserkir and builds a model of how the medieval audience would have viewed them. Then it extrapolates a Viking Age model of berserkir from this model, and supports the analysis with anthropological and archaeological evidence, to create a new and more accurate paradigm of the Viking Age berserkr and his place in society. This shows that berserkir were the champions of lords and kings, members of the social elite, and that much of what is believed about them is based on seventeenth-century and later scholarship and mythologizing: the medieval audience would have had a very different understanding of the Old Norse berserkr from that which people have now. The book sets out a challenge to rethink and reframe our perceptions of the past in a way that is less influenced by our own modern ideas. The Myths and Realities of the Viking berserkr will appeal to researchers and students alike studying the Viking Age, Medieval History and Old Norse Literature. Cover Half Title Series Page Title Page Copyright Page Dedication Contents Figures Acknowledgements Abbreviations and Explanatory Notes Bibliographical abbreviations used in the footnotes Explanatory notes Introduction Notes 1. Defining the berserkr Old Norse literature Earliest references The roles of berserkir The king's berserkr The hall-challenging berserkr The hólmgǫngumaðr or duellist The viking berserkr The Christian berserkr Conclusion Notes 2. The monstrous berserkr What makes the berserkr monstrous? Ethnicity Monstrous names The Íslendingasögur The fornaldarsögur Medieval usage of the byname berserkr Conclusions The attributes of berserkir Walking through fire Invulnerability Sword-blunting gaze Shield-biting Howling Foaming at the mouth Summing up the attributes Animal mimesis and shapeshifting Conclusion Notes 3. Berserksgangr: fit or frenzy? The etymology of berserksgangr Berserksgangr Demons and black magic The pharmacology of berserkir Fly agaric mushroom (Amanita muscaria) Henbane (Hyoscyamus niger) Alcohol Physical pathologies of berserksgangr Epilepsy Paget's disease Rabies Berserksgangr as psychological illness Sociopathy and psychotic episodes Shamanism Berserksgangr as combat stress or post-traumatic stress disorder Final thoughts on psychological causes of berserksgangr Relating berserksgangr to anger and frenzy Frenzy or not? Conclusions regarding berserksgangr Notes 4. The etymology and meaning of berserkr The etymology of ulfheðinn The etymology of berserkr Summary A medieval definition of berserkr Notes 5. The Viking Age reality of berserkir The lessons of poetry Early law codes The berserkr as initiator and cultic warrior The Odinic warrior? What did they look like? Berserkir at war A model for the Viking Age berserkr Notes 6. Towards new paradigms for berserkir Notes Appendix 1. Incidence of names of berserkir and where to find them in Old Norse literature Note Appendix 2. Haraldskvæði: the earliest reference to berserkir Notes Bibliography Primary sources Secondary literature Online references in text Index