Move over, Thor, there’s another Viking in town

UAlberta professor finds parallels between depictions of women in Old Norse literature and female friendships today. With moviegoers flocking to cinemas around the world to watch Thor: The Dark World, the popularity of the Norse thunder god has sparked a surge of interest in the Viking Age. But although much is known about men during this time, what about the women? Natalie Van Deusen , a professor and researcher in the Department of Modern Languages & Cultural Studies at the University of Alberta, studies the depiction of women in Old Norse Literature. Most of us think of Vikings as brutes in horned helmets who raped women and pillaged villages, but Van Deusen is quick to point out that this Viking stereotype is largely inaccurate. For starters, there is no evidence to suggest that they wore horned helmets. "In addition, being a Viking meant a lot more than just pillaging and taking land—though they did that certainly," she says. "There were Vikings who traded and farmed, and some were great poets and storytellers, but this is often overshadowed by a much more violent image." Van Deusen notes that stories from the Viking Age were developed orally and passed down by word of mouth before being written down, sometimes not until two or three centuries after they were first told.