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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who is Bjorn related to?

2. When Thorgils goes to Helgi's house, what does Helgi do?

3. What is Helgi?

4. What will Gudrun give Thorgils in return for his actions?

5. Who rides off to find Hardbeinsson by the end of Chapter 60?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe Ingibjorg.

2. What ugly fact about Gudrun's personality is revealed through the death of Kjartan?

3. After Kjartan dies, what happens to Hrefna?

4. What does Bolli do that surprises Kjartan?

5. What does Helgi do to Gudrun?

6. When Kjartan and Bolli arrive in Norway, what does King Olaf do to Kjartan?

7. What does Gudrun do out of a desire for revenge and jealousy?

8. What happens to Gellir in the final chapters of the book?

9. How does Gudrun's plans relate to her son?

10. Describe the conflict leading to Helgi's death.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe Melkorka. What is her role in the story? What was the author trying to accomplish by creating Melkorka's character in the Laxdaela Saga?

Essay Topic 2

Explain the role of women in medieval Scandinavia in the twelfth century when the women in the Laxdaela Saga are living their lives. What precedents do they feel compelled to follow? What restrictions do they have? What freedoms, if any, did they have that 21st century women do not have?

Essay Topic 3

Property plays a significant role in the Laxdaela Saga, handed down from one generation to the next, annexed by conquerors, legislated by the law, divided among offspring and fought over in violent duels. Discuss the changing circumstances of Icelandic settlement in the Commonwealth period, where the individual and collective had to adapt to new circumstances such as a new religious order and laws governing marriage, divorce and inheritances. Do you find that the Laexdala Saga offers you enough background to fully grasp the socioeconomic, political, and cultural changes sweeping Iceland at the time?

(see the answer keys)

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