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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. How were the men split between Karlsefni and Thorhall?

2. Who travels with Thorbjorn to Greenland?

3. Which of the following best describes the clothes of the prophetess Thorbjorg?

4. Why does Karlsefni decide to go to Vinland?

5. Who is Einar?

Short Essay Questions

1. What happens with the whale? Why do people refuse to eat it?

2. How and why does Einar pursue Gudrid in marriage?

3. How does a fight break out between Karlsefni's men and the natives? Describe the sequence of events leading up to Karlsefni and his men fleeing.

4. When food runs scarce, Thorhall disappears for three days. How and where do Karlsefni and Bjarni find him? What does he say he was doing?

5. What happens when a native finds an axe near one of the fallen Vikings?

6. Explain why the small boat on Bjarni's ship would not sink while the large one was about to.

7. How do Leif's parents, Eirik the Red and Thjodhild, take to Christianity?

8. How do Haki and Hekja come to be on the expedition to Vinland? Where are they from?

9. Describe the first two encounters that Karlsefni and his men have with the natives.

10. Describe who Thorbjorg is and what her behavior is like when she arrives at Herjolfsness.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Several times in the sagas we see a prophecy delivered and taken seriously. Write an essay about the Viking tradition of prophecy.

Part 1. Were the Vikings, in general, a superstitious people? Give examples. What, other than prophecies, did they believe in?

Part 2. How seriously did the Vikings take prophecies?

Part 3. What were some of the common ways for Vikings to receive prophecies?

Part 4. What evidence of prophecies is there in the Vinland Sagas?

Essay Topic 2

The Vinland Sagas are about the Vikings. Write an essay about Vikings.

Part 1. Who were the Vikings? When and where did they live?

Part 2. What were the Vikings famous and feared for? What were they like as a people and how did they survive? What did they accomplish?

Part 3.What records do we have about the Vikings? Discuss both the sagas and the archeological record.

Part 4. How did the Vikings leave their mark on the world?

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay about Erik the Red.

Part 1. Who was Erik the Red? When and where did he live and die?

Part 2. How do we know about Erick the Red? What sources do we have regarding him?

Part 3. Write a brief biography about Erik the Red. Include what he did throughout his life and his reasons for doing those things. Who were his children?

(see the answer keys)

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