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E V E R Y D A Y L I F E
The women of the Viking era were very independent and strong-minded. Unlike a lot of other women in the world (at this time), the Scandinavian women had almost as many rights as the men did. She was on her own able to chose her husband and if she later wished she could divorce him. (B1) The strength of the Scandinavian women seems to have been widely known. There is for example tales from Iceland, describing how the women care for house and home when their men were away at sea. This was a huge responsibility and may sometimes have made the women seem hard and grumpy. You will see this if you read between the lines of the Icelandic stories. (B1) (M) Another way in which the Scandinavian women showed their dignity and essential position, both in society and at home, was by wearing the house key in a rope around their waist. This symbolised their control over house and home. (BI) (B2) If you compare women during the Viking era, the Christian European women and today’s modern women in Scandinavia you will see a clear difference in equality and participation in society. (M) The Viking woman had a very independent life compared to the Christian woman. When Scandinavia was christianised a lot of the women’s freedom was taken away. They were no longer as important in religion as they had been. (B1) (M) The Christian religion put the man above the woman and seen through the modern person’s perspective it was a setback for women. In spite of this, it was often the Viking women that were positive to the new religion. One can draw the conclusion that this is because the Christian religion demanded a more peaceful lifestyle. (B1) (M) Including the modern woman in the comparison, I think that they have more in common with the Viking woman than with the Christian woman. As written above, the christening of the Vikings was a setback for the women of this time and this would result in centuries of oppression of women. (M)
Many people think that almost all the men sailed in ships as Vikings to plunder and kill. That was not at all true, as most men were peaceful and struggling farmers and craftsmen. (B1) Just like the travelling Vikings, the farmer’s life changed with the seasons. The Vikings left with their ships in the beginning of spring, at the same time the farmers work began for the year. (B1) One thing that made life a bit easier for all men (and women) was that the climate at this time was a couple degrees milder than today. This made the winters shorter and resulted in better crops. The ships were not stopped by ice as early as they would have been today. (B1) (M) The Viking warrior life was, for obvious reasons, more dangerous than the farmer’s, but maybe a bit richer. They both had to relay on their own skills to survive. The Viking worrier could not afford to make a mistake and neither could the farmer. (B1) (M) By: Maria Svelin |
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