Saga network
Grettis saga Ásmundarsonar
The Saga of Grettir the Strong, trans. not stated in the eBook; text corresponds to G. A. Hight's 1914 Everyman translation (attribution UNVERIFIED in-file) (1914). 93 chapters, 230 characters resolved, 213 distinct social edges (269 typed edge records across seven relation types — see Methods for why those two counts differ).
Network
Drag nodes, scroll to zoom, click a character for its profile, click an edge to read the sentences that support it.
119 characters · 213 edges (269 typed edge records)
Network summary
0.030Density
0.154Avg. clustering
3.172Avg. path length
6Diameter
14Communities (Louvain)modularity 0.466
-0.165Degree assortativity
75.0%Structural balance9/12 triangles balanced
18Articulation pointsbridge characters
Metrics are computed on the semantic layer only (kinship, marriage, friendship, conversation, conflict, killing, support) — the much denser sentence co-occurrence layer (227 nodes, 1236 edges) is a baseline, not a claim about social structure. See Methods for what each number does and does not mean.
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Chapter 79: The Spell Takes Effect
The autumn passed and but three weeks remained till the winter. The old woman asked to be driven to the sea-shore. Thorbjorn asked what she was going to do. "A small thing only," she said, "yet maybe the signal of greater things to come." They did as she asked them. When they reached the shore she hobbled on by the sea as if directed to a spot where lay a great stump of a tree as large as a man could bear on his shoulder. She looked at it and bade them turn it over before her; the other side looked as if it had been burned and smoothed. She had a small flat surface cut on its smooth side; then she took a knife, cut runes upon it, reddened them with her blood and muttered some spells over it. After that she walked backwards against the sun round it, and spoke many potent words. Then she made them push the tree into the sea, and said it should go to Drangey and that Grettir should suffer hurt from it. Then she went back to Vidvik. Thorbjorn said he did not know what would come of it. The woman said he would know more clearly some day. The wind was towards the land up the fjord, but the woman's stump drifted against the wind, and not more slowly than would have been expected. Grettir was sitting in Drangey with his companions very comfortably, as has been told. On the day following that on which the old woman had cast her spells upon the tree they went down from the hill to look for firewood. When they got to the western side of the island they found a great stump stranded there. "Here is a fine log for fuel," cried Illugi, "let us carry it home." Grettir gave it a kick with his foot and said: "An ill tree and ill sent. We must find other wood for the fire." He pushed it out into the sea and told Illugi to beware of carrying it home, for it was sent for their destruction. Then they returned to their hut and said nothing about the tree to the thrall. The next day they found the tree again, nearer to the ladder than on the day before. Grettir put it back into the sea and said he would never carry it home. That night passed and dirty weather set in with rain, so that they did not care to go out and told Glaum to fetch fuel. He grumbled very much and declared it was cruel to make him plague himself to death in every kind of weather. He descended the ladder and found there the woman's log. He thought himself lucky, laboured home with it to the hut and threw it down with a great noise which Grettir heard. "Glaum has got something; I must go out and see what it is," he said, and went out, taking his wood-cutting axe with him. "Let your cutting up of it be no worse than my carrying of it home!" said Glaum. Grettir was irritated with the thrall; he used his axe with both hands and did not notice what tree it was. Directly the axe touched the tree it turned flat and glanced off into Grettir's right leg. It entered above his right knee and pierced to the bone, making a severe wound. Grettir turned to the tree and said: "He who meant me evil has prevailed; it will not end with this. This is the very log which I twice rejected. Two disasters have you now brought about, Glaum; first you let our fire go out, and now you have brought in this tree of ill-fortune. A third mistake will be the death of you and of us all." Illugi then bound the wound. It bled little; Grettir slept well that night and three days passed without its paining him. When they opened the bandages the flesh had grown together and the wound was almost healed. Illugi said: "I do not think that you will suffer very long with this wound." "That would be well," said Grettir; "it has happened strangely however it ends; but my mind tells me otherwise."
Table of contents
1. The Family And Early Wars Of Onund The Son Of Ofeig2. The Battle Of Hafrsfjord3. Meeting Of Defeated Chiefs In The West And Marriage Of4. Fight With Vikings Vigbjod And Vestmar5. Visit Of Onund And Thrand To Eyvind In Ireland6. Death Of Bjorn; Disputes Over His Property In Norway7. Murder Of Ondott Crow, And The Vengeance Therefor8. Onund And Asmund Sail To Iceland9. Onund Settles In Kaldbak10. Ofeig Grettir Is Killed. Visit Of Onund To Aud The11. Death Of Onund. Disputes Between The Sons Of Onund And Of12. Battle At Rifsker13. Thorgrim Settles At Bjarg And Marries. His Son Asmund14. Asmund'S Children. Grettir'S Childhood15. Games At Midfjordvatn16. Grettir Kills Skeggi And Is Outlawed For Three Years17. Grettir Sails For Norway And Is Wrecked On Haramarsey18. Adventure In The Howe Of Kar The Old19. Berserks At Haramarsey20. Thorfinn'S Return. Grettir Visits The North21. Adventure With A Bear22. Grettir Kills Bjorn And Is Summoned Before Jarl Sveinn23. Grettir Kills Hjarrandi24. Grettir Kills Gunnar. His Friends Rally Round Him And Save25. Events In Iceland. Thorgils Maksson Attacked By The26. The Feud With The Foster-Brothers Is Taken Up By Asmund27. Sentences On The Foster-Brothers28. Grettir'S Visit To Audun In Vididal; Offers His Services29. Horse-Fight At Langafit30. Thorbjorn Oxmain And The Fray At Hrutafjardarhals31. Grettir'S Vain Endeavour To Provoke Bardi32. The Spook At Thorhallsstad. Glam The Shepherd Killed By A33. Doings Of Glam'S Ghost. Awful Condition Of Vatnsdal34. Grettir Visits His Uncle Jokull35. The Fight With Glam'S Ghost36. Thorbjorn Slowcoach At Home37. Grettir Sails For Norway And Kills Thorbjorn Slowcoach38. Grettir Fetches Fire--The Sons Of Thorir Are Burnt39. Grettir Appears Before The King And Fails To Undergo The40. Adventure With The Berserk Snaekoll41. Thorsteinn Dromund'S Arms42. Death Of Asmund Longhair43. The Sons Of Thorir Of Skard Are Slain By Atli And Grim44. Settlement Of The Feud At The Hunavatn Thing45. Atli Murdered By Thorbjorn Oxmain46. Sentence Of Outlawry Passed Upon Grettir At The All-Thing47. Grettir Returns To Bjarg--Sveinn And His Horse48. Death Of Thorbjorn Oxmain49. Grettir Visits Thorsteinn Kuggason And Snorri Godi50. Grettir Winters With Thorgils At Reykjaholar In Company With51. Grettir'S Case Overborne At The All-Thing52. Grettir Is Captured By Farmers And Released By Thorbjorg53. Grettir Winters In Ljarskogar With Thorsteinn Kuggason54. Adventure With Lopt55. Grettir In The Arnarvatn Heath. Death Of Grim The Forest-Man56. Treachery And Death Of Thorir Redbeard57. Attack On Grettir By Thorir Of Gard With Eighty Men58. Grettir Visits Bjorn The Hitdale Warrior And Takes Refuge59. The Chastisement Of Gisli60. The Battle With The Myramen61. Grettir Winters Under The Geitland Glacier62. Hallmund Is Killed By A Forest-Man Named Grim63. Grettir'S Meeting With Thorir On The Reykja Heath64. Ghosts In Bardardal65. Adventure With A Troll-Woman66. Grettir Slays A Giant67. Visit To Gudmund The Mighty68. Fight With Thorodd The Son Of Snorri69. Grettir'S Last Visit To Bjarg And Journey With Illugi To70. The People Of Skagafjord71. The Bondis Claim Their Property In Drangey72. Grettir Visits The Thing At Hegranes73. Visit Of Thorbjorn Angle To Drangey74. The Fire Goes Out In Drangey75. Grettir Swims To The Mainland For Fire76. Adventure Of Haering In Drangey77. Grettir'S Case Before The All-Thing78. Thorbjorn'S Foster-Mother79. The Spell Takes Effect80. The Spell Continues To Work81. Thorbjorn Again Visits Drangey82. The Last Battle--Death Of Grettir And Illugi83. Thorbjorn Visits Grettir'S Mother At Bjarg84. Thorbjorn Is Exiled At The Thing85. Thorbjorn Goes To Norway And Constantinople86. Grettir'S Death Avenged By His Brother Thorsteinn87. The Lady Spes88. Adventures Of Thorsteinn And Spes89. The Ordeal90. Thorsteinn And Spes Return To Norway91. Absolution In Rome92. The End Of Thorsteinn And Spes93. The Testimony Of Sturla The Lawman