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and deceitful].72 Unfortunately for the hapless Özurr, Þórðr’s fighting
prowess is better than his, and despite Özurr’s many attempts on his life,
Þórðr always manages to escape alive, if gravely wounded. the situation is
all the stranger since ormr was the brother of Sigríðr’s betrothed, Ásbjörn,
and he pursues her and threatens to rape her despite – or perhaps because –
he is fully aware of her betrothal to his brother. In the wider context of the
manuscript, it seems fundamental that he displays such an utter disregard
for brotherly bonds. the saga’s depiction of Ormr’s coveting of his broth-
er’s woman identifies the destructive sexual jealousy and rivalry between
brothers when sibling trauma, ‘the fear of substitution or of failing to dif-
ferentiate’, has not been successfully worked through, while the success of
fraternal relationships between the heroes and their brothers rests partly
on the lack of competition, i.e. choosing separate paths in life (e.g. Grettir
and his brothers), finding separate kingdoms to rule (e.g. Hrólfr and ketill)
and not competing for the same women.73
Another difficult opponent is Mágus saga’s king Hlöðvir, a conceited
tyrant whom his people serve ‘með ótta ok aga, meir enn með ástúð eðr
elsku’ [for fear and awe, rather than for affection or love].74 He is also
a fool, frequently mistreating his shrewd, strong-willed wife Ermenga,
with whom he has a tumultuous relationship. Hlöðvir sets Ermenga sev-
eral seemingly impossible challenges, the failure of which he declares will
result in severe punishment, but with the help of her brother, Hrólfr, she
manages to outmanoeuvre him, and they come to a modus vivendi in their
marriage. the king does not learn from his defeats – he had already lost a
chess match to Hrólfr as a result of ermenga’s challenges – and in a hung-
over and enraged state of mind, he challenges Rögnvaldr, the son of a jarl
(mentioned previously), to a game of chess in order to prove his superior
ability. the king loses ignominiously to Rögnvaldr, and reacts just as im-
moderately as expected, striking his opponent in the face with a pouch so
that his nose bleeds. Rögnvaldr’s brother vígvarðr retaliates by killing the
king, leading to a prolonged feud with the malevolent, deceitful jarl Ubbi,
72 f. 91v; Þórðar saga, 185. the Íslenzk fornrit text reads ‘ódældarmaðr’ instead of ‘uitdeildar
madr’, a word not found in any of the dictionaries I consulted, but given the context and
Özurr’s character, its most likely meaning is the noun derived from ‘deila við e-n’, i.e. that
the prefix is ‘við-’, not ‘vit-’. I thank Merrill Kaplan for this suggestion.
73 Larrington, Brothers and Sisters, ch. 4.
74 Mágus saga, 1.
IDEoLogY AnD IDEntItY In LAtE MEDIEVAL WESt ICELAnD