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Beau Boulton
Deborah Warshaw
British Literature and Composition
9 October 2014
The Draugr
Why do people create monsters? Sometimes monsters may be the
embodiment of the anti-human, everything that is unfamiliar or inaccessible
within the minds of people. Sometimes monsters represent feats which
humans are not capable of for moral or legal reasons. A monster may be
something that is just too much. Monsters may tend to reflect the anxieties
of the time and culture that created or interpreted them. And then there is
always the simple answer of; monsters are simply exciting. The draugr, an
undead creature from Old Norse tales, is a quintessential example of why
these reasons behind the making of monsters. Draugar are so human while
not being able to be farther from human, they commit taboo acts, they are
utterly overwhelming in multiple ways, and be it the original tales or the
modern interpretations, they perfectly fit the society that created, or
recreated, them. And the draugr has been so alluring a monster that it has
been adapted into several contemporary tales. So what makes the draugr so
desirable? The draugr provides so many excellent answers to the question of
why people create monsters, making it the perfect definition of a likeable

monster. People like the draugr because it is an excellent example of why

people create monsters.
To begin, some explanations about what a draugr even is should be in
order. The draugr, with the plural form being draugar, is a sort of undead
creature from Old Norse legend. Draugar
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are usually found in barrows, or burial mounds, and are the dead who have
begun walking, amongst other activities. They are not, however, quite the
zombies twenty first century society is familiar with. The descriptions of their
physical appearance differ somewhat from the mottled green skin and
dripping blood that our culture is obsessed with. They are described as
looking generally human, but with nearly everything about them being
simply wrong. They are said to be death-blue or corpse-pale in color, and
to have eerie glowing eyes. Some draugar were also reported to have grown
to enormous sizes. Another key difference between the zombie and the
draugr is that draugar are not simply physical corpses, but, while still being
corporeal beings, they are also somewhat akin to ghosts. This is because
they are said to have the ability to transform into a mist and pass through
solid objects, a talent they put to use in order to leave their barrows and
wreak havoc above ground. This ability is referenced in the Laxdaela Saga:
Then Olaf tried to rush Hrapp, but Hrapp sank into the ground where he had
been standing and that was the end of their encounter (Magnussen and
Palsson 103) Draugar are also said to possess other powers, such as shape-

shifting, controlling the weather, and seeing into the future. Draugar are very
deadly, and have been none to kill their victims by crushing them, eating
them whole, draining their blood, or even by driving them mad. The draugr is
said to be driven to slay people by many things. They are said to have an
insatiable appetite, and will eat any creature, or person, that crosses them
when this hunger strikes. Draugar are also said to be extremely greedy,
defending the treasure in their barrows without mercy. Another driving force
for the draugr is said to be an intense jealousy of the living. The slaying of a
draugr is supposedly a fairly tricky ordeal. While some can be simply slain
with a
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sword and others cannot be affected by weapons at all, there is one
generally accepted method for defeating this monster. The draugr must first
be bested in hand-to-hand combat, and then decapitated by a sword from its
own barrow. The one who carried out the execution must then dive between
the head and body before they strike the floor. Failing that, they must either
walk widdershins between the head and body three times, or drive a
wooden stake into the body. The body must then burn until the ashes are
cold, and the ashes be buried deep in the ground or spread at sea. The
draugr is a very fascinating monster.
This also makes the draugr an excellent example of why people create
monsters. The draugr is human, and yet, it is an exhibition of all of the most
destructive qualities of humans, as well as qualities very alien to humans, in

the eyes of the society that created it. The ancient Scandinavians were no
strangers to greed and jealousy, but the draugr exemplified those traits, and
took them to dangerous and frightening extremes. And those people would
have found other qualities of the draugr, such as cannibalism and sorcery,
very foreign indeed. Draugar were also overwhelming. They possess the
ability to grow to immense sizes, and their very appearance drove people
mad. The draugr very well represented the anxieties of the Old Norse culture
as well. The greed they held over the treasures in their barrows was the
same greed held by the raiders and grave robbers who visited them. In
Grettirs Saga, the would-be grave-robber Grettir was raiding a barrow of
treasure, when he was seized fast by someoneThe mound-dweller
attacked vigorously in defense of its treasure (Fox and Palsson 36-37).
Disappearing livestock could mean disaster for farmers, and when no culprit
to the crime presented itself, who better to blame than a bloodthirsty
monster. Inclement weather could
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spell certain doom in the icy reaches of northern Europe, and that too was a
disaster attributed to draugar.
The ancient Scandinavians arent the only people who told tales of the
draugr befitting their culture, however. The draugr may not seem as relevant
a monster anymore, as it is almost unheard of compared to other more
popular ones such as vampires and zombies. However, this monster has
been reinterpreted in contemporary stories, not to warn people or to explain

disaster, but rather for pure entertainment. In J. R. R. Tolkiens The Fellowship

of the Ring, there are several instances where barrow-wights are
mentioned and even one instance where the protagonists encounter one.
The location in which this barrow-wight is encountered, as well as the powers
it exhibits would make this creature very reminiscent of a draugr. In the
video game The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, draugr appear as a common enemy,
albeit in an extremely reduced form compared to the original Norse legends.
The white walkers of the popular Game of Thrones television show also show
similarities to draugar. The draugr was interpreted into these new formats,
simply because of how stirring a monster it is. It was made, or remade
rather, because our society needed something scary, new, and exciting, to
keep us enthralled by our favorite media, and it fit the bill.
The draugr exemplifies why people create monsters. The draugr
exemplifies horrifying qualities both human and nonhuman. They break
moral boundaries by committing frightening acts. Draugar also break the
boundaries of the mind and body by utilizing strange powers. They represent
the fears of the ancient Scandinavians, and they even fulfill the modern
desire for interesting monsters. The draugr is a prime example of why people
make monsters.
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Works Cited
Fox, Denton and Hermann Plsson, trans. Grettirs Saga. Toronto: University of
Toronto Press.

1974. Print.
Game of Thrones. HBO. N.d. Television.
Magnusson, Magnus and Hermann Plsson, trans., Laxdaela Saga.
Harmondsworth: Penguin.
1969. Print.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Bethesda Game Studios. 2011. Video Game.
"The Walking Dead: Draugr and Aptrgangr in Old Norse Literature." Viking
Answer Lady
Webpage -. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 Oct. 2014.
Tolkien, J. R. R. The Fellowship of the Ring: Being the First Part of The Lord of
the Rings. Boston:
Houghton Mifflin, 1993. Print.