Hero imagery
The shape of the hero's story is obvious from the plot, and it indicates the shape of human fate. Tangibly, the archetypal journey is depicted as a fall from grace because of hubris and arrogance. Hrafnkel's mortal flaw is that he only sees what is best for him, which will make him a poor leader, so fate takes him on a journey to soften him up to others, but the journey starts with him murdering an innocent boy. Through personal growth and experience, he continues a journey through the wilderness, establishing himself in honor. The abstract imagery is suggested by his religion; the gods are shaping his life so that he will grow.
Religion and the sublime
For Hrafnkel, religion is not some established organization that he gives money to and goes to church services—none of that. His religion is proprietary; it is between him and the gods. He makes an altar and a temple to the forces of nature, but that temple is destroyed. This is a symbol for the deconstruction and reconstruction of his self, and because he pays attention to honor, fate, and the sublime, he knows that he is embedded in a story where he is the hero. The goal of this religious imagery is to move him from selfish pride to empathy for others and true justice.
Death and murder
The stakes of the story are quite clear. Like Moses, he commits a murder to begin his story, a sign to the reader that he imperfect to the point of absolute mayhem. He is not orderly in his soul, except by the order of getting what he wants. His willingness to take life comes to bite him when it results in others pursuing him to kill him. He is forced to reconcile his own life with others, realizing through time that the life he took was as important as his own, even if Hrafnkel is a prince and Einar were only a shepherd.
Leadership and community
Finally, there is the important imagery of the community with its seat of honor. Because Hrafnkel has to rebuild his life from scratch, his father's honor literally stripped from him by Samur, therefore he is a qualified leader when he returns home from his arduous journeying. His adventures were not for him; they were for the community where he can now serve them as an administrator of justice. He is a chieftain by conquering his foe and by reestablishing himself in the community that shamed him years before.
