The lecture deals with the themes of friendship, enmity, and betrayal in Henry Rider Haggard's novel Eric Brighteyes in the context of the reception of Old Norse culture in Victorian literature. It first describes the general characteristics of the Victorian reception of Old Norse culture before moving on to the investigation of Haggard's novel and the ways in which the Old Norse and the Victorian elements appear within the work.
Finally, it discusses the Victorian treatment of Old Norse themes and its overall implications.