I might make edits after this is posted.
Gyda’s potential was untapped; she was kind, dutiful, curious, capable; caring, her character would’ve done well as a great warrior and diplomatic, and politic actor who’d makes hard decisions. Someone like her could’ve felt divided loyalties between worlds such as the Saxons and Norse. For example, maybe playing a role in Danelaw and/or supporting the idea that a fictional Gunthrum should be baptised after Alfred’s victory. That would not be a stretch of a storyline.
She did not have the opportunities her brothers’ and mother had to grow, flesh out and have legendary storylines of her own on or more of the three arenas - significant moments in the politics, battle, fame.
Whereas other females are allowed to move beyond certain gendered restrictions in the show, for example Judith having kill her son Athelred to secure England’s better leader, her other son Alfred, and grooming Alfred to ensure he succeeded when Ecbert had died. Alfred Great was made Athelstan’s son, a fictional character, in the programe meaning their was a father-son relativism or framework when it came in the three areas, and visionary material that was not given a rich extension to Gyda at least whilst keeping the sons the focus.
I understand that the writers wanted to focus on the sons of the main protagonist, but I think the focus became ‘too’ much to a degree, that it led to Gyda being left behind.
The deaths and even the writings of these daughters when they were alive compared to that of aforementioned sons of the male protagonists confirms my suspicions that, when it came to Gyda compared to her mother and brothers, her being daughter along with the other daughters of the main protagonists, meant she was unfortunately regulated and limited to functioning as and being the loss of a parent’s emotional and domestic haven through their death, an emotional refuge and sensitive spot emotionally anchoring a patriarch.
Whilst they are not examples of it, I for sure think the adolescent deaths of male protagonists’ daughters do have some link to the women in the refrigerator trope; the disproportionate deaths of adolescent sons of the male protagonists. Hali is the only son of a male protagonist who died in childhood; Sigurd died as a young adult but his character had died having suggested multiple alliance for the Great Heathen Army, participated in the battle of York thus helping avenging Ragnar’s death.
It was not an issue of how all females were written, but the issue of how the daughters of the male protagonists were; most of all Gyda.
Nor was she afforded the rich artistic license alike the other characters meaning diversion from the sagas and historical records and use of creative fiction, for examples: Ubbe leading the expedition into the Americas; Lagertha leading large scale shieldmaidens; Rollo and Ragnar being made brothers. It showed the writers were grounded but did have creative freedom from in relation to the sagas and historical records.
The grief they explored in the aftermath of her death was done well; but it was not sufficient. Lagertha and Ragnar never speak of her, Bjorn mentions her once, Aslaug gave no condolences. The writers had her parents enter a threesome with Alsaug and have Ragnar happy about it; he had a cheeky grin in the same episode after he mourned Gyda; that grin was too soon. Now I look back that felt weird; a bit jarring. If the writers wanted to relay the aftermath of Gyda's death; they could have transitioned the grin into a solemn face where he remembers Gyda.
To continue, I feel that characters were too adjusted for after recently lost a daughter whom was loved and raised for 12 years; for Bjorn his sister; the moments of grief they had was brief. I understand that childhood mortality was dealt with differently in that age and place; but presumption tells that it did not mean that the grieving was not a strong like we have it today. The appropriate amount of grieving could’ve been better written to move along with the story. The scenes where Ragnar reminisced on Gyda still could’ve happened with Gyda alive.
Whilst some may argued her legacy was honoured in the shieldmaiden named after her; she’d never be thee Gyda, a reminder of Gyda’s lost opportunities and lacked realisation nor a character grown to be cared for by the audience like Gyda herself. In addition; counterpointed that unlike Athelstan and Bjorn, her story was not finished; is it when Gyda died; it was too early.
Summarised and renewed ideas for her arc:
My ideas with an insecure Gyda due to the Ragnar indirectly and unintentionally suggesting she was not enough as her being last born through his disappointment with Lagertha’s miscarriage in seen and his procurements of sons, thus hurt in Upssala. Then anger with the infidelity and depressed Gyda having lost her friends to the plague thus the context for Ragnar's speech is changed.
This following is an except from episode 1 season 2
“Gyda,
I have come to say goodbye to you properly. I have been thinking about you, about when you were small.
You were so lively. You could run as swiftly as the wind. You were like quicksilver. But then, before I knew it, you stopped running here and there and everywhere and you became still.
At 12 years old, you had the stillness and the calm of a fine woman.
What children you would have produced. What joy that would have brought to all of us. Dear child, Gyda, you are not gone because you are always in my heart.
They say that a man must love his sons more, but a man can be jealous of his sons, and his daughter can always be the light in his life.
I know very well that you are with the gods, but I will wait here awhile, and if you want to come and talk to me, then come and talk, and I will gently stroke your long and beautiful hair once again with my peasant hands.
Instead I’d have it’d be Ragnar saying the things he wished he could say to a live Gyda and still be tearful; Gyda is refusing to talk to him or Ragnar is too sensitive to talk to her.
So when it comes to him saying “goodbye”, it’d be about the her leaving with Lagertha and Bjorn to Hedeby.
“You were like quicksilver. But then, before I knew it, you stopped running here and there and everywhere and you became still.
At 12 years old, you have the stillness and the calm of a fine woman”
This would be him reminiscing on the happy child Gyda was before her falling into depression; it is actually painful when parents see their children go through depression: withdrawn, cannot eat, crying, silent, not smiling and more and not seeing value in a compliment e.g. “At 12 years old, you have the stillness and the calm of a fine woman”. I’d change the tense of “would had” to “will” and “brought” to “bring” for a live Gyda. And when it came the issues of “a man being jealous of his sons” and her being the “light” in Ragnar’s life; it’d be him wishing that Gyda did not have her insecurities and could value the unique beauty being his daughter is. Changing the word “gods” to her “your mother and brother”. And in the case when Gyda is open to receiving his affections “but I will wait here awhile,and if you want to come andtalk to me, then come and talk,and I will gently stroke your long and beautiful hair once again with my peasant hands”. The beach scene has remained.
And further ideas for I would've been to have written:
A fractured relationship between Gyda and Ragnar; not forgiving him for his infidelity, for being too cordial with Kalf when her mother’s Earlship was taken, overruling her mother Earl Ingstad in England, for not sorting out Floki's zealotry, jealousy and contempt for Athelstan thus having Gyda partially blame Ragnar for his death contributing to his addiction with Yidu's medicine. And being so angry, as Lagertha has done before in season 1, she attempted to fight Ragnar when he returned from his wandering after Paris when Ragnar said “who wants to be king?”. And maybe this would've indicated to Bjorn she stopped loving Ragnar; or potentially hated him just giving him credence to have her not join him and the brothers in vengence for Ragnar's death.
Ragnar eventually thinking before the death that Gyda stopped loving him; Ragnar dies thinking this; that she’s began hating him but the memory of young Gyda still representing the innocence, the farm life, and mourning her in person; bought him comfort and he held onto hope; Ragnar dies having never had that reconciliation. Although, Gyda never stopped loving Ragnar; Bjorn did not believe it, despite it being genuine, thinking she wanted to join the Great Heathen Army against King Aella to make a name for herself. Thus she is not allowed to go eventhough Gyda wanted to go to be part of the vengeance, thus the vengeance belongs to the sons of Ragnar.
Or another way would have Gyda having reconciled in after the four year time jump, with Ragnar after Athelstan’s death or before much earlier before his death, in season 2 when returning from Hedeby. When Athelstan died, Gyda went into a period of heavy drinking, not alcoholism, due to grief whilst she pretends to be happy; as Ragnar is addicted; they were tender and/or hard towards one another other even when both were spiraling; emotionally enabling one another; whilst trying to help one another stop. I can imagine scene where Ragnar is high, in a non-sexual way, an inebriated Gyda sat on his lap for comforted each other as if she were a child all over again. Gyda does not judge the fact that Ragnar is not all there, Ragnar does not the fact that Gyda is inebriated and smells of ale. They just softly smile at one another.
Eventually, Lagertha and Bjorn intervened; which is where the storyline ends.
Bjorn would see this as a sign, the spiraling, later, that Gyda could not go because he’d fear Gyda would be too emotional and not be able to think straight when avenging Ragnar’s death with them; thus she is forced to stay behind. Again the vengeance stays with sons.
Either way; young happier Gyda continues to have represented what Ragnar mourned; whilst older Gyda did not have too.
Either way, the relationship between Rollo and Gyda happened, where he helped find her own identity in season 4, I would have had her develop a better relationship with Rollo; where Rollo shows her she does not have to be feel restricted to being Lagertha’s protege, underwing and being someone’s shadow; nor go along as being the supportive sister, younger for Bjorn and older for her little brothers. Rollo and his betrayal in Paris might’ve taught Gyda that if she wants to get her due, achieving what you think is needed and not end up embittered, she’d have to do things might be perceived to be unaligned with her community, sympathic to others and at times traitorous and not do want is expected of her. She’d follow this advise for examples: respecting cultural customs, e.g. in Andalusia by refraining the eating of pork in the company of the Andalusians, even though it is severed to the Norse, because Islam considers pork Haram; then supporting Alfred’s decision to have Gunthrum baptised.
As the story developed with her, to reiterate she’d have diplomatic voice with sway in her community and for others, having loyalties being split representing one of the rarities in Kattegat as she felt for other communities as well as her own to beef it both e.g: Andalusians, Franks, Saxons, making hard decisions.
She’d be the character to answer to Alfred’s questions about Athelstan, and feel a certain tenderness for him as he is Athelstan’s son.
Thank you for reading ✌️
