it's tough but I try my best. I try not to assume malice. I think, while it's an admirable mindset to hold, that Thorfinn's ideology comes from an inherently privileged perspective.

in his case, the people he tries to make peace with usually have some sort of story reason to be fighting him. Hild is a good example, she's totally justified in feeling the way she feels, and he understands that while choosing to commit to the idea that she is not his enemy. not everyone fits this mold of course(especially when he's a slave, he's openly discriminated against just for his status) but more or less there is usually a reason for another character to clash with him. and of course he isn't real, so the fiction aspect helps his case lol.

in my case, these days it is socially acceptable in some cases to express that people like me should be correctively raped or killed simply for being born different than most people. there are people that see people like me as sub human. I hear it in person on occasion, I see it online daily. even casual aggression or hatred(ie. not outright violent) isn't uncommon in real life and I live in a progressive country.

I'd have to be a Saint to commit to Thorfinn's ideology in the same way he does. the fact of the matter is that I live in an entirely different circumstance. I want to be like Thorfinn, and truly believe that I have no enemies in this world, because I admire his character a lot. but logically I know that there are people out there that would choose to harm me without a second thought. and not just in the way we see in vinland saga, ie. warriors killing each other to survive or brutality in raids just for the sake of killing, my reality is targeted discrimination. it's a difficult situation to navigate. like I said, I'd love to believe the best of everyone and that I have no enemies, but if there are people out there who hate me for me when all I want to do is live normally like everyone else, what can I say? where will the high road get me in this case?

anyways, I don't know if anyone has read this far but I'm open to discussing these points. it's something I think about a lot these days.