Myth In The Viking World

Compare and contrast the Frankish annals AND the Irish annals as sources for Viking history.

Throughout the myths of the Celtic and Germanic peoples of northern Europe tales of epic heroes and their extraordinary deeds abound. These tales depict heroes performing a variety of incredible feats; many of which appear to be magical, superhuman, and, quite honestly, utterly impossible (e.g., wading across oceans, defeating armies virtually single-handedly, and other astounding exploits). Since the Celtic and Germanic tribes of antiquity inhabited neighboring lands and lived in close proximity to one another (as many of their modern descendants continue to do: i.e., in Great Britain), it is not surprising that they often established intimate relationships with each other via commerce,

Hundreds of years ago people did not have the technology to explain different forces of nature. They created gods, each with separate powers, to rule their domains. Some of the gods were merciful, some were wicked, and others were merely servants of more powerful gods. Looking at the gods, it is easy to tell what the civilization most valued. I am going to look at the Greek and the Norse gods to compare what was most important to their societies.

For my undergraduate career I attended Elon and majored in Psychology. In summation Elon University’s vision and mission inspires students “freedom of thought and liberty of conscience” by focusing on four major commitments. The first is fostering a community of active student engagement with faculty and staff dedicated to scholarly accomplishment and proficient teaching. The second is supplying students with challenging and dynamic curriculum anchored in traditional liberal arts and sciences. Third is fitting students to become informed leaders and global citizens catered towards the concern for the common good in society. Fourth is having respect for “human differences, integrity, desire for learning, as well as work ethic and service.” Personally

During the Viking Age, parts of Europe experienced a communal force of wild seamen travelling and raiding for treasure up and into the Mediterranean from Scandinavia. The civilized world viewed the Vikings as terrifying warriors. They also considered the barbarians to be also pagans because of their Norse religion which involved the gods like Thor, Odin, and a warrior heaven (Valhalla). In addition, to define the Viking community, according to Vikings: Raiders from the North, “The derivation of the term is unknown… To go ‘a-Viking’ meant to go forth on expeditions... to acquire riches.” (17-18) This expresses that the original word “Viking” means to voyage and to attain wealth, although the phrase A-Viking can provide an explanation. Applying the term A-Viking with the Merriam-Webster definition of a community, “a unified body of individuals: such as a body of persons having a common history or common social, economic, and political interests,” Vikings or a Viking community can mean a person or a group of persons proceeding on a common expedition towards wealth. Although, the combination provides a decent definition, it lacks the cultural aspect and way of life behind the Viking community. A lust for wealth only surfaced the general concept of their voyages. The Viking community is significant due to the fact that their culture provides inspiration to people to write about the Viking’s way of life. Examining their beliefs is the first indication.

Although the story of the Minotaur is only a myth, there is much one can learn by thoughtfully considering each of the various characters and their behaviors or reactions. In the story, one can observe how Minos, the king of Crete and stepfather of the Minotaur, was cruel, ruthless and selfish. As the story continues, one comes to understand that how one behaves impacts many others not just him- or her- self. When Minos was selfish and did not sacrifice the white bull, not only was his wife and “son” effected by the punishment of the Minotaur’s existence, but also the innocent seven male and seven female virgin Athenians. As time went on, the king became more cruel and ruthless, instead of learning from his selfishness and striving to repair the damage he had caused. Today, one can see that egocentricity occurs countless times in this present society. Granted, there are many generous people who offer great empathy to several who might never receive kindness. Just so, there are those who are not generous with their resources and often become figuratively cruel and vicious. Most of today’s difficulties are results of one’s selfishness. For instance, the poor and destitute, the mentally imbalanced, and those who are left undefended and unguarded. More pointedly, the unborn, the elderly and the neglected child. If one had altruism and compassion for others, our world would not be as it is today. In the Minotaur’s story, his mother, Pasiphae, experienced much disgrace

James Graham-Campbell’s Viking Art is an illustrated study of Viking art from the Scandinavian world from AD 800 to around AD 1100. Graham-Campbell chose not to focus on one particular style or one specific location, but instead paints a vivid picture of Viking art all over the Scandinavian world and how it changed and was adapted in various time periods of the Viking Age. The study explores the art styles of Oseberg c. 775- c. 875, Borre c.850- c. 950, Jellinge c. 900 - c. 975, Mammen c. 960’s - c. 1000/1025, Ringerike c. 1000 - c. 1075, and Urnes c. 1050 - c. 1125 (Graham-Campbell 2013). The study takes a broad approach and covers a wide range of artistic means including grave markers, carved wooden boats,

Norse Mythology is filled with many surprises and adventures. It is to no dismay that Shirley Raye Redmond fell in love with the stories and lessons they had to tell. Author, Shirley Raye Redmond is the author of the book collection called mythology and culture worldwide. She has made 26 other books some being published by the Pacific Stars and Stripes, Cosmopolitan, Highlights for Children and The Christian Standard. She has also received her M.A. in literature.

“We and our fathers have now lived in this fair land for nearly three hundred and fifty years and never before has such a terror been seen in Britain as we have now suffered at the hands of a pagan people. Such a voyage was not thought possible. The church of St. Cuthbert is spattered with the blood of the priests of God.” These are the words of Alcuin of York, an Anglo-Saxon scholar, describing the first recorded presence of Norsemen warriors and their attack on Lindisfarne, a holy monastic undefended island of the coast of England in 793 A.D. This attack by pagans from Scandinavia introduced a new kind of warrior to the known world and established a new chapter in history known as the Viking Age. From this moment and for the next

Scandinavia myths, like many other cultures tend to focus on the male gods and less on the goddesses. Odinn and Odr are the two central gods that are most often focused on in the Scandinavian culture. Two female figures however, play a fairly prominent role Freyja and Frigg. The focus of my research is on Freya but the more information I uncovered the more I realized that with one along comes the other. Freya and Frigg depending on the mythology are the same person or are two individual goddesses who were close and complimented one another. From other religions we know that the same god or goddess could appear under different names, usually owning to the fact that he or she once had a by-name, which related to a cult-place or a specific function (Näsström 70). I decided to research Freya because of how closely linked she is to freedom, sexuality and the idea of magic. Growing up and hearing about Freya she was always talked about as a fairy or nymph, not as a goddess in the way that I would imagine Ishtar or the Virgin Mary. This is most likely due to the fact that she was described as a mischievous seducer.

As a group of peoples that had a lasting impact on the world, the ancient Viking has become a subject of much fascination in the current era. Presently, Vikings are prospering in the field of entertainment. From the popular History Channel series, to the portrayal of several Norse Gods in recent films. Bits of Viking culture have become rather prominent in todays pop-culture. They are often seen as stoic and intimidating warriors, sometimes-bloodthirsty invaders whom reject the civilized way of Christ. They have been shown as barbaric even, often worshiping old strange gods and participating in twisted rituals of the damned, as seen in films such as the 13th Warrior. With such a variety in the portrayal of a single culture, it can sometimes be speculated that not everything you witness is of one hundred percent authenticity. As with other interpretations of ancient cultures, a lot can be speculated and imaging as well. What is interesting to note is the evidence left behind by the Vikings. They were a civilization that reached lands others would not see again for centuries, and many of their old settlements can be found today. Their artifacts, and the events told by others of the time paint the Vikings as a rather mobile people. They are well known today for their seamanship, and their prowess at the task. What survives of the people’s myths and legends are more than all oral tales, later transcribed by others. One of the more prominent surviving

Thus, components like a mast or bridge girder can be analysed more comprehensively with compartively with lesser degrees of freedom.

In The Odyssey, the Cyclops symbolizes cultural values straying from the norm of society, while in Beowulf, Grendel symbolizes the consequences of not conforming to those values.

In Norse mythology it is believed that the afterlife you come to revolves around how you lived your life. Vikings who fell in battle were considered to be the bravest Vikings and they would obtain the biggest reward in their afterlife. In Norse mythology the two realms that were linked to their religious beliefs was Valhalla and Helheim and they believed that you would end up in one or the other. Valhalla is known to be ‘the hall of the fallen’, it was mainly

Myths refer to traditional ostensible stories explaining a natural phenomenon or cultural aspects. Evidently, myths serve diverse purposes within the society. In relation to culture, myths are the elements of explaining human culture. For example, myths explain the origin of certain behaviors, cultural practices or even articulation under natural phenomenon. Myths basically have spiritual and religious significance to those holding them. Controversially, myths lack the basis to determine whether they are factual or not. Various myths are upheld in the society globally. For example, opposites attract, Mozart makes a baby genius, and human beings only use ten percent of their brains are some myths generally upheld by diverse societies globally. Arguably, the factual aspect of myths is questionable and most of the myths are critiqued as untrue. Technological advancements and scholarly articulations making farther studies into human cultures and the natural phenomenon has led to analyzation of some of these factors leading to more provable conclusions rendering myths untrue. My essay will analyze the myth, “Opposites Attract” which was traditionally upheld as factual but receive critique as being untrue in the modern society.