The legacy of historical “Viking activities” was a factor in the development of modern nation states in Scandinavia and the Baltic region, and their contributions to the heritage of people residing in Britain, continental Europe, the Middle East, and even the Atlantic coast of Canada have been and continue to be cited to the present day. Aspects of culture attributed to “the Vikings”—their assumed independence, courage, resourcefulness, and tenacity in the face of adversity, as well as the occult characteristics of their cosmology—have, for better and worse, inspired modern artists, writers, composers, intellectuals, explorers and even political leaders, and persist in present day literature, art, music, sport and popular culture as well. Why and how do elements of historic Viking culture continue to evoke traditions and characteristics popularly attributed to “the Vikings”? What are some implications of “Viking-ness” for those people in the post-Viking Age past and/or present who we may regard—or may regard themselves—as the “cultural descendants” of the Vikings? In this seminar, participants will study selected cultural artifacts of the “post-Viking Age,” along with recent multidisciplinary research, to observe how various “post-Viking Age” cultures and subcultures have selectively appropriated elements of the “Viking” past. This seminar will consider the relationship between the traditional conception of the “Viking warrior” and recent research that suggests the broader impact that the “Viking Phenomenon” had upon the economic revival and sociopolitical development of medieval Europe and its frontiers. In the course of the seminar, we will examine a selection of historical records and information concerning artifacts of the material culture of “The Viking Age” in order to better understand the activities of early medieval “Vikings,” not only as warriors, but also as agents of commerce, explorers, pioneers, and rulers. We move on to the 19th century to engage with the critical Marxist theorisation of the new “capitalist” social and political formation, and look at the reception of the Marxist view in the 20th century, all of which continues to affect the character of Western social and political thought.
The legacy of historical “Viking activities” was a factor in the development of modern nation states in Scandinavia and the Baltic region, and their contributions to the heritage of people residing in Britain, continental Europe, the Middle East, and even the Atlantic coast of Canada have been and continue to be cited to the present day. Aspects of culture attributed to “the Vikings”—their assumed independence, courage, resourcefulness, and tenacity in the face of adversity, as well as the occult characteristics of their cosmology—have, for better and worse, inspired modern artists, writers, composers, intellectuals, explorers and even political leaders, and persist in present day literature, art, music, sport and popular culture as well. Why and how do elements of historic Viking culture continue to evoke traditions and characteristics popularly attributed to “the Vikings”? What are some implications of “Viking-ness” for those people in the post-Viking Age past and/or present who we may regard—or may regard themselves—as the “cultural descendants” of the Vikings? In this seminar, participants will study selected cultural artifacts of the “post-Viking Age,” along with recent multidisciplinary research, to observe how various “post-Viking Age” cultures and subcultures have selectively appropriated elements of the “Viking” past. This seminar will consider the relationship between the traditional conception of the “Viking warrior” and recent research that suggests the broader impact that the “Viking Phenomenon” had upon the economic revival and sociopolitical development of medieval Europe and its frontiers. In the course of the seminar, we will examine a selection of historical records and information concerning artifacts of the material culture of “The Viking Age” in order to better understand the activities of early medieval “Vikings,” not only as warriors, but also as agents of commerce, explorers, pioneers, and rulers. We move on to the 19th century to engage with the critical Marxist theorisation of the new “capitalist” social and political formation, and look at the reception of the Marxist view in the 20th century, all of which continues to affect the character of Western social and political thought.
