What was the Viking worldview? What was their value system? Why did they venture out into the world?
Unfortunately, the Vikings maintained an oral tradition, most of which was lost after they converted to Christianity. What we do know about the Vikings comes from archaeology and the Norse mythology that was written down in the Poetic and Prose Edda.
In this talk to his Chinese high school students, Jiang Xueqin attempts to re-constitute the Viking worldview, and argues that their core values were courage, loyalty, and resourcefulness. He explains the power and beauty of Norse mythology, and how such power and beauty could only be developed in the oral tradition.
He refers to Professor Neil Price’s lecture on the Viking worldview (“The Shape of the Soul”), which can be found here on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Db9sG1PSsQ&list=PLQ1klkjnKgUHARf1oi-fe2njLf3wo4QGL&index=3&t=3346s
