Back in the Medieval era you’d be hard pressed to find anyone who wasn’t, although in terms of scale Mongols and Vikings were pretty far reaching in their brand of violence.
I would argue there’s still a difference between “callous because medieval life sucks” and Viking “plundering as the core value”. Viking is a profession after all, not an ethnicity.
Mongols are a bit different case, as I would argue the idea of Mongols that exists in popular culture is pretty far off, and fits better to earlier steppe cultures - Cumans, Pechenegs, etc. By the time Mongols rolled into what is now Russia, the Golden Horde was an empire. With massive production capabilities, logistics, the works.
That said, I agree that the level of everyday violence and cruelty of those periods is severely underestimated
Honestly, when I read about what the Mongols and other medieval empires did to their enemies, it actually does make me feel like we’ve come a long way. As evil and destructive as people can still be towards one another, we don’t dehumanize each other to such absurd levels as feudal regimes did.
It’s like taking a trip through time. There’s a creative component to it because you get to create the picture of the setting in your mind. For example, if you’re reading about Egypt you get to picture the sands, pyramids, and The Nile.
When we read about capitalism, well, we already know the settings because it’s around us. So theres a bit of escapism in ancient history which is nice.
And being a Marxist removes the mysticism of the aristocracy and nobility of these societies. This, perhaps unexpectedly, helps me enjoy historical dramas/movies even more. You’re going to be even more conscious of the decadence these people lived in in contrast to the people they exploit. You’ll see the class conflict of these times, too, even though that is usually not, if ever, the focus of these movies.
I think they’re both cool.
Racists end up missing out on a lot of cool in their lives.
I feel the opposite. Neither was cool, both were quite violent
Back in the Medieval era you’d be hard pressed to find anyone who wasn’t, although in terms of scale Mongols and Vikings were pretty far reaching in their brand of violence.
I would argue there’s still a difference between “callous because medieval life sucks” and Viking “plundering as the core value”. Viking is a profession after all, not an ethnicity.
Mongols are a bit different case, as I would argue the idea of Mongols that exists in popular culture is pretty far off, and fits better to earlier steppe cultures - Cumans, Pechenegs, etc. By the time Mongols rolled into what is now Russia, the Golden Horde was an empire. With massive production capabilities, logistics, the works.
That said, I agree that the level of everyday violence and cruelty of those periods is severely underestimated
Honestly, when I read about what the Mongols and other medieval empires did to their enemies, it actually does make me feel like we’ve come a long way. As evil and destructive as people can still be towards one another, we don’t dehumanize each other to such absurd levels as feudal regimes did.
BUT DO WE HAVE THE EDDA AND MONGOLIAN THROAT SINGING
I found the vinland saga fan
Yeah no offense intended to either, should have made that clear. They’re both being exploited by racists.
No worries, and no offense taken! (Personally, I don’t have a dog in the race, just lowkey interested in ancient/medieval cultures).
It’s like taking a trip through time. There’s a creative component to it because you get to create the picture of the setting in your mind. For example, if you’re reading about Egypt you get to picture the sands, pyramids, and The Nile.
When we read about capitalism, well, we already know the settings because it’s around us. So theres a bit of escapism in ancient history which is nice.
And being a Marxist removes the mysticism of the aristocracy and nobility of these societies. This, perhaps unexpectedly, helps me enjoy historical dramas/movies even more. You’re going to be even more conscious of the decadence these people lived in in contrast to the people they exploit. You’ll see the class conflict of these times, too, even though that is usually not, if ever, the focus of these movies.