Hi Terri. I find the theories on what caused the Viking age interesting, including the scenario you suggest. What prompts such behaviour elsewhere? And, can we assume similar socio-economic and culture impetus existed in the Early Medieval period? Impossible to know with respect to all the nuances that are invisible in the archaeology and not touched on in contemporary texts (when there are any - usually written by 'outsiders.' Though, since human nature itself doesn't seem to have changed that much (at least in terms of greed and desire for easy money) some of the prompts behind 21st century piracy may have been true for the Vikings, e.g. "'weak states' that are easily corruptible and scarce economic opportunities in legal forms of work make piracy an appealing alternative." I suspect there is no single answer with respect to the Vikings - or anyone else for that matter. [Source of quote: https://theglobepost.com/2019/09/24/modern-piracy-explained/]
Thanks for reading and the comment. Yes, the behavior definitely exists elsewhere cross-culturally and throughout history. One of my anthropological studies in researching to write that piece had to do with young men in cities in the U.S. involved in gang culture which exhibit so many of the same behaviors. We definitely know that areas known to be politically weak (e.g. the Frankish Empire after the death of Charlemagne) were sniffed out and became targets of Vikings. You are 100% correct in that there is no single answer. Historically, there never is. Humans, though sometimes seemingly predictable, are actually complex with multiple reasons that make them do what they do. Something like a "Viking Age" is simply a confluence of a number of factors at a given time.
Hi Terri. I find the theories on what caused the Viking age interesting, including the scenario you suggest. What prompts such behaviour elsewhere? And, can we assume similar socio-economic and culture impetus existed in the Early Medieval period? Impossible to know with respect to all the nuances that are invisible in the archaeology and not touched on in contemporary texts (when there are any - usually written by 'outsiders.' Though, since human nature itself doesn't seem to have changed that much (at least in terms of greed and desire for easy money) some of the prompts behind 21st century piracy may have been true for the Vikings, e.g. "'weak states' that are easily corruptible and scarce economic opportunities in legal forms of work make piracy an appealing alternative." I suspect there is no single answer with respect to the Vikings - or anyone else for that matter. [Source of quote: https://theglobepost.com/2019/09/24/modern-piracy-explained/]
- Kerry
Hi Kerry!
Thanks for reading and the comment. Yes, the behavior definitely exists elsewhere cross-culturally and throughout history. One of my anthropological studies in researching to write that piece had to do with young men in cities in the U.S. involved in gang culture which exhibit so many of the same behaviors. We definitely know that areas known to be politically weak (e.g. the Frankish Empire after the death of Charlemagne) were sniffed out and became targets of Vikings. You are 100% correct in that there is no single answer. Historically, there never is. Humans, though sometimes seemingly predictable, are actually complex with multiple reasons that make them do what they do. Something like a "Viking Age" is simply a confluence of a number of factors at a given time.