461: Why are the Vikings and paganism so interesting to modern people?

The boys drink and review Fireside Chat winter ale by 21st Amendment Brewery, then discuss The Northman, paganism, and Rod Dreher's take on how paganism presents an enchanted view of life. "The Northman" is basically the story of Hamlet set among the Vikings. Amleth witnesses his uncle murdering his father and carrying off his mother. He vows to avenge his father and rescue his mother. Years later, Amleth becomes a fierce warrior, but sells himself into slavery so he can be in the town of his uncle and get his revenge. It's an interesting movie, but the larger question addressed in the podcast is how this relates to modern man's lack of a sense of meaning and purpose, and the longing for enchantment. Modern secular, technological society is a fantastic thing. It's given us antibiotics and labor-saving technologies that are simply amazing. But there's no dispute that it's come at a cost. Secular society reduces life to the material, emphasizing logic, technology, and efficiency over mystery and meaning. While these advancements offer many benefits, Dreher argues that they leave a void, creating a sense of disconnection from life’s deeper meaning. In stark contrast, the symbolic, hero-driven narrative of "The Northman" shows characters motivated by a sense of duty and destiny that transcends self-interest. It's an appeal to something timeless and heroic. But beyond that, there's a constant sense of immanent spiritual reality. The gods are as real in The Northman as the sky and the land. Dreher’s analysis suggests that this type of worldview, which modernity often overlooks, fulfills a deep-rooted human desire to connect with the divine, the sacred, and the transcendent.