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b"Welcome to the first in a series of special Saga Briefs on Interpreting the Past, a series that looks at modern interpretations and perceptions of the medieval. In this episode, John and Andy welcome two scholars, Dr. Verena H\\xf6fig (Assistant Professor in the Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign) and Zachary Melton (Ph.D. student at the University of Iceland).\\nWe cover a range of topics, including the appeal of Viking Age culture and mythology to modern religious and political movements; the role of literature, history, and social media in the construction of individual and group identities; and the challenges that we face, both as scholars and as citizens of this world, coming to terms with the many differences of interpretation that divide us.\\xa0 \\nAs that list suggests, this isn't the usual light stroll through the sagas. This episode is short on jokes and heavy on substantive discussion of important issues. Whether you're an expert or an enthusiast, this one's worth your time. We hope you enjoy and we look forward to hearing your thoughts.\\nHere is a bibliography of the texts and studies referred to, either directly or indirectly, in this episode:\\nAmerican Heathens: The Politics of Identity in a Pagan Religious Movement by Jennifer Snook\\n\\u201cEthnicity as Cognition\\u201d by Rogers Brubaker, Mara Loveman, and Peter Stamatov\\nGods of the Blood: The Pagan Revival and White Separatism by Mattias Gardell\\nHuginn\\u2019s Heathen Hof and Declaration 127\\nKarl Seigfried on \\xc1satr\\xfa, Anti-Racism, and Rescuing the Past \\u2013 quote taken from \\u201cWhat To Do When Racists Try To Hijack Your Religion\\u201d in The Atlantic\\nStrangers in Their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right by Arlie Russell Hochschild\\n\\u201cWilliam Cullen Bryant\\u2019s American Antiquities: Medievalism, Miscegenation and Race in The Prairies\\u201d by Andrew Galloway\\nMusic Credits\\nOpening song \\u2013\\xa0Icelandic Folk Music: Tr\\xf6llaslagur\\nOutro \\u2013\\xa0\\xd3lafur Liljur\\xf3s"