Are the rituals in Midsommar based on any ancient folk culture?
I've recently watched Midsommar (2019). During the summer festival, which was held during the friends visit in Sweden, we see some terrifying, brutal and definitely scary rituals. I'm speaking about these:
Throwing the oldest members of the family (or tribe) from a rock when they reach a certain age.
Blood eagle execution of those who are thought to be traitors.
Sex intercourse of young members to make baby to celebrate life
I'm not familiar with Swedish folk stories and I know that the brutality depicted in the movie is exaggerated and there is nothing like that today. But are they inspired from any specific ancient pagan folk culture?
Best Answer
The Swedish term for the first is called Ättestupa, and there are several locations for this in Sweden (my mom grew up close to one of these, and have mentioned this several times). The actual practice is just myth, according to Wikipedia.
For the third point, I have not seen the movie, but Swedish people are known to procreate.
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Are any of the rituals in Midsommar real?
The Midsommar Celebration Is Christian-Based, Not Pagan Swedish author Po Tidholm, who studies the pagan practices and other traditions of his country, told Esquire that many of the film's rituals are actually based in Christianity: The Swedish "midsommarst\xe5ng" or "maypole" is said to be of German, Christian heritage.Is Midsommar based on paganism?
Ari Aster's 2019 film Midsommar includes detailed depictions of Swedish and Pagan symbolism in celebration of the solstice - here is what it means. From the mind of writer and director Ari Aster, Midsommar details the Pagan rituals of a Swedish cult called the H\xe5rga.What is the ritual in Midsommar?
THE SEX SCENE Vilhelm Blomgren, left, Florence Pugh and Ari Aster on the set of \u201cMidsommar.\u201d One of the things revealed on a tapestry is the love ritual that is performed on Christian, meant to bind him to a specific young woman for conception and procreation.Midsommar Explained - the REAL ritual \u0026 runes explained
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Answer 2
Culling the old is reasonably common in fiction. Notable it's the central concept of Logan's Run. I'm not aware of any Scandinavian traditions, but Euthanasia has been around since ancient times.
Blood eagle executions appear in Norse folklore, but it's unclear whether they ever actually happened for real.
Having not seen the film, I'm not sure precisely what you mean for the third thing. There have probably been groups of people ritualistically having sex in any way you could imagine.
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