In another thread, I had suggested reinterpreting Thor as a man empowered by the advanced technology of what is popularly known as "ancient astronauts." One poster responded as follows:
No, I'm not mad. I just think a character that asks you to temporarily "believe" in literal Nordic gods is simply a stupid character. I reject pagan gods as being utterly irrational, and so for me the character of Thor is an irrational character. If he were a real god, then he wouldn't be a mere superhero - he'd be someone we should bow to and worship. That would be the logical outcome of Thor's being a god.
And what do you mean by "inspire reverence"? People are supposed to "revere" Thor? Why? Think about translating that type of character to film, and not only that but also writing a story with more depth in which Thor's existence has a plausible impact on public thinking. If a character like that stepped into the real world, he would not merely be acknowledged as a superhero; he would drastically overhaul world philosophies and religions. The implications of his existence would be incalculable.
And it's not as if an alternative explanation couldn't have the elements you're after: questioning our worldviews, a sense of mystery, and even a sense of reverence - if, that is, the character prompts us to reconsider the matter of the existence of a Supreme Being, a Creator (which Thor himself obviously is not).
What I'm suggesting is that a writer consider a rational explanation for the ancient "gods" - either deified men (most likely) or extraterrestrials (far less likely, but could be plausibly written for fiction). With either of those scenarios there would actually have been a person called "Thor" who performed amazing feats, and as a result was worshipped by others as a "god," even though they were simply wrong about his having been a god.
I suppose, though, that to explain how Thor gets his powers, a writer would have to go with the ancient astronaut scenario, meaning that his powers would be derived from unearthly technology. There's no reason this could not be well-written and entertaining AND retain the essential personality and values of the character. The character has potential if well-written, but I have to seriously question the assumption that he must be a literal "god" in order to explore the values and beliefs that Thor writers have typically explored.
A third alternative would be to entertain the notion (as is sometimes seen or hinted at in various fantasy novels since Tolkien's day) of the Creator Himself having gifted certain individuals in ancient times with amazing powers to achieve this or that noble purpose, and subsequently those individuals were misunderstood and misinterpreted by others as "gods." (I'd take this same tack toward Wonder Woman if I wrote her stories.)
Cheers,
Andy
No, I'm not mad. I just think a character that asks you to temporarily "believe" in literal Nordic gods is simply a stupid character. I reject pagan gods as being utterly irrational, and so for me the character of Thor is an irrational character. If he were a real god, then he wouldn't be a mere superhero - he'd be someone we should bow to and worship. That would be the logical outcome of Thor's being a god.
And what do you mean by "inspire reverence"? People are supposed to "revere" Thor? Why? Think about translating that type of character to film, and not only that but also writing a story with more depth in which Thor's existence has a plausible impact on public thinking. If a character like that stepped into the real world, he would not merely be acknowledged as a superhero; he would drastically overhaul world philosophies and religions. The implications of his existence would be incalculable.
And it's not as if an alternative explanation couldn't have the elements you're after: questioning our worldviews, a sense of mystery, and even a sense of reverence - if, that is, the character prompts us to reconsider the matter of the existence of a Supreme Being, a Creator (which Thor himself obviously is not).
What I'm suggesting is that a writer consider a rational explanation for the ancient "gods" - either deified men (most likely) or extraterrestrials (far less likely, but could be plausibly written for fiction). With either of those scenarios there would actually have been a person called "Thor" who performed amazing feats, and as a result was worshipped by others as a "god," even though they were simply wrong about his having been a god.
I suppose, though, that to explain how Thor gets his powers, a writer would have to go with the ancient astronaut scenario, meaning that his powers would be derived from unearthly technology. There's no reason this could not be well-written and entertaining AND retain the essential personality and values of the character. The character has potential if well-written, but I have to seriously question the assumption that he must be a literal "god" in order to explore the values and beliefs that Thor writers have typically explored.
A third alternative would be to entertain the notion (as is sometimes seen or hinted at in various fantasy novels since Tolkien's day) of the Creator Himself having gifted certain individuals in ancient times with amazing powers to achieve this or that noble purpose, and subsequently those individuals were misunderstood and misinterpreted by others as "gods." (I'd take this same tack toward Wonder Woman if I wrote her stories.)
Cheers,
Andy
