Monsters, Heroes and Social Identity in Medieval Icelandic and English Literature

Monsters, Heroes and Social Identity in Medieval Icelandic and English Literature PDF Author: Janice Hawes
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Beowulf
Languages : en
Pages : 498

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Book Description

Monsters, Heroes and Social Identity in Medieval Icelandic and English Literature

Monsters, Heroes and Social Identity in Medieval Icelandic and English Literature PDF Author: Janice Hawes
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Beowulf
Languages : en
Pages : 498

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Book Description


Flesh and Word

Flesh and Word PDF Author: Sarah Künzler
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
ISBN: 3110455870
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 460

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Book Description
Bodies and their role in cultural discourse have been a constant focus in the humanities and social sciences in recent years, but comparatively few studies exist about Old Norse-Icelandic or early Irish literature. This study aims to redress this imbalance and presents carefully contextualised close readings of medieval texts. The chapters focus on the role of bodies in mediality discourse in various contexts: that of identity in relation to ideas about self and other, of inscribed and marked skin and of natural bodily matters such as defecation, urination and menstruation. By carefully discussing the sources in their cultural contexts, it becomes apparent that medieval Scandinavian and early Irish texts present their very own ideas about bodies and their role in structuring the narrated worlds of the texts. The study presents one of the first systematic examinations of bodies in these two literary traditions in terms of body criticism and emphasises the ingenuity and complexity of medieval texts.

Monsters in Society

Monsters in Society PDF Author: Rebecca Merkelbach
Publisher: Medieval Institute Publications
ISBN: 9781501518362
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 258

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Book Description
Dragons, giants, and the monsters of learned discourse are rarely encountered in the Sagas of Icelanders, and therefore, the general teratological focus on physical monstrosity yields only limited results when applied to them. This, however, does not equal an absence of monstrosity - it only means that monstrosity is conceived of differently. This book shifts the view of monstrosity from the physical to the social, accounting for the unique social circumstances presented in the Íslendingasögur and demonstrating how closely interwoven the social and the monstrous are in this genre. Employing literary and cultural theory as well as anthropological and historical approaches, it reads the monsters of the Íslendingasögur in their literary and socio-cultural context, demonstrating that they are not distractions from feud and conflict, but that they are in fact an intrinsic part of the genre's re-imagining of the past for the needs of the present.

Dissertation Abstracts International

Dissertation Abstracts International PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Dissertations, Academic
Languages : en
Pages : 468

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The Ashgate Encyclopedia of Literary and Cinematic Monsters

The Ashgate Encyclopedia of Literary and Cinematic Monsters PDF Author: Jeffrey Andrew Weinstock
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317044258
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 558

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Book Description
From vampires and demons to ghosts and zombies, interest in monsters in literature, film, and popular culture has never been stronger. This concise Encyclopedia provides scholars and students with a comprehensive and authoritative A-Z of monsters throughout the ages. It is the first major reference book on monsters for the scholarly market. Over 200 entries written by experts in the field are accompanied by an overview introduction by the editor. Generic entries such as 'ghost' and 'vampire' are cross-listed with important specific manifestations of that monster. In addition to monsters appearing in English-language literature and film, the Encyclopedia also includes significant monsters in Spanish, French, Italian, German, Russian, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, African and Middle Eastern traditions. Alphabetically organized, the entries each feature suggestions for further reading. The Ashgate Encyclopedia of Literary and Cinematic Monsters is an invaluable resource for all students and scholars and an essential addition to library reference shelves.

The Waning Sword: Conversion Imagery and Celestial Myth in 'Beowulf'

The Waning Sword: Conversion Imagery and Celestial Myth in 'Beowulf' PDF Author: Edward Pettit
Publisher: Open Book Publishers
ISBN: 1783748303
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 344

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Book Description
The image of a giant sword melting stands at the structural and thematic heart of the Old English heroic poem Beowulf. This meticulously researched book investigates the nature and significance of this golden-hilted weapon and its likely relatives within Beowulf and beyond, drawing on the fields of Old English and Old Norse language and literature, liturgy, archaeology, astronomy, folklore and comparative mythology. In Part I, Pettit explores the complex of connotations surrounding this image (from icicles to candles and crosses) by examining a range of medieval sources, and argues that the giant sword may function as a visual motif in which pre-Christian Germanic concepts and prominent Christian symbols coalesce. In Part II, Pettit investigates the broader Germanic background to this image, especially in relation to the god Ing/Yngvi-Freyr, and explores the capacity of myths to recur and endure across time. Drawing on an eclectic range of narrative and linguistic evidence from Northern European texts, and on archaeological discoveries, Pettit suggests that the image of the giant sword, and the characters and events associated with it, may reflect an elemental struggle between the sun and the moon, articulated through an underlying myth about the theft and repossession of sunlight. The Waning Sword: Conversion Imagery and Celestial Myth in 'Beowulf' is a welcome contribution to the overlapping fields of Beowulf-scholarship, Old Norse-Icelandic literature and Germanic philology. Not only does it present a wealth of new readings that shed light on the craft of the Beowulf-poet and inform our understanding of the poem’s major episodes and themes; it further highlights the merits of adopting an interdisciplinary approach alongside a comparative vantage point. As such, The Waning Sword will be compelling reading for Beowulf-scholars and for a wider audience of medievalists.

MLA International Bibliography of Books and Articles on the Modern Languages and Literatures

MLA International Bibliography of Books and Articles on the Modern Languages and Literatures PDF Author: Modern Language Association of America
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Languages, Modern
Languages : en
Pages : 2358

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Book Description
Vols. for 1969- include ACTFL annual bibliography of books and articles on pedagogy in foreign languages 1969-

The Troll Inside You

The Troll Inside You PDF Author: Ármann Jakobsson
Publisher: punctum books
ISBN: 1947447009
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 246

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Book Description
What do medieval Icelanders mean when they say "troll"? What did they see when they saw a troll? What did the troll signify to them? And why did they see them? The principal subject of this book is the Norse idea of the troll, which the author uses to engage with the larger topic of paranormal experiences in the medieval North. The texts under study are from 13th-, 14th-, and 15th-century Iceland. The focus of the book is on the ways in which paranormal experiences are related and defined in these texts and how those definitions have framed and continue to frame scholarly interpretations of the paranormal. The book is partitioned into numerous brief chapters, each with its own theme. In each case the author is not least concerned with how the paranormal functions within medieval society and in the minds of the individuals who encounter and experience it and go on to narrate these experiences through intermediaries. The author connects the paranormal encounter closely with fears and these fears are intertwined with various aspects of the human experience including gender, family ties, and death. The Troll Inside You hovers over the boundaries of scholarship and literature. Its aim is to prick and provoke but above all to challenge its audience to reconsider some of their preconceived ideas about the medieval past.

Monster theory [electronic resource]

Monster theory [electronic resource] PDF Author: Jeffrey Jerome Cohen
Publisher: U of Minnesota Press
ISBN: 1452900558
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 331

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Book Description
The contributors to Monster Theory consider beasts, demons, freaks and fiends as symbolic expressions of cultural unease that pervade a society and shape its collective behavior. Through a historical sampling of monsters, these essays argue that our fascination for the monstrous testifies to our continued desire to explore difference and prohibition.

Seasons in the Literatures of the Medieval North

Seasons in the Literatures of the Medieval North PDF Author: P. S. Langeslag
Publisher: Boydell & Brewer
ISBN: 1843844257
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 260

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Book Description
A fresh examination of how the seasons are depicted in medieval literature.