The Gallic Aristocracy and the Roman Imperial government in the fifth century A.D.
The recovery, however, proved to be too superficial for the continuing prosperity of either Gaul or the Western Roman Empire. The problems of the imperial government continued with little relief. The government still had to drive out and keep out the barbarians…
Monstrous transformations: loyalty and community in four medieval poems
I will examine two forms of transformation, the werewolf transformation and the monstrous human transformation, both of which feature shape shifters who presumably cannot be trusted
The Hobbit – 75 years old and still going strong
It took a review by a ten-year old boy to convince a publisher to print it, but on September 21, 1937, the first edition of The Hobbit hit the bookstores.
From Jongleur to Minstrel: The Professionalization of Secular Musicians in Thirteenth- and Fourteenth-Century Paris
This study asks: how did jongleurs professionalize over the course of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries and incorporate themselves into society as legitimate, productive members?
Constantius and the Visigothic Settlement in Gaul
The emperor Honorius made an attempt during his reign to calm the turbulent region of Gaul by assigning one of his generals to the area and appointing him as the head of the regions armies.
J.R.R. Tolkien: Did You Know? Windows on the life and work of J.R.R. Tolkien
Tolkien anticipated his books might inspire a film adaption, and he stated his concerns in a letter he wrote in June 1958. “The failure of poor films is often precisely in exaggeration,” he explained, “and in the intrusion of unwarranted matter owing to not perceiving where the core of the original lies.” He objected to editors who “cut the parts of the story upon which its characteristic and peculiar tone principally depends, showing a preference for fights,” and said he would resent “perversion of the characters … even more than the spoiling of the plot and scenery.”
Running Widdershins Round Middle Earth: Why Teaching Tolkien Matters
Returning to Tolkien’s allegory, it is clear that he suggests that his fellow medievalists have taken a work of great imaginative and artistic power, and instead of using it to “see the sea”, they have mined it for words and phrases, and pulled it apart, looking for bits and pieces from other ancient works, and even reworked it after their own notions of how it “ought” to be built.
Through the Eyes of a Crusader: An Intensive Study Into the Personal Involvement of Two Men in the Fourth Crusade
What was going through the minds ofthese men who were fighting for the cross when they attacked a Christian city, which was one oftheir allies?
Riddles, Runes and Tolkien in the “At-Risk” 8th Grade Classroom
The Hobbit, perhaps more so than Lord of the Rings, is clearly indebted in part to Old English literature and culture, notably in its use of runic writing in the map illustrations and in the story itself, and in the important role of riddles in Bilbo’s confrontation with Gollum
Muslims in canon law, 650-1000
Christians first encountered Muslims as invaders. Bishops convened in Constantinople by Justinian II at the Council in Trullo of 692 respond to these ‘barbarian invasions’ in several canons.
The Influence of J.R.R. Tolkien on Popular Culture
This paper will trace the history of the
Middle Earth mythology and its popularity. By studying the example of The Lord ofthe Rings I hope to demonstrate how art not only gets pulled into the system of popular and mass culture, but also how art has an influence on the system. An interesting question comes up when studying this topic. Why did Tolkien become popular?
Naughty Nuns and Promiscuous Monks: Monastic Sexual Misconduct in Late Medieval England
This dissertation examines monastic sexual misconduct in cloistered religious houses in the dioceses of Lincoln and Norwich between 1430 and 1530.
Late-Medieval Women: Ascetic Performance and Subversive Mysticism
Christina the Astonishing (1150-1224), Mary of Oignies (1177-1213), and Margaret of Ypres (1216-1237) are examples of such lay women who used the accepted role of Female Mystic to effect and secure alternative lifestyles, and also to gain authority that equalled, and often surpassed, the male voices that made up their communities.
Five new websites for medievalists
In the first of what will be an occasional series, here are five new websites on the Middle Ages…
The Werewolf Pride Movement: A Step Back from Queer Medieval Tradition
Werewolf texts fiom the Middle Ages — namely, the early thirteenth-century romance, William of Palerne, and Marie de France’s early twelfth-century lay, ‘Bisclavret’ — suggest that the curse of fur might, after all, be a blessing to the individual dissatisfied with his or her place in society
Angelic Demons: Witchcraft and Sorcery in Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales
In Chaucer’s tales regarding magic and sorcery, three stand out in particular: The Franklin’s Tale, the Wife of Bath’s Tale and the Canon’s Yeoman’s Tale.
Lofty Depths and Tragic Brilliance: The Interweaving of Celtic and Anglo-Saxon Mythology and Literature in the Arthurian Legends
Arthur and his knights are set apart from other literary heroes because of their unique construct, a blending of two cultures into one legend.
The Lost Millennium: Psychology During the Middle Ages
The medieval period – roughly the 1,000 years from the classical Greco-Roman age to the Renaissance and modern era has long been neglected in the history of psychology.
World Without End – Review of Episode 3: Prior
After the bridge collapse, Caris helps the wounded and hopes to open a hospital. Godwyn schemes to become Prior following the suspicious drowning of Prior Anthony. King Edward III declares war on France, and the Hundred Years’ War begins.