How Old Is Little Red Riding Hood?: Tales Over Time
I will discuss some of the ways in which folk tales change using Little Red Riding Hood, The Three Pigs and The Three Bears as examples.
Seasonal Setting and the Human Domain in Early English and Early Scandinavian Literature
Seasonal Setting and the Human Domain in Early English and Early Scandinavian Literature Paul Sander Langeslag University of Toronto: Doctor of Philosophy, Centre for…
Werewolves and the Dog-headed Saint in the Middle Ages
Stories of werewolves and their canine kin have been around for centuries, and some of them may be a bit surprising.
The Medieval Walking Dead
On January 1, 1091, an army of the dead came to Normandy. For one priest, it would be a night that he would never forget.
Top Ten Monsters of the Middle Ages
People in the Middle Ages, just like today, could imagine a very strange monster!
Snorri’s Trollwives
The list by Snorri or incorporated in his work, reproduced here in an appendix, comes after comparable lists of the names of legendary sea-kings, the names of—or for—giants, and is followed by a brief list of bynames for Þórr and then the names of the Æsir. These lists are an important part of the skaldic tool kit and are introduced by Snorri’s comments on word-play—homonymity—and the substitution of metonyms or homologues for more common words in poetry.
Love Magic in Medieval Irish Penitentials, Law and Literature
I exemplify this striving for ‘neutral’ research in this study of love magic, which starts with a case study on an episode from the Life of Saint Brigit.
Voyagers in the Vault of Heaven: The Phenomenon of Ships in the Sky in Medieval Ireland and Beyond
This paper explores the phenomenon of ships voyaging in the sky.
Auðun of the West-Fjords and the Saga Tradition: Similarities of Theme and Structural Suitability
Auðun of the West-Fjords and the Saga Tradition: Similarities of Theme and Structural Suitability Josie Nolan (Trinity College Dublin) Vexillum, Vol.3 (2013) Abstract…
Wild woman and her sisters in medieval English literature
The subject of this work is the concept and figure of the Wild Woman. The primary focus will be on various forms this figure assumes in medieval English literature: Grendel’s mother—the second monster Beowulf faces—and Chaucer’s Wife of Bath, along with other figures.
Robin Hood as a Festive Figurehead for Local Autonomy in the 16th Century
Winner of the University of Chicago’s National Guild of St. Margaret of Scotland Prize for the best BA paper on a medieval topic
The role of mythical and imaginary figures in the mental framework of medieval society
It is crucial to evaluate also whether or not medieval people distinguished the fiction from reality, and if they did, does this have an impact on the roles which certain figures performed?
The Moon in the Middle Ages
People in the Middle Ages asked what was the moon made of? How far away was it? Could it make my child vindictive? Here is what they found out.
Magic and the Occult in Islam: Ahmad al-Buni (622H/1225CE?) and his Shams Al-Ma’arif
Lecture by Saiyad Nizamuddin Ahmad, American University in Cairo
Blood beliefs in early modern Europe
This thesis focuses on the significance of blood and the perception of the body in both learned and popular culture in order to investigate problems of identity and social exclusion in early modern Europe.
The Rage of the Wolf: Metamorphosis and Identity in Medieval Werewolf Tales
The werewolves of medieval literature were forced to conform to the Church’s view of metamorphosis and, in so doing, transformed from bestial and savage to benevolent and rational.
Sexuality in the Natural and Demonic Magic of the Middle Ages
Throughout the Middle Ages – especially the later Middle Ages – ideas of magic played a large part in the formation of deviant sexual behaviours and it was believed that magic played a main role in sexual malfunctions and abilities.
A Fairy Tale from before Fairy Tales: Egbert of Liège’s “De puella a lupellis seruata” and the Medieval Background of “Little Red Riding Hood”
The Fecunda ratis has been called ‘a treasure trove for students of medieval folklore’ for although Egbert drew extensively upon the Bible and patristic writings, he also relied heavily on the rich oral traditions that circulated in
his region,
Saga Motifs on Gotland Picture Stones: The Case of Hildr Högnadóttir
This article will only examine one of these legends, namely the ‘Hildr legend’ in the context of two of these stones, lärbro stora hammars and stenkyrka smiss . An attempt will be made to place the images in a larger context than has been done before, and by doing so to strenghten the probability that they were indeed intended to refer to the original Hildr legend.
Contemplating the Evolution of Medieval Double-Entendre Literature
The linguistic composition of the Exeter Book Riddles supports this, and in fact, the genre became a refuge for contemporary colloquial speech which was seen as coarse and lower class within the ideologies of Christianity and Germanic heroism.
The historical basis of Lycanthropism or: where do Werewolves come from?
Werewolves, Lycanthropes or Man-Wolves appear in many German, French and Scandinavian stories. Nowadays there exists an image of these creatures, which combines almost all the aspects of the werewolf-myths around the world, that was brought to us by Hollywood.
Faerie Folklore in Medieval Tales: An Introduction
Defining the term ‘faerie’ is not easy; some definitions include only specific, pre-Christian types of mythological creatures while other definitions include all of the spirits, angels and supernatural animals as well as the souls of the dead. I will take a middle road and include the spirits and the souls of the dead, since the dead and the faeries have an intimate connection in the folklore of the British Isles.
The Epistemological Function of Monsters in the Middle Ages
In this paper I will first outline the history of teratology (the study of monsters) from antiquity to the late Middle Ages in order to lay the foundation and to help the reader grasp the larger cultural-historical context.