The Story of Hwang Jini
Modern Koreans remain captivated by the elusive, but compelling, Hwang Jini because of her individuality and the romantic intricacy of her poetry.
Spring in the Middle Ages
How did medieval people perceive the arrival of Spring? How was Spring depicted in medieval calendars and literary texts? And, was Spring the “mating season” for humans, as it is for many animal species?
‘Viking’ Humour
Do we share a sense of humour with Vikings? Dr Hannah Burrows talks about what might have made the Vikings laugh, and what was considered a serious matter in medieval Scandinavia. She will explore what puns, jokes, insults, and satire can tell us about early Scandinavian culture and social concerns.
Beauty, Piety and Fun in Medieval Literature
Professor Vitz will take our audience on an exciting journey through seven of her favorite medieval works from England, France, and Spain, drawing on romance, epic, crusade chronicle, and theatre.
Inner Circles: Reading and Writing in Late Medieval London
New findings reveal that London’s clerks and scriveners, who moved between English, French, and Latin, formed professional ‘communities of practice’, which played a significant part in the dissemination of literary manuscripts.
Byzantine erotic epigrams, with Steven Smith
A conversation with Steven Smith about worldly and sinful epigrams from the sixth century that talk about love, sex, food, and other pleasures.
The Original King Lear
Most people today know the story of King Lear from Shakespeare’s tragic play. But the original story actually comes from the medieval period, and it actually has a very happy ending.
Guillaume d’Orange: Duke, Saint, Legend
In this article, we will meet the man himself, neither as a strictly historical person, nor an entirely fictionalised one, but as he is remembered and represented with the passage of time.
Byzantine tales of horror and the macabre
An anthology of Byzantine tales of horror. Learn about foul murders, demonic visitations, the undead, and the criminally insane; also, the Byzantine science of demonology and the spirit world.
Telling Stories, Saving Lives: The Sultana Who Saved a Kingdom through her Stories
Scheherazade, the heroine of The Tales of the 1001 Nights, saved her world through stories.
A Survival Guide to Medieval Fairy Tales
These are tales from the Middle Ages, and if your hero was going to survive in these stories, they had to follow seven rules.
The Three Caskets
This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle tells the medieval story of The Three Caskets from the Gesta Romanorum, a tale more familiar to theatre and literature fans all over the world as a central plot device in Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice.
What Happened to the Corpses on the Medieval Battlefield?
Medieval literature often depicts knights slaughtering their foes in brutal battles. The focus is usually on the glory of the knights and of the battle. But what happened to the bodies after the battle was done?
Middle English Texts Series gets a boost from NEH
A pioneering initiative to make texts from the Middle Ages available to scholars and students around the world receives continued support from the National Endowment for the Humanities.
The Story of Merlin and the Demons who made him
In the medieval tradition, Merlin was created by demons to bring about the downfall of Christianity.
Western Fantasies about Byzantium, with Elena Boeck
A conversation about western fantasies, orientalism, and the making of Byzantium, with Elena Boeck
The Medieval Journeys of Alexander the Great
Going into the heavens and under the sea with Alexander the Great.
The Medieval Cinderella
It takes place within a community of rural “cave-dwellers,” features magical fish bones, presents a prince who is both violent and greedy, and stars a heroine who is much more disobedient and ambitious than the European version.
Robin Hood – The Man, The Myth, and The History – Part 1: Of Tales and Legends
This series will seek to delve into the history behind the legends and to investigate the critical questions that they raise: who was the real Robin Hood?
Gilote and Johane: Promiscuous Preachers
In a lighthearted poem called Gilote and Johane, two women argue both for and against virginity.
Sir Reynard: The Fox, the Trickster, the Peasant Hero
Despite being a romance, the story of Reynard the Fox is no romance in the traditional sense.
Rose versus Violet
What’s better – a Rose or a Violet? That is the question written about by Jean Froissart in the 14th century. This debate between plants – each with their own lawyer – tells us a lot about medieval culture and how writers from this period created allegorical poems. And it’s the topic of this week’s edition of The Medieval Podcast.
The Ghost Knight
This week on The Medieval Podcast, it’s story time, with a tale that crosses over between fabliau and courtly love: The Ghost Knight. Danièle shares the story of how a knight manages to win his lady with a little supernatural sleight-of-hand.
The Story of The Buddha, as told in Medieval Europe
A curious case of a medieval story which crosses religious boundaries is the life of Josaphat, a Christian saint whose origins appear to be not Christian at all. His life story is the life story of the Buddha.