Conceptualizing the enemy in early Northwest Europe : metaphors of conflict and alterity in Anglo-Saxon, Old Norse, and Early Irish poetry / by Karin E. Olsen.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Olsen, K. E. (Karin E.), author.

Contributor:

Albert C. Baugh Book Fund.

Series:

Medieval identities, socio-cultural spaces ; v. 6.

Medieval Identities: Socio-Cultural Spaces (MISCS) ; volume 6

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Irish poetry.

War in literature.

Metaphor in literature.

English poetry--Old English, ca. 450-1100--History and criticism.

English poetry.

Old Norse poetry--History and criticism.

Old Norse poetry.

Irish poetry--To 1100--History and criticism.

English poetry--Old English.

Genre:

Criticism, interpretation, etc.

Physical Description:

viii, 249 pages ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Turnhout, Belgium : Brepols Publishers, [2016]

Summary:

Despite the prominence of conflicts in all mythological and heroic literature, perceptions of these conflicts and their participants are shaped by different cultural influences. Socio-economic, political, and religious factors all influence how conflict is perceived and depicted in literary form. This volume provides the first comparative analysis to explore conceptions of conflict and otherness in the literary and cultural contexts of the early North Sea world by investigating the use of metaphor in Old English, Old Norse, and Early Irish poetry. Applying Conceptual Metaphor Theory together with literary and anthropological analysis, the study examines metaphors of conflict and alterity in a range of (pseudo-) mythological, heroic, and occasional poetry, including 'Beowulf', Old Norse skaldic and eddic verse, and poems from the celebrated "Ulster Cycle". This unique approach not only sheds new light on a wide spectrum of metaphorical techniques, but also draws important conclusions concerning the common cultural heritage behind these three poetic corpora.

Contents:

Chapter 1 Metaphor, Alterity, and the Early Poetry of Northwest Europe 1

Chapter 2 Heathen Gods and their Enemies in Old English, Old Norse, and Early Irish Poetry 29

Chapter 3 Marginalizing the Enemy in the Heroic Poetry of Early Northwest Europe 93

Chapter 4 Defaming the Enemy in the Occasional Poetry of Early Northwest Europe 171.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 213-240) and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Albert C. Baugh Book Fund.

ISBN:

9782503552279

2503552277

OCLC:

958378353