Studies in Medieval Literature (324-0-20)

Topic

Pagan & Christian in Medieval Literature

Instructors

Barbara Newman
847/491-5679
University Hall 215

Meeting Info

Harris Hall L05: Mon, Wed 2:00PM - 3:20PM

Overview of class

Medieval culture was overwhelmingly Christian, but it was heir to several pre-Christian religions. Germanic paganism brought monsters, defiant heroism, and expectation of a coming "twilight of the gods," while Celtic paganism supplied magical objects and mysterious Otherworld visitors. Contrary to popular belief, the Church did not suppress the use of pagan sources, but medieval writers transformed the materials they inherited, producing sophisticated texts that present a Christian point of view layered above tantalizing and elusive pagan subtexts. In this multimedia class, we'll look at (1) the Old English world of Beowulf along with a recent apocalyptic novel based on it, Maria Dahvana Headley's The Mere Wife; (2) four tales about magical shape-shifting characters: Marie de France's Yonec and Bisclavret, The Wife of Bath's Tale by Geoffrey Chaucer, and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight; and (3) the romance of the Holy Grail—a Celtic magical cauldron that evolved into a prized Christian relic. The class will include a performance of Beowulf in Old English, sung to the Anglo-Saxon harp; websites on key archaeological finds; and three film adaptations by Éric Rohmer, David Lowery, and the unforgettable British comedy team, Monty Python.

Teaching Method

Discussion; some lectures; film viewing.

Evaluation Method

Oral presentations; five very short assignments; three 5-7 page papers.

Class Materials (Required)

Old English elegies, "The Wanderer" and "The Seafarer"
Beowulf (translations by Seamus Heaney and Maria Dahvana Headley)
Maria Dahvana Headley, The Mere Wife
Marie de France, "Yonec" and "Bisclavret"
Chaucer, "The Wife of Bath's Tale"
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
Chretien de Troyes, Perceval
Robert de Boron, Merlin and the Grail
Alfred Lord Tennyson, "The Holy Grail"

Class Attributes

Advanced Expression
Literature and Arts Foundational Discipline
SoC Humanities and Fine Arts Distro