There and Back Again
There and Back Again

Author: Mark Atherton

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2012-08-20

Total Pages: 298

ISBN-13: 0857732684

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'Even the smallest person can change the course of the future.' Addressed to Frodo as he prepared to travel from Lothlórien to Mordor to destroy the One Ring, the prophetic words of Galadriel in the film The Fellowship of the Ring are just as pertinent to J R R Tolkien's own fiction. For decades, hobbits, elves, dwarves, dragons and the other fantastical creatures of Middle-earth have captured the imaginations of a fiercely loyal tribe of readers, all enhanced by the immense success of Peter Jackson's films: first The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and now his new The Hobbit. But for all Tolkien's global fame and the familiarity of modern culture with Gandalf, Bilbo, Frodo and Sam, the sources of the great mythmaker's own mythmaking have been neglected. Mark Atherton here explores the chief influences on The Hobbit: Tolkien's boyhood in the West Midlands; the landscapes and seascapes which shaped his mythologies; his formative experiences in the First World War; his studies in Norse mythology and medieval English literature; his love of language and dialect, and proverb and saying; his literary friendships, especially with C S Lewis and the Oxford-based Inklings; and the relevance of his themes, especially ecological themes, to the present-day. There and Back Again offers a unique guide to the varied inspirations behind Tolkien's life and work, and sheds new light on how a legend is born. Essential reading for all those who love and admire the rich and complex topographies of Middle-earth, the book will also have great appeal to students of literature, history and myth. It is the first to show in depth from where Tolkien drew creativity, and how these myriad resources inspired him to craft the most remarkable fantasy novels ever written, densely packed with fauna from another world.

Epic
Epic

Author: Paul Innes

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2013

Total Pages: 193

ISBN-13: 0415587387

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Tracing epic from its ancient and classical roots through postmodern and contemporary epic and pointing towards the future, this volume discusses: a wide range of writers including Homer, Vergil, Ovid, Dante, Chaucer, Milton, Cervantes, Keats, Byron, Eliot, Walcott and Tolkien texts from poems, novels, children's literature, tv, theatre and film themes and motifs such as romance, tragedy, religion, journeys and the supernatural.

The Making of England
The Making of England

Author: Mark Atherton

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2017-01-30

Total Pages: 356

ISBN-13: 1786731541

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During the tenth century England began to emerge as a distinct country with an identity that was both part of yet separate from 'Christendom'. The reigns of Athelstan, Edgar and Ethelred witnessed the emergence of many key institutions: the formation of towns on modern street plans; an efficient administration; and a serviceable system of tax. Mark Atherton here shows how the stories, legends, biographies and chronicles of Anglo-Saxon England reflected both this exciting time of innovation as well as the myriad lives, loves and hates of the people who wrote them. He demonstrates, too, that this was a nation coming of age, ahead of its time in its use not of the Book-Latin used elsewhere in Europe, but of a narrative Old English prose devised for law and practical governance of the nation-state, for prayer and preaching, and above all for exploring a rich and daring new literature. This prose was unique, but until now it has been neglected for the poetry. Bringing a volatile age to vivid and muscular life, Atherton argues that it was the vernacular of Alfred the Great, as much as Viking war, that truly forged the nation.

Introduction to Old English
Introduction to Old English

Author: Peter S. Baker

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2012-02-20

Total Pages: 421

ISBN-13: 047065984X

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Featuring numerous updates and additional anthology selections, the 3rd edition of Introduction to Old English confirms its reputation as a leading text designed to help students engage with Old English literature for the first time. A new edition of one of the most popular introductions to Old English Assumes no expertise in other languages or in traditional grammar Includes basic grammar reviews at the beginning of each major chapter and a “minitext” feature to aid students in practicing reading Old English Features updates and several new anthology readings, including King Alfred’s Preface to Gregory’s Pastoral Care

A Book of Middle English
A Book of Middle English

Author: J. A. Burrow

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2013-04-03

Total Pages: 451

ISBN-13: 1118697359

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This essential Middle English textbook, now in its third edition, introduces students to the wide range of literature written in England between 1150 and 1400. New, thoroughly revised edition of this essential Middle English textbook. Introduces the language of the time, giving guidance on pronunciation, spelling, grammar, metre, vocabulary and regional dialects. Now includes extracts from 'Pearl' and Chaucer's 'Troilus and Criseyde'. Bibliographic references have been updated throughout. Each text is accompanied by detailed notes.

The Bible, Gender, and Reception History: The Case of Job's Wife
The Bible, Gender, and Reception History: The Case of Job's Wife

Author: Katherine Low

Publisher: A&C Black

Published: 2013-08-29

Total Pages: 241

ISBN-13: 0567520455

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The Bible, Gender, and Reception History: The Case of Job's Wife investigates the fleeting appearance in the Bible of Job's wife and its impact on the imaginations of readers throughout history. It begins by presenting key interpretive gaps in the biblical text concerning Job and his wife, explaining the way gender studies offers guiding principles with which the author engages a reception history of their marriage. After analyzing Job and his wife within medieval Christian theology of Eden, the author identifies ways in which Job's wife visually aligns with medieval images of Satan. The volume explores portrayals of Job and his wife in publications on marriage and gender roles in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, moving onto an investigation of William Blake's sharp artistic divergence from the common tradition in his representation of Job's wife as a shrew. In the exploration of societal portrayals of Job and his Wife throughout history, this book discovers how arguments about marriage intertwine with not only gender roles, but also, with political, social, and historical movements.

Old and Middle English c.890-c.1400
Old and Middle English c.890-c.1400

Author: Elaine Treharne

Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell

Published: 2004-02-23

Total Pages: 712

ISBN-13: 9781405113137

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Spanning almost seven centuries, this anthology encapsulates the foundation and consolidation of literature written in English, culminating in some of the finest works produced in English in the high Middle Ages. New edition of this widely-used anthology of Old and Middle English literature. Spans almost seven centuries, from the earliest writings in English to the time of Chaucer. Encapsulates the foundation and consolidation of literature written in English, culminating in some of the finest works produced in the high Middle Ages. Now extended to include newly-edited versions of key late medieval texts, namely ‘Sir Gawain and the Green Knight’, extracts from ‘Piers Plowman’, and selections from Chaucer. Texts are arranged by date of manuscript. Full translations are offered for the Old and earlier Middle English material, along with marginal glosses for the later texts. A general introduction gives an outline of key works and the historical context in which they were written.

Old and Middle English c.890-c.1450
Old and Middle English c.890-c.1450

Author: Elaine Treharne

Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell

Published: 2009-09-28

Total Pages: 890

ISBN-13: 9781405181204

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Spanning almost seven centuries, this anthology encapsulates the foundation and consolidation of literature written in English, culminating in some of the finest works produced in English in the high Middle Ages. New edition of this widely-used anthology of Old and Middle English literature Now extended to include newly-edited versions of Old English Wonders of the East, of Poema Morale, extracts from Julian of Norwich and Margery Kempe Full translations are offered for the Old and earlier Middle English material, along with marginal glosses for the later texts A general introduction gives an outline of key works and the historical context in which they are written