ENGL 214 - Medieval Heroes

This course explores the heroic storytelling traditions of the medieval British Isles and Scandinavia. We read poems, tales, myths, and non-fiction of these far northwestern European archipelagos, locating their traditions in migrations and conquests of tribes across Asia and Europe. The course deploys gender theory, narrative theory, and history to examine formations of masculinity and femininity, the heroic ethos, systems of magic, and supernatural marvels. Works may include: the Old Norse Völsunga Saga and Vinland sagas; the Irish legends The Madness of Sweeney and The Tain; the Welsh Mabinogion; the Old English Beowulf, Judith, and Elene; the Middle English Sir Orfeo, The Wedding of Sir Gawain & Dame Ragnelle, and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Offered in alternate years. Offered in alternate years. (4 Credits)