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OverviewThis book offers a new perspective on the otherworlds of medieval literature. These fantastical realms are among the most memorable places in medieval writing, by turns beautiful and monstrous, alluring and terrifying. Passing over a river or sea, or entering into a hollow hill, heroes come upon strange and magical realms. These places are often very beautiful, filled with sweet music and adorned with precious stones and rich materials. There is often no darkness, time may pass at a different pace, and the people who dwell there are usually supernatural. Sometimes such a place is exactly what it appears to be-the land of heart's desire-but, the otherworld can also have a sinister side, trapping humans and keeping them there against their will.Otherworlds: Fantasy and History in Medieval Literature takes a fresh look at how medieval writers understood these places and why they found them so compelling. It focuses on texts from England, but places this material in the broader context of literary production in medieval Britain and Ireland. The narratives examined in this book tell a rather surprising story about medieval notions of these fantastical places. Otherworlds are actually a lot less 'other' than they might initially seem. Authors often use the idea of the otherworld to comment on very serious topics. It is not unusual for otherworld depictions to address political issues in the historical world. Most intriguing of all are those texts where locations in the real world are re-imagined as otherworlds. The regions on which this book focuses, Britain, Ireland and the surrounding islands, prove particularly susceptible to this characterization. Full Product DetailsAuthor: Aisling Byrne (Lecturer in Medieval English Literature, University of Reading)Publisher: Oxford University Press Imprint: Oxford University Press Dimensions: Width: 14.40cm , Height: 1.80cm , Length: 22.30cm Weight: 0.380kg ISBN: 9780198746003ISBN 10: 0198746008 Pages: 226 Publication Date: 17 December 2015 Audience: College/higher education , Professional and scholarly , Tertiary & Higher Education , Professional & Vocational Format: Hardback Publisher's Status: Active Availability: To order  Stock availability from the supplier is unknown. We will order it for you and ship this item to you once it is received by us. Table of ContentsIntroduction 1: Imagining Otherworlds 2: Otherworlds and the Afterlife 3: Supernatural Authorities 4: Archipelagic Otherworlds ConclusionReviews[an] engaging and thoughtful study ... A great deal of ground is covered in this scholarly and well-structured book. Julia Boffey, Times Literary Supplement Aisling Byrnes fine study of medieval Otherworlds takes our engagement with the concept of the archipelagic in new and exciting directions. Otherworlds is an ambitious and wide-ranging work that engages constructively with various debates around the roots and functions of medieval otherworlds while establishing new paradigms for further explorations of the magical and the marvellous in medieval literature of all kinds. Molly Brown, Literature & History One of the books great strengths is to move away from a conception of otherworlds as merely one exotic or fantastic place among many, and to consider them instead as opening new imaginaryand narrative spaces...this book will appeal to a wide audience and will become a key reading for anyone interested in literary otherworlds. Fabinene L. Michelet, The Review of English Studies d [an] engaging and thoughtful study ... A great deal of ground is covered in this scholarly and well-structured book. Julia Boffey, Times Literary Supplement Author InformationAisling Byrne studied at University College Dublin and St John's College, Cambridge, and is Lecturer in Medieval English Literature at the University of Reading. She has published on the transmission and translation of romance, on writers such as Gerald of Wales and Thomas Malory, and on themes such as marvels, feasting, chivalry, and territorial politics. Tab Content 6Author Website:Countries AvailableAll regions |
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