O, What a Tangled Web

Angebote / Angebote:

The nine articles of stimulating literary criticism collected in this volume view Tolkien's work from a variety of medieval perspectives: the device of entrelacement employed in Arthurian romances is used to throw light on the narrative design of The Lord of the Rings, the cultures of Middle-earth are described with the aid of medieval orality and literacy studies, the epic figure of the queen is recalled to reveal the significance of women in Tolkien's trilogy, the character of Éowyn is analyzed in terms of the epic warrior code and the romance chivalric ethos, the role of Elbereth is shown to correspond with the position of the Virgin Mary in the world of medieval believers, the nature of evil is explored through a comparison of Melkor to John Milton's Satan, allusions to medieval Icelandic sagas are detected in Tolkien's works for children, The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth is read in the light of The Battle of Maldon, and Tolkien's literary art is illuminated by way of his own critical essays on Beowulf and fairy-stories. Since all the contributors come from Poland, the phenomenon of Tolkien's prompt and enthusiastic Polish reception is briefly discussed in the introductory chapter.