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Allegorical Reference To Oxford University Through Classical Myth In The Early Poetry Of Dorothy L. Sayers: A Reading Of “Alma Mater” From Op.I.., Barbara L. Prescott

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

Dorothy L. Sayers is rarely considered to be an author of mythopoeic literature or one whose own writings contain the metaphors or allegories of myth and legend. Yet, as a young adult at Oxford University, Sayers produced a variety of poems that, centering upon Oxford and her experiences as a student, explored mythic themes as they related to the university. Her early poems, written while an undergraduate at Oxford and directly afterward, were built upon three motifs: classical mythology, mediaeval legend, and Christian romanticism. These Oxford-centered poems were included in Dorothy L. Sayers’s first book titled, OP. I., published …