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Full-Text Articles in Arts and Humanities
Architectural Representation And The Dragon’S Lair In Beowulf, Margaret Heeschen
Architectural Representation And The Dragon’S Lair In Beowulf, Margaret Heeschen
Masters Theses
Since the early twentieth century, the dragon’s lair of Beowulf has been primarily associated with the early megalithic mounds of northern Europe. This interpretation of the space, however, does not account for the many contradictions present in the poet’s descriptions. In order to fully understand the quiddity of the dragon’s lair, we must resolve three major issues with previous interpretations: the use of rare words with unclear meanings, contradictions in descriptions of the physical space, and an assumption by scholars that the poet is describing a single type of space identifiable in the historical record. By addressing each of these …
Deadly Hostility: Feud, Violence, And Power In Early Anglo-Saxon England, David Ditucci
Deadly Hostility: Feud, Violence, And Power In Early Anglo-Saxon England, David Ditucci
Dissertations
This dissertation examines the existence and political relevance of feud in Anglo-Saxon England from the fifth century migration to the opening of the Viking Age in 793. The central argument is that feud was a method that Anglo-Saxons used to understand and settle conflict, and that it was a tool kings used to enhance their power. The first part of this study examines the use of fæhð in Old English documents, including laws and Beowulf, to demonstrate that fæhð referred to feuds between parties marked by reciprocal acts of retaliation. This assertion is in opposition to Guy Halsall’s argument that …