Beowulf and Other Stories: A New Introduction to Old English, Old Icelandic and Anglo-Norman Literatures
Beowulf & Other Storieswas first conceived in the belief that the study of Old English – and its close cousins, Old Icelandic and Anglo-Norman – can be a genuine delight, covering a period as replete with wonder, creativity and magic as any other in literature. Now in a fully revised second edition, this collection of essays written by leading academics in the field is set to build upon its established reputation as the standard introduction to the literatures of the time.Beowulf & Other Storiescaptures the fire and bloodlust of the great epic,Beowulf, and the sophistication and eroticism of the Exeter Riddles. Fresh interpretations give new life to the spiritual ecstasy ofThe Seafarer and to the imaginative dexterity ofThe Dream of the Rood,andprovide the student and general reader with all they might need to explore and enjoy this complex but rewarding field. The book sheds light, too, on the shadowy contexts of the period, with suggestive and highly readable essays on matters ranging from the dynamism of the Viking Age to Anglo-Saxon input intoTheLord of the Rings, from the great religious prose works to the transition from Old to Middle English. It also branches out into related traditions, with expert introductions to the IcelandicSagas, Viking Religion and Norse Mythology. Peter S. Baker provides an outstanding guide to taking your first steps in the Old English language, while David Crystal provides a crisp linguistic overview of the entire period.With a new chapter by Mike Bintley on Anglo-Saxon archaeology and a revised chapter by Stewart Brookes on the prose writers of the English Benedictine Reform, this updated second edition will be essential reading for students of the period. Richard Northteaches Old and Middle English at University College London, and is author ofHeathen Gods in Old English Literature(1997) andThe Origins of ‘Beowulf’(2006). Joe Allardteaches at the University of Essex. He translates and publishes contemporary Icelandic poetry and fiction, and has written extensively on medieval Icelandic prose and poetry.