Weeks 4-6

1. Cite some variations in the Loathly Lady fabula across the three tales in your Reader. Focus on the conditions by which the lady is either beautiful or ugly, and the actions of the knight/king/"hero"...

2. The Wife of Bath's Tale is considered by some critics to indicate that Chaucer may have been a feminist. Why might they believe this? Do you agree? Remember to cite evidence from the text or some other source.

3.Hahn's essay (see critical reader)on The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnelle identifies the motif of the loathly lady, but arguesit has a different purpose than asserting the feminine. What does he think the function of the story is?

4. In the context of Elizabethan and Jacobean sonnets, how can we define "conceits"?

5. Discuss what you think is the most striking or outrageous example.

6. What does Revard (1997) suggest about the relationship between language, sex, power and transgression in the English Renaissance?

Dragon Slayers

Q2. What are some possible features of residual (or secondary) orality preserved in Voluspa, according to the criteria Ong (1982) advances?

Voluspa was orginally circulated by pure traditional verbal culture (primary orality) until its chirographic preservation allowed the historical piece to become a feature of residual secondary orality. According to Ong's criteria, the written word acts as a physical representation (or residue) of what was once pure and completely untouched by any knowledge of writing and print.

From this standpoint, it is quite possible to see the residual features that have been translated into the Voluspa extracts. For example in the first stanza, the lines 'Hear my words, you holy gods' and 'by Odin's will, I'll speak the ancient lore' clearly indicate that this poem was originally a verbal performance before it was adapted into secondary orality. 

Futher forms of adaption appear in the 6th and 8th stanza of extract 1.b with the lines 'Then the holy gods met to give judgement ... ordered time by years' and 'Odin gave life's breath, Hoenir gave mind ...etc'. The mention of 'gods' and a breath of life allude to the writer's biblical knowledge of Christianity and the story of creation. A reference to 'demons' and 'men find their way to hell' further implies an understanding of Christianity and or the bible.

Dragon Slayers

What genres do the following texts belong to?

 I think the Voluspa text is of the Fantasy genre. There’s talk of God’s, Giants, and creation, so to speak. “Hear my words, you holy gods”. “I remember giants of ages past, those who called me one of their kin”. “Then bur’s sons lifted up the land and made Midgard, men’s fair dwelling” so they (sons) lifted up the land and created earth (referring to the diagram shown in class last week) suggesting that they had some sort of ‘power’ so to speak to create earth/world. This creation later became the dwelling place for humans who were created from trees (an example of this is in the 7^th and 8^th paragraph of the text) - “Ash and Embla...these did not breath, nor think nor speak, they had no hair, nor fairness of face; Odin gave life’s breath, Hoenir gave mind, Lodur gave hair, fairness of face”. Another example is when the ‘three maidens’ are mentioned – “Much wisdom have the three maidens who come from the waters close to that tree; they establish laws, decided the lives men were to lead, marked out their fates” suggesting that although humans were created by Gods, they didn't however, have the power over their lives, the three maidens did insomuch that they had power to decide the course humans would take and even mark out their fate! Terry (1990, 1996)

What are some possible features or residual (“secondary”) orality preserved in Voluspa, according to the criteria Ong advances?

Ong’s text describes the development of literacy through the ages from ‘oral, writing, print to electronic culture’. He also says that analysing the difference between orality and literacy could only be done in the electronic age (secondary orality) because it depends so much on “writing and print for its existence”. Ong (1982).

Genres

                                      What genres do the following texts belong to?

The fantasy seems to be a genre that is hard to define. Fantasy is a world that is mystical and is out of the ordinary in terms of being supernatural. The genre consists of having themes that include the supernatural and magic. Fantasy "contains elements that are not realistic". They may include "talking animals and magical powers,set in a medieval universe and possibly including mythical beings". Fantasy also has many sub genres and is not only limited to just one main genre. Some of them include "Comic fantasy, Dark fantasy, Fairy tale fantasy and Heroic fantasy" (Beukes) Lord of the rings belongs to the Fantasy genre.It's one filled with mystical creatures such as Gollum looks like something out of another world exactly the way intended for a fantasy genre. Magical and Mystical creatures like are a must in the Fantasy genre.

Voluspa belongs to the mythological poems.

Beowulf belongs to the Epic

The Hobbit belongs to the Fantasy Epic


Discuss what you think any of these texts desire (in the sense of their intention, how they wish to be received, what pleasures they offer).

I think that theses texts desire for the readers to be able to to involve themselves into the text and think of themselves being a part of that particular genre and immerse themselves into the text.

These texts have a mystical twist to them and is created to entice the readers to delve themselves into these worlds. It is crafted in a way in which it is meant to give pleasure to the readers. Richard Dyer a genre theorist debated that genres are pleasurable because they "offer the audience escapist fantasies into fictional worlds which remove boredom and pressures of reality". This is one of the main reasons that I believe what these texts truly have to offer. Fantasies such as Lord of the Rings must tends to intrigue those who use these texts. It creates a world that has magic and the impossible is possible and want to impact those who read the texts by making them excited and thrill them.

For particular people they already have a meaning and add to their culture.The Anglo Saxon's see these texts as a part of their culture. "Beowulf reflects many cultural values highly regarded by the Anglo-Saxons" They hold many cultural values such as Identity being a major value. "Nor have I seen a mightier man-at-arms on this than the one standing here: unless I am mistaken, he is truly noble. This is no mere hanger-on in a hero's armour" through this line in Beowulf we see the value of Identity being shown.

                                                                      
                                                                      References


Beowulf. (n.d.). An introduction to Anglo-Saxon History, Culture and the Epic Poem Beowulf. Retrieved from http://www.gaston.k12.nc.us/schools/ashbrook/faculty/repaul/Course%20Outline%20and%20Syllabus/Beowulf.pdf

Beukes, L (2011). Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Sub-Genres. Retrieved from
https://www.worldswithoutend.com/resources_sub-genres.asp


British Metropolitan Academy. (2010-2011). OCR AS MEDIA STUDIES. Retrieved from
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1iNYm0TAPqmoEb3T7wUDcBDn0VRLfLQfKoRJ-2IRSWQo/preview


Readwritethink. (2006). Genre Characteristics. Retrieved from http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/lesson_images/lesson270/genre_sheet.pdf

Weeks 1-3

1. What genres do the following texts belong to?

Voluspa, Volsunga Saga, Beowulf, The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings.

Give some examples from these texts that support your identification (for example: "Voluspa is an example of the _____ genre, as the following references to gods from the poem illustrate: "Hear my words / you holy gods' (l.1) "By Odin's Will I'll speak the ancient lore" (l.3), etc).

2. What are some possible features of residual (or "secondary") orality preserved in Voluspa, according to the criteria Ong (1982) advances?

3. Identify a central incident that happens in at least four of the above texts, and discuss how it is both similar and different in each example (remember to site from the original texts).

4. How did Tolkien draw on the Old Norse and Old English texts in his Hobbit and Lord of the Rings fantasy novels? Provide some concrete examples.

5. Discuss how Tolkien's use of "tradition" (e.g. older literary sources) differs from the techniques and agendas of modernism (see Week 7 in your Reader).

6. What place do the old myths have in the modern world?

7. How does the film Beowulf and Grendel "problematise" the hero-myth of Beowulf ?

8. Discuss what you think any of these texts desire (in the sense of their intention, how they wish to be received, what pleasures they offer).