The Routledge research companion to the medieval icelandic sagas

The last fifty years have seen a significant change in the focus of saga studies, from a preoccupation with origins and development to a renewed interest in other topics, such as the nature of the sagas and their value as sources to medieval ideologies and mentalities. The Routledge Research Companion to the Medieval Icelandic Sagas presents a detailed interdisciplinary examination of saga scholarship over the last fifty years, sometimes juxtaposing it with earlier views and examining the sagas both as works of art and as source materials. This volume will be of interest to Old Norse and medieval Scandinavian scholars and accessible to medievalists in general. Cover 1 Title 4 Copyright 5 CONTENTS 6 List of Illustrations 10 List of Contributors 12 Introduction 14 1 Genre 17 2 Dating and Origins 28 3 Literacy 47 4 Ecclesiastical Literature and Hagiography 61 5 Courtly Literature 72 6 Indigenous and Latin Literature 87 7 History and Fiction 101 8 Style 124 9 Structure 140 10 Drama and Performativity 147 11 The Long and the Short of It 164 12 Narratives and Documents 177 13 Space 188 14 Time 200 15 Fate 211 16 Travel 223 17 Heroism 231 18 Gender 239 19 Emotions 253 20 Marginality 266 21 The Paranormal 278 22 Christian Themes 292 23 Feud 305 24 Class 318 25 World View 331 26 Artistic Reception 340 27 Digital Norse 357 Index 367 The last 50 years have seen a significant change in the focus of saga studies, from a preoccupation with origins and development to a renewed interest in other topics, such as the nature of the sagas and their value as sources to medieval ideologies and mentalities. This Companion tpresents a detailed interdisciplinary examination of saga scholarship over the last fifty years, sometimes juxtaposing it with earlier views and examining the sagas both as works of art and as source materials. This volume will be of interest to Old Norse and medieval Scandinavian scholars and accessible to medievalists in general The last fifty years have seen a significant change in the focus of saga studies, from a preoccupation with origins and development to a renewed interest in other topics, such as the nature of the sagas and their value as sources to medieval ideologies and mentalities. The Routledge Research Companion to the Medieval Icelandic Sagas presents a detailed interdisciplinary examination of saga scholarship over the last fifty years, sometimes juxtaposing it with earlier views and examining the sagas both as works of art and as source materials. -- From publisher's website "The last fifty years have seen a significant change in the focus of saga studies, from a preoccupation with origins and development to a renewed interest in other topics, such as the nature of the sagas and their value as sources to medieval ideologies and mentalities. The Routledge Research Companion to the Medieval Icelandic Sagas presents a detailed interdisciplinary examination of saga scholarship over the last fifty years, sometimes juxtaposing it with earlier views and examining the sagas both as works of art and as source materials."--Publisher's description