Medieval Folklore: A Representation Of The Cultural Shift And Development Of The “Hero” In Medieval Society
Document Type
Oral Presentation
Campus where you would like to present
SURC 271
Start Date
16-5-2013
End Date
16-5-2013
Abstract
Most individuals today know Jack and the Beanstalk and Rumpelstiltskin as bedtime stories. Many tales such as Snow White, Robin Hood, and Beowulf, have even made their way into major motion pictures. But these tales are part of a much older tradition in the medieval period. Making their start as an oral tradition in Europe’s villages and small towns, many popular tales were recorded by monks in monasteries in the eleventh century, and reworked by other authors, such as the Brothers Grimm, in the nineteenth century. Tales such as Beowulf, Song of Roland, Saint George and the Dragon, and Snow White give unique insight into medieval cultural values. The purpose of this paper is to examine shifts in the medieval hero as represented in folklore, from formal hero to ideal hero, and from Christian hero to chivalric hero.
Recommended Citation
Harvey, Renae, "Medieval Folklore: A Representation Of The Cultural Shift And Development Of The “Hero” In Medieval Society" (2013). Symposium Of University Research and Creative Expression (SOURCE). 40.
https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/source/2013/oralpresentations/40
Additional Mentoring Department
History
Medieval Folklore: A Representation Of The Cultural Shift And Development Of The “Hero” In Medieval Society
SURC 271
Most individuals today know Jack and the Beanstalk and Rumpelstiltskin as bedtime stories. Many tales such as Snow White, Robin Hood, and Beowulf, have even made their way into major motion pictures. But these tales are part of a much older tradition in the medieval period. Making their start as an oral tradition in Europe’s villages and small towns, many popular tales were recorded by monks in monasteries in the eleventh century, and reworked by other authors, such as the Brothers Grimm, in the nineteenth century. Tales such as Beowulf, Song of Roland, Saint George and the Dragon, and Snow White give unique insight into medieval cultural values. The purpose of this paper is to examine shifts in the medieval hero as represented in folklore, from formal hero to ideal hero, and from Christian hero to chivalric hero.
Faculty Mentor(s)
Roxanne Easley