Genesis Myth in Beowulf and Old English Biblical Poetry
By Joseph St. John
Routledge
ISBN: 978-1-032-62178-4
The Bible opens with the Book of Genesis, which recounts the creation of the world and other foundational stories of Christianity. This book explores how these tales appear in early medieval English literature, including Beowulf.
Excerpt:
This book deals primarily with the Old English, or Anglo‑Saxon, anonymous narrative poems Genesis A, Genesis B, and Beowulf, three texts that, to a significantly different extent, draw upon the Old Testament Book of Genesis. While the Genesis poems adapt, at length, selected myths from this biblical text, Beowulf’s references or allusions to the same text are brief. Notwithstanding this, I hereby treat the three poems as adaptations of the Book of Genesis, for even if the references or allusions to biblical myth in Beowulf are brief, they are important in the framework of the broader narrative.
Who is this book for?
Early biblical stories, from the Great Flood to Cain’s murder of his brother, played a significant role in shaping medieval literature. This book will appeal to readers interested in Old English literature, particularly Beowulf, as well as those studying the spread of Christianity in early medieval England.
The Author
Joseph St. John recently earned his PhD at the University of Malta and focuses his research on medieval literature. We asked him why he wrote this book:
Well, I am interested in the Book of Genesis and Old English poetry and I thought that there was more to be said about how the OE poetic tradition adapted this biblical book. In particular, the similarities and differences between Beowulf and the Genesis poems in their treatment of Genesis themes merited further consideration. Considering how central Genesis is to Christianity, as its myth of origin, I thought the project worth undertaking. I also felt I had something new to say about the angelic myth as an extension of Genesis myth in the Genesis poems. Several critics were not too generous in their assessment of the Genesis B interpolation into Genesis A because the poems appear too different, yet I observed important thematic similarities between them, such as recourse to the same types of allegory. These are the main reasons why I thought the project worth undertaking and pursuing.
Genesis Myth in Beowulf and Old English Biblical Poetry
By Joseph St. John
Routledge
ISBN: 978-1-032-62178-4
The Bible opens with the Book of Genesis, which recounts the creation of the world and other foundational stories of Christianity. This book explores how these tales appear in early medieval English literature, including Beowulf.
Excerpt:
This book deals primarily with the Old English, or Anglo‑Saxon, anonymous narrative poems Genesis A, Genesis B, and Beowulf, three texts that, to a significantly different extent, draw upon the Old Testament Book of Genesis. While the Genesis poems adapt, at length, selected myths from this biblical text, Beowulf’s references or allusions to the same text are brief. Notwithstanding this, I hereby treat the three poems as adaptations of the Book of Genesis, for even if the references or allusions to biblical myth in Beowulf are brief, they are important in the framework of the broader narrative.
Who is this book for?
Early biblical stories, from the Great Flood to Cain’s murder of his brother, played a significant role in shaping medieval literature. This book will appeal to readers interested in Old English literature, particularly Beowulf, as well as those studying the spread of Christianity in early medieval England.
The Author
Joseph St. John recently earned his PhD at the University of Malta and focuses his research on medieval literature. We asked him why he wrote this book:
Well, I am interested in the Book of Genesis and Old English poetry and I thought that there was more to be said about how the OE poetic tradition adapted this biblical book. In particular, the similarities and differences between Beowulf and the Genesis poems in their treatment of Genesis themes merited further consideration. Considering how central Genesis is to Christianity, as its myth of origin, I thought the project worth undertaking. I also felt I had something new to say about the angelic myth as an extension of Genesis myth in the Genesis poems. Several critics were not too generous in their assessment of the Genesis B interpolation into Genesis A because the poems appear too different, yet I observed important thematic similarities between them, such as recourse to the same types of allegory. These are the main reasons why I thought the project worth undertaking and pursuing.
You can learn more about this book from the publisher’s website.
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