Sunday, September 10, 2006

Beowulf as Christ

Over at Gypsy Scholar, Jeffery Hodges has a post about reading Beowulf as a Christ figure. The Beowulf-as-Christ reading is an oldie but a goodie. I spend a little time each semester talking about it, though even Catholics here in the South don't seem to have ever heard of the Harrowing of Hell, whereas in the North I could assume every Catholic and a few Protestants would know what it is, and get the connection with the descent into Grendel's mere.
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5 comments:

  1. Horace Jeffery Hodges3:02 PM

    Thanks, Scott, for noting this.

    In case anyone's interested, the article that I wrote, titled "Praeparatio Evangelium: Beowulf as Antetype of Christ," appeared in the journal Medieval and Early Modern English Studies (Vol. 12, No. 2), which is published in Korea and is thus difficult to access ... albeit possible online.

    My article will be getting mention in Craig R. Davis, "The Year's Work in Old English Studies 2004," Old English Newsletter 39.2 (2007).

    I posted on my blog a brief sample from Davis's remarks.

    Jeffery Hodges

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  2. Dr. Richard Scott Nokes3:39 PM

    You don't need to tell me that "Medieval and Early Modern English Studies" can be difficult to access -- I published an article there in 2002!

    By the way, I'll be at that MEMESAK conference at Yonsei this fall -- are you going?

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  3. Horace Jeffery Hodges4:07 PM

    Yes, I will be. I look forward to finally meeting you.

    Jeffery Hodges

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  4. Anonymous11:08 AM

    Well, if it's only a 'mere', what's the problem.....? (weak pun)

    Anyway; Catholic* though I am, I'm fairly sure I only heard of the Harrowing of Hell at university*.

    I wonder how the idea was/is transmitted to those Northern (US) Christians you mention - isn't it a heresy (!); at least non-canoncial anyway?

    *Irish; in Ireland though, so different to 'Irish Catholic' in the....Notre Dame sense. They may be well up on all Harrowing of Hell related issues.

    **Studying medieval history; Not by joining an weird schismatic Christian cult

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  5. kamagra10:29 AM

    *Irish; in Ireland though, so different to 'Irish Catholic' in the....Notre Dame sense. They may be well up on all Harrowing of Hell related issues.

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