Publication at Faculty of Arts |
2019
Abstract
A comparison of Cynewulf's poetic Old English version of the legend of St Juliana with a Middle English alliterative prosaic version included in the Katherine group (a collection of texts explicitly addressed to a lay female audience), examining how the context of implied audience and current literary modes (including dominant generic forms, the heroic epic and the romance) shapes its telling. Special attention is given to the role the two versions assign to the heroine's virginity, as well as to the portrayal of the antagonist(s) and the positioning of the narrative with regard to accepted secular values.