First published between 1932 and 1940, this is a three-volume study of the historical development of literature. It explores the oral and written literatures of regions from Iceland and the British Isles, to Russia, the Balkans, Africa, India and the Pacific, placing them in their historical context and examining similarities between them. The authors discuss both ancient and recent texts, illustrating the connections within each group and considering the question of whether all literary growth is influenced by common factors. Praised on publication as "...a work that is not, probably could not be, superseded" (International Journal of Comparative Sociology), the book remains a benchmark for those studying comparative literature or the history of literary criticism. Volume 1 analyses a range of medieval British and Icelandic poetry and sagas, drawing analogies with the literature of early Greece and focusing particularly on the concept of heroic literature.
This edition first published 1986.
Author(s): Hector Munro Chadwick, Nora Kershaw Chadwick
Series: Cambridge Library Collection
Edition: Reprint
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Year: 2010
Language: English
Pages: XX+672
Preface; 1. Introduction; 2. The Heroic Age; 3. Heroic Poetry and Saga; 4. The Heroic Milieu; 5. Individualism in the Heroic Stories; 6. Non-Heroic Stories Relating to the Heroic Age; 7. Historical Elements in Stories of the Heroic Age; 8. Unhistorical Elements in Stories of the Heroic Age; 9. Poetry and Saga Relating to Deities; 10. Antiquarian Learning; 11. Post-Heroic Poetry and Saga; 12. Gnomic Poetry; 13. Descriptive Poetry; 14. Poetry and Saga Relating to Unspecified Individuals; 15. Mantic Poetry; 16. Literature and Writing; 17. The Texts; 18. Recitation and Composition; 19. The Author; 20. Inspiration; Excursus 1. Merlin in the Works of Geoffrey of Monmouth; Excursus 2. The Written Epic; Addenda; Index.
