~ Sceopellen ~

Do scholarships not exist, or is it just my imagination? Attempting to gather funds for a year abroad is looking increasingly difficult, and there don’t seem to be any other funding options than working all summer. I don’t mind this, as such, but I am travelling to study, so should there not be funding for that? And as it happens, my local education authority won’t even offer a small loan, leave alone the normal one.

I’ve been scouring the internet and all the ones i’ve found have been for PhD’s. Which will be wonderful – in 6 years time. How about now?

Ah well, so goes the world.

Fairytales for the modern world:
I tried to post this as an actual screen within my post, but that quickly went wrong. Sorry about that!

So, about this link. I, in my mildly obsessive state about all things medieval and literary theory related, came across this little gem on BBC iPlayer. Yes, I am procrastinating, and attempting not to write the four essays and two presentations already on my plate at the start of week 3.

Another version of Cinderella is released into the public gaze, and yet, I rather liked this one! Clever, certainly witty, and a rather interesting comment on gender and sexuality within the Cinderella story. As it turns out, Prince is a rather mysogynistic figure, until he actually meets a real (and not Barbie-doll) woman. He suddenly realises that primordial development was far from solely male, decides he loves the cleaning lady and runs off with her to Ireland. Yet they are both far from ideal; she is humiliated via her social and professional status, but he is humiliated by something rather closer to home – his name. As he says, he is not humiliated by being wrong – he relishes it – but by who he has become. As with everyone, it takes someone else to tell him he’s a bastard for him to realise this.

I realise that this is completely beside the point, but I have to get this out of my head somehow…

My best friend is engaged. Aged 19. With a guy she met 3 months ago.

I am happy for her. I promise. She is one of the best people that I know, and deserves all the the world could give. But it’s certainly made me think. I have had three partners in my life, and two have asked to marry me. And I turned them both down. I loved them both.

The first guy asked me when I just turned 16, serenading me with a group of his friends on the lawns at Eton. The second asked me at the top of a crag in the Lake District, sitting on a cairn in the sun when I was 18. I loved him the most, and I still think of him a depressing amount. I have never had a relationship of under a year, and this one was nearing two years. I miss him, and most of me regrets making that choice. I know, in my heart, that at the time it was the right thing to do, but I really fear that I lost my one chance at happiness when I told him that I couldn’t.

Now i’m afraid of going into a relationship in case it doesn’t last. Four people have asked me out since I came to university, and i’ve turned them all down. I suppose i’m waiting for the right guy; someone intelligent, kind, sensible, reliable – but I don’t really believe any more. And even those I like are, for whatever reason, beyond my reach.

I suppose, to tell you the truth, I envy her. I envy that she can take that chance, that she can step off the edge and risk her heart so openly. That she can give her love without being scared of being hurt, or love not lasting…

I love you my darling…

I realise there’s been a terrible hiatus in postings over here – well, that’s mainly because of one exploded computer sitting on my desk at home. Well, not quite exploded, but certainly not moving anywhere very fast. So, whilst at home, i’ve been working to raise money for a new laptop, which I finally have. Postings shall increase from this point forwards.

Now onto the plans in the pipeline – I am applying for the Study Abroad scheme at my university, hoping to go to (in this order):

University of Sydney
University of Toronto
University of California: Berkeley
University of Alberta

Hopefully the first two. I’ve been frantically researching courses and deadlines, trying to grab a place on some of the higher level courses at the universities. I doubt I will be allowed to, but I’ll apply anyway! Sydney has the most amazing language options – Arabic, Byzantine Greek, Old Irish, Old Welsh, Old Norse-Icelandic… And more! But Toronto has more on the medievalism side of things, and more focus on literature… Slightly torn, but I can’t put both down. I truly hope I get a place at one of them! And that I can get a grant / scholarship / wages to afford to go!

- Myths of origins.

oThe Founding of England

- Heroic stories, nationalism.

oCyneheard and Cunehert
oMaldon
oBrunanburh – triumph
oQuestion of defeat – loss or heroism?

- Divine history.

oGenesis
oJudith

- Stories from the past combined and brought forward.

oDeor

EVERYTHING IS A MYTH – NO HISTORY IS OBJECTIVE

- Texts attempt to explore the reasons why things are the way they are?

EXAMINED TEXTS:

– Caedmon’s Hymn
– Founding of England, 1-15
– Cynewulf and Cyneheard, 1-18
– The Battle of Maldon, 1-83
– The Battle of Brunanburh, (all)
– Genesis B 1-84
– Judith 176-349
– Deor (all)

- Tiny scrap of the legend of Weland the Smith (but not developed – did they already have knowledge of that story? A story that everyone knows, apart from us!)
- An extraordinary, supernatural person – because he’s so good, he’s captured and imprisoned him, crippling him.
- Forced to make things for the king, and many precious things are taken – ring – King’s daughter and sword…
- Makes things from the dead sons (he kills for revenge), then daughter is raped, he takes the ring and flies away.
- Story of Deadolus.
- Daughter had a child from this.

- Story often told in context with others – e.g. contrast of this story with the adoration of the magi.

- 2nd stanza:

o lack of context – irresolvable word in line 14. (monge – many [of us], thing…).

- 4th stanza:

o Theodric – he was in charge when Rome fell; a major king.
o BUT is he the victim or the villain?
o 30 years in exile, or 30 years in power?
o Pattern of suffering – Theodric was the person who suffers?
o BUT the next stanza is also a tyrant who makes his people suffer.

- Is 5th stanza contrary, or compared to Theodric.
- 6th stanza:

o Power and favour of God – but NO CRITERIA MENTIONED.

- Personal statement by the poet:

o Examples of past sorrows
o Religious justifications of this?

- Simple structure but actually compex – 4th -8th century.
- Here we have many tiny references to everything we want as modern readers!
- And the poet was there! All famous figures from a heroic age.

- Is this really the Christian God?

o A pre-Christian God with similar characteristics.

- Same 10th C language as many other OE texts – traces of archaic words, but also found in Maldon.
- FICTION – a poet pretending to live 500 years before Exeter manuscripts were written. We don’t know when it was actually written, but we do know when it was copied out.
- Clearly an understanding of the heroic idiom and doesn’t need explaining – tells us what other stories were around at that time.
- Consequently, we can’t fully understand them: but they did.

o Inspiration for battles – hope for the present from the past. Bringing them together.
o Consolation – memories of the great heroism that once was. Escapism?
o Ethnic Identity, nation-building.

♣Formation of the self
♣Not a story of myths and origins, and yet stories from the old country, the history of the story.

o Antiquarianism

- Yet doesn’t really celebrate the past – no role models – murder, rape, disgust…

– Note the manuscript itself: the crosses in the margin! Personal sorrow is not marked with a cross, but evil is! What do the crosses mean?
– See the Frank’s Casket!