This thesis examines the origins of a set of manuscripts which, for convenience, are known collectively as the ‘Anglo-Saxon Chronicle’. It will be suggested that a central tenet in traditional Chronicle theory may stand in need of revision. Aspects of the received interpretation are considered and assessed against the evidence, and an alternative is developed and put forward. Chapter 1 considers a core assumption in Chronicle studies for over a century — that a single Chronicle archetype, compiled in the early 890s, was the source of all ASC-related entries in all works, both vernacular and Latin. Lexical and other evidence is reviewed suggesting a possible break in ASC at annal 878, perhaps marking the end of a ‘first Alfredian compilation’. Such a source, if it existed, consisted of ASC-related material, but was not ASC. Chapter 2 explores other features relating to this type of entry, also ending at annal 878. The combined evidence appears to suggest that a set of texts, antecedent to the Common Stock, was written in south-western Wessex c. 878, largely from eyewitness testimony, and for purposes related to King Alfred’s presence in the region at that time. I call this hypothetical source ‘P’. Chapter 3 extracts all P-type entries from ASC, and considers the remaining material. Certain unifying features in a majority of these entries may suggest that a set of annals, extending from 449–890 (and possibly earlier), was compiled after P, likely as part of Alfred’s programme of spiritual and educational renewal in the 880s and early 890s. I call this text ‘Q’. Q’s sources include Bede’s Epitome, P, regnal lists, Easter tables (perhaps), and more. Q dealt only with matters of great import to the Anglo-Saxons, presented as short, concise statements of fact entered year by year. I suggest SN derived its ASC-related entries from Q rather than a full Chronicle in the form of the Common Stock. Chapter 4 suggests that yet another set of annals was written c. 892, concerning the activities in England and on the Continent of a viking army which ASC introduces at Fulham in 879. I call this source ‘R’. On the basis of my working hypothesis, I suggest that when Asser came to write his Life of Alfred in 893, rather than drawing upon PQR individually, a single document was prepared combining entries from PQR for the years 851–890, to aid him in writing his royal biography. I call this compilation ‘S’, and suggest that Asser, and, later, the Common Stock’s authors, drew upon S as their source of these annals. Chapter 5 begins by suggesting that, alongside his copy of Asser’s Life, the SN compiler also consulted Q in his 851–887 annals, at times interpolating Asser’s text, and at times adding entire entries. I then consider SN 891- 895, proposing it may represent an early (or original) version of this account of Alfred’s final wars. ASC 891–896, by comparison, appears a much expanded and far more complex revision of the source behind SN’s version. I call SN’s 891–895 hypothetical source ‘T’, and suggest that the Common Stock’s authors used T, along with PQRS, to produce their archetype. Chapter 6 concludes with a summary of the preceding chapters, and offers some suggestions for possible lines of future research.

This thesis undertakes a re-evaluation of the concept of ‘charms’ in Anglo-Saxon culture, and reconsiders three core issues that lie at the heart of this genre: the definition of galdor as ‘charm’; the manuscript contexts of rituals that have been included in this genre; and the phenomenon of ‘gibberish’ writing which is used as a defining characteristic of ‘charms’. The thesis investigates the different meanings of galdor from the entire corpus of Old English before reconsidering its meaning in ritual texts. It then explores the liturgical nature of these seemingly unorthodox rituals, and argues that ‘charms’ were understood to be part of the Anglo-Saxon liturgy. The manuscript contexts of ‘charms’ indicate that Anglo-Saxon scribes did not distinguish between these rituals and other liturgical texts, and I take a case study of one manuscript to demonstrate this. Some rituals from the Vitellius Psalter have been included in editions of ‘charms’, and this case study reinterprets these texts as components of a liturgical collection. The Vitellius Psalter also reveals intertextual relationships between ‘gibberish’ writing in some of its rituals and exercises in encryption, suggesting that several texts encode meaning in this manuscript. The findings of this case study are then developed to reconsider the phenomenon of ‘gibberish’ writing that is used as a defining characteristic of ‘charms’, and it offers an alternative way of reading abstract letter sequences in ritual texts according to Patristic philosophies of language. This study does not aim to analyse every ritual that has been included in the corpus of ‘charms’ but each chapter will take case studies from a range of manuscripts that are representative of the genre and its sub-categories. The thesis challenges the notion that there was any such thing as an Anglo-Saxon ‘charm’, and it offers alternative interpretations of these rituals as liturgical rites and coded texts.

By looking at a representative sample of Old English poetry, this thesis questions the long-held notion that the individual, or personal-self, was not a reality in the western world until the Renaissance. This research makes use of a variety of recent and past methodological approaches to the self, so that we may apply these theories to a study of the individual in Old English literature, and by extension Anglo-Saxon culture more generally. The four-chapter layout showcases how we may approach and answer the question of self in a variety of Old English verse—from elegies and didactic religious, to the heroic. Each study is unique yet complements that which preceeds and follows it, so as to highlight how the study of self is really an inquiry of only seemingly disparate concepts. The outcome of this analysis demonstrates that the individual, or personal self-concept in Anglo-Saxon England was a reality, and consequently challenges past beliefs that the individual is a relatively modern notion. Thus opening the dialogue once more, my research ultimately asks how we may proceed with the question of self in different contexts, historical eras, and eclectic methodological avenues of inquiry, that we may further develop our understanding of one of the most important and ancient questions in humankind’s story.

The starting point for this dissertation was the fact that the Old English poem The Descent into Hell had received so little critical attention and was generally omitted from anthologies of Old English poetry. From close examination of the poem it became evident that the central focus was not the apocryphal story of Christ’s Descent, but on John the Baptist and Baptism. This thesis offers a reinterpretation of the poem’s central theme and emphasizes its poetic and stylistic qualities. In order to do that, a new edition of the poem was required. Also addressed in this thesis is an examination of the vexing question concerning the various lacunae that were the result of damage to the manuscript. This thesis focuses on re-interpretation, and the established text and translation included is the base for the subsequent literary analysis. The core of this thesis is a critical edition of the poem; the editorial methods used are described in detail on pages 11-20. Central to the main argument is that the poem’s current title, assigned by ASPR in 1936, misrepresents the theme of the poem, causing the reader to expect a work on the Descent, and thus being confused as a result. I argue rather that the poem illuminates the central Christian sacrament of Baptism. This study addresses the questions: What is the main theme? What is the poem’s didactic function? What literary approaches help convey the central message? What evidence suggests that a name change is justified? and What benefits can result from a name change? The first chapter highlights various linguistic features relevant for the editing of the poem and provides a summary of the main codicological characteristics of the manuscript in which the poem is preserved. Chapter II provides an examination of the theme of the descensus, and assesses its historiographical prominence in religious thought leading up to and including the Anglo-Saxon period. My argument disproves the current interpretation of the poem as a descensus narrative, although the image of the Descent still plays a symbolic role. Chapter III provides a literary analysis of the poem. The purpose of this chapter is to enrich modern scholarly perceptions of the Exeter Book poem, offer a more suitable title and contribute to continued scholarly discussion and analysis of the Exeter Book and its compilation. Chapter IV assesses the poem within a relevant comparative context, whilst further reinforcing its central theme and function. With respect to editing the text, effort has been made to retain the manuscript reading except where there are obvious errors, lacunae or strong evidence necessitating change. As this is a critical edition, the Anglo-Saxon poem has been presented here using modern conventions of capitalization, punctuation, caesuras and line divisions. However, since the manuscript that contains the poem is damaged, I have not included conjectures in instances where little or no evidence would justify emendations. In instances where there are identifiable alterations to the original text then such emendations have been noted in the Apparatus and Commentary. The translation offers a clear and idiomatic rendition of the poem which endeavours to convey the meaning of the text rather than sacrifice meaning for stylistic reasons. This dissertation also provides a diplomatic transcription and presents digital reconstructions of the manuscript, offering a variety of interpretations of the poem. The guiding principles for this dissertation have been to create an edition that reveals the poem’s main theme of Baptism and to demonstrate that the liturgical structure, aided by allusions and dramatic effects functions didactically. Undoubtedly because of the lacunae and contextual problems, The Descent into Hell has become a somewhat marginalized poem in the study of Anglo-Saxon verse; however, the textual analysis in this dissertation provides a guide towards understanding the poem’s main theme and offers fresh insight into its place and significance within the corpus of Old English poetry.

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This thesis investigates how Old English poets understood the processes of signification and interpretation through analysis of depictions of poor interpreters and the use of 'sign terms' such as tacen and beacen in the longer Old English poems. The first chapter deals with the Beowulf Manuscript, the second and third chapters consider Elene and Andreas within the network of related poems found in the Vercelli Book and the begin- ning of the Exeter Book, the fourth chapter is on the Junius Manuscript, and the conclusion looks at the use of the 'bright sign' motif across all four major poetic codices. I suggest that there is a 'heroic sign-bearing interpreter' character-type which several of the poems utilize or ironically invert, and that poor interpretation is nearly always asso- ciated with hesitation, which often resembles acedia. I also argue that there is greater nuance in the poems' depictions of modes of understanding than has previously been acknowledged: Eve in Genesis B does not stand for the senses which subvert the mind, but rather models the limits of rational thought as a means of understanding God, and Elene does not depict a simple opposition of letter and spirit, but a threefold mental pro- cess of learning about the Cross with analogues in exegesis and Augustine's Trinity of the Soul. Finally, I argue that there is a 'bright sign' motif which functions within a brightness-sign-covenant concept cluster, whose evocation as a traditional poetic unit is not identical to the denotation and connotation of its constituent parts. These strands of inquiry taken together demonstrate how Old English poems invest signs with significance by tapping into a specifically poetic network of allusion.

This thesis examines the role of spatial representation in Old English poetry. Focusing on the presentation of setting and spatial relationships in narrative poetry, it argues that sensibility towards the creative potential of spatial representation within a conventional tradition constitutes a significant element of Old English poetic technique. It emphasizes the importance of intertextual reading practices which recognize the dialectics of text and tradition underlying spatial representation in individual examples. Chapter one introduces the subject, outlining the relevant critical contexts in which the thesis stands and describing the methodology that is followed in the subsequent chapters. It also describes the connection between the representation of space and critical assumptions regarding vernacular poetic composition. Chapter two focuses on poetic accounts of the angelic rebellion. The presentation of this event as a territorial and spatial conflict establishes a contrast between vertical and horizontal spatial relationships which relates to concerns prevalent throughout the Anglo-Saxon period over conflicting models for power relationships. The prominence of vertical spatial relationships in these accounts serves to legitimize hierarchical power structures. Chapter three considers territorial conflict in Old English battle poetry. Similarities in the use of setting and the construction of a sense of place in these texts suggest the influence of established poetic conventions. However, poetic artistry is evident in the ways in which spatial representation contributes to the wider thematic and artistic concerns of these texts. Chapter four examines poetic representations of the prison. Whilst such representations do partially reflect conceptualizations of the prison current in Anglo-Saxon England, they also demonstrate a deeper interest in the valence of enclosed space. The chapter extends the intertextual approach of the thesis to consider the possibility of direct borrowing between poems. Chapter five clarifies the argument of the thesis regarding the relationship between spatial representation and poetic technique and identifies some directions for further work.

This thesis concerns narratives about Anglo-Scandinavian contact and literary traditions of Scandinavian origin which circulated in England in the post-conquest period. The argument of the thesis is that in the eleventh century, particularly during the reign of Cnut and his sons, literature was produced for a mixed Anglo-Danish audience which drew on shared cultural traditions, and that some elements of this largely oral literature can be traced in later English sources.  It is further argued that in certain parts of England, especially the East Midlands, an interest in Anglo-Scandinavian history continued for several centuries after the Viking Age and was manifested in the circulation of literary narratives dealing with Anglo-Scandinavian interaction, invasion and settlement.  The first chapter discusses some narratives about the reign of Cnut in later sources, including the Encomium Emmae Reginae, hagiographical texts by Goscelin and Osbern of Canterbury, and the Liber Eliensis; it is argued that they share certain thematic concerns with the literature known to have been produced at Cnut’s court.  The second chapter explores the literary reputation of the Danish Earl of Northumbria, Siward, and his son Waltheof in twelfth-century sources from the East Midlands and in thirteenth-century Norwegian and Icelandic histories.  The third chapter deals with an episode in the Middle English romance Guy of Warwick in which the hero helps to defeat a Danish invasion of England, and examines the romance’s references to a historical Danish right to rule in England.  The final chapter discusses the Middle English romance Havelok the Dane, and argues that the poet of Havelok, aware of the role of Danish settlement in the history of Lincolnshire, makes self-conscious use of stereotypes and literary tropes associated with Danes in order to offer an imaginative reconstruction of the history of Danish settlement in the area.

Comment écrire à l’ère du post-humain sans avoir recours à une apocalypse postmoderne qui aurait déjà rompu avec ses origines bibliques ? Si nous sommes désormais familiers avec la manière dont les romans de Martin Amis et de Will Self assument pleinement un discours apocalyptique radical, nous explorons les possibilités d’arguer en faveur d’une esthétique apocalyptique plus complexe avec ses formes diverses et ses variations thématiques allant de la menace nucléaire à des révélations plus intimes. Les deux textes de notre corpus, London Fields de Martin Amis et How the Dead Live de Will Self, sont donc unis dans ce travail par la présence fantasmagorique de la mort (dont le meurtre de l’amour) et par la "spectacularisation" de la mort. Dans la perspective d’une fin sans cesse rejouée, le personnage est autant l’avatar de ses propres contingences - le temps, le trafic urbain, le simulacre et la mort - que la cible d’une langue qui se délite. / In this resolutely post-human era how can literature disregard the appeal of a postmodern apocalypse that has long left behind its biblical origins? We argue that not only do the novels of Martin Amis and Will Self clearly engage in a radical apocalyptic discourse with all its various forms and thematic variations - from the nuclear threat to more intimate revelations - but also designate the intricate workings of a wider apocalyptic aesthetics. This is what joins the two novels of our corpus: London Fields and How the Dead Live, with the phantasmatic death or murder of love, on one side and the "spectacularity" of death on the other. With the future consisting of the endless repetition of their “end”, the characters are as much their own avatars conditioned by the contingencies of time, urban congestion, simulacrum and death, as they are the targets of an eroded language.

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