In early Medieval English poetry and late Medieval romance, there are multiple roles violent women perform. They can be protagonist, antagonist, and supporting character. They prove to be active characters with strength, skill, intelligence, and power. In early Medieval English poetry, Grendel's mother from Beowulf and Judith from Judith share certain noble traits. Grendel's mother is an antagonist of the titular hero, but she is described as a noblewoman, honorable, loyal to her family, and a fierce fighter. Judith is often considered a hagiographic heroine, but Judith paints her in a more secular manner as intelligent, politically powerful, and proud. Lynet from Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte Darthur may not be as violent as the other women in this study, but she is equally powerful and intelligent. These women show different ways in which violent women characters had agency and active roles in the texts they inhabit. / Master of Arts / In early Medieval English (500 - 1066 AD) poetry and late Medieval (1300 - 1500 AD) romance stories, there are multiple roles violent women fill. They can be protagonist, antagonist, and supporting character. They prove to be active, independent characters with strength, skill, intelligence, and power. In early Medieval English poetry, Grendel's mother from Beowulf (975 - 1025 AD) and Judith from Judith (975 - 1025 AD) share certain noble traits. Grendel's mother is an antagonist of the titular hero, but she is described as a noblewoman: honorable, loyal to her family, and a fierce fighter. Judith is often considered a spiritual or religious heroine, but Judith paints her in a more secular manner as intelligent, politically powerful, and proud. Lynet from Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte Darthur (1485 AD) may not be as violent as the other women in this study, but she is equally powerful and intelligent. These women show different ways in which violent women characters had independent and active roles in the texts they inhabit.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:VTETD/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/112681 |
| Date | 28 May 2021 |
| Creators | Barnes, Nathan Christopher |
| Contributors | English, Hodges, Kenneth, Swenson, Karen, Cleland, Katharine |
| Publisher | Virginia Tech |
| Source Sets | Virginia Tech Theses and Dissertation |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | ETD, application/pdf |
| Rights | In Copyright, http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ |
Page generated in 0.0028 seconds