Cross-legged Gods and One-legged Foresters

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingChapterAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

The present article is a re-evaluation of a marvellous element in a medieval Welsh romance, Chwedl Iarlles y Ffynnawn ‘Tale of the Lady of the Fountain’, also known as Owein. One of the characters encountered by the hero is a one-eyed one-legged dark giant forester who appears to have a particular power over animals. Previous interpretations of this character and episode have sought explanations and parallels in re-constructed Celtic mythology and the Celtic ‘Otherworld’. The objective of the present article is to demonstrate that the element in question belongs to the pan-European medieval tradition of the marvelous rather than, as has previously been suggested, to an exclusively Celtic tradition.
Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationAspetti del meraviglioso nelle letterature medievali. Aspects du merveilleux dans les littératures médiévales
Subtitle of host publicationMedioevo latino, romanzo, germanico e celtico
EditorsFranca Ela Consolino, Francesco Marzella, Lucilla Spetia
Place of PublicationTurnhout
PublisherBrepols
Pages357-369
ISBN (Electronic)978-2-503-56211-7
ISBN (Print)978-2-503-55515-7
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jan 2016

Publication series

NameCulture et société médiévales
Volume29

Keywords

  • Medieval Literature
  • Medieval Welsh Literature
  • Celtic Studies

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