Investigations into the heroic - or not - behaviour of the protagonists of medieval romance. Medieval romances so insistently celebrate the triumphs of heroes and the discomfiture of villains that they discourage recognition of just how morally ambiguous, antisocial or even downright sinister their protagonists can be, and, correspondingly, of just how admirable or impressive their defeated opponents often are. This tension between the heroic and the antiheroic makes a major contribution to the dramatic complexity of medieval romance, but it is not an aspect of the genre that has been frequently discussed up until now. Focusing on fourteen distinct characters and character-types in medieval narrative, this book illustrates the range of different ways in which the imaginative power and appeal of romance-texts often depend on contradictions implicit in the very ideal of heroism. Dr Neil Cartlidge is Lecturer in English at the University of Durham. Contributors: Neil Cartlidge, Penny Eley, David Ashurst, Meg Lamont, Laura Ashe, Judith Weiss, Gareth Griffith, Kate McClune, Nancy Mason Bradbury, Ad Putter, Robert Rouse, Siobhain Bly Calkin, James Wade, Stephanie Vierick Gibbs Kamath

About the Author
NEIL CARTLIDGE is Professor in the Department of English Studies at the University of Durham, UK. Ad Putter is Professor of Medieval English at the University of Bristol, UK, co-director of Bristol's Centre for Medieval Studies, and Fellow of the British Academy. He is the author and editor of numerous books, with a particular interest in Medieval Romance texts and the works of the Gawain poet. He is currently leading a research project on the literary heritage of Anglo-Dutch relations. JUDITH WEISS is a Fellow of Robinson College, Cambridge, UK. LAURA ASHE is Professor of English at the University of Oxford and Fellow and Tutor at Worcester College, Oxford. NEIL CARTLIDGE is Professor in the Department of English Studies at the University of Durham, UK. ROBERT ROUSE Associate Professor, Department of English at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.

Reviews
Sheds new light on the romance genre by asking some innovative questions about the nature of the conventional romance protagonist....It should prove a valuable addition to the study of a genre of writing that has still not been fully appreciated. * HORTULUS JOURNAL *



Book Information
ISBN 9781843843047
Author Neil M R Cartlidge
Format Hardback
Page Count 258
Imprint D.S. Brewer
Publisher Boydell & Brewer Ltd
Weight(grams) 546g