IMC 2007: Sessions

Session 719: The Sacred City: Earthly and Celestial Sites of Sanctity in Anglo-Saxon Literature

Tuesday 10 July 2007, 14.15-15.45

Sponsor:	Centre for Medieval Studies, University of York
Organiser:	Christine Phillips, Centre for Medieval Studies, University of York
Moderator/Chair:	Gabriella Corona, Centre for Medieval Studies, University of York
Paper 719-a	Fighting for the Heavenly City: Psychomachia and Psychology in Cynewulf's Juliana (Language: English) Alexandra Ramsden, Centre for Medieval Studies, University of York Index terms: Language and Literature - Old English, Philosophy
Paper 719-b	Building the Heavenly City: Almsgiving and the Forgiveness of Sin in the Anglo-Saxon Homilies (Language: English) Aleisha Olson, Department of History, University of York
Paper 719-c	Entering the Heavenly City: The Martyrdom of St Agnes in Aldhelm's De uirginitate (Language: English) Christine Phillips, Centre for Medieval Studies, University of York Index terms: Hagiography, Language and Literature - Latin, Monasticism
Abstract	The session seeks to explore Anglo-Saxon literary concepts of sacred place in terms of both physical and spiritual urban settings. A variety of approaches will be employed in order to investigate the roles which both the image and the idea of the city played in the Christian Anglo-Saxon imagination. The session will consider the function of saints' shrines on earth and the manner in which the soul sought the heavenly city; the interplay between heavenly and earthly cities and how sacred urban sites were perceived to act as gateways between the mortal and divine realms; and ways in which physical manifestations of holiness contribute to the construction of local and national identity.