IMC 2014: Sessions
Session 1201: Knowledge, Belief, and Power, I: The Medieval North
Wednesday 9 July 2014, 14.15-15.45
| Sponsor: | Queen's University Belfast |
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| Organiser: | Marilina Cesario, School of Arts, English & Languages, Queen's University Belfast |
| Moderator/Chair: | Francis Leneghan, Faculty of English Language & Literature, University of Oxford |
| Paper 1201-a | St Peter in Old English, with Particular Reference to Ælfric (Language: English) Index terms: Biblical Studies, Language and Literature - Old English |
| Paper 1201-b | The Use of Sources and Eyewitness in Historical Writings of the Medieval North (Language: English) Index terms: Historiography - Medieval, Language and Literature - Old English, Language and Literature - Latin, Language and Literature - Scandinavian |
| Paper 1201-c | Romancing the Wind in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle (Language: English) Index terms: Historiography - Medieval, Language and Literature - Old English, Science |
| Abstract | This session explores the interface between knowledge, power, and belief in hagiographical and historical texts. It discusses the ways in which theological and historical knowledge was used to exercise power, and was manipulated to suit contemporary audiences. Furthermore, it explores the role that beliefs played in shaping and promoting scientific thinking. The theme of interpretation and manipulation of theological knowledge is explored in Paper –a (Hugh Magennis), which focuses on Ælfric's conflicting approach and rearrangement of the passio of Peter. Paper –b (Sarah Baccianti) aims to demonstrate how the knowledge of certain historical occurrences was transmitted differently according to the different political agendas of the authors, and the important role a contemporary audience played in shaping those views. Paper –c (Marilina Cesario) investigates the role of winds in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, and whether belief in the prognosticatory power of the wind was a product of the monastic society of the 11th and 12th centuries with its interest in scientific knowledge. |