The Hero's Mortal Walls: Identity and Defenses in Early Epic and Romance

The heroes of early narratives are the faces of an older world, embodying their identity and reflecting their culture. This book analyses seven iconic heroes and compares them to walled towns or castles, hardened against an outer threat. By delving into their inner selves, the book reveals the pieces of their inner selves that they must accept with firm humility.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 277 pages
Publication date: 31 January 2024
Publisher: McFarland & Co Inc

The heroes of early narrative are the faces of an older world, their stories holding the memory like members of an extended family. Gilgamesh, Odysseus, Beowulf, Gawain, Roland, Yvain, and Genji, in their colorful, often exaggerated ways, show how the people of their own time and place liked to know themselves. These heroes embody their identity and reflect their culture.

Because their world was difficult and dangerous, every hero needed defensive strengths. This book analyzes seven iconic heroes and compares each champion to a walled town or castle, hardened against an outer threat. These defenses are the mortal walls of their identity—their strengths against the world, as well as their dealings within it—and are exemplified in their actions as warriors, distinct rhetoric, complex relationships with women, and devotion to the divine. By delving into some of early narratives most renowned heroes, the book reveals the pieces of their inner selves that even they cannot keep outside the walls but must finally accept with firm humility.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781476686233