Understanding the Supernatural in Medieval Europe (with special reference to late-medieval English literature)

2015 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 24720138
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Literature in English
• Research Institution: Doshisha University
• Principal Investigator: ONUMA Yu 同志社大学, 文学部, 准教授 (10546667)
• Project Period (FY): 2012-04-01 – 2016-03-31
• Keywords: 中世英文学 / 西洋古典 / 古典の受容 / 英米文学 / 驚異 / 旅行記 / 博物学 / 百科事典

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This project investigates various kinds of medieval texts written in several European languages, including English, with the purpose of analyzing how the supernatural is received, described, and understood, often within a framework derived from classical (i.e., Greek and Roman) literature. It turned out that when people in the medieval period wrote about what was unknown and strange to them, they devised diverse methods of narration for the purpose; literary variations often occur, reflecting emphases favored by this or that author. Information about, and knowledge of, the supernatural grew out of cultural inheritances from the classical period, a fact which tells us much about intellectual activity in the late Middle Ages.

Free Research Field

中世英文学