Figures of the City in the Early Middle Ages and Beyond

FAIN: FA-53097-07

Andrew Paul Scheil
University of Minnesota (Minneapolis, MN 55455-2009)

This book argues for the existence of a medieval “Matter of Babylon,” an Oriental analog to the medieval Matter of Britain or Matter of Troy; that is, a body of related narratives, characters and themes centered on the city. This project in intellectual history and literary criticism explores the seminal early medieval understandings of Babylon and tracks the later surprising histories of this complex body of allusive lore. Although Babylon has enjoyed an unbroken record of allusion and adaptation in the West, used extensively by writers in every century, this project will be the first synthetic view of this rich history.

Associated Products

Babylon Under Western Eyes: A Study of Allusion and Myth (Book)
Title: Babylon Under Western Eyes: A Study of Allusion and Myth
Author: Andrew Scheil
Abstract: Babylon under Western Eyes examines the mythic legacy of ancient Babylon, the Near Eastern city which has served western culture as a metaphor for power, luxury, and exotic magnificence for more than two thousand years. Sifting through the many references to Babylon in biblical, classical, medieval, and modern texts, Andrew Scheil uses Babylon’s remarkable literary ubiquity as the foundation for a thorough analysis of the dynamics of adaptation and allusion in western literature. Touching on everything from Old English poetry to the contemporary apocalyptic fiction of the “Left Behind” series, Scheil outlines how medieval Christian society and its cultural successors have adopted Babylon as a political metaphor, a degenerate archetype, and a place associated with the sublime. Combining remarkable erudition with a clear and accessible style, Babylon under Western Eyes is the first comprehensive examination of Babylon’s significance within the pantheon of western literature and a testimonial to the continuing influence of biblical, classical, and medieval paradigms in modern culture.
Year: 2016
Publisher: University of Toronto Press
Type: Single author monograph
ISBN: 9781442637337
Copy sent to NEH?: No

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