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Durham E-Theses Durham E-Theses The time is now: the roles of apocalyptic thought in early Germanic literature Kick, Donata How to cite: Kick, Donata (2006) The time is now: the roles of apocalyptic thought in early Germanic literature, Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/4918/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk The Time is Now: The Roles of Apocalyptic Thought in Early Germanic Literature. by Donata Kick The copyright of this thesis rests with the author or the university to which it was submitted. No quotation from it, or information derived from it may be published without the prior written consent of the author or university, and any Information derived from it should be acknowledged. A thesis submitted for the degree ofPhD to the Department of English Studies University of Durham 2006 0 9 JUN 2006 Declaration and Copyright: Declaration: No part of this thesis has previously been submitted by the candidate for a degree in this or any other university. This thesis conforms with the prescribed word length for the degree for which I am submitting it for examination. Copyright: ' The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. No quotation from it should be published without their prior consent and information derived from it should be acknowledged. The Time is Now: the Roles of Apocalyptic Thought in Early Germanic Literature. Abstract: This study investigates the different purposes for which apocalyptic thought was employed in early Germanic texts. The main focus lies on Anglo-Saxon sources. Both prose texts and poetry are taken into consideration, and cross-references to tenth-century material from the Continent are made wherever appropriate. The first three chapters provide an investigation of the ways in which Church authorities used apocalyptic material for purposes of instilling an urge to repentance and/or conversion in their audiences. Chapter 1 discusses patristic and Anglo-Saxon responses to the thousand years mentioned in Revelation 20 and finds a significant difference in the way the material was discussed by learned monastics and by populist preachers. Chapter 2 traces the Antichrist motif in Continental and Anglo-Saxon sources, with special regard to regional preferences in the treatment of the material. Chapter 3 broadens the view to consider Anglo-Saxon preaching in general. It discusses the different use of apocalyptic material by !Elfric, Wulfstan, and the Blickling homilists, before approaching the prose and poetry found in the Vercelli Book and manuscript Cambridge, Corpus Christi College 201. Chapter 4 discusses material in Old Norse since sources relating to late tenth- and early eleventh century Scandinavia offer a unique opportunity to hear the voices of the laity at whom apocalyptic material was directed. The chapter starts with an overview of the conversion of Norway and Iceland by King Olafr Tryggvason and his missionaries before moving on to discuss skaldic verse from the conversion phase. The chapter concludes with an analysis of the curious mixture of pagan and Christian themes in the Eddie poem Vgluspi. Previous studies on the Judgement Day motif show either a regional focus (e.g. Anglo-Saxon England), limit themselves to a specific genre of texts (e.g. Old English poetry), or focus on the act of Judgement itself and/ or discuss descriptions of the tortures of Hell or the joys of Paradise. In contrast to these, the present study's comparative and interdisciplinary approach provides a more detailed picture of early medieval ideas about the end of the world, and responses to them by the laity. Table of Contents: Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................... l Dedication ............................. .- .................................................................................................... 2 lntroduction .............................................................................................................................. 3 Setting the Background: Apocalypse as a Literary Genre in Scripture and Apocrypha ................. S Apocalypse as Literary Genre ...................................................................................................... S Apocrypha, Pseudepigrapha, and Canon-Formation ................................................................... 7 The Hebrew Canon ................................................................................................................... 8 The New Testament ................................................................................................................ l1 The Main Differences Between Jewish and Christian Apocalypses ............................................ 15 Calculating Time ..................................................................................................................... 16 The Signs Preceding the End ................................................................................................... 17 Further Definitions .................................................................................................................. 18 Methodology ............................................................................................................................ 19 Chapter 1: Patristic and Anglo-Saxon Interpretations of the Millennium .............................. 21 The Early Fathers .................................................................................................................... 21 Augustine's Reinterpretation of the Millennium ...................................................................... 27 Computus and Calendar: Counting Down to the Year 6,000 .................................................... 34 Bede and the Anno Domini Calendar ....................................................................................... 35 The Situation on the Continent in the Ninth and Tenth Centuries ........................................ 41 The Anglo-Saxon Attitude Towards A.D. 1000 ...................................................................... 43 Chapter 2: Dressing up the Scarecrow: Political and Penitential Features of the Antichrist.. 56 Kingdoms and Beasts: Attempts at IdentifYing the Diabolic Forces .......................................... 57 Calculating the Duration of the Tribulation ............................................................................. 60 New Testament References to the Antichrist.. ......................................................................... 61 Patristic and Medieval Responses: a Shift in Focus ................................................................... 62 The "Restraining Power" of 2 Thessalonians 2,6 ...................................................................... 63 Haimo and Thietland ............................................................................................................... 64 Adso and the Myth of the Last World Emperor ....................................................................... 67 Medieval Attempts to IdentifY Gog and Magog ........................................................................ 71 The Anglo-Saxons and the Antichrist Material.. ...................................................................... 76 Wulfstan ................................................................................................................................... 77 JElfric. ...................................................................................................................................... 80 Wulfstan and JElfric on the Viking Threat ............................................................................... 82 The Anonymous Homilies ....................................................................................................... 86 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................... 87 Chapter 3: Context and Exploitation: Using Apocalyptic Material for Penitential Purposes .. 89 JElfric's Preaching and Eschatology ..................................................................................... : ..... 91 De die iudicii ............................................................................................................................ 95 Wulfstan ................................................................................................................................... 99 The Anonymous Homilies ..................................................................................................... 114 The Blickling Homilies .......................................................................................................... 115 Blickling X ............................................................................................................................
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