A Case for Irony in Beowulf, with Particular Reference to Its Epithets - Couverture souple

Clark, Tom

Couverture souple

ISBN 10 : 0820470023 ISBN 13 : 9780820470023

Editeur : Peter Lang Publishing, 2004

Synopsis

This book examines irony in the Old English poem Beowulf. It synthesises an argument that the poetics of Beowulf are fundamentally contrastive. Contrastiveness is a feature of expression that enables the presence of irony, although it does not guarantee it. Using a definition that emphasises contextual rather than absolute readings of irony, this study shows how irony is created in Beowulf by contrastive techniques such as the dichotomy of words and deeds, the use of juxtaposition in its development of characters, and the use of litotes. The author devotes particular attention to the epithets of Beowulf, examined as both an attributive phrase and the concomitant amplification of that phrase through its poetic context. Close readings of the poem's epithets reveal many ironies and many different types of irony. The systematic coherence of those types shows Beowulf in a new light, as a thoroughly ironic poem.

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: Peter Lang Publishing
• Date d'édition: 2004
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 0820470023
• ISBN 13: 9780820470023
• Reliure: Broché
• Nombre de pages: 300
• Coordonnées du fabricant: non disponible
• Personne responsable: non disponible