Kerry Kirwan | Monash University (original) (raw)

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Thesis Chapters by Kerry Kirwan

Masters Thesis, 2020

The Icelandic sagas describe men and women from the North travelling throughout the medieval worl... more The Icelandic sagas describe men and women from the North travelling throughout the medieval world, journeying to foreign, even marginal lands, fighting in foreign wars, serving at, or visiting foreign courts. These saga far-travellers were uniquely Icelandic cultural creations; their stories were a form of epic literature. The sagas were also written during a time of unrest and uncertainty; a time when Icelandic society was under great pressure from Norwegian political influence that was bringing great change to the community. This thesis argues that the saga authors used images of far-travelling warriors and explorers to create and foster a sense of Icelandic independence, and their imagery was a deliberate construct that served to subtly advance the reputation of Iceland and Icelanders on the world stage. The crafting of these images also reveals aspects of author intent and values, and how far-travel and journeys have been used to promote personal agendas, be it religious evangelism, to legitimise land-holdings, or for political purposes. They articulated a literary response to a sense of an emerging Icelandic identity; the images served to shape, and were in turn shaped by attitudes towards far-travellers. Far-travellers were now to be seen as cultural heroes.

Papers by Kerry Kirwan

The Icelandic sagas describe Icelanders travelling throughout the medieval world. But their stori... more The Icelandic sagas describe Icelanders travelling throughout the medieval world. But their stories were also written down during a time of unrest, when Icelandic society was under great pressure from Norwegian political influence. The images of these far-travellers – like the men who went east to serve foreign kings, and the men and women who sailed the dangerous seas to the west, to discover and colonise new lands – can reveal aspects of author intent and values. This thesis explains how stories of far-travellers and journeys provide a literary response by their authors, articulating their sense of an emerging Icelandic identity.

Masters Thesis, 2020

The Icelandic sagas describe men and women from the North travelling throughout the medieval worl... more The Icelandic sagas describe men and women from the North travelling throughout the medieval world, journeying to foreign, even marginal lands, fighting in foreign wars, serving at, or visiting foreign courts. These saga far-travellers were uniquely Icelandic cultural creations; their stories were a form of epic literature. The sagas were also written during a time of unrest and uncertainty; a time when Icelandic society was under great pressure from Norwegian political influence that was bringing great change to the community. This thesis argues that the saga authors used images of far-travelling warriors and explorers to create and foster a sense of Icelandic independence, and their imagery was a deliberate construct that served to subtly advance the reputation of Iceland and Icelanders on the world stage. The crafting of these images also reveals aspects of author intent and values, and how far-travel and journeys have been used to promote personal agendas, be it religious evangelism, to legitimise land-holdings, or for political purposes. They articulated a literary response to a sense of an emerging Icelandic identity; the images served to shape, and were in turn shaped by attitudes towards far-travellers. Far-travellers were now to be seen as cultural heroes.

The Icelandic sagas describe Icelanders travelling throughout the medieval world. But their stori... more The Icelandic sagas describe Icelanders travelling throughout the medieval world. But their stories were also written down during a time of unrest, when Icelandic society was under great pressure from Norwegian political influence. The images of these far-travellers – like the men who went east to serve foreign kings, and the men and women who sailed the dangerous seas to the west, to discover and colonise new lands – can reveal aspects of author intent and values. This thesis explains how stories of far-travellers and journeys provide a literary response by their authors, articulating their sense of an emerging Icelandic identity.