dr seuss
Bluelight Crew
i'm focusing heavily on medieval western religious life at the moment - particularly heresy, but also the general interaction between spiritual and temporal realms.
i never ever thought i'd enjoy medieval studies... it just seemed to be the stereotypical dusty-elbowed historians' genre of choice. i think it was evelyn waugh who said that the best way of avoiding talking to someone at a dinner party was to tell them you were a medievalist
but really, i find the subject matter immensely enjoyable. it's so decidely different from our modern experiences; it's possible to see precursors that hint at the way our societies would eventually evolve. after moving from a country that has a 'white' recorded history of about 216 years to england, i've found medievalism took on a new relevance; when you realise that the tiny abbey down the road is actually a 13th century cistercian centre which was involved in all sorts of high political intrigue; or realising that the House of Commons is where Simon de Montfort actually stood and spoke way back when we were first enjoying imperial adventures in the middle east...
part of the attraction, i guess, is also the 'Lord of the Rings Factor'. tolkein was a medievalist; and when you're reading thousand-year old texts describing the intricacies of feudal power relations, the inspiration for much of his work is clearly apparent. this was a period of strange names - Amalric, Odalric, Theodatus, Anselm, Ademar, Everwach - and strange societies - the Occitan 'nation', the Spiritual Franciscans, Bogomils and Cathars... it's chock full of intrigue, power, madness, death, and beauty. we have heroes and villains, kings and queens and castellans and mercenaries; we have dissidents and protestors and persecutors, and most interesting of all is how easily we can identify with people who's words have echoed for a thousand years...
does anyone else out there do any medieval study?
i never ever thought i'd enjoy medieval studies... it just seemed to be the stereotypical dusty-elbowed historians' genre of choice. i think it was evelyn waugh who said that the best way of avoiding talking to someone at a dinner party was to tell them you were a medievalist

but really, i find the subject matter immensely enjoyable. it's so decidely different from our modern experiences; it's possible to see precursors that hint at the way our societies would eventually evolve. after moving from a country that has a 'white' recorded history of about 216 years to england, i've found medievalism took on a new relevance; when you realise that the tiny abbey down the road is actually a 13th century cistercian centre which was involved in all sorts of high political intrigue; or realising that the House of Commons is where Simon de Montfort actually stood and spoke way back when we were first enjoying imperial adventures in the middle east...
part of the attraction, i guess, is also the 'Lord of the Rings Factor'. tolkein was a medievalist; and when you're reading thousand-year old texts describing the intricacies of feudal power relations, the inspiration for much of his work is clearly apparent. this was a period of strange names - Amalric, Odalric, Theodatus, Anselm, Ademar, Everwach - and strange societies - the Occitan 'nation', the Spiritual Franciscans, Bogomils and Cathars... it's chock full of intrigue, power, madness, death, and beauty. we have heroes and villains, kings and queens and castellans and mercenaries; we have dissidents and protestors and persecutors, and most interesting of all is how easily we can identify with people who's words have echoed for a thousand years...
does anyone else out there do any medieval study?