Sonja Fielitz Book order

Since the classical myths of Pegasus and the centaurs, mankind in the Western world has shared a deep relationship with horses, and it is small wonder that the good-nature quadrupeds have also found their representations in innumerable literary texts. Rather than keeping to the traditional method of 'Motivgeschichte', however, this collection of essays for the first time traces the cultural significance of the horse as an indicator of change in systems of thought. Taking as its starting point the so-called 'Arbor Porphyriana' (3rd century), it delineates from literary as well as linguistic perspectives how horses have been culturally employed within the dichotomy between (irrational?) horses and (rational?) humans over the centuries. In doing so, it covers a time span of about 800 years providing essays on - among others - medieval Ireland, Shakespeare, Marlowe, 'horse ballet' of the 17th century, Swift, Marvell, Sewell, Kroetsch, as well as contemporary medial representations, and modern sports such as Freestyle Dressage.

'Shakespeare's Sonnets: Loves, Layers, Languages' does not only testify to the longevity of the Bard´s sonnets by covering various original aspects from their publication to the present but also takes them beyond England, that is, to Wales and Scotland, and to the Continent. The fresh idea behind it is that Shakespeare´s sonnets are structured around shared themes, common situations, characters and specific effects which may even give them a 'musical' quality. The section on 'Loves' deals with the texts themselves, that is, matters of gender and sex, including the fictional identity of the „dark lady“ and the „sweet youth“. 'Layers' does not only refer to the general idea of 'layers of meaning' but rather to various degrees of friction and synthesis between form and content, and word and image. 'Languages' implies the (linguistic) afterlife of the sonnets not only in Great Britain, but also in (regional) languages such as Welsh, Scottish, Esperanto, Latin and German dialects. Contributors include Hans Ulrich Gumbrecht, Stanley Wells, Paul Edmondson, Paul Franssen, Roy T. Eriksen, Erich Poppe, Wolfram R. Keller, and Wolfgang Weiss.

This volume assembles critical essays on the relationship between historiography and fiction from the Middle Ages to the eighteenth century and beyond. The contributions stem from distinguished scholars, junior faculty and Ph. D.-students, and thus represent a wide range of critical approaches and interests. All of the essays in the book, however, reflect recent debates about the tenacity of postmodernist epistemologies and the attendant revaluation of positivistic methodologies.