This slideshow tells the tale of Orion as it may relate to Kerbstone 52, the summer solstice suns... more This slideshow tells the tale of Orion as it may relate to Kerbstone 52, the summer solstice sunset stone positioned at the rear of Newgrange.
This literary analysis explores the work of Alta Isadore Gould, a Michigan-based author, specific... more This literary analysis explores the work of Alta Isadore Gould, a Michigan-based author, specifically focusing on her 1894 book titled "The Veteran's Bride and Other Poems: Stories of the Late War." Gould's writing style resembles that of a kindly Christian woman. Nevertheless, and contrary to her manner, she indirectly conveys numerous Pagan elements. Themes of fertility, germination, growth, and harvest of the soil as reenacted by the two sexes incorporate and can be integrated into the structure of the Wheel of the Year. Poetically, fertility is symbolized by Sacred Marriage (hieros gamos), germination and growth are symbolized by the birth of a Divine Child Sun, and harvest is symbolized by the sacrificial deaths and return of Gould's good Civil War soldiers, en masse and individually.
Gould likely fostered her pagan curiosities while conducting research for Ellen Gould White, the Seventh-day Adventist prophetess in Battle Creek, for whom she worked. Thus, the stylized Wheel of the Year she presents was likely influenced, at least in part, by literature available to her in Battle Creek and other libraries throughout the state that she had access to. However, it is also possible that Gould's paganism is not purely a product of her imagination. One might reasonably wonder if her writing contains remnants of an older Pagan religion that she altered in order for it to survive within the Christian environs of the nineteenth century.
The secret behind "Kat Godeu" and its enigmatic battling trees has baffled scholars for close to ... more The secret behind "Kat Godeu" and its enigmatic battling trees has baffled scholars for close to two centuries, but now a fresh idea is put forth to explain the mystery. Classical allusions scattered throughout the poem are shown to correspond with Virgil's "Aeneid." Within this context, the poet creates his own Welsh pseudo-"Aeneid" for his Latin-literate contemporaries. He playfully takes Virgil’s Latin people and places and changes them to Welsh equivalents. The removal of all of Virgil’s players and places communicates that the "Aeneid" is no longer Roman, but something new, transformed for a sophisticated medieval Welsh audience with different ideas. This restructured mock-parody of the "Aeneid" in the vernacular challenges the prestige and power of Latin in a not-so-subtle contest with Virgil, making it a political poem.
This reading provides support for the theory that "Kat Godeu" was written for a privileged, well-... more This reading provides support for the theory that "Kat Godeu" was written for a privileged, well-educated audience who were familiar with the Classics.
This slideshow tells the tale of Orion as it may relate to Kerbstone 52, the summer solstice suns... more This slideshow tells the tale of Orion as it may relate to Kerbstone 52, the summer solstice sunset stone positioned at the rear of Newgrange.
This literary analysis explores the work of Alta Isadore Gould, a Michigan-based author, specific... more This literary analysis explores the work of Alta Isadore Gould, a Michigan-based author, specifically focusing on her 1894 book titled "The Veteran's Bride and Other Poems: Stories of the Late War." Gould's writing style resembles that of a kindly Christian woman. Nevertheless, and contrary to her manner, she indirectly conveys numerous Pagan elements. Themes of fertility, germination, growth, and harvest of the soil as reenacted by the two sexes incorporate and can be integrated into the structure of the Wheel of the Year. Poetically, fertility is symbolized by Sacred Marriage (hieros gamos), germination and growth are symbolized by the birth of a Divine Child Sun, and harvest is symbolized by the sacrificial deaths and return of Gould's good Civil War soldiers, en masse and individually.
Gould likely fostered her pagan curiosities while conducting research for Ellen Gould White, the Seventh-day Adventist prophetess in Battle Creek, for whom she worked. Thus, the stylized Wheel of the Year she presents was likely influenced, at least in part, by literature available to her in Battle Creek and other libraries throughout the state that she had access to. However, it is also possible that Gould's paganism is not purely a product of her imagination. One might reasonably wonder if her writing contains remnants of an older Pagan religion that she altered in order for it to survive within the Christian environs of the nineteenth century.
The secret behind "Kat Godeu" and its enigmatic battling trees has baffled scholars for close to ... more The secret behind "Kat Godeu" and its enigmatic battling trees has baffled scholars for close to two centuries, but now a fresh idea is put forth to explain the mystery. Classical allusions scattered throughout the poem are shown to correspond with Virgil's "Aeneid." Within this context, the poet creates his own Welsh pseudo-"Aeneid" for his Latin-literate contemporaries. He playfully takes Virgil’s Latin people and places and changes them to Welsh equivalents. The removal of all of Virgil’s players and places communicates that the "Aeneid" is no longer Roman, but something new, transformed for a sophisticated medieval Welsh audience with different ideas. This restructured mock-parody of the "Aeneid" in the vernacular challenges the prestige and power of Latin in a not-so-subtle contest with Virgil, making it a political poem.
This reading provides support for the theory that "Kat Godeu" was written for a privileged, well-... more This reading provides support for the theory that "Kat Godeu" was written for a privileged, well-educated audience who were familiar with the Classics.
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Gould likely fostered her pagan curiosities while conducting research for Ellen Gould White, the Seventh-day Adventist prophetess in Battle Creek, for whom she worked. Thus, the stylized Wheel of the Year she presents was likely influenced, at least in part, by literature available to her in Battle Creek and other libraries throughout the state that she had access to. However, it is also possible that Gould's paganism is not purely a product of her imagination. One might reasonably wonder if her writing contains remnants of an older Pagan religion that she altered in order for it to survive within the Christian environs of the nineteenth century.
Gould likely fostered her pagan curiosities while conducting research for Ellen Gould White, the Seventh-day Adventist prophetess in Battle Creek, for whom she worked. Thus, the stylized Wheel of the Year she presents was likely influenced, at least in part, by literature available to her in Battle Creek and other libraries throughout the state that she had access to. However, it is also possible that Gould's paganism is not purely a product of her imagination. One might reasonably wonder if her writing contains remnants of an older Pagan religion that she altered in order for it to survive within the Christian environs of the nineteenth century.