All Reading & Composition courses must be taken for a letter grade in order to fulfill this requirement for the Bachelor’s Degree. This course satisfies the second half or the “B” portion of the Reading and Composition requirement.

This class is not only an introduction to the exciting literature written in medieval Scandinavia about the Norse gods (such as Odin, Thor, and Loki) and mythical heroes (such as the Volsungs, whose saga has inspired numerous modern drama and fantasy writers), but also a forum for students to develop their skills in academic research, analysis, and writing by composing essays that engage with both primary and secondary readings on these topics.

Texts:

Crawford (trans.), “The Poetic Edda: Stories of the Norse Gods and Heroes.” ISBN 978-1624663567

Faulkes (trans.), “Edda.” ISBN 978-0460876162

Hermann Pálsson and Edwards (trans.), “Seven Viking Romances.” ISBN 978-0140444742

Ringler (trans.), “Beowulf: A New Translation for Oral Delivery.” ISBN 978-0872208933

Grimstad (trans.), “The Saga of the Volsungs.” ISBN 3-922441-67-X (online at: http://book2look.de/vBook.aspx?id=5nYjPDbWBd&euid=2967251&ruid=0&referURL=http://book2look.de )

 Additional readings on bCourses.

 Prerequisites: Successful completion of the first half or “A” portion of the Reading and Composition requirement. Students may not enroll nor attend R1B/R5B courses without completing this prerequisite.