week 1-3

Q. What genres do the following texts belong to, and how do their intended period contexts, purposes, and intended audiences differ?
The Voluspa is an example of a mythological poem due to the reference of gods and the telling of the beginning of worlds and the prophetic telling of the end of the worlds. “The sun turns black, the earth sinks below the sea, no bright star now shines from the heavens; flames leap the length of the World Tree, fire strikes against the very sky.” From Voluspa, Terry, P. (Trans). (1990, 1966). Poems of the Elder Edda. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. The Voluspa was written sometime between the 10th and 12th century in northern europe a very christian but previously Norse area. Although it is likely it was an oral tradition before that.
The hobbit and the lord of the rings are both examples of fantasy novels shown in this exchange “"Which king?" said another with a grim voice. "As like as not it is the marauding fire of the Dragon, the only king under the Mountain we have ever known."” Extract: Tolkien, J.R.R. (1997; 1937). The Hobbit, London: HarperCollins, pp.ix; 233-242, This mention of dragons and kings shows links to a fantasy world.
Beowulf falls under the fantasy category in genres “…a dragon on the prowl from the steep vaults of a stone-roofed barrow where he guarded a hoard; there was a hidden passage, unknown to men, but someone managed to enter by it and interfere with the heathen trove. He had handled and removed a gem-studded goblet; it gained him nothing” showing talks of treasure and dragons again, however unlike the lord of the rings I believe Beowulf was intended for a slightly older audience whereas LOTR falls under the young adult demographic.
In this excerpt of the volsunga it appears to be a short passage of fantastical writing due to the reference of dragons and treasure “ Now crept the worm down to his place of watering, and the earth shook all about him, and he snorted forth venom on all the way before him as he went; but Sigurd neither trembled nor was adrad at the roaring of him” here worms refers to dragons, whereas it can also refer to snakes. The difference as i see it to fantasy and mythological genres is the reality behind them, as fantasy can be all made up in one's head whereas mythological writing is something that people once believed in, such as the Norse gods in the voluspa. 

Q. How did Tolkien draw on the Old Norse and Old English texts in his The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings fantasy novels? Provide some concrete examples.
a. Tolkien's ‘the hobbit’ and ‘Lord of the rings’ (‘LOTR’) draws on old Norse for the fantastical aspects of the stories, he uses the same terms as Norse tales such as worm to describe a dragon or a snake. “Now crept the worm down to his place of watering” as taken from Extract Morris, W. & Magnussun, E. (Trans.). (1888). The Story of the Volsungs (Volsunga Saga). London: Walter Scott Press, pp.58-62. Compared to “It is but two nights ago that Wormtongue came to us and said that by the will of Theoden no stranger should pass these gates.” Extract: Tolkien, J.R.R. (1993;1954). The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. London, HarperCollins, pp.495 – 513. Another use of bringing in these old texts is the use of middle earth, which he directly translated from midgard. Mid meaning middle and gard being a norse word for earth.

Q. Identify some recent films, TV shows and/or games which have brought back some of the old gods and heroes from obscurity. What place do the old myths have in the modern world?
A. a recent game that has brought old gods back to life so to speak is the video game series ‘God of War’. While the original game franchise had an original character (kratos) battling old greek gods, within the new game he is battling against the old norse gods and goddesses. I believe the reason the producers and writers draw on the old norse myths in this case is solely for entertainment and to give the story a richer background.

Q. Discuss what you think any of these texts desire (in the sense of their intention, how they wish to be received, what pleasures they offer, etc).
A. i believe these texts, especially the hobbit and LOTR desire to fill the gap between voluspa and modern society as well as the desire to entertain. Although these two texts have been received as young adult novels these texts intended on being received as a serious fantasy novel and prove how fantasy can be taken seriously and not as a children's genre.