Browsing by Author "Robert V. Young, Committee Chair"

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    "And Dreams Advise": The Dreams in Paradise Lost and Their Precursors
    (2003-06-20) Toms, Marcia Lynn; Linda T. Holley, Committee Member; Thomas D. Lisk, Committee Member; Robert V. Young, Committee Chair
    While much has been written about Eve's dream in Book V of "Paradise Lost", the other dreams are often ignored or considered only as foils for Eve's first dream. Adam's two divine dreams and Eve's postlapsarian dream, however, each serves important literary functions within the epic. Adam's first dream brings him into Paradise; his second shows his uxoriousness; Eve's final dream restores her relationships with God and Adam. Together, all four dreams illustrate the nature of human life before and after the fall. Each of these dreams ultimately derives from classical and biblical uses of dreams, but Milton modifies the conventions of the literary tradition to fit his purpose. This study compares each of the four major dreams in "Paradise Lost" to dreams in works of Milton';s immediate predecessors. Works of Spenser, Sidney, and Donne provide examples of traditional uses of dreams in literature and help illuminate the ways Milton modifies that tradition.
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    Fingerprints of Thomas More's Epigrammata on English Poetry
    (2009-11-20) Ransom, Emily Ann; Thomas D. Lisk, Committee Member; A. Reid Barbour, Committee Member; Robert V. Young, Committee Chair
    Thomas More’s Latin epigrams, published with the second edition of Utopia in 1518, were apparently widely read both among contemporary European intellectuals and during the subsequent development of English poetry. With a humble audacity that could engage Classical authors in a Christian posture, More cultivated a literary climate that could retain the earthiness of the middle ages in dialogue with the ancients, and is more responsible for the ensuing expansion of vernacular poetry than perhaps any other Henrican author. This thesis probes the Classical influences and Humanist practices at work in the epigrams, explores their contemporary reception on the continent, and traces their legacy among sixteenth- and seventeenth-century English poets.
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    Heroes, Gods, and Virtues: a comparison and contrast of the heroes in the Aeneid and The Lord of the Rings
    (2002-12-18) Davis, Jason Larry; Robert V. Young, Committee Chair; Christopher Cobb, Committee Member; Linda Holley, Committee Member
    The heroes in Virgil's Aeneid and Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings are compared and contrasted. Some of the heroic characteristics that Tolkien instills in his characters are similar to Aeneas's, but the primary heroes—Frodo, Sam, Aragorn, and Gandalf—display particularly Christian virtues that complement and fulfill Virgil's pre-Christian ideals. The comparison begins with Aeneas's and Frodo's choices to leave Carthage and Lothlorien because those two cities pose similar temptations. However the protagonists' decisions have differing motivations. Motive marks the beginning of the contrast which then proceeds to analyze goals and hopes of the characters. The virtues advocated by the two authors are directly connected to the theologies at work in their plots, and the varying celestial powers and forces of evil are contrasted as well. Finally, the conclusions of the two works reveal the greatest difference between the heroes?the power and importance of mercy rather than strength.