Öz
In recent years nostalgia for medieval period has appeared in the form of the fantasy genre which generally includes magical and supernatural elements as in the works of the Middle Ages. The revival of the medieval romances and poems in popular culture in the 20th century was named neomedievalism by the critic Umberto Eco. Neomedieval works retell the notable medieval stories or develop a new plot in the light of medieval narratives, and at times they consist of chivalry and/or medieval setting like castles. All these features coincide with the essential characteristics of fantasy. In contemporary literature, it is obvious that both the movement neomedievalism and the fantasy genre offer a chance to authors to criticise the deficiencies and wrongdoing of their own periods. The Scottish author Naomi Mitchison, keeping the spirit of medievalism alive in her works, in To the Chapel Perilous (1955) rewrites a well-known Arthurian legend, the quest for the Holy Grail, from her own point of view adding some anachronistic details such as newspaper industry and reporters who are following all the steps of the knights in search of the Grail. The intertwinement of modern elements with a medieval legend is Mitchison’s way of criticism of contemporary journalism, and by emphasising the dominant Medieval Church institute in her work, she points out the existence of authoritative figures in every period. The connection between the Middle Ages and contemporary period dissociates Mitchison’s novel, which is regarded as a parody, from the other neomedieval works which often protect the chivalric spirit by glorifying the medieval values. Within this frame, this paper will discuss the neomedieval elements in the fantastic novel To the Chapel Perilous as means to criticism of Mitchison’s own period and explore the place of the medievalism in contemporary literature.
Anahtar Kelimeler
Naomi Mitchison To the Chapel Perilous Neomedievalism Arthurian novel the Fantasy genre
Kaynakça
- Amey, Michael D. (2004). Constructing a Perilous Chapel: Contesting Power Structures in Naomi Mitchison’s To the Chapel Perilous. Arthuriana, 14(3), 69-80. doi: 10.1353/art.2004.0037.
- Attebery, B. (1991). The Politics (If Any) of Fantasy. Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts, 4(1), 7-28. Retrieved from https://www.jstor.org/stable/43308098.
- Baker, D. (2012). Why We Need Dragons: The Progressive Potential of Fantasy. Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts, 23, 3(86), 437-459. Retrieved from https://www.jstor.org/stable/24353086.
- Barber, Robert W. (2004). The Holy Grail: Imagination and Belief. Suffolk: Harvard University Press.
- Benton J. (1990). Naomi Mitchison: A Biography. Glasgow: Pandora.
- Burcher, C., et al. (2009). Core Collections in Genre Studies: Fantasy Fiction 101. Reference & User Services Quarterly, 48(3), 226-231. Retrieved from https://www.jstor.org/stable/20865077.
- Eco, U. (1986). Travels in Hyperreality: Essays. Translated by William Weaver. Orlando: Harcourt Brace.
- Kaufman, Amy S. (2010). Medieval Unmoored. In Studies in Medievalism XIX: Defining Neomedievalism(s). K. Fugelso (Ed.), (pp. 1-11). Cambridge: D. S. Bewer.
- Lupack, A. (2001). To the Chapel Perilous by Naomi Mitchison; Raymond H. Thompson; Arthur, the Bear of Britain by Edward Frankland; Raymond H. Thompson; Kinsmen of the Grail by Dorothy James Roberts; Raymond H. Thompson,” Arthuriana, 11(4), 139-141. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/27869700.
- Meschia, K. (2010). Naomi the Poet and Nella the Housewife: Finding a Space to Write from The Wartime Diaries of Naomi Mitchison and Nella Last. Miranda 2. doi: 10.4000/miranda.1238.
- Miéville, C. (2009). Cognition as Ideology: A Dialectic of SF Theory. Red Planets: Marxism and Science Fiction. Connecticut: Wesleyan University Press.
- Mitchison, N. (1999). To the Chapel Perilous. Oakland: Green Knight Publishing.
- Obermier, A (2005). Postmodernism and the Press in Naomi Mitchison’s To the Chapel Perilous. Studies in Medievalism: Postmodern Medievalisms XIII 2003. R. Utz and J. G. Swan (Eds.). Cambridge: D. S. Brewer.
- Thompson, Raymond H. (1989). Interview with Naomi Mitchison. Robbins Library Digital Projects. Accessed April 28, 2016. Retrieved from https://d.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/text/interview-with-naomi-mitchison.
- Wood, J. (2008). Eternal Chalice: The Enduring Legend of the Holy Grail. New York: I. B. Tauris & Co.
Öz
Son yıllarda Orta Çağ dönemine duyulan nostalji, genellikle Orta Çağ eserlerinde olduğu gibi büyülü ve doğaüstü unsurları içeren fantezi türünde de görülmektedir. 20. yüzyılda Orta Çağ romanslarının ve şiirlerinin popüler kültürde yeniden canlanması, eleştirmen Umberto Eco tarafından Yeni Orta Çağcılık olarak adlandırılmıştır. Yeni Orta Çağ eserleri, önemli Orta Çağ hikayelerini yeniden anlatmakta veya Orta Çağ anlatıları ışığında yeni olay örgüleri sunmaktadır. Bu edebi ürünler zaman zaman geleneksel Orta Çağ eserlerinde olduğu gibi şövalyelik ve/veya şatolar gibi Orta Çağ mekanlarından oluşmaktadır. Tüm bu özellikler fantezinin temel özellikleriyle de örtüşmektedir. Çağdaş edebiyatta hem Yeni Orta Çağcılık akımının hem de fantezi türünün yazarlara kendi dönemlerinin eksikliklerini ve yanlışlarını eleştirme şansı sunduğu açıktır. İskoç yazar Naomi Mitchison da eserlerinde Orta Çağ ruhunu canlı tutarak To the Chapel Perilous (1955) adlı romanında Arthur efsanesini kendi bakış açısıyla yeniden yazarken gazete endüstrisi ve Kutsal Kâse arayışındaki şövalyelerin adım adım takip eden muhabirler gibi bazı anakronistik ayrıntılar eklemektedir. Modern unsurların bir Orta Çağ efsanesiyle iç içe geçmesi, Mitchison’ın çağdaş gazeteciliğe yönelik eleştiri biçimidir. Eserinde baskın Orta Çağ Kilisesi kurumunu vurgulayarak her dönemde otorite figürlerinin varlığına da dikkat çekmektedir. Orta Çağ ile çağdaş dönem arasındaki bağlantı, parodi olarak değerlendirilen Mitchison’ın romanını, Orta Çağ değerlerini yücelterek şövalyelik ruhunu koruyan diğer Yeni Orta Çağ eserlerinden ayırmaktadır. Bu çerçevede, bu makale Mitchison'ın kendi dönemine yönelik bir eleştiri aracı olarak To the Chapel Perilous adlı fantastik romandaki Yeni Orta Çağ unsurlarını tartışarak çağdaş edebiyatta Orta Çağcılığın nasıl bir yere sahip olduğunu incelemektedir.
Anahtar Kelimeler
Naomi Mitchison To the Chapel Perilous Yeni Orta Çağcılık Arthur romanı Fantastik tür
Kaynakça
- Amey, Michael D. (2004). Constructing a Perilous Chapel: Contesting Power Structures in Naomi Mitchison’s To the Chapel Perilous. Arthuriana, 14(3), 69-80. doi: 10.1353/art.2004.0037.
- Attebery, B. (1991). The Politics (If Any) of Fantasy. Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts, 4(1), 7-28. Retrieved from https://www.jstor.org/stable/43308098.
- Baker, D. (2012). Why We Need Dragons: The Progressive Potential of Fantasy. Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts, 23, 3(86), 437-459. Retrieved from https://www.jstor.org/stable/24353086.
- Barber, Robert W. (2004). The Holy Grail: Imagination and Belief. Suffolk: Harvard University Press.
- Benton J. (1990). Naomi Mitchison: A Biography. Glasgow: Pandora.
- Burcher, C., et al. (2009). Core Collections in Genre Studies: Fantasy Fiction 101. Reference & User Services Quarterly, 48(3), 226-231. Retrieved from https://www.jstor.org/stable/20865077.
- Eco, U. (1986). Travels in Hyperreality: Essays. Translated by William Weaver. Orlando: Harcourt Brace.
- Kaufman, Amy S. (2010). Medieval Unmoored. In Studies in Medievalism XIX: Defining Neomedievalism(s). K. Fugelso (Ed.), (pp. 1-11). Cambridge: D. S. Bewer.
- Lupack, A. (2001). To the Chapel Perilous by Naomi Mitchison; Raymond H. Thompson; Arthur, the Bear of Britain by Edward Frankland; Raymond H. Thompson; Kinsmen of the Grail by Dorothy James Roberts; Raymond H. Thompson,” Arthuriana, 11(4), 139-141. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/27869700.
- Meschia, K. (2010). Naomi the Poet and Nella the Housewife: Finding a Space to Write from The Wartime Diaries of Naomi Mitchison and Nella Last. Miranda 2. doi: 10.4000/miranda.1238.
- Miéville, C. (2009). Cognition as Ideology: A Dialectic of SF Theory. Red Planets: Marxism and Science Fiction. Connecticut: Wesleyan University Press.
- Mitchison, N. (1999). To the Chapel Perilous. Oakland: Green Knight Publishing.
- Obermier, A (2005). Postmodernism and the Press in Naomi Mitchison’s To the Chapel Perilous. Studies in Medievalism: Postmodern Medievalisms XIII 2003. R. Utz and J. G. Swan (Eds.). Cambridge: D. S. Brewer.
- Thompson, Raymond H. (1989). Interview with Naomi Mitchison. Robbins Library Digital Projects. Accessed April 28, 2016. Retrieved from https://d.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/text/interview-with-naomi-mitchison.
- Wood, J. (2008). Eternal Chalice: The Enduring Legend of the Holy Grail. New York: I. B. Tauris & Co.
Ayrıntılar
| Birincil Dil | İngilizce |
|---|---|
| Konular | İngiliz ve İrlanda Dili, Edebiyatı ve Kültürü |
| Bölüm | Araştırma Makalesi |
| Yazarlar | |
| Yayımlanma Tarihi | 25 Haziran 2025 |
| Gönderilme Tarihi | 22 Mayıs 2025 |
| Kabul Tarihi | 12 Haziran 2025 |
| Yayımlandığı Sayı | Yıl 2025 Cilt: 65 Sayı: 1 |
Ankara Üniversitesi Dil ve Tarih-Coğrafya Fakültesi Dergisi Creative Commons Atıf 4.0 Uluslararası (CC BY 4.0) ile lisanslanmıştır.