Category Archives: Medievalism

Discovering Dante’s Inferno

It’s satisfying, isn’t it, when a book you read leads the way to others — where one opens your eyes to another topic, another author or another passion and off you go. I’m happy to report that the joy of discovery is still alive and well in the mind of this 50-plus reader. A few …

October 8, 2009 – 7:30 am | By David Morton | Posted in Books, Films, History, Inspiration, Medievalism, Poetry, The Novel, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments (0)

The Future of The Canterbury Tales

I like this cheeky interpretation of the first few lines of Chaucer’s General Prologue. In all its geeky futuristic imagery and mispronunciation of the Middle English, it’s completely charming in its simplicity and brings an easy smile. And it is ultimately a tribute to Chaucer’s lines and remarkable that they still speak to people 600 …

August 22, 2009 – 10:28 am | By David Morton | Posted in Chaucer, Films, In the Modern Age, Middle English, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments (0)

Book Review:
The Saint and the Fasting Girl

It was a real honour to be asked by Anna Richenda, recently, if I would review her new self-published novel, The Saint and the Fasting Girl. As a fan of HistoryFish.net her expansive website devoted to medieval religious topics, I had been reading progress reports in her blog about the book’s publication for some time. …

August 7, 2009 – 2:04 pm | By David Morton | Posted in Books, History, Medievalism, The Novel, The Writer's Struggle, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments (1)

Miracles, Relics and Saints: Anachronisms in the 2000s

There was an eye-catching headline on the front page of a recent Saturday edition of The Vancouver Sun. “Saint or Science?” it read. Underneath, was the following sub-head: “A Surrey man, ravaged by flesh-eating disease, lay close to death. Given just hours to live, he suddenly recovered after a visit from his priest. Now the …

July 15, 2009 – 6:35 am | By David Morton | Posted in In the Modern Age, Medievalism, The monks | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments (4)

Those Were The Days: Finding ourselves in the Middle Ages

As is so often the case, a recent New Yorker cartoon took a medieval story to heart and added a 21st century twist to great comic effect. In this case, Rapunzel* has let down her hair, as the fairy tale goes, but she has inadvertently foiled the prince’s attempt to climb her prison tower using …

July 5, 2009 – 5:50 pm | By David Morton | Posted in Chaucer, History, Inspiration, Medievalism | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments (0)

A Fresh Take on the Middle Ages

I’ve been reading a terrific book about the Middle Ages, recently, by an American scholar with a great sweeping view of history about the powerful influence of medievalism on the contemporary world. I’ve always found the imaginative influence of the Middle Ages captivating: Chaucer’s pilgrims, the wild behaviours of feudal lords, the gritty view of …

June 25, 2009 – 6:30 am | By David Morton | Posted in Books, History, Inspiration, Medievalism | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments (4)

A Storm of Arrows From the English Longbow

At the beginning of Andrew Davidson’s book, The Gargoyle, the main character is driving along a mountain road, high on cocaine and bourbon. He has a distinct feeling that he is about to be ambushed, for some reason, and, sure enough, he sees “a volley of flaming arrows swarming out of the woods, directly at …

May 9, 2009 – 3:55 pm | By David Morton | Posted in History, Medievalism, warfare | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments (2)