Óðinn, Þórr, Loki and His Children: Old Norse Myth in Anglophone Popular Culture

This lecture will examine the ways in which three principal figures of Old Norse myth have been made to signify in recent Anglo-American culture. Exploring the figures of Óðinn, Þórr and Loki (and his monstrous children) in novels, films, TV shows and operas, I will argue that these figures are indeed, as journalists like to say, ‘having a moment’ in the present-day popular imagination, in ways that differ considerably from their roles in previous nineteenth- and early twentieth-century works. The cultural functions they fulfil are closely related to their depictions in medieval sources – indeed, their ‘authenticity’ in relation to medieval source material for example is a subject of lively debate in fan communities – but these characters have also fundamentally re-tooled and re-imagined in order to reflect on key contemporary concepts such as patriarchy, masculinity, queerness, adolescence and alterity in popular discourse.

Speaker: Prof. Carolyne Larrington

Carolyne Larrington is Emerita Professor of medieval European literature at the University of Oxford, and Emerita Research Fellow of St John’s College, Oxford. Her research spans such fields as Old Norse literature, Arthurian studies, folklore, emotions in medieval literature and medievalism. Her most recent academic book is Approaches to Emotion in Middle English Literature (2024). She also writes books for the general reader, including The Old Norse Myths that Shape the Way We Think (2023) and two books on Game of Thrones. Her next trade book, The Little Book of Trolls, for the British Library, is published on May 15th, 2025.

Venue: Maison des Sciences Humaines, Black Box

Program

17h15 – Registration & welcoming words

17h30 – Presentation

18h15 – Questions & discussion

18h45 – Cocktail

With the suppory of C²DH, IHIST, Historic.ul

Photo: Wallpaper from the God of War Series by Sony Entertainment, https://www.goodfon.com/games/wallpaper-god-of-war-god-gow-god-of-war-5-gow5-gow-5-demi-god-viking-5.html