What makes a hero and how are societies shaping their heroic figures in the course of time? This volume questions static typologies of the heroic and examines the historical processes behind the formation, transformation, and negation of medieval heroes. Focusing on Sweden, Finland, Prussia and the Baltic region, the articles analyze the earliest moments in which historical figures were immortalized or condemned in chronicles, hagiographies, and administrative documents.
This longue durée perspective on the heroic shows that neither the hero nor their negation are absolute concepts but ever depending on the historical context.
We are happy to announce the first volume of our new book series Studies of the Baltic Sea Region at the Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft published by our series publishers Alexander Drost, Marie-Theres Federhofer (UiT Norges arktiske universitet), and Clemens Räthel (Universität Greifswald):
Anti-Heroes: Negations and Contradictions of the Heroic in the Medieval and Early Modern Baltic Sea Region
Published by Gustavs Strenga (Latvijas Kultūras akadēmija / Latvian Academy of Culture) & Cordelia Heß (Aarhus University)
This collection questions rigid conceptions of heroism by examining how medieval and early modern societies in Sweden, Finland, Prussia, and the Baltic region constructed and deconstructed their heroic figures in chronicles, hagiographies, and administrative documents. From a longue durée perspective, these articles demonstrate: Heroism is not a static concept but a dynamic, historically contingent process.