2006-2007 Speakers Bureau Catalog
SCOTT MELLOR
Scott Mellor specializes in historical Scandinavian linguistics and medieval Scandinavia at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is currently working on the distance education project for The Tale of Hans Christian Andersen that complements his research on Andersen. Mellor's research also focuses on the Scandinavian Romantic period, Oral Theory, the Volsunga Saga, and Saint Ansgar and his mission to Sweden.
Address: 1310 Van Hise Hall, 1220 Linden Dr., Madison, WI 53706
Phone: 608-233-1875 (home), 608-262-0863 (work)
E-mail: samellor@wisc.edu
Hans Christian Andersen, the Social Critic
Hans Christian Andersen drew inspiration for some of his tales from folklore, but his stories were innovatively written in language that reveals deeper meaning than do simple children's tales. In fact, Anderson did not identify as a children's author and many of his tales are quite dark. Anderson's stories reflect the changes in technology that influenced daily life in the nineteenth century. This lecture looks at Andersen the man, his humble beginnings, and the social changes that occured throughout his life, to explore some of the deeper meanings within his tales.
Scandinavian Epic and its European Context
In 1978, Albert B. Lord wrote an article of literary criticism in which he discussed narrative patterns found in Beowulf and compared them to those found in the Odyssey. This lecture will investigate Lord's narrative patterns and apply them to
The Saga of the Volsungs, a text that was popular in its day throughout Scandinavia. Mellor will explore how well these narrative patterns fit other Germanic traditional plots (such as those of medieval Iceland) and the possible implications of the narrative patterns for modern literary critism.
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