Beowulf. The Elder Edda. The Song of the Nibelungs

The heroic epic – poems about heroic warriors – holds a significant place in the history of medieval literature. Historical facts, myths, legends about miracles, and stories of feats have shaped the national consciousness over generations. The hero of the epic – strong, brave, and loyal – embodied the ideal representation of the people about themselves. The epic provided a complete and comprehensive picture of the world, explaining its origins and predicting the distant future, teaching to distinguish good from evil, guiding how to live and how to die. This book includes the famous epic poems of the Middle Ages: the Anglo-Saxon "Beowulf", the Scandinavian "Elder Edda", the German "Song of the Nibelungs", and detailed notes on them.