Professor Carl Phelpstead
(he/him)
BA (Sheffield), MPhil, DPhil (Oxon)
Chair
School of English, Communication and Philosophy
- Available for postgraduate supervision
Overview
I teach and research medieval literature and modern medievalism.
In addition to many articles on Old Norse-Icelandic sagas, Old English literature, Chaucer, and modern British medievalism, my publications include the following books:
- The Medieval North and Its Afterlife: Essays in Honor of Heather O'Donoghue (2024), co-ed. with Sian Gronlie
- An Introduction to the Sagas of Icelanders (2020)
- Tolkien and Wales: Language, Literature and Identity (2011), winner of the Mythopoeic Scholarship Award in Inklings Studies in 2012
- Holy Vikings: Saints’ Lives in the Old Icelandic Kings’ Sagas (2007)
- Old Norse Made New: Essays on the Post-Medieval Reception of Old Norse Literature and Culture (2007), co-ed. with David Clark
- ed., A History of Norway and the Passion and Miracles of the Blessed Óláfr trans. Devra Kunin (2001).
My current research interests include ecocritical approaches to Old Norse and Old English literature, medieval hagiography, and the relationship between place and the past in twentieth-century medievalism.
I served as President of the Viking Society for Northern Research from 2018 to 2020. I am co-editor of the publications of the Viking Society and was an editor of its journal Saga-Book from 2004 to 2023. I have been one of the editors of the Viking Collection book series published by the University Press of Southern Denmark since 2020.
Publication
2024
- Phelpstead, C. 2024. Past and present identities in Margaret Elphinstone's Islanders. In: Grønlie, S. and Phelpstead, C. eds. The Medieval North and its afterlife: Essays in honor of Heather O'Donoghue. De Gruyter, pp. 255-266., (10.1515/9781501516597-021)
- Grønlie, S. and Phelpstead, C. 2024. Introduction. In: Grønlie, S. and Phelpstead, C. eds. The Medieval North and Its Afterlife: Essays in Honor of Heather O'Donoghue. De Gruyter, pp. 1-3., (10.1515/9781501516597-003)
- Grønlie, S. and Phelpstead, C. eds. 2024. The Medieval North and its afterlife: Essays in honor of Heather O'Donoghue. Berlin: De Gruyter. (10.1515/9781501516597)
2022
- Phelpstead, C. 2022. ‘Kringla heimsins’: Old Norse sagas, world literature and the global turn in medieval studies. Saga-Book 46, pp. 155-178.
- Phelpstead, C. 2022. Myth-making, sub-creation, and world-building. In: Lee, S. ed. A Companion to J. R. R. Tolkien (2nd edition). Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, pp. 67-78.
- Phelpstead, C. 2022. Geoffrey of Monmouth and J. R. R. Tolkien : myth-making and national identity in the twelfth and twentieth centuries. In: Vasconcelos, F., Botelho, I. and Malato, M. L. eds. Worlds made of Heroes: a Tribute to J. R. R. Tolkien. Porto, Portugal: Universidade do Porto Faculdade de Letras, pp. 81-104.
- Phelpstead, C. 2022. 'Better a valiant squire than a cowardly knight': Gender in Guruns strengleikr (The Lay of Gurun). In: Flood, V. and Leitch, M. G. eds. Cultural Translations in Medieval Romance., Vol. 24. Studies in Medieval Romance Cambridge: Boydell and Brewer, pp. 101-116., (10.1017/9781800104402.006)
2021
- Phelpstead, C. 2021. Canonizing kings: nordic royal hagiography as legitimation and glorification. In: Jerierski, W. et al. eds. Nordic Elites in Transformation, c. 1050–1250, Volume III: Legitimacy and Glory. Routledge, pp. 39-60.
2020
- Phelpstead, C. 2020. Eddas, sagas, and Victorians. In: Parker, J. and Wagner, C. eds. The Oxford Handbook of Victorian Medievalism. Oxford University Press, pp. 271-288.
- Phelpstead, C. 2020. An introduction to the sagas of Icelanders. New Perspectives on Medieval Literature: Authors and Traditions. University Press of Florida.
- Phelpstead, C. 2020. Companions, conflicts, and concubines: clerical masculinities in Larentius saga biskups. In: Evans, G. L. and Hancock, J. C. eds. Masculinities in Old Norse Literature. D. S. Brewer, pp. 203-216.
2019
- Phelpstead, C. 2019. Penda's Mercia: the past in the present, with photographs by Ben Phelpstead. In: Harle, M. and Machin, J. eds. Of Mud and Flame: The Penda's Fen Sourcebook. London: Strange Attractor Press, pp. 168-182.
2018
- Phelpstead, C. 2018. Beyond ecocriticism: a cosmocritical reading of Ælfwine's prayerbook. Review of English Studies 69(291), pp. 613-631. (10.1093/res/hgy037)
2017
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2017. Time. In: Jakobsson, ?. and Jakobsson, S. eds. The Routledge Research Companion to the Medieval Icelandic Sagas. Abingdon and New York: Routledge, pp. 187-197.
2014
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2014. Myth-making and sub-creation. In: Lee, S. D. ed. A Companion to J. R. R. Tolkien. Wiley-Blackwell, pp. 79-91.
- Phelpstead, C. 2014. Ecocriticism and Eyrbyggja saga. Leeds Studies in English 45, pp. 1-18.
2013
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2013. "For W. H. A.": Tolkien's poem in praise of Auden. In: Eilmann, J. and Turner, A. eds. Tolkien's Poetry. Cormarë Series No. 28 Walking Tree Press, pp. 45-58.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2013. Hair today, gone tomorrow: Hair loss, the tonsure, and masculinity in medieval Iceland. Scandinavian Studies 85(1), pp. 1-19. (10.1353/scd.2013.0019)
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2013. Skaldic saints and stories of miracles: Christianity and vernacular literary culture in Trondheim and Kirkwall. Northern Studies, pp. 80-97.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2013. Tolkien, David Jones, and the God Nodens. [Online]. The Lord of the Rings Plaza Website. Available at: http://www.lotrplaza.com/showthread.php?28791-Carl-Phelpstead-Tolkien-David-Jones-and-the-God-Nodens&p=525962
2012
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2012. Fantasy and history: The limits of plausibility in Oddr Snorrason’s Óláfs saga 'Tryggvasonar'. Saga-Book 36, pp. 27-42.
2011
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2011. Tolkien and Wales: Language, literature and identity. Cardiff: University of Wales Press.
2010
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2010. Anonymous: Egils Saga. The Literary Encyclopedia
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2010. Men in Anglo-Saxon England.. The English Parish Church Through the Centuries: Daily Life & Spirituality, Art & Architecture, Literature & Music Culture and Christianity Project.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2010. Old English verse saints’ lives. The English Parish Church Through the Centuries: Daily Life & Spirituality, Art & Architecture, Literature & Music Culture and Christianity Project.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2010. "Th'ende is every tales strengthe": contextualizing Chaucerian perspectives on death and judgement. In: Phillips, H. E. ed. Chaucer and Religion. Christianity and Culture: Issues in Teaching and Research Cambridge: D. S. Brewer, pp. 97-110.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2010. Entries on ‘Gunnlaugr Leifsson,’ ‘Historia Norwegiae,’ and ‘Oddr Snorrason’. In: Bjork, R. E. ed. The Oxford Dictionary of the Middle Ages. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 755, 802, 1221.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2010. Introduction to The Tale of Hogni and Hedinn (translated by William Morris and Eiríkr Magnússon). In: Arnold, M. and Finlay, A. eds. Making History: Essays on the Fornaldarsögur. London: Viking Society for Northern Research, pp. 105-118.
2009
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2009. King, martyr and virgin: Imitatio Christi in Ælfric’s Life of St Edmund. In: Bale, A. ed. St Edmund, King and Martyr: Changing Images of a Medieval Saint. Woodbridge: York Medieval Press, pp. 27-44.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2009. Hair loss, the tonsure, and masculinity in medieval Iceland. Presented at: 14th International Saga Conference, Uppsala, Sweden, 9-15 August 2009. Institutionen för nordiska språk
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2009. Adventure-time in Yngvars saga víðförla.. In: Jakobsson, A., Lassen, A. and Ney, A. eds. Fornaldarsagaerne: Myter og virkelighed. Copenhagen: Museum Tusculanum Press, University of Copenhagen, pp. 331-347.
2008
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2008. “With chunks of poetry in between”: The Lord of the Rings and Saga Poetics. Tolkien Studies 5, pp. 23-38.
- Phelpstead, C. ed. 2008. A history of Norway and the passion and miracles of the Blessed Óláfr [web publication of 2001 edition with corrections and Supplementary Note]..Kunin, D. London: Viking Society for Northern Research (UCL).
2007
- Clark, D. and Phelpstead, C. eds. 2007. Old Norse made new: essays on the post-medieval reception of Old Norse literature and culture. London: Viking Society for Northern Research.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2007. Size matters: Penile problems in sagas of Icelanders. Exemplaria 19(3), pp. 420-437. (10.1179/175330707X237230)
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2007. Holy vikings: Saints' lives in the old Icelandic kings' sagas. Tempe: Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2007. A Viking pacifist? The life of St Magnus in saga, novel, and opera. In: Clark, D. and Phelpstead, C. L. eds. Old Norse Made New: Essays on the Post-Medieval Reception of Old Norse Literature and Culture. London: Viking Society for Northern Research, pp. 119-132.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2007. Óláfs ríma Haraldssonar. In: Faulkes, A. ed. A New Introduction to Old Norse, Part II: Reader. 4th edn.. London: Viking Society for Northern Research, pp. 307-322.
2006
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2006. "Brut" by Layamon. In: Drout, M. D. C. ed. The J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment. New York: Routledge, pp. 76-77.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2006. Christ: advent lyrics. In: Drout, M. D. C. ed. The J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment. New York: Routledge, pp. 98-99.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2006. Homecoming of Beorhtnoth. In: Drout, M. D. C. ed. The J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment. New York: Routledge, pp. 283-284.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2006. Northern courage. In: Drout, M. D. C. ed. The J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment. New York: Routledge, pp. 461-462.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2006. On translating "Beowulf". In: Drout, M. D. C. ed. The J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment. New York: Routledge, pp. 482-483.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2006. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Pearl, Sir Orfeo edited by Christopher Tolkien. In: Drout, M. D. C. ed. The J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment. New York: Routledge, pp. 614-615.
- Phelpstead, C. 2006. Historicizing plausibility: the anticipation of disbelief in Oddr Snorrason’s Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar. Presented at: 13th International Saga Conference, Durham, UK and York, UK, 6-12 August 2006 Presented at McKinnell, J., Ashurst, D. and Kick, D. eds.The Fantastic in Old Norse/Icelandic Literature – Sagas and the British Isles: Preprint Papers of the 13th International Saga Conference, Durham and York, 6th–12th August, 2006, Vol. 2. Durham: Centre for Medieval and Renaissance Studies pp. 759-768.
- Phelpstead, C. 2006. Pilgrims, missionaries and martyrs: The holy in Bede, Orkneyinga saga and Knýtlinga saga. In: Mortensen, L. B. ed. The Making of Christian Myths in the Periphery of Latin Christendom (c. 1000–1300). Copenhagen: Museum Tusculanum Press, pp. 53-81.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2006. Discussion: interrogating genre in the Fornaldarsögur [Contribution]. Viking and Medieval Scandinavia 2, pp. 275-296. (10.1484/J.VMS.2.302026)
2005
- Phelpstead, C. 2005. Maríu saga: A miracle of the virgin Mary. In: Faulkes, A. ed. A New Introduction to Old Norse, Part II: Reader, 3rd edn.. London: Viking Society for Northern Research, pp. 173-178.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2005. Converting to Europe: Christian themes in Knýtlinga saga. Viking and Medieval Scandinavia 1, pp. 163-177. (10.1484/J.VMS.2.3017469)
2004
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2004. Middle English lyric, 1100–1500. The Literary Encyclopedia
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2004. Auden and the Inklings: an alliterative revival. The Journal of English and Germanic Philology 103(4), pp. 433-457.
- Phelpstead, C. 2004. A new edition of Biskupa sögur. Gripla 15, pp. 245-261.
2003
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2003. Anonymous. Njáls Saga. 1275. The Literary Encyclopedia
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2003. Anonymous: Hrólfs saga kraka [The saga of King Hrólf Kraki]. The Literary Encyclopedia
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2003. Music in Anglo-Saxon England. The Literary Encyclopedia
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2003. The Sexual Ideology of Hrólfs saga kraka. Scandinavian Studies 75(1), pp. 1-24.
- Phelpstead, C. 2003. Masculinity and sexuality in sagas of Scandinavian royal saints. Presented at: Scandinavian and Christian Europe in the Middle Ages. Papers of the 12th International Saga Conference, Bonn, 28th July - 2 August 2003 Presented at Simek, R. and Meurer, J. eds.Scandinavia and Christian Europe in the Middle Ages: Papers of the 12th International Saga Conference Bonn/Germany, 28th July – 2nd August 2003. Bonn: Hausdruckerei der Universität Bonn pp. 421-428.
2001
- Phelpstead, C. L. and Kunin, D. Phelpstead, C. L. ed. 2001. A history of Norway and the passion and miracles of the Blessed Óláfr.Kunin, D. Text Series Vol. 13. London: Viking Society for Northern Research (UCL).
2000
- Phelpstead, C. 2000. In honour of St Óláfr: the miracle stories in Snorri Sturluson’s Óláfs saga helga. Saga-Book of the Viking Society for Northern Research 25, pp. 292-306.
Articles
- Phelpstead, C. 2022. ‘Kringla heimsins’: Old Norse sagas, world literature and the global turn in medieval studies. Saga-Book 46, pp. 155-178.
- Phelpstead, C. 2018. Beyond ecocriticism: a cosmocritical reading of Ælfwine's prayerbook. Review of English Studies 69(291), pp. 613-631. (10.1093/res/hgy037)
- Phelpstead, C. 2014. Ecocriticism and Eyrbyggja saga. Leeds Studies in English 45, pp. 1-18.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2013. Hair today, gone tomorrow: Hair loss, the tonsure, and masculinity in medieval Iceland. Scandinavian Studies 85(1), pp. 1-19. (10.1353/scd.2013.0019)
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2013. Skaldic saints and stories of miracles: Christianity and vernacular literary culture in Trondheim and Kirkwall. Northern Studies, pp. 80-97.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2012. Fantasy and history: The limits of plausibility in Oddr Snorrason’s Óláfs saga 'Tryggvasonar'. Saga-Book 36, pp. 27-42.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2010. Anonymous: Egils Saga. The Literary Encyclopedia
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2008. “With chunks of poetry in between”: The Lord of the Rings and Saga Poetics. Tolkien Studies 5, pp. 23-38.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2007. Size matters: Penile problems in sagas of Icelanders. Exemplaria 19(3), pp. 420-437. (10.1179/175330707X237230)
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2006. Discussion: interrogating genre in the Fornaldarsögur [Contribution]. Viking and Medieval Scandinavia 2, pp. 275-296. (10.1484/J.VMS.2.302026)
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2005. Converting to Europe: Christian themes in Knýtlinga saga. Viking and Medieval Scandinavia 1, pp. 163-177. (10.1484/J.VMS.2.3017469)
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2004. Middle English lyric, 1100–1500. The Literary Encyclopedia
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2004. Auden and the Inklings: an alliterative revival. The Journal of English and Germanic Philology 103(4), pp. 433-457.
- Phelpstead, C. 2004. A new edition of Biskupa sögur. Gripla 15, pp. 245-261.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2003. Anonymous. Njáls Saga. 1275. The Literary Encyclopedia
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2003. Anonymous: Hrólfs saga kraka [The saga of King Hrólf Kraki]. The Literary Encyclopedia
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2003. Music in Anglo-Saxon England. The Literary Encyclopedia
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2003. The Sexual Ideology of Hrólfs saga kraka. Scandinavian Studies 75(1), pp. 1-24.
- Phelpstead, C. 2000. In honour of St Óláfr: the miracle stories in Snorri Sturluson’s Óláfs saga helga. Saga-Book of the Viking Society for Northern Research 25, pp. 292-306.
Book sections
- Phelpstead, C. 2024. Past and present identities in Margaret Elphinstone's Islanders. In: Grønlie, S. and Phelpstead, C. eds. The Medieval North and its afterlife: Essays in honor of Heather O'Donoghue. De Gruyter, pp. 255-266., (10.1515/9781501516597-021)
- Grønlie, S. and Phelpstead, C. 2024. Introduction. In: Grønlie, S. and Phelpstead, C. eds. The Medieval North and Its Afterlife: Essays in Honor of Heather O'Donoghue. De Gruyter, pp. 1-3., (10.1515/9781501516597-003)
- Phelpstead, C. 2022. Myth-making, sub-creation, and world-building. In: Lee, S. ed. A Companion to J. R. R. Tolkien (2nd edition). Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, pp. 67-78.
- Phelpstead, C. 2022. Geoffrey of Monmouth and J. R. R. Tolkien : myth-making and national identity in the twelfth and twentieth centuries. In: Vasconcelos, F., Botelho, I. and Malato, M. L. eds. Worlds made of Heroes: a Tribute to J. R. R. Tolkien. Porto, Portugal: Universidade do Porto Faculdade de Letras, pp. 81-104.
- Phelpstead, C. 2022. 'Better a valiant squire than a cowardly knight': Gender in Guruns strengleikr (The Lay of Gurun). In: Flood, V. and Leitch, M. G. eds. Cultural Translations in Medieval Romance., Vol. 24. Studies in Medieval Romance Cambridge: Boydell and Brewer, pp. 101-116., (10.1017/9781800104402.006)
- Phelpstead, C. 2021. Canonizing kings: nordic royal hagiography as legitimation and glorification. In: Jerierski, W. et al. eds. Nordic Elites in Transformation, c. 1050–1250, Volume III: Legitimacy and Glory. Routledge, pp. 39-60.
- Phelpstead, C. 2020. Eddas, sagas, and Victorians. In: Parker, J. and Wagner, C. eds. The Oxford Handbook of Victorian Medievalism. Oxford University Press, pp. 271-288.
- Phelpstead, C. 2020. Companions, conflicts, and concubines: clerical masculinities in Larentius saga biskups. In: Evans, G. L. and Hancock, J. C. eds. Masculinities in Old Norse Literature. D. S. Brewer, pp. 203-216.
- Phelpstead, C. 2019. Penda's Mercia: the past in the present, with photographs by Ben Phelpstead. In: Harle, M. and Machin, J. eds. Of Mud and Flame: The Penda's Fen Sourcebook. London: Strange Attractor Press, pp. 168-182.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2017. Time. In: Jakobsson, ?. and Jakobsson, S. eds. The Routledge Research Companion to the Medieval Icelandic Sagas. Abingdon and New York: Routledge, pp. 187-197.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2014. Myth-making and sub-creation. In: Lee, S. D. ed. A Companion to J. R. R. Tolkien. Wiley-Blackwell, pp. 79-91.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2013. "For W. H. A.": Tolkien's poem in praise of Auden. In: Eilmann, J. and Turner, A. eds. Tolkien's Poetry. Cormarë Series No. 28 Walking Tree Press, pp. 45-58.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2010. "Th'ende is every tales strengthe": contextualizing Chaucerian perspectives on death and judgement. In: Phillips, H. E. ed. Chaucer and Religion. Christianity and Culture: Issues in Teaching and Research Cambridge: D. S. Brewer, pp. 97-110.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2010. Entries on ‘Gunnlaugr Leifsson,’ ‘Historia Norwegiae,’ and ‘Oddr Snorrason’. In: Bjork, R. E. ed. The Oxford Dictionary of the Middle Ages. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 755, 802, 1221.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2010. Introduction to The Tale of Hogni and Hedinn (translated by William Morris and Eiríkr Magnússon). In: Arnold, M. and Finlay, A. eds. Making History: Essays on the Fornaldarsögur. London: Viking Society for Northern Research, pp. 105-118.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2009. King, martyr and virgin: Imitatio Christi in Ælfric’s Life of St Edmund. In: Bale, A. ed. St Edmund, King and Martyr: Changing Images of a Medieval Saint. Woodbridge: York Medieval Press, pp. 27-44.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2009. Adventure-time in Yngvars saga víðförla.. In: Jakobsson, A., Lassen, A. and Ney, A. eds. Fornaldarsagaerne: Myter og virkelighed. Copenhagen: Museum Tusculanum Press, University of Copenhagen, pp. 331-347.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2007. A Viking pacifist? The life of St Magnus in saga, novel, and opera. In: Clark, D. and Phelpstead, C. L. eds. Old Norse Made New: Essays on the Post-Medieval Reception of Old Norse Literature and Culture. London: Viking Society for Northern Research, pp. 119-132.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2007. Óláfs ríma Haraldssonar. In: Faulkes, A. ed. A New Introduction to Old Norse, Part II: Reader. 4th edn.. London: Viking Society for Northern Research, pp. 307-322.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2006. "Brut" by Layamon. In: Drout, M. D. C. ed. The J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment. New York: Routledge, pp. 76-77.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2006. Christ: advent lyrics. In: Drout, M. D. C. ed. The J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment. New York: Routledge, pp. 98-99.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2006. Homecoming of Beorhtnoth. In: Drout, M. D. C. ed. The J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment. New York: Routledge, pp. 283-284.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2006. Northern courage. In: Drout, M. D. C. ed. The J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment. New York: Routledge, pp. 461-462.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2006. On translating "Beowulf". In: Drout, M. D. C. ed. The J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment. New York: Routledge, pp. 482-483.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2006. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Pearl, Sir Orfeo edited by Christopher Tolkien. In: Drout, M. D. C. ed. The J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment. New York: Routledge, pp. 614-615.
- Phelpstead, C. 2006. Pilgrims, missionaries and martyrs: The holy in Bede, Orkneyinga saga and Knýtlinga saga. In: Mortensen, L. B. ed. The Making of Christian Myths in the Periphery of Latin Christendom (c. 1000–1300). Copenhagen: Museum Tusculanum Press, pp. 53-81.
- Phelpstead, C. 2005. Maríu saga: A miracle of the virgin Mary. In: Faulkes, A. ed. A New Introduction to Old Norse, Part II: Reader, 3rd edn.. London: Viking Society for Northern Research, pp. 173-178.
Books
- Grønlie, S. and Phelpstead, C. eds. 2024. The Medieval North and its afterlife: Essays in honor of Heather O'Donoghue. Berlin: De Gruyter. (10.1515/9781501516597)
- Phelpstead, C. 2020. An introduction to the sagas of Icelanders. New Perspectives on Medieval Literature: Authors and Traditions. University Press of Florida.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2011. Tolkien and Wales: Language, literature and identity. Cardiff: University of Wales Press.
- Phelpstead, C. ed. 2008. A history of Norway and the passion and miracles of the Blessed Óláfr [web publication of 2001 edition with corrections and Supplementary Note]..Kunin, D. London: Viking Society for Northern Research (UCL).
- Clark, D. and Phelpstead, C. eds. 2007. Old Norse made new: essays on the post-medieval reception of Old Norse literature and culture. London: Viking Society for Northern Research.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2007. Holy vikings: Saints' lives in the old Icelandic kings' sagas. Tempe: Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies.
- Phelpstead, C. L. and Kunin, D. Phelpstead, C. L. ed. 2001. A history of Norway and the passion and miracles of the Blessed Óláfr.Kunin, D. Text Series Vol. 13. London: Viking Society for Northern Research (UCL).
Conferences
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2009. Hair loss, the tonsure, and masculinity in medieval Iceland. Presented at: 14th International Saga Conference, Uppsala, Sweden, 9-15 August 2009. Institutionen för nordiska språk
- Phelpstead, C. 2006. Historicizing plausibility: the anticipation of disbelief in Oddr Snorrason’s Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar. Presented at: 13th International Saga Conference, Durham, UK and York, UK, 6-12 August 2006 Presented at McKinnell, J., Ashurst, D. and Kick, D. eds.The Fantastic in Old Norse/Icelandic Literature – Sagas and the British Isles: Preprint Papers of the 13th International Saga Conference, Durham and York, 6th–12th August, 2006, Vol. 2. Durham: Centre for Medieval and Renaissance Studies pp. 759-768.
- Phelpstead, C. 2003. Masculinity and sexuality in sagas of Scandinavian royal saints. Presented at: Scandinavian and Christian Europe in the Middle Ages. Papers of the 12th International Saga Conference, Bonn, 28th July - 2 August 2003 Presented at Simek, R. and Meurer, J. eds.Scandinavia and Christian Europe in the Middle Ages: Papers of the 12th International Saga Conference Bonn/Germany, 28th July – 2nd August 2003. Bonn: Hausdruckerei der Universität Bonn pp. 421-428.
Other
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2010. Men in Anglo-Saxon England.. The English Parish Church Through the Centuries: Daily Life & Spirituality, Art & Architecture, Literature & Music Culture and Christianity Project.
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2010. Old English verse saints’ lives. The English Parish Church Through the Centuries: Daily Life & Spirituality, Art & Architecture, Literature & Music Culture and Christianity Project.
Websites
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2013. Tolkien, David Jones, and the God Nodens. [Online]. The Lord of the Rings Plaza Website. Available at: http://www.lotrplaza.com/showthread.php?28791-Carl-Phelpstead-Tolkien-David-Jones-and-the-God-Nodens&p=525962
- Phelpstead, C. L. 2017. Time. In: Jakobsson, ?. and Jakobsson, S. eds. The Routledge Research Companion to the Medieval Icelandic Sagas. Abingdon and New York: Routledge, pp. 187-197.
Research
My research is focused mainly in two areas:
- medieval literature (especially Old Norse-Icelandic and Old English)
- modern British medievalism (especially the influence of medieval literature on twentieth-century writers)
I am particularly interested in ecocritical approaches to medieval literature, medieval gender and sexuality, and the place of Old Norse literature in World Literature and global medieval studies. I have long-standing interests in medieval hagiography and the relationship between religion and literature.
In the area of modern British medievalism I have published mainly on the work of J. R. R. Tolkien, though I have also written about W. H. Auden, George Mackay Brown, Peter Maxwell Davies, Margaret Elphinstone, David Jones, David Rudkin, and Victorian saga translations.
I am currently co-editing (with Timothy Bourns, University of Washington) a collection of essays on ecocriticism and Old Norse-Icelandic literature, writing an article on the Icelandic sagas of apostles, and working on a book-length study of early medieval England in the modern imagination.
I am a member of the Cardiff Environmental Cultures group: Cardiff Environmental Cultures – Cardiff ScienceHumanities
Teaching
I have taught a variety of different modules at BA and MA level on Old English, Old Norse, Middle English, and some later literature. I currently teach a Year 2 module on Epic and Saga and contribute to the Year 1 module Transgressive Bodies in Medieval Literature.
Biography
I was educated at the Universities of Sheffield and Oxford and then appointed to Cardiff University, where I have worked since 1999.
- 2012 Promoted to Professor
- 2010 Promoted to Reader
- 2007 Promoted to Senior Lecturer
- 1999 Appointed as lecturer in Old English and Old Norse at Cardiff University
- 1999 DPhil in Old Norse literature, University of Oxford
- 1995 MPhil in English Medieval Studies 1100–1500, University of Oxford
- 1992 BA in English Language with Medieval Literature, University of Sheffield
Honours and awards
- Mythopoeic Scholarship Award in Inklings Studies (2012)
Professional memberships
2018-2020: President of the Viking Society for Northern Research
2001-present: Council Member of the Viking Society for Northern Research
2007-2014: Committee Member of Teachers of Old English in Britain and Ireland
Member of:
- Early English Text Society
- Hagiography Society
- Norse Hagiography Network
- Teachers of Old English in Britain and Ireland
- Viking Society for Northern Research.
Committees and reviewing
2020-present: One of four editors of the Viking Collection book series, published by the University Press of Southern Denmark.
2007-present: Joint editor of publications for the Viking Society for Northern Research
2004-2023: Co-Editor of the journal Saga-Book
Supervisions
I have supervised PhDs on topics as varied as the literary history of elves and answers to prayer in Chaucer, as well as co-supervising two Creative Writing PhDs that engaged with medieval material. I am particularly interested in supervising postgraduate research in the areas of:
- Old Norse-Icelandic literature
- Old English literature
- Ecocriticism and medieval literature
- Gender and sexuality in medieval literature
- Medieval hagiography
- Twentieth-century British medievalism
Contact Details
+44 29208 74245
John Percival Building, Room 2.45, Colum Drive, Cardiff, CF10 3EU
Research themes
Specialisms
- Medieval literature
- Old English literature
- Old Norse literature
- Ecocriticism
- Medievalism