Introducing the Medieval Swan (Medieval Animals)

A wide-ranging account of the place of the swan in medieval culture.

Swans possess a striking beauty, and they are imbued with a sense of regal mystery that makes them some of the most fascinating of wild creatures. Introducing the Medieval Swan traces those characteristics to their roots in the medieval era. Opening with a study of the natural history of the swan as understood in the period, the book then moves to literary motifs that feature swans transforming into humans, particularly the legend of the Knight of the Swan. The third chapter examines the place of the swan as an icon of the Lancasters, and the book then explores the swan’s place as a delicacy at extravagant feasts. Finally, we learn how the characteristics the medieval era associated with swans developed over the centuries to the present.

Natalie Jayne Goodison teaches in the Department of English Studies at Durham University. Her research is in medieval romance, embodiment, and the history of ideas, having published on medieval birth girdles, the fair unknown tradition, and genetic possibilities in The King of Tars. Her first research project focused on transformations of the body in romance, which featured swans.