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Vivian, Kim
Dr. Kim Vivian is Professor of German and Chair of the German Department at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois. He received his Ph.D. in Germanic Languages and Literatures from the University of California, Santa Barbara. His books include A Concise History of German Literature; An Anthology of German Literature; Life of the Jura Fathers; and Arthurian Romances, Tales and Lyric Poetry: The Complete Works of Hartmann von Aue.
2006 0-7734-6063-2The Life of Saint Servatius presents, for the first time together in one volume, the Middle Dutch Legend of Saint Servatius by Heinrich von Veldeke and the anonymous Upper German Life of Saint Servatius, and, again for the first time, offers those readers not versed in medieval Germanic languages authoritative English translations. With this volume, then, readers have two principal vernacular texts concerning the life and deeds of St. Servatius. Commentary has been provided to point out historical and Biblical references and to draw attention to significant parallels between the texts, and between the texts and their Latin sources. The introductions to the Legend and the Life offer background on the writers and the times they lived in, and discuss some of the most important aspects of the two works. Due to the scope of this book and to the limitations of space, no effort has been made to attempt an exhaustive comparison of the two vernacular texts, neither to each other, nor to their sources. Such studies are rare, but it is hoped that scholars in the near future will undertake what promises to be a fascinating investigation.
To aid the reader, maps have been provided along with photographs of subjects that are either mentioned in the text or are of great importance in the life and legend of Saint Servatius.