Tracing the dragona study of origin and evolution of the dragon myth in the History and Literature of the British Isles

Abstract

There is an enormous quantity of dragon-related legends and traditions, so much so that this legendary creature figures in most cultures, remote as they may initially seem. In fact, there is a continuity of the myth in all periods of human history, sometimes central to them, although often lost in the recesses of the human imagination. This study will tackle the analysis of one of the animals that has always fascinated the human being, the dragon, focusing on the geographical context of the European continent, where it developed a number of particular features that may still be perceived in numerous cultural and artistic manifestations. The earliest manifestations of this creature in both arts and popular beliefs will be analyzed, but also its influence on both the literary and artistic arenas through the centuries, paying special attention to the examples present on the Atlantic shore of the European continent and, more precisely, the British Isles.