THE OTHERWORLD IN THE VOYAGE OF BRAN: A COMPARATIVE APPROACH

Abstract

The essay aims at evaluating the description of afterlife in the old Irish tale, The Voyage of Bran, a text which has never been translated into the Italian language and which was written between the end of the 7th and the beginning of the 8th century. The essay is organized into two parts. First of all, I will consider the cultural dimension and the general literary descriptions of the otherworld in the Celtic scenario, by evaluating the influences of the Christian reality. Secondly, I will carefully analyze the text with a comparative approach and with particular attention on the value of space. I will show how the pagan otherworld is organized in relation to specific narrative elements: the invitation of a fairy, the magic branch, the journey over the sea, fantastical objects and animals. At the same time not only is the Christian echo determined by specific paradisiac elements, such as the presence of virtues and the lack of negative passions, but the Celtic frame encloses and develops a religious discourse based on the birth of Christ, on Fall and Redemption. By means of this double construction, the literary representation reflects the historical change: on the one hand, the place is described in relation to topoi which clearly belong to the pagan heritage, on the other hand it conveys a profound Christian message. The conclusion will offer a complete idea of the narrative of afterlife space in literary and multicultural terms, as a result of a suggestive syncretism.