Kovalev V.A. The Game on Thrones. Medieval Rituals of Power and the Contemporary Mass Culture [Digital Resource] // Vox medii aevi. 2018. Vol. 1(2). P. 14–28. URL: https://voxmediiaevi.com/vol-2-kovalev
DOI: 10.24411/2587-6619-2018-00001
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Victor Kovalev
Candidate of Sciences (History), Assistant Professor of the Department of Law Theory and Law Enforcement, Saint-Petersburg University of Humanities and Social Sciences
onuphriyphd@gmail.com
The Game on Thrones. Medieval Rituals of Power and the Contemporary Mass Culture
The article analyses the formation of images of the Middle Ages in public consciousness and their influence on the contemporary popular culture. The author argues that there is a core misunderstanding of the essence of power in the Middle Ages. This misunderstanding brings into the spotlight images of brutal violence and court intrigues and draws a veil upon royal rituals as an essence of power. Studies in this sphere, based on authentic reflection, can be tentatively divided into three different trends. The most promising approach is based on the religious and magical interpretation of power rituals.
Within this research trend, the reception of Church traditions by medieval secular powers is analysed through the magical perception of Renaissance. Intuitively, this trend corresponds to the contemporary popularized image of the Middle Ages as a magic world of fantasy.
Key words: Rituals of Power; Royal Rituals; Historical Anthropology; History of the Middle Ages; History in the Popular Culture.