Resumen de Die Faszination am Kampf des Heiligen mit dem Bösen: Georg, Margarete und der Drache im städtischen Kontext
The late Middle Ages did not have a sharp distinction between sacred and profane spheres. Religion had a far-reaching influence on all social classes and cultural spheres: on architecture, politics, the arts, and so on. Within this context, legends of female and male saints, in particular those of St. George and St. Margaret, were transformed into plays or were incorporated into processions through cities. In the southern part of the German-speaking region these plays-and the saints portrayed in them-fulfilled distinct functions: to increase the glory of a sovereign, to strengthen the community of a town, and so on. This paper analyses those functions, focusing on the legends of St George, St Margaret, and their respective dragons. In some regions, tradition fused the two legends into a single narrative.
