Old English Literature 600-1066AD PDF

Old English Literature 600-1066AD ================================= Anglo-Saxon culture, values, writing: heroic epic, lyrical, religious, alliteration, kenning, *Beowulf*, chronicles, etc. ### A-S settlement - [5^th^-6^th^ century]: massive migration of pagan tribes over Europe → Romans wi...

Old English Literature 600-1066AD ================================= Anglo-Saxon culture, values, writing: heroic epic, lyrical, religious, alliteration, kenning, *Beowulf*, chronicles, etc. ### A-S settlement - [5^th^-6^th^ century]: massive migration of pagan tribes over Europe → Romans withdrew to protect Rome - [after 450 AD:] arrival of Germanic tribes from N Germany and Denmark = 1^st^ E culture to produce literature ### A-S constitution - small communities, almost no communication with each other, no central authority - around [650 AD]: Heptarchy = 7 kingdoms occupied by different Germanic tribes living in relatively peaceful atmosphere (boundaries fused and divided again until E became 1 country) - Northern + Midland regions: *Northumbria, Mercia, East Anglia* → Angles - South: *Essex* (= Eastern people), *Wessex*, *Sussex* → Saxons - *Kent* → Jutes x Romans with centralistic government, Roman villas ### A-S lifestyle - barbaric, military, agricultural rejection of Roman achievements - life in a village (*ham* = the basic organisational unit) - simple wooden cottages - strong affiliation with the tribal chief → hall for the tribal chief - values: loyalty to the leader, revenge, fatalism, lack of freedom caused by the fact that an individual is a subject to greater forces as gods *('Wyrd'-belief in fate)*, materialism ### A-S religion - pagans = natural religion (gods of wind, birth, trees, \...) - fatalism -- belief in *Wyrd* = fate and doom - world viewed as a dark, sad, isolated → togetherness (being in a village with other people) ### A-S and Christianity - **[597 AD]** *Pope Gregory* *the Great* sends *Augustine* to Kent → King of Kent baptised → Canterbury = seat of English Bishop (until today); arrival of Christianity - quick conversion by [700 AD] -- fate x salvation (popular probably because Christianity offered hope) A-S literature -------------- - early AS used runes for religion x no written literature; folklore (secular) literature disseminated by bards and scopes (by heart, travelled from village to village and told these stories to public by heart) - 1^st^ written literature after Christianisation by monks in monasteries = centres of culture, knowledge, education → pagan stories on paper - ca 30 000 lines in 4 manuscripts: ***Junius*** (Oxford University), ***Vitellius*** (British Library), ***Vercelli*** (Italy), ***Exeter*** (Exeter Cathedral) -- contain poems, riddles, religious texts,... - [600-900 AD:] most areas of English culture (including literature) contain mixed elements of paganism and Christianity → Frank's Casket (7^th^ c.) -- motives from pagan and Christian Mythology ### A-S secular poetry - [Charms], [Proverbs] (rčení) and [riddles] - [Heroic epics]: ***Beowulf*** - [Battle poetry]: ***Battle at Brunanburh*** (c. 937 AD), ***Battle of Maldon*** (c. 1000 AD) - [Elegies]: ***Wife's Lament*, *Husband's Message***, ***The Seafarer***, ***The Wanderer*** -- sad about being alone - mainly [religious literature] by ***Caedmon*** (probably the very earliest known author), ***Cynewulf*** ### A-S centres of culture - [600-1066] -- different kingdoms at the peak of culture - 7^th^ and 8^th^ c. -- Northumbria and Mercia (monks settled there and built monasteries) - 9^th^ c. -- Wessex (King Alfred) #### Northumbria (8^th^ century) - cultured by monks from Hebrides and Ireland - foundation of monasteries and production of beautiful manuscripts - The Ruthwell Cross -- massive stone cross that contains runic transcription of a Christian poem ***The Dream of the Rood*** - ***CAEDMON*** (died c. 700): ***Caedmon's Hymn*** -- Caedmon's School: Old Testament Paraphrases e. g. ***Genesis A, B*** (1^st^ loose translation/paraphrase) - ***Bede VENERABILIS*** (673-735): ***Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum*** (731) -- prose chronicle in Latin that describes history from the A-S invasion till present - Northeast coast in the [late 8^th^ c.] -- Viking raids → Danelaw → cultural decline x [9^th^ c.] King Alfred in Wessex (thanks to him English is spoken in England, not Danish) ### Alfred's importance - military and defensive (a chain of fortresses along the border as the protection from the Danes) - cultural - literary - translations from Latin: ***Bede***'s ***Historia Ecclesiastica***, ***St. Augustine***'s ***Soliloquy*** (samomluva), ***Gregory the Pope***'s ***Pastoral Care*** - initiation of ***Anglo-Saxon Chronicle***: started in 890, from early Christian era till 1150s (Norman conquest) ### Formation of the English nation - Wessex dominant for generations after Alfred's death in 899 - gradually, Wessex absorbed the Danelaw → all kingdoms united into Angeland = Kingdom of England Old English literature -- Anglo-Saxons -------------------------------------- - 1^st^ English culture to produce literary texts - 5^th^-6^th^ century: migration of pagan tribes over Europe - after 450 AD: arrival of Germanic tribes from North Germany and Denmark - **[597 AD:]** arrival of Christianity to England; Pope Gregory the Great sent Augustine to Kent → King of Kent baptised → Canterbury = seat of English Bishop ### Literature - 1^st^ written literature after Christianisation -- Christian monks in monasteries wrote pagan stories - 4 manuscripts: ***Junius*** (Oxford), ***Vitellius*** (British Library), ***Vercelli*** (Italy), ***Exeter*** (Exeter Cathedral) - ***The Dream of the Rood*** -- runic transcription of a Christian poem on The Ruthwell Cross - [secular poetry:] - charms, proverbs and riddles - heroic epics: ***Beowulf*** - battle poetry: ***Battle at Brunanburh, Battle of Maldon*** - elegies: ***Wife's Lament, Husband's Message, The Seafarer, The Wanderer*** - ***CAEDMON: Caedmon's Hymn; Genesis A, B*** - ***CYNEWULF*** - ***Bede VENERABILIS: Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum*** - ***King Alfred:*** translations from Latin: ***Bede's Historia Ecclesiastica, Gregory the Pope's Pastoral Care, St. Augustine's Soliloquy*** Anglo-Norman Literature ======================= The Conquest, French influence, linguistic situation, genres, features, links of social groups to genres. Norman Conquest --------------- - **[1066:]** Battle of Hastings (Bayeux Tapestry); William the Conqueror - Normans = Scandinavian tribes settled in France, Normandy Social structure ---------------- - England = part of Normandy -- French culture and lifestyle → huge changes in E - rigid feudal and hierarchical system - king = the landowner → ***Doomsday Book*** (1086, 1^st^ economical record) - aristocracy = Norman ### Britain and Early Middle Ages - king and clergy = supreme power over the lives of ordinary people - churches, cathedrals, towns and castles - around : Oxford and Cambridge become the centres of knowledge Trilingual system (1066-1350s) ------------------------------ - ***Robert of Gloucester*** in 1300: *England came into Normandy's hand...only low men speak English* - French -- new official language (court, education, politics), spoken by the upper class; gradually mixing with English → Anglo-Norman language - English -- the illiterate low class (Anglo-Saxons); maintained orally + no written texts → dialects - Latin -- religion Early literature (1066-1300) ---------------------------- - written by Normans in French/Anglo-Norman → new continental [styles, forms and genres] - form: rhyme and metrical poetry replace alliteration - genres: debates, metrical romances and stories, chronicles in verse #### Metrical romances -- cycles (dvorské veršované romány) - influences: chansons de geste (songs of heroic deeds) + Ovid's lyrics; originally secular story in a language different from Latin → spread by bards and scopes - typical content: knight serves his king, proves bravery, meets/saves beautiful lady - romances echo ideals of upper classes: knight, chivalry, adventure, beauty → didactic - [English cycle:] AS history ***King Horn*** (1225-50), ***Havelock*** (late 13^th^ c.) - [Arthurian/British cycle:] Celtic past (Arthur) ***Tristan and Isolda***, ***Sir Gawain and the Green Knight***, ***Lancelot and Elaine*** - [French and Classical cycles:] French and Roman history (Charles the Great and Alexander the Great) #### Debate (spor) - form: fictional discussion of a dilemma from opposite points of view - origin: from ancient Greece and other cultures (Aesop's fables) - popular in Middle Ages - *e.g. **The Owl and the Nightingale*** #### Chronicles in verse - reflection of the need for national history + identity -- based on older chronicles - *e.g. **LAYAMON:** Historia **Brut**onum* (ca. 1200) - the earliest English narrative that celebrates King Arthur -- revival of Celtic and AS legends - name -- mythical king Brutus - 33 000 alliterative lines #### Metrical stories - shorter than metrical romances; characters not necessarily knights ##### Types: 1. [Fable]: *e.g. **Reynard and the Wolf*** (French inspiration: Roman de Renart) 2. [Exemplum] (pl. exempla) -- an example of a story teaching a Christian moral lesson + biblical motives 3. [Fabliau] (pl. fabliaux; veršované humoresky) -- bawdy stories, funny and intimate, about ordinary people and their lives, no idealization 4. [Ballad]: *e.g. **Robin Hood*** -- secular, popular in rural areas 5. [Breton Lay]: *e.g. **Sir Orfeo*** -- originally from Brittany, Celtic features (magic, elves,...), love ### Summary: - Early Medieval Britain (1066-1300) - arrival of a strong feudal system -- supremacy of French - arrival of continental literary and social tastes - metrical romances -- didactic - metrical stories -- not always about knights and proving bravery - debates, chronicles in verse Old English heroic epic (Beowulf) → Middle English chivalric romance (Sir Gawain and the Green Knight) Early Medieval literature -- Normans ------------------------------------ - **[1066:]** William the Conqueror led Normans to the victory at the Battle of Hastings, Bayeux Tapestry - Normans = Scandinavian tribes settled in Normandy (France) - trilingual system: French, English, Latin - ***Doomsday Book*** -- 1^st^ economical record ### Early Literature - written by Normans in French/Anglo-Norman - rhyme, metrical poetry + new continental styles, forms and genres #### Metrical romances -- cycles - social ideal: chivalrous knights seeking for love and adventure → didactic for upper classes - English cycle: ***King Horn, Havelock*** - Arthurian/British cycle: ***Tristan and Isolda, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Lancelot and Elaine*** - French and classical cycles: stories from French and Roman history (Charles and Alexander the Great) #### Metrical stories -- shorter, not necessarily about knights #### Chronicles in verse: LAYAMON -- Historia Brutonum #### Debates: The Owl and the Nightingale #### Types: **Fable *(Raynard and the Wolf***), **Fabliaux**, **Exemplum**, **Ballad *(Robin Hood***), **Breton Lay *(Sir Orfeo)*** 3. Middle English Literature Cultural context, revival of English, alliterative revival, Arthurian legends, G. Chaucer, Langland, Wycliff, Le Morte d'Arthur, etc. 100 Year's War -------------- - England from 1066 = part of Norman kingdom BUT new aristocrats born in Britain → conflict with France = 100 Years' War (1338-1453) → [1450's]: France wins (resistance raised by *Joan of Arc*) - [middle of the 14^th^ century]: change begins ### French x English in 13^th^-14^th^ c. "looting the looters" New aristocracy \* in E + intermarriages + trade → French seen as foreign + E = symbol of national identity → revival of English: growing importance of E thanks to the 1362 address of Parliament by King Edward II in E for the 1^st^ time x completely different E than the one before the conquest ME English ---------- 1. new French words: *money (monai), price (pris), merchant (marchant), etc.* 2. lexical variety reflecting social layers (AS x F): swine x pork, stool x chair, bit x morsel, start x commence, deer x venison *"It is English when it's in the stable, it is French when it gets on the table."* 3. regional difference in spelling → chaos in inflection and declension → dropped Structure of society -------------------- *Early ME*: 3 social classes (aristocracy, knights, peasants) x *Later ME*: cities → trade and guilds → rise of middle classes -- bourgeoisie Church x university ------------------- *Early ME:* church = authority + knowledge x *Late ME:* cities, universities -- Oxford and Cambridge (1200s) → science (logical analysis) x theological dogmatism Catholicism = controlled from Rome x English kings wanted control → archbishop T. Becket murdered (1170) Late medieval prose ------------------- #### John WYCLIFF (1320-1384) - scholar + priest (studied and lectured on logic = science) - realistic attitude to Christianity: simplicity, equality (tithes, pardons), English x ~~Latin~~ for services - started reformation, established a school for priests -- 'poor priests' -- 'Lollards' - initiated the very 1^st^ translation of the whole Bible in England Poetry 1350-1400 ---------------- - literature flourished under Richard II (Ricardian literature) - lyrical poems: ***Cuckoo's Song*** - alliterative dream visions (1370s) -- character fell asleep and had a dream = vision #### John GOWER (1330-1408) - wrote in all 3 languages (Latin, French, English), serious tone, didactic, Christian and critical prose #### Geoffrey CHAUCER (1342-1400) - not a professional writer, only occasional pastime → most works unfinished - general division into 3 stages (travelled and was influenced by the places and their literature): - French influence, e.g. ***The Book of the Duchess*** - Italian influence -- 1370s -- inspired by *Dante*, *Boccaccio*, *Petrarch* -- e.g. ***Troilus and Criseyde*** - English influence -- 1390s -- ***Canterbury** **Tales*** 15^th^ c. -- The End of ME Literature ------------------------------------- - uninventive imitations of G. Chaucer *(Scottish Chaucerians)* - 2 important icons - ***Thomas MALORY (1408-1471)** -- **Morte de Arthur** (1485 -- posthumously)* -- Arthurian legends including his death → symbolic gesture of the Medieval culture coming to an end, published it at a time when England was preparing for Renaissance (end of the War of the Roses, Tudors on throne) as a nostalgic revival; resonance of French in his writing; 1 of the very 1^st^ books to be printed in England by - ***William CAXTON (1415-1422 -- 1492)*** -- 1^st^ printer → language goes through the stage of standardization (spelling, grammar, choice of the printed material → the printer has control over the language and the content, becomes an important figure promoting national identity); printing helped nations define themselves against other nations Arthur's death + print = symbolic end of ME (knights and scribes) Edward III (Plantagenet) in the 14^th^ century produced 2 houses: Yorks 'Richards' x Lancasters 'Henrys' ↓ War of Roses (1455-85) ↓ Tudors (1785-1603)  Late Medieval Literature -- English Revival, Geoffrey Chaucer ------------------------------------------------------------- - 1006: England = a part of Norman kingdom x aristocrats \* in Britain → 100 Years' War (1338-1453) - middle of the 14^th^ century: France wins, change begins - a gradual growing importance of English since 1362 when Kind Edward II addressed Parliament in E - ME English: French words, lexical variety reflecting social layers, regional difference in spelling → dropped inflection and declension ### Late medieval prose - ***John WYCLIFF*** -- \* a school for 'poor priests' = 'Lollards', initiated the 1^st^ translation of Bible in England ### Poetry 1350-1400 - ***Cuckoo's Song*** - ***William LANGLAND: The Vision Concerning Piers Plowman*** - ***John GOWER*** -- didactic, Christian and critical prose - ***Geoffrey CHAUCER*** - French influence: ***The Book of the Duchess*** - Italian influence: ***Troilus and Criseyde*** - English influence: ***Canterbury Tales*** ### 15^th^ century = The End of ME Literature - ***Thomas MALLORY: Morte de Arthur printed by William CAXTON*** -- 1^st^ printer 14^th^ century: Edward III (Plantagenet) produced 2 houses → War of the Roses (Yorks x Lancasters, 1455-85) → Tudors (1485-1603)