History
• Up until mid 4th century England was under the control of the Romans and also
Catholic.
• Once the Romans leave the Britons have a problem – no more protection and are at
the mercy of raiding Picts (from Wales) and the Celts behind Hadrian’s Wall. (4th
Century)
• The Britons ask the Angles and the Saxons, both Germanic warrior tribes, to help
them.
• The Angles and the Saxons like what they see and revolt (also because they weren’t
being paid). (5th Century)
• Eventually the Angles and the Saxons take over and split England up into several
smaller kingdoms. The Britons are subjugated.
• England is only unified at the end of the 10th Century.
Literature (chronologically)
• Caedmon’s Hymn – well remembered and preserved because it was the first time the
traditional Germanic poetry was used for religious purposes. It is important to
remember that this type of poetry isn’t written and read but performed and listened
to (one of the reasons why we call it a hymn and not a poem).
• Beowulf – the ‘blockbuster movie’ of its day. It is an epic poem that includes many
different elements that probably appealed to different people. This diversity allowed
the minstrel/story teller to use the same story in different situations. Important to
remember that Beowulf probably existed for 200 years or more before being
committed to paper. Its entertainment, has no real religious connotations but isn’t
entirely pagan either. A good argument for it being entertainment is that the first
section takes place in a meadhall and the ‘poem’ would’ve been performed in
meadhalls/taverns.
• Battle of Maldon – Germanic warrior code: honour your Lord and God. Fight with
honour.
Literary features of Old English
• Oral tradition – not or very rarely written down.
• Alliteration – internal rhyme where the first syllable of words rhyme with each other.
(mostly consonance – consonants rhyming)
• Caesura – the beat in the middle of each line (when being performed the minstrel
would tap a drum or pluck a lute each time giving the poem rhythm).
• Heroic epithets – standard sentences, usually denoting a specific character, that
occur frequently in the poem.
, • Because the poems were performed they had to be remembered – mnemonic
devices.
Ch. 2: Late Middle Ages – ‘Authority’
Any understanding of the Middle Ages depends on some understanding of the feudal
system. In the feudal system a high-ranking person (King, Lord, Baron, etc.) can give or cede
land to the people under him in return for military support should it be needed. The people
to whom the land is ceded pay a tithe to their Lord in return for the land an military support.
In Medieval England there are three stations: the Nobility, the Church, and the masses. From
the 11th century onwards a conflict arises over who has the most authority; the Nobility or
the Church (Politics or God).
History
• While England may seem unified at the end of the 10th century there are problems
with the succession rights. William of Normandy takes advantage of the turmoil to
invade England.
• 1066 – William defeats Harold at the battle of Hastings and rapidly takes over the
south of England. From there he moves his forces northwards displacing Anglo-Saxon
lords and giving land to his Norman followers.
• The Norman successions weren’t any smoother than the Anglo-Saxon ones so their
rule was very unstable. Instability finally led to them losing their French lands in
1199.
• 1215 – Magna Carta signed – a document to appease the Barons who were opposed
to measures set up by the Norman rulers.
• 1340s – Black Death arrives in England.
• A series of Civil Wars, known as the War of the Roses, break out in 1455. The houses
of York and Lancaster fight for the throne from 1455 to 1487. Eventually the conflict
is settled with the death of the last Yorkish king: Richard III at the battle of Bosworth
Field. Henry Tudor (Henry VII) becomes king and marries Elizabeth of York to unite
the Houses. This is the start of what is known as the Golden Age – Tudor rule until
1603.
Literature (chronologically)
• The Peterborough Chronicle – important as a historical document concerning the
Norman conquest (interestingly, many Britons had migrated to Normandy during the
Anglo-Saxon centuries so it is as if the original inhabitants had returned). It is
important to realize that the chronicle was written by monks who adhered to the
church’s view of the power struggle. William was relatively ruthless when dividing up
his newly acquired lands, including former church land, and he placed many of his
Norman clergy men in high ranking positions in the English church. This obviously
displeased the monks of Peterborough, hence the exert in Eldorado, and highlighting
the obvious struggle for authority between the Church and William.
, • The Canterbury Tales (Geoffrey Chaucer) – More and more people had learned to
read and universities had started to crop up all over Europe. These where places
where texts of any kind were studied independently of any type of authority (Crown
or Church) which muddies the waters even more in terms of where to place the
meaning in a text. While Latin is still the language of Academia; more and more
writers start writing in their mother tongue and also translating texts from Latin. This
makes them sensitive to the shifts in meaning through translation and the subtleties
of language and words. This interest in meaning also leads to Allegory becoming the
genre of the late middle ages. Chaucer utilizes allegory in his Canterbury Tales. Each
story offers some form of contradiction that highlights the difference between the
stories explicit message and deeper, implicit message. In terms of the Pardoner’s Tale
the contradiction lies in the idea that an immoral man can tell a moral story. Are we
to trust the Pardoner though he himself has claimed to be completely
untrustworthy? Is his tale a cautionary one? What type of authority does the
Pardoner have?
• Morte d’Arthur (Thomas Mallory) – Mallory was involved in The War of The Roses in
a way that did him no help. He changed allegiance twice and eventually spent the
end of the war in prison where he compiled Morte d’Arthur. I use the word compiled
because quite a lot of it is a collection of pre-existing Arthurian legends molded into
one plot. The Arthurian legends were immensely popular at court during the period.
They exemplified a form of nostalgia that gave people caught up in a war comfort.
Mallory is, himself, immensely nostalgic for a time when honour and allegiances
meant something. He idolizes the Arthurian knights and the ideals presented by
Camelot but is also aware that the world has changed. In Camelot all people are
treated (almost) as equals and the word of God is very much still the authority. This is
contrasted with the plight of Guinevere and Lancelot and how their actions lead to
the demise of Camelot. While the story is not exactly an Allegory it does use some of
the devices of that genre. Morte d’Arthur is seen as a transitional work where the
emphasis is shifted from Christian ideals and to more Humanistic dilemmas. Mallory
probably saw his work as a cautionary tale – do not stray far from the Christian ideals
of Camelot – but his work actually ushered in a new, secular, authority – that of man.
Literary features:
• Allegory – ‘cautionary’ tales where an overt interpretation is juxtaposed with a
deeper less evident interpretations.
• Questions of authority are explicitly put forward.
• ‘Found’ texts are incorporated into new works. Most of Chaucer’s and Mallory’s
works consists of stories/elements that pre-dated them yet they place them in a
different context.
Ch. 3: Renaissance – ‘Intertextuality’
During the middle ages nobody read Greek, Aramaic, or Hebrew. During the renaissance
important classical texts became available in their original languages and forms and these
were studied intensively. Secondly, people demanded that they be able to read and
interpret the Bible themselves. The ‘original’ Latin text becomes a variety of translated texts
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