1、 English literatureAn Introduction to Old and Medieval English Literature History BackgroundEarly inhabitants-Celts-were conquered 3 times:a.Romans b.Anglo-Saxons:Germanic language and culture c.Normans:Mediterranean civilization(Greek culture,Roman law,Christian religion)Old English Literature From
2、 450 to 1066 (the period witnessed a transition from tribal society to feudal society;the year of the Norman conquest of England)The Germanic tribes from the Northern Europe brought with them:Anglo-Saxon language,the basis of Modern English and poetic traditionOld English poetry consists of the reli
3、gious group and the secular one.BeowulfA typical example of Old English poetry,regarded as the national epic of the Anglo-Saxons.Oral form in 6th c.=Written in 10th c.It contains 3183 lines of alliterational verseIt describes the exploits of a Scandinavian heroThree conflicts:a.Beowulf vs Grendel(a
4、monster)b.Beowulf vs Grendels revengeful mother c.Beowulf vs fire-breathing dragonIt is a mingling of nature myths and heroic legends.Analysis of the poemA folk legend-reflecting the features of tribal society of ancient timesThe artistic features of Beowulf:a.the use of alliteration b.the use of me
5、taphors and understatement“ring-giver”-king;“sea-wood”-ship;“swans path”or“whales road”-sea;“not troublesome”-very welcomeOriginal Text:Hwt!We Gardena in geardagum,eodcyninga,rym gefrunon,hu a elingas ellen fremedon.Oft Scyld Scefing sceaena reatum,monegum mgum,meodosetla ofteah,egsode eorlas.Transl
6、ated text:Prelude of the Founder of the Danish House LO,praise of the prowess of people-kings of spear-armed Danes,in days long sped,we have heard,and what honor the athelings won!Oft Scyld the Scefing from squadroned foes,from many a tribe,the mead-bench tore,awing the earls.Since erst he lay frien
7、dless,a foundling,fate repaid him:for he waxed under welkin,in wealth he throve,till before him the folk,both far and near,who house by the whale-path,heard his mandate,gave him gifts:a good king he!http:/ Norman Conquest-changes:1.Politically:feudalist system2.Religiously:Rome-based Catholic Church
8、3.Language:French-official language Latin-principle tongue of church and unuversities Old English-common English people Medieval English LiteratureOEFrom 1066 to mid-14th centuryMiddle English literature deals with a wider range of subjects,greater diversity of styles,tones and genresRomance uses na
9、rrative verse or prose to sing knightly adventures or other heroic deeds Geoffrey Chaucer The Canterbury TalesChaucers LifeBorn to a middle class family.His father was a wine merchant who believed his child should have a formal education.He became a page to an important family and was so respected t
10、hat when he was captured as a soldier during the Hundred Years was,a king paid his ransom.Chaucer was one of the first writers to be buried in the Poets Corner in Westminster Abbey.2023-4-26141.Historical background:(1)The Hundred Years War:The result of the war was an awakening of national consciou
11、sness in England.And the French language was gradually replaced by English native tongue.(2)The peasant uprising of 1381:It was the result of the conflict between the peasants and feudal lords.(3)1360-1400 The summit of Middle English literature:Although the work was never completed,The Canterbury T
12、ales is considered one of the greatest works in the English language.Geoffrey ChaucerThe greatest writer of this periodInfluenced by RenaissanceThe Canterbury TalesThese Tales tell of an imaginary group of pilgrims travelling from London to Canterbury to visit the tomb of St.Thomas.To entertain one
13、another during the journey,The pilgrims,who come from all layers of society,tells a story,thereby providing a wonderful mirror of life in Medieval England.Theme:Chaucer affirmed mans right to pursue earthly happiness and opposed asceticism;he praised mans energy,intellect,quick wit and love of life;
14、he exposed and satirized the social vices,including religious abuses.Chaucer bore marks of humanism and anticipated a new era to come.(what era?)2023-4-2618Chaucers Contribution to English literatureintroduced(from France)the rhymed stanza of various types esp.the rhymed couplet of 5 accents in iamb
15、ic meter(heroic couplet)instead of the old alliterative verse.established English as the literary language of the country.made the dialect of London the standard for the modern English speech.2023-4-2619Artistic Features(1)Messenger of HumanismnAffirm mans right to pursue earthly happinessnPraise ma
16、ns energy,intellect,quick wit and love of lifenExpose and satirize the social vices,including religious abuses2023-4-2620(2)The first important realistic writernPresent a comprehensive realistic picture of the English societynCreate a whole gallery of vivid characters from all walks of lifenExplore
17、the theme of the individuals relation to the society2023-4-2621(3)“Father”of English poetrynIntroduce the rhymed stanzas of various types to English poetry(e.g.heroic couplet)nDevelop his art of poetrynMaster of the English language2023-4-2622The Canterbury Tales1.outline:On a spring evening,at the
18、Tabard Inn(泰巴旅店),at the South end of London Bridge,Chaucer meets 29 pilgrims ready for Canterbury and he joins them.Suggested by the host of the inn,each is to tell 2 stories going and 2 returning.The best teller will be treated with a fine supper at the end.The host will be the judge.As a gigantic
19、plan,124 stories should be told but only 24 were written.But these tales cover practically all the major types of medieval literature:a.country romance;b.folk tale;c.beast fable(神话);d.story of travel and adventure;e.saints life;f.allegorical tale（寓言）;g.sermon;h.alchemical account（炼丹术）;i.others.2023-
20、4-26232.features:All tales but two are written in verse(poetry);Connected in two ways:the hosts criticizing;intimate connection between the tales and the Prologue.in order to get a better understanding of each tale,readers have to read back the corresponding portion of the Prologue.3.the Prologue:a
21、framework for the tales;The 30 palmers represent all classes of the English feudal society except the royalty and the poorest peasant.There are knight,squire治安官,prioress,proprietor经营者,tradesman,drunken cook,humble plowman,doctor,lawyer,monks,nuns,priests,summoner,sailor,miller,carpenter,yeoman自耕农,an
22、 Oxford scholar,and in the center of the group,the wife of Bath,who is the owner of a large cloth factory.A miniature of the English society of Chaucers time.Of all the tales,those of the knight and the wife of Bath are among the best.2023-4-2624The Three“Estates”(status)1.The nobility(those that fo
23、ught)2.The clergy(those that prayed)3.The peasantry(those who produced the food which supported those who fought and prayed)GENERAL PROLOGUE:INTRODUCTION THE KNIGHTS TALE THE MILLERS TALE WIFE OF BATHS TALE 1 Prologue+THE PARDONERS Tale 24 tales THE NUNS PRIESTSTALEChaucers ContributionsIntroduced f
24、rom France the rhymed stanzas of various types to English poetry to replace the old English alliterative verseHeroic couplet:the rhymed couplet of iambic pentameterThe Canterbury TalesJohn Dryden called Chaucer:the Father of English poetryHomework:iambic pentameter iambic pentameter iambic/iamb:an u
25、nit of rhythm in poetry (rhythm:the regular repeated pattern of sounds)that has one weak beat /one unstressed syllabus followed by one strong beat/one stressed syllabus pentameter:a line with five main beats a common pattern of beats in poetry,in which each line has five iambs 抑扬格五音步Heroic couplet:2
26、 consecutive rhyming lines in IP stressed,unstressed Who has seen the wind?Who has seen the wind?Neither I nor you;Neither I nor you;WhoWho has has seenseen the the windwind?NeiNeither ther I I nor nor youyou;Note:it is not iambic Except from The Canterbury TalesWhen in April the sweet showers fallA
27、nd pierce the drought of March to the root and allThe veins are bathed in liquor of such powerAs brings about the engendering of the flower,When in April the sweet showers fallWhen/in/Ap/ril/the/sweet/show/ers/fallWhen/in/Ap/ril/the/sweet/show/ers/fallAnd pierce the drought of March to the root and
28、allAnd pierce the drought of March to the root and all 2023-4-2631 “The General Prologue”Summery:As April comes,the narrator begins a pilgrimage to Canterbury from the Tabard Inn at Southwerk.Twenty-nine people make the pilgrimage toward Canterbury and the narrator describes them in turn.The Host,a
29、bold and merry man,suggests that on their way to Canterbury each pilgrim tell two tales,and on the way back two more.They draw lots to decide who will tell the first tale.2023-4-2632In The General Prologue,Chaucer sets up the general structure of the tales and introduces each of the characters who w
30、ill tell the tales.The characters who tell each of the tales are as important as the characters in the tales that they tell;a significant portion of the action of The Canterbury Tales takes place within the prologue to each of the tales.The General Prologue in essence serves as a guide.Chaucer only
31、lived to write 24 tales.Some of the stories that remain are only fragments which have either been lost or were never completed by the author.2023-4-2633 Character Analysis:Chaucers pilgrim narrators represent a wide spectrum of ranks and occupations.The great variety of tales is matched by the diver
32、sity of their tellers;tales are assigned to appropriate narrators and juxtaposed to bring out contrasts in genre,style,tone,and values.These pilgrims exist almost entirely in terms of their profession.Chaucer gives only a few of them character names.2023-4-2634The pilgrim narrators represent a wide
33、spectrum of ranks and occupationsdiversity The PrioressThe Wife of Bath2023-4-26352023-4-2636The prioress2023-4-2637The Wife of Bath2023-4-2638The Knight2023-4-2639The Oxford Clerk2023-4-26402023-4-26412023-4-26422023-4-2643Summoner2023-4-26442023-4-26452023-4-26462023-4-2647The Miller2023-4-2648202
34、3-4-26492023-4-26502023-4-26512023-4-26522023-4-26532023-4-2654Chaucer2023-4-2655The ParsonThe PlowmanThe Pardoner,The Host2023-4-2656Notes(1)prioress:(Madam Eglantyne)A nun in charge of a priory or ranking next below the abbess of an abbey.小女隐修院院长或大女隐修院副院长parson:An Anglican cleric with full legal c
35、ontrol of a parish under ecclesiastical law;a rector.教区牧师英国英车圣公会牧师，在基督教法律下拥有对一个教区的完全的法律控制权；教区长 2023-4-2657Notes(2)pardoner:A medieval ecclesiastic authorized to raise money for religious works by granting papal indulgences to contributors.出售免罪符的人中世纪获准出售教会的赦免书而为宗教事务筹钱的神职人员2023-4-2658 Questions on Cha
36、ucer(1)Which,according to Chaucer,is more important,divine love or secular love?Why?(2)What kind of motivations do most of the pilgrims have,to show piety to God or to enjoy the beauty of nature?Why?(3)How do you explain the changes of the pilgrims attitudes towards love and life from the social and
37、 cultural background?2023-4-2659(4)What kind of people does Chaucer satirize?Are there any differences in the degree of his satire?Why does he satirize some pilgrims slightly and others severely(bitterly)?(5)How does Chaucer portray his characters?What devices does he use to bring out a life-like ch
38、aracter?(6)How do you understand the Wife of Bath?(7)Why is Chaucer regarded as the first important realistic writer and the earliest English humanist?2023-4-2660http:/ websites2023-4-2661Popular BalladsBallad:literature of English people(peasants),not written but oral.a narrative poem that tells a
39、story.a story told in song,usu.In 4-line stanzas,with the 2nd and the 4th lines rhymed.young lovers struggle against feudal-minded families;conflict between love and wealth;cruelty of jealousy;criticism of the civil war(13371377 between England and France.);matters of class struggle.Robin Hood Ballads:2023-4-2662Ballad meter:It is the common form for the ballads.It contains four-line stanzas.The odd numbered lines have four feet each and the even numbered lines have three feet each.Rhumes fall on the even numbered lines.Eg.Robin Hood Ballads:most important.
