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TOPIC 43: ORALLY-TRANSMITTED MEDIEVAL LITERATURE: THE LEGEND OF ARTHUR.…
TOPIC 43:
ORALLY-TRANSMITTED MEDIEVAL LITERATURE: THE LEGEND OF ARTHUR. CHAUCER'S CANTERBURY TALES
1. INTRODUCTION
The topic deals with medieval English literature and focuses on the Arthurian legend and Chaucer's Canterbury Tales.
It introduces learners into the origins of English literature and makes them aware that it is because of oral tradition that we are able to look back to medieval times and have some glimpses of what life was like and how language and literature have evolved.
The topic is divided into 7 sections.
2. OLD ENGLISH PERIOD
Post-Roman Britain is invaded by the Angles, the Saxons and the Jutes during the 5th and 6th century AD.
Very strong oral poetic tradition.
Coexist with the process of christianisation.
Sagas will be adapted to Christian themes. Poets such as Caedmon, Aldheim and Cynewulf = similar characteristics = a mixture of Pagan and Christian topics in alliterative verse.
Epic poems = Beowulf (the best known and most translated).
A legend of oral transmission -> transcribed into Old English 8th century.
Anonymous.
Set in Scandinavia during the 6th century.
Beowulf comes to help Hrothgar (king of the Danes) defend his castle from the monster Grendel.
Fifty years later he died in a battle with a dragon.
The author drew inspiration from Norse or Irish folktales and Christian tradition.
Other important poems, not religious: The battle of Malon, The Wife Lament, The Wanderer.
Prose is much less important = translations.
The 10th century = revival of monasteries = prose becomes a conscious literary act.
The most important prose work= the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle = the first historiography not written in Latin = the most useful tool to study English language evolution.
3. MIDDLE ENGLISH PERIOD
11th century = convulsed period for Britain -> recently defeated the Viking king Harold had to dealt with the Norman Invasion 1066.
William's coronation = new aristocracy, government and culture and language (French).
Stop the development of the Anglo-Saxon literature = Latin and French languages for literature.
Literary production of the middle ages = translations and reinterpretations of Roman and Greek classics.
In 1138, Monmouth's "Historia Regum Britanniae" brought a new set of characters and stories, originating, among other, the Arthurian cycle.
3.1. The Arthurian Legend
Most important poem = "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight" -> written in Anglo - Saxon.
Main characters:
King Arthur: king at 15 (Excalibur). Conquered Scotland, Ireland and Iceland. Married Guinevere. Left at war (Romans). Left his kingdom to Modred. Modred rebelled. He killed him and was mortally wounded. The Queen becomes a nun. His remains are brought to Avalon.
Queen Guinevere: noble origin (Roman). Abducted from Camelot. Rescued by Sir Lancelot. Ends up in a convent.
Lancelot: knight of the round table. Infatuated with the Queen.
Merlin: wizard and counsellor of Arthur and his father. Trial of the sword.
Galahad: Lancelot's son. Finder of the Holy Grail.
Gawain: Arthurian hero.
Perceval: Arthurian hero. Finds the Holy Grail.
It is a whole corpus of stories concerning king Arthur.
The Arthurian cycle was hugely popular in Western Europe thanks to Monmouth's "Historia".
It is impossible to assert if king Arthur was a historical character = Monmouth develops the Arthurian Legend from Briton and Welsh oral poems about Arthur.
New elements = the round table.
4. SIR GEOFFREY CHAUCER
4.1. Chaucer's Art
Simple, fluent, colloquial, nearly falling into prose style. - Being so well-read= references to classics and medieval writers. - Three styles (French, Italian and English).
French style= lirical and allegorical poems with a free adaptation of the French octosyllabic verse. Ex: The Book of the Duchess, The Legend of the Good Women, The Parliament of Fowles.
Italian style= introduced the rhymed iambic pentameter -> became the norm. Ex: The Knight Tales, Troilus and Cryseide.
English style= The Canterbury Tales.
4.2. The Canterbury Tales
Project to collect several tales of a pilgrimage from London to Canterbury = the Canterbury Tales.
30 characters. Each character tells 2 tales on the way to Canterbury and two tales on the way back = 120 tales.
Only 22 and the prologue were done or survived.
Prologue = portrait of the nation.
Characters = described in an amusing style.
Tales = colloquial (Londoner) vocabulary and syntax, plain, direct syle to mimic the characters telling the story to the listeners.
The story ends when the pilgrims reach Canterbury after 5 days of travel.
Collection of stories = typical -> Tales = writen by contemporary authors from Europe and Orient.
Chaucer = narrative interest + one of his invention = the Canon's Yeoman.
Born at 1342, in London, son of a vinter.
Important civil servant = Edward III pay his ransom.
In France = interest for poetry.
Contemporary to Dante and Boccaccio.
Known as the writer of The Canterbury Tales.
Blended Anglo-Saxon and Norman French dialects = crucial contribution to eh English language -> considered one of the greatest English writers and the establisher of the English language.
Spent his life close to the centres of English power -> was buried at Westminster Abbey (the first to be buried at the Poets' Corner.
5. EDUCATIONAL CONTENT
The Decree 187/2015 (linguistic field) establishes = students should achieve communicative and linguistic skills in order to communicate (orally and written) with the world in different contexts. -> 5 dimensions, 11 competencies.
The topic related to literary dimension = competencies 10 and 11 BUT all competencies are worked.
This topic can be brought to class in different ways.
Difficult to work on authentic material SO adapted reader of the Arhurian myth = The Knights of the round table by Penguin Readers.
Students will be required to create a timeline of the legend in groups, focusing on competency 11 (literary dimension) and competency 2 (oral dimension) because they will present it.
Legal framework taken into account:
Decree 187/2015, of August 25th, on the organisation of CSE.
Decree 150/2017, of October 17th, which regulates the attention to diversity.
Order ENS/108/2018, of July 4th, which determines the requirement for the assessment procedure in CSE.
When tackling this topic in class:
Different strategies BUT communicative, meaningful, transferrable, productive and contextualised activities -> activate their Higher Order Skills (Bloom's Taxonomy).
Student-centred.
UDL + multilevel activities.
Gender equality.
Digital resources= Padlet / Genial-ly -> competency 8 + VLE.
Sequence of activities = initial, development and synthesis phases.
Group, individual and peer work and assessment.
Three types of assessment + regulation / errors + feedback/forward.
6. CONCLUSION
Important get to know English literature to improve their English knowledge and command BUT foster their digital, personal and social skills.
Teachers = willing to evolve, adapt, adjust AND provide necessary tools to succeed in a constantly changing and evolving world.
7. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Decree 187/2015.
Decree 150/2017.
Order ENS/108/2018.
The Canterbury Tales. Penguin Classics.
The knights of the round table. Penguin Readers.
The new Arthurian Encyclopedia.
Companion to literature in English.