THE ORIGINS OF A NATION The Anglo-Saxon and Medieval Periods
Objectives For students to understand the scope of this quarter s literature pieces. To understand the historical context under which most medieval authors wrote their masterful works. To understand the conventions of Epic Poetry Demonstrate knowledge of foundational works of literature, including how two or more text from the same period treat similar themes or topics. Analyze documents of historical and literary significance for their themes, purposes, and rhetorical features. Provide an objective summary of the text.
The Anglo-Saxon Period: Historical Context Briton s early years were dominated by successive waves of invaders. Among them were the Anglo-Saxons a people who gave us the first masterpieces of English literature. The Dark Ages, as the Anglo-Saxon period is often called, was a time of bloody conflicts, ignorance, violence, and barbarism. Life was difficult, and the literature of the period often reflects that reality. Little imagery of the brief English summers appears in this literature: winter prevails, and spring comes slowly, if at all. The people were serious minded, and the reader finds little humor in their literature. Indeed, many of the stories and poems present heroic struggles in which only the strong survive.
Early Britain Britain was originally colonized by the Romans. In 55 A.D., the Roman army came in force and and Britain became a province of the great Roman Empire. The Romans introduced cities, roads, and the written word. The Roman colonization lasted almost three hundred years. Britons came to depend on the Roman military for protection. Then, in the early fifth century, the Romans pulled out of Britain. With no central government and no way to protect itself, Britain soon became a target for invasion.
Anglo-Saxons The Angles and Saxons, along with other Germanic tribes, began arriving from northern Europe. Settled by the Anglo-Saxons, the main part of Britain took on a new name: Angle-land, or England. Anglo-Saxon culture became the basis for English culture, and their guttural language became the spoken language of the people, the language now known as Old English.
Cultural Influences Three social forms shaped the influences of society and literature: The Feudal System: a system in which the King owned all land and everyone swore fealty to him. The Power of the Church: Led by the pope in Rome, the medieval church wielded tremendous power levying taxes, making its own laws, running its own courts, and keeping kings and noblemen in line with the threat of excommunication. The church owned more land than anyone in Europe. Chivalry and Courtly Love: Based on the legend of King Arthur, chivalry is a set of rules and ideals by which knight were supposed to live by, such as helping the weak, being generous and brave, and battling evil. The same set of rules were applied to the relationship between a woman and a man, soon those ideals came to be known as Courtly Love.
The Age of Chaucer The most famous writer of Medieval times, the father of English Literature, was Geoffrey Chaucer, a poet who demonstrated the potential of English as a literary language. Drawing on sources as diverse as French poetry, English songs, Greek classics, and contemporary Italian tales, Chaucer masterfully blended old with the new, all in the natural rhythms of Middle English, the spoken language of the time.
The Legacy of the Era Arthur Lives Stories of King Arthur and his loyal knights have never lost their appeal. From Mark Twain s satirical novel, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur s Court, tot he Star War movies, in which Jedi knights battle evil in outer space, each generation continues to create its own interpretations of the Arthurian romance.
The Epic Tradition The early literature of the Anglo-Saxon period mostly took the form of lengthy epic poems praising the deeds of heroic warriors. These poems reflected the reality of life at this point, which was often brutal. In great banquet halls of kings and nobles, Anglo-Saxons would gather and listen to scops professional poets bring epic poems to life. To the Anglo-Saxons, these epic poems were far more than simple entertainment. The scop s performance was a history lesson, moral sermon, and pep talk all rolled into one, instilling cultural pride and teaching how a true hero should behave. These epic poems were an oral art form: memorized and performed, but never written down, and told from one generation to the next.
The Epic Tradition Since many epics were based on historical fact, their public performance provided both entertainment and education to the public. One feature of epic poetry is the repetition of certain words or phrases. Not all epics across all time have the same characteristics. However, all epics concern the deeds of a hero, who can be described as: Being of noble birth or high position, and often of great historical or legendary importance. Exhibiting character traits, or qualities, that reflect important ideals of society. Performing courageous, sometimes superhuman, deeds that reflect the values of the era. Performing actions that often determine the fate of a nation or a group of people.
The Epic Conventions In addition, most epis share certain conventions, which reflect the larger-than-life events that a hero might experience: The setting is vast in scope, often involving more than one nation. The plot is complicated by supernatural beings or events that may involve a long and dangerous journey through foreign lands. Dialogue often includes long, formal speeches delivered by the major characters. The theme reflects timeless values, such as courage and honor, and includes universal ideas, such as good and evil or life and death. The style includes formal diction(the writer s choice of words and sentence structure) and a serious tone (the expression of the writer s attitude towards the subject).