The Owl and Nightingale

The Dream of the Rood

...Then I saw the lord of mankind hasten with stout heart, for he would climb upon me. I dared not bow or break against God's word, when I saw the earth's surface tremble. I might have felled all foes, but I stood fast. (3)

Old English literature maintains a dignified and grim mood, whereas English literature after the Norman Conquest in 1066, or Middle English literature, is carried by a variety of voices, addressing different social classes. The native language and culture went side by side with those of the Anglo-Norman rulers; important works were written in French or Latin, which was still used internationally for theology, science and history. Besides, William the Conqueror kept the Doomsday Book, neatly listing all the property he now owned in Britain. Thus, when written literature appeared again at the end of the 12^th century, it became extraordinarily rich not only in language but also in subject rqatter, tone and style. The 11^th century onward saw a change in the old lifestyle as well as in the language; the Old English language was on its way to Middle English, enriched with French, which introduced the medieval, chivalry romance and fabliau. Chivalry was an ideal for all knights and involved bravery, generosity, honour, and respect to women. Indeed, knights ventured into Wales and Ireland, or set off on a life-time journey to the Holy Land in the Crusades to regain Jerusalem from the Muslims.

The earliest medieval English secular poem is The Owl and the Nightingale (ca 1190), a brilliant mock debate between the two birds. The poem of 1,794 lines of mostly octosyllabic couplets, satirizes learned discussions and contemporary views of love, suggesting that man's wit and knowledge often cover his prejudices and limitations.

I was in a valley in springtime;

in a very secluded corner,

I heard an owl and a nightingale

holding a great debate.

Their argument was fierce,

passionate, and vehement,

sometimes sotto voce, sometimes loud;

and each of them swelled with rage against the other

and let out all her anger, and said the very worst

she could think of about the other's character,

and especially they argued vehemently against each other's song. (25)

Another significant poem is Layamon's Brut (ca 1205). It was his adaptation and translation into English of Roman de Brut (1155) by the Anglo-Norman poet Wace (b. ca 1100, Channel Islands — d. after 1174). In Brut, which first mentioned the Arthurian legend, Layamon used an Old English alliterative verse form.

English, though forced out of ordinary literary compositions, became the language of the ruling classes by the 14^th century, when in 1363, a parliamentary session opened in English, and in 1366 it was used in the law courts. It lost former inflections, changed phonetically and borrowed words from Latin and French, e.g. act, expel, torment, tract, minstrel, miracle, pardon, tour and others. The second half of the 14^th century was also the time when, apart from Geoffrey Chaucer (ca 1343-1400), the author of The Canterbury Tales, two other great poets emerged. William Langland (ca 1330-1387) with The Vision of Piers Plowman and the unknown author of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.

Piers Plowman is written in alliterative verse as a dream vision, disguising truth in allegories. The poet fell asleep on the Malvern Hills and saw a "fair field full of folk," all busy with their jobs but many of them cheating. Langland intended to show their sins and to make people lead righteous lives, painting, at the same time, a vivid picture of medieval life. This poem satirizes corruption among the clergy and other authorities, and raises the dignity and value of labour, personified by Piers Plowman. Langland summarizes the past with its head-rhyme, while Chaucer looks forward to the future with regular rhyme patterns.

The Gawain romance tells us about the knight Gawain, his curious meeting with the giant Green Knight, and the temptations by the lord's wife. Sir Gawain's dignity and honour save him from receiving a fatal blow.

Chaucer's friend John Gower (ca 1325-1408) chose to write his last major poem Confessio Amantis (The Lover's Confession) in English. However, it was Geoffrey Chaucer, who showed that English, a rich and wonderful lan­guage, is suitable for great literature. In his long poems Troilus and Criseyde and The Canterbury Tales he presented dynamic human portraits and told diverse stories.

The introduction of the printing press in 1476 by William Caxton (1421-91), brought to light Chaucer's Canterbury Tales and Malory's Morte d'Arthur. Thanks to Chaucer, the East Midland dialect of London had become the language of poetry, but there was no standart for prose. Caxton himself, when writing prose, wrote as he spoke. Though he printed Chaucer’s poetry and also the works of John Gower and a prolific English poet and monk John Lydgate (ca 1370-ca 1450), he wanted to produce prose books. Thus appeared A History of Troy, Aesop's Fables, The Game and Playe of Chesse, and books on chivalry, such as Le Morte d'Arthur.

Although most people in the British Isles could not read or write for centuries after the Norman Conquest, they, like human beings everywhere, enjoyed telling stories. Thus appeared folk ballads, stories in verse and usually sung. Most of the English and Scottish ballads we know date from the 14^th and 15^th centuries. Love, adventure, war, courageous and daring feats, the supernatural and sudden disasters, all found their ways into folk ballads. They usually relate a single event with little attention to characterization, background, or description, and contain sharp psychological portraits and folk wisdom. The authors of ballads remain anonymous and a ballad may exist in several versions. The most popular folk ballads were Judas, Lord Randall, The Wife of Usher's Well, The Three Ravens, Sir Patrick Spen, and the Robin Hood ballads.

Дата добавления: 2014-01-04