English - the Late Middle Ages

The Great Famine

The Great Famine

A terrible famine in 1315-1322 that hit much of Europe after a period of climate change. It Had poor weather conditions and millions died of starvation

The Black Death

A deadly plague that swept through Europe between 1347 and 1351. At least 30-45% of the population died. It left people traumatized and caused the feudal system to break down. the church lost clergy and there was an increase in crime

Church Decline

The church lost power when the Black Death cause people to question church officials. It damaged the reputation of the church and there was corruption and infighting going on. (Bribery, worldliness and fighting for rank and position)

Avignon Papacy

the period of Church history from 1308 to 1378 when the popes lived and ruled in Avignon, France instead of in Rome. There were 7 popes residing in Avignon

The Papal Schism

Pope in France goes to Rome and elects new cardinals. The Cardinals in France hired a new Pope. They had a council and got rid of both Popes and elected a new one

John Wycliffe

(c.1328-1384) Forerunner to the Reformation. Created English Lollardy. Attacked the corruption of the clergy, and questioned the power of the pope. Called the morning star of the reformation and the evangelical doctor. He opposed Catholicism and created the first English translation of the Bible

Hundred Years War (1337-1453)

Series of campaigns over control of the throne of France, involving English and French royal families and French noble families.

Plantagenet Kings

all seeking to win the French crwon

Great Battle of Agincourt

fought by henry V in 1415

Peasants' Revolt of 1381

English Peasant revolt to over taxation and war. stopped by Richards false promises and then killings. Gave ise to an increasingly powerful middle class. Increased trade and organized trade guilds along with the accumulation of political influence

The Wars of the Roses

The nobility was given free reign under henry VI. Civil war between the Lancasters & the Yorks. King Richard III dies. It further impowered the Nobility and exhausted british patience

Rise of Tudor Dynasty

Henry VII (A LANCASTER) marries a daughter of york

Development of Middle English

Norman french and latin were made into the country's official languages and english fell into disuse in written materials

multiple dialects of english spoke

These dialects were due to the great Vowel shift. Long vowels shifted to modern pronunciations and word forms lost inflections. it used loan words from latin and french

Norman Conquest

Upper class french and latin texts were used along with greek and roman classic literature

Middle English contribution to English literature

brought about the french version of the Arthurian legend and english writers applied the european literary forms to their writing

Humanists

European scholars, writers, and teachers associated with the study of the humanities (grammar, rhetoric, poetry, history, languages, and moral philosophy), influential in the fifteenth century and later.

When did English regain its preeminence

mid 1300s

ways that English regained preeminence

Grammar scools conducted in english. prose works were written in english. parliament opened in english and lawsuits were arranged in English

What form of literature flourished under Richard II

poetry

William Langland

wrote Piers Plowman

Who wrote Sir Gawain and the Green Knight?

anonymous

Chaucer

English poet remembered as author of the Canterbury Tales

What dialect was used in canterbury tales

East midland dialect

What was the subject matter of middle english poetry

It was about the common man, native heroes, ethical and spiritual concerns, courtly love and chivalric codes. and was devotional

didactic

intended to instruct

What aided the move from oral to written literature

the moveable printing press

William Caxton

Brought the printing press to England

Julian of Norwich, Revelations of Divine Love

The first woman to write a book in english. She was an anchoress, spiritual advisor and apparently had mysterious visions of Christ's suffering

Anchoress

A woman who lived in prayer and seclusion, usually in a small shelter, or cell, at a church

Whom did Julian of Norwich inspire

C.S. Lewis and T.S. Eliot

William Langland

Writer of "Piers Plowman" in the 1360's. Contrasted the sufferings of the honest poor with the hypocrisy and corruption of the wealthy.

Piers Plowman

Middle English allegorical narrative poem by William Langland concerning the narrator's intense quest for a true Christian life. One of the early great works of English literature. used int the Peasant's revolt (to langlands dismay) and was mirrored by the Pilgrim's progress

Who supressed roman theatre

the Roman Catholic Church

How does the RCC use drama

they use it to reach the illiterate, which was a lot of people back then

what centuries do most surviving medieval plays come from

the 14 & 15th centuries. the authors were unknown and the themes were religious

Liturgical Drama

Dialogue on a sacred subject, set to music and usually performed with action, and linked to the LITURGY.

Miracle Drama

A miracle play presents a real or fictitious account of the life, miracles, or martyrdom of a saint.

Mystery Plays/Cycle Plays

cycles of short plays which were depictions of biblical stories and meant to be performed together

morality play

a kind of drama with personified abstract qualities as the main characters and presenting a lesson about good conduct and character, popular in the 15th and early 16th centuries.

What were the characters of medieval drama

they were stock representations of man or abstract ideas. their interactions explored a common human problem and presented a clear moral lesson for the audience

when and how was medieval drama performed

Usually on RCC Holidays, they were put on by the city at different locations

Pageant Wagons

Movable stage or cart used to perform liturgical cycle plays in middle ages. used in England and Spain

Farces

Comedies that evolved out of morality plays in France.

Everyman

Best known morality play

Plot of Everyman

protagonist , everyman, must make a pilgrimage/ journey to the grave. God orders death to retrieve everyman and he seeks to avoid death by appealing to a host of characters but in the end all he is left with is his good works

Theme of Everyman

Death is inevitable

Every man must be ready stand before God and account for their time on Earth

Pearl Poet

An anonymous poet who became called after the title of one of his poems Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. he wrote two of the most important 14th century poems

What is the pearl poet known for

Pearl and Sir gawain and the green knight

alliterative verse

poetry that uses alliteration of a specific sound in each line

Symbols used in Sir Gawain and the green knight

Jealousy and nature, the pentangle, the green girdle

the pentangle

also called the sign of Solomon, a star inside a circle. called the endless knot

Context of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

The chivalric code and the courtly love of tradition

what is the dialect of sir gawain and the green knight

Northwest midlands

Thomas Malory

spent years in prison but his works show great concern for good behavior and moral responsibility

what house did thomas malory switch his allegiance from

he switched his allegiance from the house of York to the house of lancaster

What were thomas malory's works about

they described the world of king arthur and his knights of the round table

Le Morte D'Arthur, Thomas Malory

Completed in 1470

First account of the Arthurian Legend in modern English prose

Retells the adventure of the Knights of the Round Table in chronological sequence from the birth of Arthur

Based on French romance, but different from predecessors in its emphasis on the brotherhood of the knights rather than on courtly love, and on the conflicts of loyalty that finally destroyed the fellowship, brought about the adultery of Lancelot and Guinevere

prose romance

a romance without the lines and other conventions of poetry but with the usual romance content

legend

a narrative handed down from the past, containing historical elements and usually supernatural elements

Christ Figure

In literature, a character who in nature, actions, or role is identified with Christ.

Origin of Le Morte D'Arthur

from welsh & Celtic chieftain Ambrosius

Geoffrey of Monmouth

created the early version of the King Arthur story; The history of the kings of britain

Wace

fabricated history and romance made up the nights of the round table

French additions to king arthur

Nobility rather than military and also Lancelot du Lac

Malory's Le Morte D'Arthur

Camelot is threatened and ruined by lust, sorcery and greed. True nobility is not just a matter of birth but of character. Arthur will return

Geoffrey Chaucer

English poet remembered as author of the Canterbury Tales (1340-1400)

Satire

A literary work that criticizes human misconduct and ridicules vices, stupidities, and follies.

master of satire

Geoffrey Chaucer

3 divisions of chaucer's career

French, Italian, English

Chaucer's chief achievement

successfully brought vernacular english into the realm of literary works

Canterbury Tales

A collection of stories written in Middle-English by Geoffrey Chaucer at the end of the 14th century. The tales are told as part of a story-telling contest by a group of pilgrims as they travel together on a journey .

Conceit

a fanciful, particularly clever extended metaphor

frame-tale narrative

a collection of individual stories is yoked together under a controlling larger story about the group performance or journey

Unfinished Masterpiece

only 24 of the proposed 120 stories were completed

Canterbury Tales Prologue

setting - April, spring, begins at the Tabard Inn in London, England and moves toward Canterbury Who: people of varying social classes from all over England & Chaucer himself Why - to prepare for a pilgrimage to Canterbury to receive the blessings of Thomas a' Becket, the English martyr (formerly the Archbishop of Canterbury) Plot - Each pilgrim is encouraged to tell a tale in order to make the time go by faster as they journey to Canterbury. (2 going to Canterbury & 2 coming back) Each pilgrim draws straws to see who will tell the first story. The one who draws the shortest straw (the Knight) will tell the first tale. The pilgrims tell their tales, and it all comes to an end with Chaucer's retraction.

The Nuns' priest

Like the Second Nun, the Nun's Priest is not described in the General Prologue. His story of Chanticleer, however, is well crafted and suggests that he is a witty, self-effacing preacher. It directs his tale as a critique on several of the pilgrims and teaches the danger of conceit

Beast Fable

short tale, usually including a moral, in which animals assume human characteristics

mock epic

A parody of traditional epic form. It usually treats a frivolous topic with extreme seriousness, using conventions such as invocations to the Muse, action-packed battle scenes, and accounts of heroic exploits.

Parody

A work that closely imitates the style or content of another with the specific aim of comic effect and/or ridicule.

what season is alluded to in the Nuns' priests tale

Fall "March, the first month when god created man" it is a safe environment but also a warning. this is shown by the temptation by a woman and the flattery by the serpent

Moral of Nun's Priest's Tale

Don't believe flatterers; know when to keep your mouth shut; do not be easily persuaded;

Setting of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

Christmas at camelot

What is not associated with the green knight when he enters the banquet hall

a shield

what is the challenge to king arthur and his knights

The challenge is for him and one knight who has the "gall" to go strike for strike at each other the knight will seek out the Green Knight a year later

Who is the first to accept the Green Knight's challenge after he mocks the court?

King arthur

What reason does Sir Gawain give for why he should be the one to accept the challenge? What virtue does this reason show?

Humility He found it unfitting that the king should take the challenge when there are brave men all around him that should've taken the challenge

What virtuous act does Sir Gawain do before he takes leave of Arthur and sets off on his quest?

He "honored the almighty before seeking leave of the lords and ladies

What is the significance of the pentangle on Sir Gawain's shield?

It is a symbol that solomon put into place and represents the faithfulness and purity of Sir Gawain

What is the pact that Sir Gawain and the king of the grand castle make at the end of Part 2?

Whatever the king gets in the hunt, he will give to gawain and gawain will give the king whatever he wants in the king's absence

Which of the queen's gifts does Sir Gawain keep

the belt

What is Sir Gawain's reaction to the first blow the Green Knight swings? the second?

He flinched first and then stood still

Why is the Green Knight able to inflict a wound to Sir Gawain's neck on the third blow even though Gawain is wearing a protective charm?

Because the charm which was the girdle was woven by the green knight's wife and the pact was broken

Which of the following virtues does the Green Knight (and even Gawain himself) say Sir Gawain lacks?

Loyalty

What does the Green Knight say has purged Gawain of his failing, his breach of virtue?

Confessing his failings

The king and the Green Knight are the same person. True or False

True

Why was the Green Knight commissioned by Morgan LeFey to ride about issuing such outlandish challenges?

It was done to test the round table's worth