The Middle Ages

Readings

From your text book:
Introduction (pages 68-75)
"Ballads" and "Ballad Meter" (pages 76-83)
Geoffrey Chaucer (pages 84-87)
Canterbury Tales Prologue (pages 88-107)
from "Nun's Priest Tale" (pages 110-121)
from "Pardoner's Tale"(pages 122-129)
"Comment on The Tales" (Page 130)
Sir Gawain and the Green Night (pages 132-145)
Sir Thomas Mallory (page 148)
from Le Morte Darthur (pages 148-155)
The English Language (pages 157-162)

Other readings
Essay examples
Other sites linked on this page

Films
Becket
A&E Biography of King Arthur
Monthy Python and the Holy Grail *
Lion in Winter
*
(* These and a number of other films can give a good flavor of what  the Middle Ages were like)

Terms to learn
chivalry, courtly love, ballad, refrain, ironic humor, iambic pentameter, couplet. simile, irony, beast fable, allegory, satire, frame story, romance,

Assignments and Grades

Test on Middle Ages
Canterbury Tales questions (page 108, 1-10)
“Nun's Priest's Tale” questions (page 121, 5-8)
“Pardoner's Tale” questions (page 130-131, 6-11)
Recite Canterbury Tales Prologue (first 18 lines in Middle English)
Burlington Tales
Sir Gawain as a romance
Le Morte Darthur questions (page 155, 1-9)
Study guide
Extra credit

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Other Sites

Note: If you have troubles linking to these pages, or if a link doesn't work. see Mr. Mocarski, or Email him.

Chaucer and The Canterbury Tales

Geoffrey Chaucer was a big time poet in his day and The Canterbury Tales are a must read for most, if not all, serious students of literature. The version in your text was translated to more modern language, but the Tales were actually written in what is commonly referred to as Middle English. You could view Middle English as language bridge between Old English and Modern English. You can see more of a shift in language over time by reading Shakespeare.
pilgrims
Pilgrims on Their Way

The Canterbury Tales Project--images and some explanation of the Tales.
Canterbury Tales--contains all the tales in both Middle English and modern English.  
Chaucer - The Canterbury Tales -- links to different verisons and commentary on the Tales.
The Ellesmer Manuscript--explanation of the Tales.
Chaucer Page--lots of information about the man and his work. This is part of the Luminarium site below.
Meta Chaucer page--arguably the site to go to to find out where to go next to find out more about Chaucer and his work.
Yet another page--This page has a brief explanation of each of the characters in the prologue.  Look too at the page about Chaucer.
The Geoffrey Chaucer Page--Really good place for explanations of the Tales.



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Middle Ages 

Luminarium--several great pages with the literature, commentary, and explanation of different literary eras
Thomas a' Becket--what happened to him and his bones?
The Murder of Becket--an eyewitness account
Canterbury Cathedral--the unofficial pages
Canterbury Cathedral--the official site
The Middle Ages--take a tour with a knight, a peasant, or other characters from the period
The Internet Medieval Source Book--links to all kinds of sources
What Was Life in the Middle Ages Really Like?--this site answers that question and more



murder of becket

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King Arthur and the Other Knights

excalibur
Arthur Receiving Excalibur
Le Morte Darthur--Volume 1.  If you have time you can download the entire book.
Le Morte Darthur--Volume 2
A guide to Malory's book--neat timeline of what happens in the whole story
The Thomas Malory Page--a site devoted to Malory.  You can also find a middle English version of the book here.
The Camelot Project--lots of Arthurian projects here including some student work
Was Arthur a Real Person?--The history and legend of Arthur.  Follow the abundant links.
Idylls of the King--although Tennyson lived during the Victorian Period, his Arthur tale shows how popular the story remains.
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight--a prose translation of the Middle English
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight--a modern translation in the poem form with a glossary of difficult words.

behead
The Beheading of the Green Knight
(from the original manuscript)

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Middle English Language

Learning Chaucer's language--teach yourself Chaucer.  Good site to learn the pronunciation for the recitation assignment.
Meta Chaucer page--same as the above link.  Has numerous sound files of the Prologue.  Requires Real Player to hear.

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English Lit 1 Home Page

Email Questions to Mr. Mocarski