A Concise Companion to Middle English Literature

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A Concise Companion to Middle English Literature examines contexts that are essential to understanding and interpreting writing in English produced in the period between approximately 1100 and 1500. The essays in the book are focused around the concept that Middle English literature is 'different' from the literature of other periods, and that it is this difference that makes it especially fascinating for readers. Tying information about the period to the analysis of texts, the book includes discussion of such issues as the religious and historical background to Middle English literature, the circumstances and milieux in which it was produced, its linguistic features, and the manuscripts in which it has been preserved. Amongst the great range of writers and writings discussed, the book considers the works of the most widely read Middle English author, Chaucer, against the background of the period that he both typifies and subverts. This engaging book offers readers who are approaching Middle English literature for the first time the information that they need to understand a period that is sometimes perceived to be arcane. The incorporation of fresh material and new insights also makes this volume essential reading for specialists in the field.