Comparative Literature 597R - ST-MultilingMedvalRoots/EngLit

Using a comparative approach, the class will read translations of secular literary works written in all the vernacular languages spoken in the British Isles from the seventh through the thirteenth centuries: Anglo-Saxon, Welsh, Irish, Norse, and French. Themes will include conflict and war, love and mysticism, tragedy and comedy, myth and courtly romance, and reworked tales of the old gods. The readings will be compared across the five cultures, all of which are the heritage of modern English literature. English literature emerges from the multiplicity and complexity of these diverse medieval cultures, as can be seen in Chaucer's CANTERBURY TALES, and this heritage also undergirds the richness of modern English literature in all the varieties of English around the world.