Mediaeval England in Chaucer’s Eyes 3301-JF2663-2ST
An advanced linguistic course for MA students interested in the language of Middle Ages and the description of reality as found in Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales. The aim of the course is to present the most important features of Middle English as well as selected cultural and social aspects.
A course which discusses Chaucer’s language as a dialect that was a direct ancestor of present-day Standard English. Students will get acquainted with the spelling, pronunciation, morphology and lexis of Middle English to be able to read and understand the passages of The Canterbury Tales in their original form. Selected fragments will be used for a discussion on mediaeval reality as seen and pre-sented by Chaucer. We will explore social (social classes and rela-tions between their representatives, language of different social classes, role of women in the society) and cultural (outfit, hospitality, art, religion) aspects. During the course, students will be analysing selected passages to investigate his world from the linguistic-cultural perspective.
The range of subjects discussed (language):
(1) rhymes and rhythm
(2) spelling and pronunciation
(3) native and foreign vocabulary
(4) morphology: most important endings
(5) morphology: word-formation
(6) sentence structure
(7) styles in utterances
The range of subjects discussed (society and culture):
(1) Chaucer and his times: historical backgrount
(2) representatives of various social classes (way of presentation and its analysis)
(3) relations between representatives of various social classes (dia-logues, author’s opinion)
(4) Chaucer’s women (way of presentation and its analysis)
(5) religion and beliefs (way of presentation and its analysis).
Type of course
Mode
Prerequisites (description)
Course coordinators
Learning outcomes
Knowledge: the student will be able to
K_W01 identify and characterize on an advanced level the place and status of linguistics, especially historical linguistics, within the hu-manities
K_W03 identify the essential issues and main methods in diachronic linguistics
K_W09 describe on an advanced level the current trends in dia-chronic studies research within English studies
Abilities: the student will be able to
K_U01 apply advanced terminology and notions pertinent to histori-cal linguistics
K_U03 apply knowledge obtained during the course of studies to account for and solve a problem, thereby completing a research task related to the discipline linguistics
K_U04 analyze linguistic, literary and cultural phenomena of medi-aeval times and draw generalizations on their basis in the context of societal, historical and economic factors on an advanced level
K_U06 find information in various sources (historical dictionaries and corpora) and critically assess its usefulness for research re-lated to the topic
Social competences: the student is ready to
K_K01Apply knowledge and skills obtained during the course of studies to fulfill societal obligations and undertake actions benefit-ting the social environment
K_K02Apply knowledge and skills obtained during the course of studies to undertake lifelong learning, as well as personal and pro-fessional development
K_K03Take responsibility for performing one’s professional duties, with due respect for the work of others, obey and develop the ethi-cal norms in professional and academic settings related to the dis-ciplines included on the curriculum of English studies
K_K04Assess critically one’s own knowledge and skills related to the studies
K_K06Value cultural heritage and cultural diversity as well as indi-vidual opinions
Language competence at B2+ level.
In class discussions students acquire skills of expressing their thoughts in a clear, coherent, logical and precise manner, with the use of language which is correct grammatically, lexically and pho-netically.
Assessment criteria
Active participation in classes which requires preparation.
Obligatory homework: an analysis of a passage from Chaucer’s work and questions pertaining to that passage.
Final test at the end of the course which includes general questions as well as the analysis of the selected passages from Chaucer's work. The student can be absent no more than 3 times.
Bibliography
Benson, L. D. (ed.). The Riverside Chaucer. Oxford: OUP.
Brink, B.A. 1901. The Language and Metre of Chaucer. London: Macmillan and Co.
Coulton, G.G. 2011. Chaucer and His England. New York: Wallachin Publisher.
Fisiak, Jacek. 1968. A Short Grammar of Middle English. Warsaw: PWN.
Horobin, S. 2007. Chaucer’s Language. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
Hughes, G. 2000. A History of English Words. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing.
Kastovsky, D. 2006. “Vocabulary”. In: R. Hogg—D. Denison (eds.) A History of he English Language. Cambridge: CUP. 199–270.
Knapp, P. 1990. Chaucer and the Social Contest. London: Routledge.
Lass, R. 2006. “Phonology and morphology”. In: R. Hogg — D. Denison (eds.) A History of he English Language. Cambridge: CUP. 43–108.
Martin, P. 1990. Chaucer’s Women. Nuns, Wives and Amazons. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press.
Minkova, D. — R. Stockwell. English Words. History and Structure. Cambridge: CUP.
Schlauch, M. 1965. The English Language in Modern Times. War-saw: PWN.
Smith, J. 1992. “The use of English: language contact, dialect varia-tion, and written standardisation during the Middle English period”. In: T.W. Machan — Ch.T. Scott (eds.) English in Its Social Context. Essays in Historical Sociolinguistics. Oxford: OUP. 47–68.
Wełna, J. 1990. “On transcribing Chaucer”. In: A. Weseliński (ed.) Studies in English and American Literature (Anglica 1). 163–174.
Wełna, Jerzy. 1978. A Diachronic Grammar of English. Part One: Phonology. Warsaw: PWN.
Additional information
Additional information (registration calendar, class conductors, localization and schedules of classes), might be available in the USOSweb system: