Book of Middle English, Second Edition [Paperback]

J. A. Burrow (Author), Thorlac Turville-Petre (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0631193537 | ISBN-13: 978-0631193531 | Publication Date: February 12, 1996 | Edition: 2

This revised edition takes account of suggestions and comments from reviewers and from those who have used the first edition all over the world. The main features of the second edition are the inclusion of etymologies in the glossary and the edition of three complete texts by Chaucer: The Parliament of Fowls, The Reeve's Tale and The Prioress's Tale. Part One has been revised to cover English at the time of Chaucer, and suggestions for further reading have been updated throughout the book.

Editorial Reviews

Review

From reviews of the first edition

‘This impressive new textbook is in every respect a model of careful planning and thoughtful execution. It offers the student both introduction to the study of Middle English language (presuming no background in Old English) and a well-chosen selection of texts that provides and excellent cross-section of the wide variety of literary types produced during the Middle English period.’ – Speculum

‘Readable and sympathetic to students (it never loses sight of Modern English) it will be appreciated by teachers as a precious tool for seminar work.’ – Medium Ævum

‘The evidence of careful thought is everywhere…. So well-composed a book of Middle English deserves to succeed.’ –YES

Language Notes

Text: English --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 373 pages
• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell; 2 edition (February 12, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0631193537
• ISBN-13: 978-0631193531
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #990,255 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

66 of 68 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars a well-structured, easy-to-use textbook for the beginner, June 20, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Book of Middle English, Second Edition (Paperback)

Designed as a companion volume to "A Guide to Old English" by Bruce Mitchell and Fred C. Robinson, this book is a straightforward introduction to Middle English, the language (or rather, the group of dialects) spoken and written in England from about 1100, after the Norman Conquest, to 1450/1500. The book begins with an overview of the basics, including dialects, grammar and pronunciation (which is described using modern British, rather than American, sounds). The rest of the book consists of examples of Middle English texts, from oldest to youngest -- mostly poetry, though some prose is included as well. Difficult or unusual terms are glossed at the bottom of the page, but for most definitions you'll have to turn to the glossary (dictionary) at the back of the book. Middle English is rich in dialectal and spellingvariants, but the authors are nice enough to refer to you the main entry in cases of variant spellings. Most of the texts are excerpts; you won't find the whole Canterbury Tales here, but rather two complete tales, with "The Parliament of Fowls [fools]" to round out the Chaucer offerings. Other highlights include Lazamon "Brut," (lines 10534-10706), an excerpt from "The Peterborough Chronicle" (1137), a "York Play of the Crucifixion" and small parts of "Piers Plowman" and "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight." There are plenty of bibliographical references for each text if you become interested in learning more. Don't expect facing-page modern-English translations -- the writers provide you the tools to decode the original texts for yourself. This a book primarily for those interested in linguistic and/or literary analysis. You'll also get plenty of insight into how different (and weirdly artificial) our standardized modern (especially American) English is from the chaos of the ME era. The writers point out right at the beginning that "authors in the twelfth, thirteenth and fourteenth centuries generally wrote the English that they spoke -- whether in London, Hereford, Peterborough, or York." This book could easily be used by the non-specialist or curious reader who just wants an idea of what Middle English was, but it is probably best used as a textbook in a classroom setting. The independent reader might want to get one of the many good sound recordings of Chaucer's poetry in order to get an idea of what late Middle English sounded like. If you want to delve into the fascinating history of English, I'd recommend starting with a general history and then moving up to a book like this. You don't need a knowledge of Old English, however, to start studying ME -- in fact, it might even be easier to work your way back in history rather than forwards. All in all, a valuable book for those who want to know more about English.

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good introduction to the language, October 18, 2001

By 

"dersven" (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Book of Middle English, Second Edition (Paperback)

I first bought the Guide to Old English and found it to be well organized and very good for a reference. Since this book was designed to be like A Guide to Old English, I figured it would be just as good. It is a good introduction to the language but doesn't contain nearly the amount of introductory explanation as the Guide does. It provides many more texts in the back however. I found it very helpful to have a good grasp of Old English grammar and basic forms. To be fair though, it's harder to make generalizations about Middle English because of the tremendous time and regional variance. The glossary however, does leave a bit to be desired, it is not quite as thorough as the Guide was, and sometimes they assume that you can derive the modern form from the middle English. Overall though, it's a decent book and worthy of 4 stars. There's little wrong with this book that another edition couldn't clear up.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A classroom text designed to introduce readers to comprehending the language and literature of England between 1150 and 1400, December 9, 2005

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Book of Middle English (Paperback)

Now in its third edition, enhanced with revisions to key works in light of new editions, updated bibliographies, and two new extracts from "Pearl" and Chaucer's "Troilus and Criseyde", A Book Of Middle English is a scholarly classroom text designed to introduce readers to comprehending the language and literature of England between 1150 and 1400. Part One focuses on understanding how to pronounce Middle English, and its rules of grammar, syntax, and applications of meter in rhyming verse; Part Two offers a selection of Middle English reading material including "The Owl and the Nightingale", The Cloud of Unknowing", Sir Gawain and the Green Knight", and many more. An excellent practical resource for literature students and scholars striving to better understand classical writings in their original language.