Guide to Old English [Paperback]

Bruce Mitchell (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0631166572 | ISBN-13: 978-0631166573 | Publication Date: April 15, 1992 | Edition: 5

A Guide to Old English is now the standard and most popular introduction to Old English language and literature. The fifth edition has been revised and corrected to take into account suggestions from teachers and students. The two most important new features are a substantial introduction to Old English metre (Appendix C of Part One) and the addition of Ælfric's account of Edmund King and Martyr to the prose texts of Part Two.

Key features of Part One are the fact that sound changes are not treated as an abstract system divorced from the texts, but are discussed when they become relevant to an understanding of the apparent irregularities in inflexion; the authoritative section on syntax; and the introduction to Anglo-Saxon studies, which discusses language, literature, history, archaeology, and ways of life. In Part Two the prose texts selected are those traditionally chosen by teachers precisely because they offer the best introduction to the literature and culture of the period. The verse texts, which with the exception of four extracts from Beowulf are all complete, show something of the range that Old English poetry offers in mood, intensity of feeling, humour, and natural observation. The texts are accompanied by full explanatory notes at the foot of the page and a detailed glossary.

Although most readers of A Guide to Old English will be undergraduate and graduate students, the book has been written so that it can be used by those working on their own who wish simply to gain a greater understanding and enjoyment of the language and literature of the Anglo-Saxons.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This is still the most comprehensive introduction to Old English available, providing detailed analysis of the language, literature, history, and culture of the Anglo-Saxons. This new edition expands on the changes in languages, and provides additional material on Beowulf."
—Stuart Lee, Oxford University

"Mitchell and Robinson's A Guide to Old English, now available in its eighth edition, is an invaluable resource for teaching and delighting students of Old English. It is unsurpassed in its combination of a meticulously scholarly approach with a wide-ranging selection of Old English texts. The authors' enthusiasm for the subject is evident on every page and carries the reader with it."
—Susan Irvine, University College London --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Language Notes

Text: English --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell; 5 edition (April 15, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0631166572
• ISBN-13: 978-0631166573
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,989,537 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

100 of 102 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Exceptionallly useful for self-study, July 5, 1999

By 

Peter S. Roland (Irving, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Guide to Old English (Paperback)

An excellent beginning grammer and reader. It is especially useful for self study. The explanation of grammatical points is clear, detailed and presumes no prior information. The "reader" is graded--i.e the easy stuff comes first. The glossary is absolutely invaluable because it lists every use of the word in the readings, identified by inflectional ending. If you look up a word, and it is used in the reading, that use will be specifically referrred to in the glossary (identified by line number in the work). Moreover, the specific form of the word used in that citing will be identified: if a noun, by case and number;if a verb by tense, mood and person. This means that if you are trying to teach yourself, you can attempt to parse a reading and then check your work using the glossary. The notes to the readings clarify exceptions, varient usages and dialectical anomalies. A Super Book!

56 of 57 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great for English majors, not so great for linguists, February 14, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: A Guide to Old English, Sixth Edition (Paperback)

_A_Guide_to_Old_English_ deserves its popularity in schools and is probably the best self-contained course in the subject for the general student of English. If you're an independent learner who's gotten it into your head to learn OE, this is also a good choice; in fact, the authors have opened their hearts to autodidacts and help you navigate your way through the book. I would hope, however, that you have already studied at least one inflected language (German is ideal). This book really should be subtitled _A_Reader's_Guide_, since the authors aim is to prepare beginners to decipher actual texts, not just memorize paradigms. To this end they acknowledge up front that many of the declensions are confused in the MSS; they note words likely to cause trouble and warn of places where singular and plural (or different cases, etc.) are likely to be mistaken for each other. The section on syntax is much fuller than is typical of first grammars--evidence of wise heads, as I see it, since syntax is much more important in OE than most students and perhaps some teachers realize. Also included is a long list of conjunctive phrases, a hallmark of OE and as important to know as all the subordinating constructions are in Latin. The reading selections are judiciously chosen, edited, and ordered. Delightful, and uncommon in works of this nature, are the occasional glimpses of the authors' personality that break through now and then: moments of humane warmth, or impatience with bumptious scholars (no names).

What this book lacks, however, is much historical or comparative linguistic detail. You would never know there was such a thing as i-stems, for example. The u-declension of nouns is identified by name, but no such honor is awarded the r-declension. If memory serves, the section on syntax, lengthy and helpful as it is, rarely draws the parallels with German that the reader might be interested to know. Thus students interested in Germanics--the ol' time philology--will need to supplement Mitchell and Robinson very early on in their studies. (If such things are of no interest to you, you may upgrade this review to 5 stars...but shame on you!!)

74 of 78 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Latin isn't the only language to improve your vocabulary!, October 30, 2000

By 

K. Ostertag "Reference Librarian" (Nanuet, NY USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Guide to Old English (Paperback)

Any student of English or German will find Old English a fascinating-- and familiar!-- language. (And don't forget FUN-- where else could you learn jaw-breakers like "neorxenawanges"? No, I'm not going to tell you what it means. Buy the book.)

The revised 4th edition of this work was my textbook through two semesters of Old English in college, and its ragged and well-thumbed condition is a testament to how much I loved it. Mitchell and Robinson offer a clear and well-balanced approach to the language, literature, and culture of Anglo-Saxon Britain. The authors include both prose and poetry in their broad sampling of literary styles, and their short-but-sweet introductions to each reading help to place the text in both lingustic and historical context. The readings themselves are both interesting (for example, anyone who thinks Anglo-Saxons had no sense of humor should try the Riddles) and short enough for a beginner to handle, and increase in difficulty as one proceeds through the book. The glossary provides references back to the texts, notes variations, and (most helpful!) provides "see" references for variant forms, including inflections. Best of all, they incorporate a pronunciation guide. Although you may feel silly doing it at first, Old English is best read aloud (it started that way, after all!), the better to hear its modern cognates.

Having since surveyed several other Old English "beginning" readers, I can honestly say this work is head and shoulders above everything else I've found. This is an excellent text for beginning students, I highly recommend it.