For centuries philologists, linguists, and historians have read medieval books to study the language of a given work or to establish an accurate and readable text. Art historians also have considered illuminated manuscripts as important repositories for works of art. But in recent decades new interest has developed in the over-all physical format of the medieval book and its historical context - how manuscript books were made and how they have deepened our understanding of the intellectual and social milieu of the Middle Ages and Renaissance.

One of the richest storehouses of early...

The nine essays in this collection, selected from La th?ologie au douzi?me si?cle, inquire into the historical context and origins of medieval scholasticism. They are representative of Chenu's finest work.

'If P?re Chenu considers "history of theology" to be the central concern of this collection, it is because he conceives of theology as an all-encompassing science, one which reflects the comprehensive unity of intellectual life as that develops within a culture. Literary history and criticism, cultural history, philosophy, biblical exegesis, historiography, ecclesiastical...

The spread of the Arthurian legend during the course of the twelfth century is one of the most remarkable phenomena in literary history. Arthurian Chronicles looks at two unsung but deserving poets who contributed to the diffusion of the legend, Wace who preceded the more famous Chretien de Troyes, and Layamon, who followed him.

Wace was of an inquiring turn of mind, with, for his day, a scholarly and sceptical approach to lais, marvellous tales, and fables. Not all lies, nor all true, all foolishness, nor all sense. So much have the story-tellers told, and so much...

R.I. Moore traces the roots of dissent, the support which it commanded, and the reactions which it elicted from the holders of established power in the changing needs and conflicts of the expanding society of the eleventh and twelfth centuries: in spite of repression religious uniformity has never since reigned unchallenged. His controversial argument is that the ideas and aspirations of the heretics had far less to do with religious faith or outlook than with the consequences of social anxieties and frustrations. He holds too that similarly the dogma of the Catholic Church can be...

Marie de France, one of the best-known medieval women, is justly famous for her Lais, but her longer work, the Fables, has been newly discovered by modern audiences. This collection of 103 tales is the earliest extant vernacular collection of fables from western Europe.

Marie de France's sources are not clear; she appears to claim a unique source, but that is obviously not true; the first forty tales are part of the Latin tradition, specifically the Romulus Nilantii, but the other sixty-three seem to come from all over: other Greek and Latin works, fabliaux, monks' tales, the...

The seeds of heresy are contained in Christianity itself, which began as a religion of dissent. In the Middle Ages the Church was the main focus of intellectual activity, and its spiritual leaders themselves often questioned the practices and beliefs which heretics openly challenged.

The documentary analysed in this volume trace the development of popular heresy from its beginnings. Four main themes are presented: the first manifestations of popular dissent in the eleventh century; the emergence of evangelical anticlericalism in the twelfth century; the infiltration of western...

Selections from English Wycliffite Writings gathers together the main sources for the study of the Lollard movement, the documents of the Lollards themselves. Inspired and influenced by the writings of the heretical fourteenth century Oxford professor John Wyclif, Lollardy was the spiritual predecessor of the sixteenth century Reformation movement in England. Persecuted for their radical beliefs after 1425, the Lollards were well known for their possession of books, quires, and pamphlets in English, and left behind a considerable body of literature discussing religious and...

During the past thirty years, the study of medieval families has emerged as a focus of discussion in European history. Largely unexplored in professional publications and teaching curricula until the 1970s, family history is now accepted as an aspect of medieval history essential to the development of the period's institutions and culture, and a field useful to comparative family studies.

The present volume brings together essays by historians, art historians, and literary scholars about the structures, social functions, and emotional characteristics of families in the middle ages,...

The Scandinavian influence was the earliest, and arguably one of the strongest external forces that went into the making of modern English. Consequently, a knowledge of the Icelandic language is of utmost importance. Not only does Icelandic supply a linguistic basis for such a study, it also provides the source of a great deal of the necessary information for the understanding of medieval British history. Old Icelandic literature, both in poetry and prose, presents a wealth of interesting material, which in some respects stands unrivalled among the literatures of medieval Europe, and...