Assignment: Middle English

1. Approximately when was Middle English spoken?
Middle English was spoken after the Norman invasion in 1066 (11th century) and about 1470.

2. What were the major factors which led to the development and the spread of Middle English?
The variant of the Northumbrian dialect (prevalent in Northern England) spoken in southeast Scotland was developing into the Scots Language. The language of England as used after this time, up to 1650, is known as Early Modern English.

3. Match the following Old English words with their Anglo-Norman equivalent:
A. Pig - Pork
B. Cow - Beef
C. Wood - Forest
D. Sheep - Mutton
E. House - Mansion
F. Worthy - Honourable
G. Bold - Courageous

4. Compare & contrast the structure of nouns, pronouns and verbs, between Middle English & Modern English.
With its simplified case-ending system, the grammar of Middle English is much closer to that of modern English than that of Old English. Compared to other Germanic languages, it is probably most similar to that of modern Dutch.
Nouns: Middle English retains only two separate noun-ending patterns from the more complex system of inflection in Old English.The strong -s plural form has survived into Modern English, while the weak -n form is rare (oxen, children, brethren ; and in some dialects eyen [instead of eyes], shoon [instead of shoes], hosen [instead of hose(s)] and kine [instead of cows]).

Verbs: the first person singular of verbs in the present tense ends in -e ("ich here" - "I hear"), the second person in -(e)st ("þou spekest" - "thou speakest"), and the third person in -eþ ("he comeþ" - "he cometh/he comes"). (þ is pronounced like the unvoiced th in "think").

In the past tense, weak verbs are formed by adding an -ed(e), -d(e) or -t(e) ending. These, without their personal endings, also form past participles, together with past-participle prefixes derived from Old English: i-, y- and sometimes bi-. Strong verbs, by contrast, form their past tense by changing their stem vowel (e.g. binden -> bound), as in Modern English.

Pronouns: Post-Conquest English inherits its pronouns from Old English, with the exception of the third person plural, a borrowing from Old Norse (the original Old English form clashed with the third person singular and was eventually dropped). The first and second person pronouns in Old English survived into Middle English largely unchanged, with only minor spelling variations. In the third person, the masculine accusative singular became 'him'. The feminine form was replaced by a form of the demonstrative that developed into 'she', but unsteadily—'ho' remained in some areas for a long time. The lack of a strong standard written form between the eleventh and the fifteenth century makes these changes hard to map.

The overall trend was the gradual reduction in the number of different case endings: the dative case disappeared, but the three other cases were partly retained in personal pronouns, as in he, him, his.

5. How is pronunciation different between Middle English and Modern English?
All letters in Middle English words were pronounced, therefore 'knight' was pronounced /knɪçt/ (with a pronounced and the as the in German 'Knecht'), not /naɪt/ as in Modern English. In earlier Middle English all written vowels were pronounced.

6. What is the Chancery Standard, and how did it come into effect?
It was a written form of English used by government bureaucracy and for other official purposes from the late 14th century. It is believed to have contributed in a significant way to the development of the English language as spoken and written today. Because of the differing dialects of English spoken and written across the country at the time, the government required a clear and unambiguous form for use in its official documents. Chancery Standard was developed to meet this need.

7. Who wrote the Canterbury Tales?
The stories were written by Geoffrey Chaucer in the 14th century.

8. Describe the medieval pilgrims who journeyed from Canterbury to London.
The pilgrimage was a very prominent feature of medieval society. Pilgrims would frequently journey to cathedrals that preserved relics of saints. They believed that such relics had miraculous powers. Pilgrimages also represented the mortal journey to heaven through the struggles of mortal life.

9. Why did the pilgrims take this journey?
Canterbury was a popular destination within England. Saint Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, had been killed in the Canterbury cathedral by knights who had misunderstood Henry II's order during a disagreement between him and Becket. Miracle stories connected to his remains began to spring up soon after his death, and the area became a popular pilgrimage destination. For that reason they wanted to find the holy blessed martyr.

10. It is thought that some of the stories in The Canterbury Tales originated in Italy. What was the name of the Italian book and who wrote it?
The name of the italian book is The Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio.

11. The Canterbury Tales is considered an extremely important book, both in terms of English Literature & in the history of English writing. In your opinion, why is this book so important?
The book is important because is an important piece of English literature that give us a sample of the history and the society in the Middle ages and we can compare and realize that there is not so much difference about nowadays just the technology. Also it’s a record of the roots of English and how this has evolved.

12. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is: "D"
a. A collection of German folk tales, similar to Grimm's Fairy Tales.
b. A collection of Japanese ghost stories, similar to Kwaidan.
c. A detailed explanation of the proper etiquette & behaviour for all knights in Medieval Europe. d. A medieval romance poem, with Arthurian themes.
e. None of the above.
f. All of the above.

13. Who is Sir Gawain?
He is King Arthur's nephew and a Knight of the Round Table.

14. What is the challenge that The Green Knight proposes to the Knights of the Round Table?
The Green Knight offers to allow anyone to strike him with his axe if the challenger will take a return blow in a year and a day.

15. What is the similarity between Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and the Irish tale of Cúchulainn?
The similitary between the tales is that Cuchulainn's antagonist feints three blows with the axe before letting his target depart without injury.

16. What is the importance of the pentagram/pentangle in the poem?
The pentangle on Gawain's shield is seen by many critics as signifying Gawain's perfection and power over evil. The poem describes the pentangle as a symbol of faithfulness and an "endless knot". In line 625, it is described as "a sign by Solomon". Solomon, the third king of Israel, in 10th century B.C. was said to have the mark of the pentagram on his ring, which he received from the archangel Michael. The pentagram seal on this ring was said to give Solomon power over demons.

17. How are numbers used to symbolize events in the poem?
The poet highlights number symbolism to add symmetry and meaning to the poem. For example: three kisses are exchanged between Gawain and Bertilak's wife; Gawain is tempted by her on three separate days; Bertilak goes hunting three times, and the Green Knight swings at Gawain three times with his axe, or the fifth five is Gawain himself, who embodies the five moral virtues of the code of chivalry: "friendship, generosity, chastity, courtesy, and piety". All of these virtues reside, as the poet says, in the "Endless Knot" of the pentangle, which forever interlinks and is never broken

18. What is the significance of Sir Gawain's neck wound?
During the medieval period, the body and the soul were believed to be so intimately connected that wounds were considered an outward sign of inward sin. The neck, specifically, was believed to correlate with the part of the soul related to will, connecting the reasoning part (the head) and the courageous part (the heart).

19. Which actor played The Green Knight in the film adaptation, Sword of the Valiant?
The actor was Sean Connery.

20. In many ways this poem is, in the modern sense, a soap opera. Compare Sir Gawain and the Green Knight with a modern Chilean teleseries.