Class Recap: September 6, 2016

Welcome to ENGL 3300: British Literature I!

Today we went over important notes from the syllabus and met one another. We did not have much time to talk about canonicity or to look at "Cædmon's Hymn," so your writing assignment for Thursday asks you to look at the poem and write a response about it in preparation for Thursday. For reminders about the expectations and grading associated with this assignment, see the assignment sheet for Weekly Reading Responses.

Homework:

Readings from the Broadview anthology:

• Background: “The Medieval Period,” pp. 1-12.
• Bede, The Ecclesiastical History of the English People (excerpts), pp. 36-50.
• “The Dream of the Rood,” pp. 58-60.

Additional readings: 

• Alfred’s “Preface to Pastoral Care," in the "Old English" PDF. 

Please upload a reading response to the Dropbox labeled "Response 1 - September 8 - Cædmon's Hymn" before class on Thursday. 

Weekly Writing Prompt - September 8, 2016

Please write 1-2 pages responding to the prompt below and upload it before class begins on Thursday. 

"Cædmon's Hymn" is, as far as we know, the earliest recorded English poem. The Venerable Bede records it in Latin in his Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum (The Ecclesiastical History of the English People or sometimes called The History of the English Church and People). Later, Bede's Historia was translated into multiple Old English editions, and "Cædmon's Hymn" was also translated. Below are all three versions of the poem, including in Modern English. Attached is a photo of one of the manuscripts of the poem, with the lines of the poem labeled. 

Take a look at the poem. What do you notice about the manuscript? About the way the poem is formatted? Write a 1-2 page paper reflecting on the poem in the manuscript and in the table below. What poetic features do you see in the translation? Does the state of the poem in the manuscript surprise you? Why? What is the poem about? What kinds of metaphors are used? What might this poem tell you about the Anglo-Saxons? How does Bede use it in his Historia and why does he quote it? Why does he write it in Latin? Why are we reading a Latin poem in an English class? If you take a look at the Old English below, what do you notice? What formal poetic features do you see--or what would you expect to see that is missing? What do you notice about the formatting of this version of the poem? etc. You do not have to answer all the above questions, but they are things to consider and can offer you a place to start.

Old English

nu sculon herigean     heofonrices weard
meotodes meahte     and his modgeþanc
weorc wuldor-fæder     swa he wundra gehwæs
ece drihten     or onstealde
he ærest sceop     ielda bearnum
heofon to hrofe     halig scyppend
ða middangeard     moncynnes weard
ece drihten     æfter teode
firum foldan     frea ælmihtig

Latin

Nunc laudare debemus auctorem regni caelestis,potentiam creatoris, et consilium illiusfacta Patris gloriae: quomodo ille,cum sit aeternus Deus, omnium miraculorum auctor exstitit;qui primo filiis hominumcaelum pro culmine tectidehinc terram custos humani generiscreavit.omnipotens

Modern English

Now [we] must honour the guardian of heaven,

the might of the architect, and his purpose,

the work of the father of glory as he, the eternal lord, established the beginning of wonders;

he first created for the children of men heaven as a roof, the holy creator

Then the guardian of mankind,

the eternal lord, afterwards appointed the middle earth, the lands for men, the Lord almighty.

In the Manuscript

Other Notes:

• Sign up for Article Precis dates.
• Please turn in a $5 copy card by next Thursday, September 15.
• Make sure you have read and understand the syllabus and reading schedule.
• View today's Powerpoint here.