Midterm 1 Keywords Flashcards
(17 cards)
Survey
The act of looking at something as a whole, or from a commanding position; a general or comprehensive view or look.
Tradition
Denotes the inherited past which is available for the writer to study and learn from. Every writer in some way modifies or influences that tradition
Old English
The language of the Anglo-Saxons, a highly inflected language with a largely Germanic vocabulary.
Alliteration
the occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words.
Close Reading
The poem is treated as a self-contained and self-sustaining unit of meaning which does not have to be explained in terms of its author’s personality or biography, or in terms of historical and social factors.”
Elegy
Short OE poems of exile or longing. Usually in the form of a monologue. May or may not be a consolation in the ending
Ubi sunt
Where are they?
The opening words of a number of Med[ieval] L[atin] poems, they are now used to classify a particular kind of poem that dwells on and laments the transitory nature of life and beauty.
Middle English
Time when English is starting to regain it’s status
No silent consonants
Final “e” pronunciation on words depends on context, depending on what the next word starts with.
Estates Satire
Makes fun of the 3 estates and its kind of like a survey of society. Critics the estates, pointing out flaws. Sometimes tried to offer solutions
Fabliau
a. Short humorous tale
b. Bodies, bodily functions, sex
c. Lower class characters
d. Set in the real world
e. Set in the present
f. Simple style (but this is misleading)
i. Story has to be tightly constructed in order for it to work
g. Who is it supposed to be funny to?
i. Funny for some, but not to others (who gets punished?)
Quite
To respond to, or to repay like a revenge. Like the Miller’s tale mocking the Knight’s tale
Courtly Love
illegitimate
secret
lover (male) serves superior beloved (female)
ennobling
Gloss
To gloss, comment on, interpret, explain, paraphrase
To obscure the truth of (a matter), falsify (a statement)
Romance
Does not equal love. Set in far away/long ago. Stories involve aristocrats. About love and chivalry. Have happy endings
Gentilesse
Having the character or manners prescribed by the ideals of chivalry or Christianity: noble, kind, gracious
Pardoner
Suppose to sell a document that could offer relief from punishment for sins (indulgences). Not suppose to relieve grief.
Simony
Buying or selling of anything spiritual. Bad because it focused on earthly, material wealth.
