Medieval Lit
What two primary ways did medieval English literature engage with society?
It preserved English cultural values and strengthened communal relationships.
Who is known as the Father of English History?
Bede
What type of poem has a narrative as its basic content and often uses repetition?
A ballad
In what season does The Canterbury Tales begin?
Spring
What is a biography of a saint called?
Hagiography
What three works are considered great masterpieces of Middle English?
Gawain and the Green Knight, The Canterbury Tales, and Piers Plowman
Who is known as the first English poet?
Caedmon
Which song celebrates Christ's birth?
“I Sing of a Maiden”
What ultimately keeps the fox from stealing Chanticleer?
Chanticleer's quick wit/flattery
What is a larger story that provides structure to smaller narratives?
Frame tale
Most surviving medieval plays were written by whom and for whom?
Clergy; common people
What is the subject of “Caedmon’s Hymn”?
Creation
Which is NOT a type of medieval drama: morality, miracle, memorial, or mystery?
Memorial play
Which character does Chaucer portray as the ideal ecclesiastical pilgrim?
the Parson
What is the imitation of an author’s style for comic effect?
Parody
What spiritual allegory examines a man’s search for truth?
Piers Plowman
How does “Caedmon’s Hymn” demonstrate progression?
It progresses from Heaven to Middle Earth to Earth
What type of verse form contains an octave with lines alternating between three and four stresses and rhyming every other line?
A ballad stanza
What two genres does “The Nun’s Priest’s Tale” belong to?
A beast fable and a satire
What is the attitude an author has toward his subject that readers are meant to share?
Tone
What is the most widely known and best English medieval morality play?
Everyman
What was Bede’s purpose for An Ecclesiastical History of the English People?
To record the history of the English people and the growth of Christianity in England.
What two primary images does Julian of Norwich use in Chapter 5 of Revelations of Divine Love?
clothing imagery and a hazelnut
What genre/term uses humor, irony, or ridicule to expose and criticize faults or problems?
Satire
What is the difference between direct and indirect characterization?
Direct characterization explicitly tells readers about a character; indirect characterization reveals character through dialogue, description, or action.