give an account of middle English poetry prior to chaucer
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Title: The Middle English Period - Geoffres Chaucer
The Middle English Period - Geoffres Chaucer
by Martina Winkler (Author)
Term Paper (Advanced seminar)200321 Pages
English Language and Literature Studies - Linguistics
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Excerpt
Table of contents
1) Introduction page
2) The Middle English Period
2.1) Chaucer’s Life (Biography) page
2.2) The English Language in the Fourteenth Century page (The Status of English)
3) Aspects of Chaucer’s English page
3.1) Chaucer’s Linguistical Influences
3.1.1) The French Influence page
3.1.2) The Latin Influence page
3.2) Chaucer’s Romance “Borrowings” page
3.3) Chaucer’s Vocabulary page
3.4) Pronunciation page
3.5) The Use of the final-e page
3.6) Chaucer’s Grammar page
4) The Early-Modern-English Period (1500 – 1800) page and the Process of Standarization
5) Bibliography page
1) Introduction
In this work I examine the history of the English language - especially the Middle English period throughout Geoffrey Chaucer. I also want to show how English has developed over the years and how it has been influenced. After the general view on Chaucer’s life and influences I try to give an overview of several aspects of the English language at this time. But I have to say that I can not go too far in detail in some points because there are too much facts which have influenced the English language. At last I close with a short view about the Early-Modern-English period.
2) The Middle English Period
2.1) Chaucer’s Life (Biography)
It is very difficult to trace a precise biography of Chaucer because we have no uninterrupted information about his life. We can only conjecture the manner in which Chaucer spent his life from hints given us in his own works, and from various notices in official records. The following biography gives dates which claim not to be a hundred percent correct, but are supposed to border an approximate period for a special event.
Geoffrey Chaucer was born in 1340 in London. His father was John Chaucer, citizen and vintner of London. His mother’s name was Agnes but we have no more information about her. His grandfather was Robert Chaucer who married a widow named Maria Heyronn. John Chaucer’s house stood in Upper Thames Street, beside Walbrook, just where that street is now crossed by the South-Eastern Railway from Cannonstreet Station. It is thought that Chaucer was sent for his early schooling to St Paul`s Almonry. Geoffrey’s father John Chaucer was in attendance on Edward III since 1338. This connection to the court led to his son’s employment there in the year 1357, as a page in the household of Elisabeth, wife of Lionel, Duke of Clarence, the third son of Edward III. Two years later, in 1359, Chaucer joined the army of Edward III when the king invaded France, and was there taken prisoner. In May of the following year the peace of Bretigny was concluded between the French and English kings. Chaucer had been set at liberty in March, when Edward paid for his ransom. It is not known when exactly Chaucer began to write poetry, but it is reasonable to believe that it was on his return from France. He set to work to translate the French poem The Roman de la Rose. From 1361 to 1366 Chaucer possibly accompanied Prince Lionel to Ireland, but we do not have exact information what happened to him or to his family during these years. During 1368 and part of 1369 Chaucer lived in London again. In October 1368, his patron, Prince Lional, died, and it appears that Chaucer’s services were consequently transferred to the next brother, John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster. In the autumn of the following year (1369) Blanche, the first wife of John of Gaunt, died at the early age of twenty-nine. Chaucer did honour to her memory in one of his earliest poems, entitled The Deth of Blaunche the Duchesse. From 1370 on Chaucer was attached to the court and employed in frequent diplomatic services. During this time The House of Fame and The Parliament of Fowls were written. Before 1372 Chaucer finished at least parts of a translation of The Roman de la Rose, The Book of the Duchess and The ABC of the Virgin. In December 1372, being employed in the king’s service, he left England for Genoa, Pisa, and Florence, and remained in Italy for nearly eleven months.