Boar and Bear Hunt, from Devonshire Hunting Tapestries in V & A Museum, late 1420s.
Now available on Read Great Literature: an annotated listing of the best literature from the English Middle Ages.
Click here to take a look at the best and most famous works from the Middle Ages. Pick out something new to read, or just enjoy learning something about the major works and authors from the very beginnings of literature written in English!
Before you click, however, take a minute to read this post for some great background on Middle Ages English Literature.
First, this!
When you read Middle Ages English literature, you will encounter a lot of firsts:
- First major poem written in the English language (The Canterbury Tales)
- First autobiography written in English (The Book of Marjory Kempe)
- The oldest book known to have been written in English by a woman (Revelations of Divine Love).
You will also encounter many kinds of writing:
- Compendiums of tales and stories
- Chivalric romances recounting Knightly adventures
- Tales of courtly love and love laments
- Devotional writing
- Mystery and Morality plays, some serious but more often funny
- Philosophical and social critique
Author William Langland depicted in stained glass, Church of St Mary the Virgin in Cleobury Mortimer, Shropshire.
Continue reading
Mary Jane is a longtime literature lover who lived in the Cincinnati area for many years, then in central Louisiana for three years (what a treat!), teaching literature classes at universities in both locations. Now back in the Cincinnati area, she pampers her grandchildren, experiments with cooking, and visits art museums as often as possible.
