COURSE INFORMATION ANGLOSAXON SEMINAR Degree in English Philology School of Humanities Year 2011-2012 Optional course. Fourth year First and Second Semester; 3 hours a week. 2 days a week Credits: 9 TEACHING STAFF Prof.: Juan Gabriel Vázquez González Office: P11-alto 22 Phone: 959 219142 e-mail: [email protected] Office hours: First Term Monday: 9.00-10.30 Thursday: 10.30-13.30 Friday: 12-13.30 Second Term: Tuesday: 10.30-13.30 Thursday: 9.00-12.00 SYLLABUS 1. DESCRIPTION This course offers an introduction to Old English language and the culture of Anglo-Saxon England. 2. OBJECTIVES The main objective of this course is to provide the student with enough competence in Old English to be able to analyze, comment and translate different types of text from that period. The main aim is the philological commentary establishing relationships between the language and the socio-cultural context. By the end of the course students are expected to be able to: ° Read original texts using the appropriate pronunciation ° Identify and describe the main linguistic characteristics of Old English ° Have an adequate grasp of the morphological structure of Old English ° Analyse and translate texts of different levels of difficulty and of different nature in Old English ° Provide philological commentaries of texts of that period ° Value the main historical milestones and the defining factors of Anglo-Saxon England society and culture 5. TEACHING METHODOLOGY During the fist semester classes will consist of expositions and discussions of the theoretical aspects applying the concepts to the analysis, translation and commentary of texts of different levels of difficulty. During the second semester, classes will be mainly devoted to the analysis, translation and commentary of the texts with an emphasis on the socio-cultural aspects. 4. CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION : OLD ENGLISH AND THE ANGLO -SAXONS External history: Roman Britain. The Celts. The role of mercenary troops in the Roman militiae . The coming of the Germanic tribes -later termed Anglo-Saxons- to the isle: tradition (Gildas, Bede) and innovation (Campbell). The heptarquy. Heathenism in Anglo-Saxon England. The coming of Christianity to the isles. The Conversion of the English people. Monastic culture and the written legacy. Recording the most important historical events. Internal history: Old English and the Germanic languages. Processes of standarization –the fallacy of West Saxon standard- within overall linguistic variation. 2. THE STUDY OF OE GRAMMAR , 1: SPELLING , PRONUNCIATION AND PHONOLOGY The Runic alphabet. Runes, mysteric values and their adaptation to Christianity. A system of varying parameters: from the Futharc to the Futhorc . The Anglo-Saxon Runic corpus. Transliteration practice exercises: the Ruthwell Cross & the Franks Casket. The Latin alphabet: adapting the inventory to cope with Germanic sounds. Early and late spellings. Synchronic phonological description of West Saxon sounds: vowel, vowel-like and consonantal values. Orthographic correspondences. Diachronic phonological description of West Saxon sounds: Roger Lass, the main diachronic processes and his attempt to regularize the irregular from a morphophonological perspective. Oral pronunciation exercises. Phonological transcription exercises (simple texts). 1 3. THE STUDY OF OE GRAMMAR , 2: NOUNS AND NOUN PHRASES Nouns. Grammatical gender. Noun declensions: on (a)themes, strength and weakness. Towards an exhaustive typology. Declensions and frequency rates. Nouns in diachrony: processes of noun transference and reduction of the declensional noun list. OE Adjectives: again on strength, weakness and related usages. OE determiners and pronouns. A contrastive study of OE nominal and adjectival declensions taking as starting point the corresponding sections in the online University of Calgary and Virginia courses. 4. THE STUDY OF OE GRAMMAR , 3: VERBS AND VERB PHRASES OE verbs. Moods, tenses and inflexional endings. An alternative path: verbal periphrasis. The weak and strong typologies. The weak verb classes typology: a theme distinction. Strong verbs and the strong verbs classes: the ablaut patterns. Again on morphophonology, or systematizing the strong verb ablaut list. Gerundive constructions. A contrastive study of all these topics taking as starting point the corresponding sections in the online University of Calgary and Virginia courses. 5. THE STUDY OF OE GRAMMAR , 4: LEXIS The Proto-Indoeuropean inheritance: Proto-Indoeuropean, Proto-Germanic and beyond. On borrowings: Latin (pre- & post- conversion), Celtic, Scandinavian and French. OE Word formation: composition, affixation and conversion processes. A typology of noun and verb compounds. The vocabulary of Anglo-Saxon poetry and the kennings . OE derivation: on suffixes and prefixes. The coverage given to these topics in the aforementioned online references. The lexicographical perspective: learning to distinguish glossaries from dictionaries. Their pros and cons . Lost and found or utterly lost? A quick guide to how to look up a word in a dictionary and not failing in the attempt –or Introducing your new friend, Morphophonology. 6. THE STUDY OF OE GRAMMAR , 5: SYNTAX Within the noun and verb phrases: studying case usage, concordance and word order. OE parataxis and hypotaxis: types. 7. THE STUDY OF OE DIALECTS Approaching the dialectology of Anglo-Saxon England. Main types: West Saxon (Early & Late), Mercian and Northumbrian. The textual evidence. On dialects and political supremacy. Towards a feature description. Exercises: Cædmon’s Hymn and the Pater Noster in all the available versions. 8. INTRODUCING THE HISTORICAL AND SOCIOCULTURAL PERSPECTIVE The historical perspective: the Romans in Britain. The beginnings of Anglo-Saxon England. The arrival of Roman and Celtic Christianism. The Scandinavian raids and settlements. King Alfred, his kingdom, unification and nationalism. Danes and Normans. The sociocultural perspective (arquaeology, crafts and arts): Sutton Hoo and the burial ship. Weapons, jewels and coins. Anglo-Saxon sculpture. Wood and stone buildings. Ships. Pottery. Manuscripts. Editing history: learning how to cope with diversity of viewpoints. 9. THE TEXTS Divided into introductory and advanced texts. The introductory and perhaps a few of the advanced ones will be delivered to the student during the 1 st term. The advanced ones will be reached in the 2 nd term. 9.1. Introductory: the formation of the foetus: new medical research; Choose your birthday carefully; Unmusical laybrother sings Christian song in alliterative verse; Northumbria converted; The Prodigal Son; The Sacrifice of Isaac. 9.2. Advanced: 9.2.1. Prose: Bede’s Account of the Coming of the Angles, Saxons and Jutes; Cynewulf and Cyneheard (from The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle); King Alfred: on the State of Learning in England; Ine’s Laws (Extracts; Eadgifu (Charters). 9.2.2. Poetry: Beowulf (Extracts). The Rune Poem. The Nine Herbs Charm. Enigmas. 5. BIBLIOGRAPHY (GENERAL AND SPECIFIC ) Algeo, John. 1982. PROBLEMS IN THE ORIGINS AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE . New YorK: Harcourt- Brace-Jovanovich. Campbell, A. 1959. OLD ENGLISH GRAMMAR .. Oxford: Clarendon Press. Freeborn, D. 1999. FROM OLD ENGLISH TO STANDARD ENGLISH . A COURSE IN LANGUAGE VARIATION ACROSS TIME . London: Macmillan. Hogg, R (ed.) 1996. THE CAMBRIDGE HISTORY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE . VOLUME 1: FROM THE BEGINNINGS TO 1066 . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Lass, R. 1994. OLD ENGLISH : A HISTORICAL LINGUISTIC COMPANION . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Leith, D. 1987. A SOCIAL HISTORY OF ENGLISH . London and New York: Routledge. Mitchell, B. 1986. A GUIDE TO OLD ENGLISH . Oxford: Oxford University Press. Pyles, T. & J. Algeo. 1971. THE ORIGINS AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE . New YorK: Harcourt- Brace-Jovanovich. Quirk, R & C.L. Wrenn. 1955. AN OLD ENGLISH GRAMMAR . London: Methuen. 2 Spanish handbooks Fernández, F. 1993. HISTORIA DE LA LENGUA INGLESA . Madrid: Gredos. Montes et al. 1995 . EL INGLÉS ANTIGUO EN EL MARCO DE LAS LENGUAS GERMÁNICAS OCCIDENTALES . Madrid: CSIC. Historical and sociocultural references Stenton, F.M. 1971. ANGLO -SAXON ENGLAND . Oxford: Oxford University Press. Trevelyan, G. M. 1959. A SHORTENED HISTORY OF ENGLAND . London: Penguin Books. Whitelock, D. 1952. THE BEGINNINGS OF ENGLISH SOCIETY . London: Penguin. Specific references Mitchell, B. 1995. AN INVITATION TO OLD ENGLISH AND ANGLO -SAXON ENGLAND . Oxford: Blackwell. Whitelock, D. (ed.). 1967. SWEET ’S ANGLO -SAXON READER . Oxford: Oxford University Press. Murray McGillivray. Old English at the University of Calgary (http://www.ucalgary.ca/UofC/eduweb/engl401/ ) Peter Baker’s online Introduction to Old English ( http://www.wmich.edu/medieval/resources/IOE/index.html ). Accessed from Old Engish at UVA (http://www.engl.virginia.edu/OE/index.html). 6. ASSESSMENT ° Two semester exams or one final exam (70%) ° Mock exams (25%) ° Attending the so-called “talleres transversales” (5%) SEPTEMBER/D ECEMBER: In September/December there will be a single exam amounting to 100% of the grade. 3.