Medieval Period Essay

What is it all about? – it is all about the period, age or era after the fall of Roman Empire and the beginning of â€Å"rebirth† or the Rennaisance period. – it is the bridge with these two very important eras in literature. What is the meaning of medieval and period? – the term medieval comes from the latin word â€Å"medium aevum† which means â€Å"middle age†. Medieval was 1st used in the 19th century and the original spelling of it is â€Å"mediavel†. -period means a length of time that is very important in the history of the world or nation. What do you mean by A.D. and C.E. means? – A.D. means â€Å"anno domini† which is the latin for â€Å"in the year of our God† the year after his birth. – C.E. means â€Å"common era† Many writers prefer to use CE than AD .. so, AD and CE are just the same like BC which means Before Christ and BCE which means Before Common/Christian Era. Why it is called the Dark Age? But why it is also known as The Age of Faith? -at first, Medieval Period was called DA because of 4 reasons 1. Ignorance and brutality 2. No scientific accomplishments had been made 3. No great art produced 4. No great leaders born But when the scholars began to appreciate the medieval period’s architecture, philosophy, and literature, they labeled this as â€Å"The Age of Faith† because most of the works are centered on religous teachings in the reason that religion is the most powerful institutuion during the time. Describe Medieval Period. – pervasive christianity – poverty – ignorance – economic chaos – bad government – plague – cultural and artistic achievement – technological development Social Classes in Middle Ages 1. Royalty – highest social class (kings, queens, princes and princesses) 2. Nobility – (hereditary and non-hereditary nobility) 3. Hereditary Nobility – (dukes and dutchess, barons) 4. Non-Hereditary Nobility – (knights, popes, bishops, priests, monks,clergy) 5. Common People – (Serfs, freemen, slaves, peasants) Development of Medieval Period – there are three major divisions on the development of Medieval Period : Early, High and Late Middle Ages. How stuff works on the Early M.P.? 1. In this part is where the Dark Age is associated wherein literacy, ignorance and brutality are prevailing. 2. Christianity became the standard bearer of Western Civilization wherein the papacy gained authority 3. Feudalism is the manorial system 4. Monasteries were founded as campaign for Christian empowerment 5. North Africa and Middle East came under the rule of Caliphate, an Islamic Group How stuff works in the High M.P.? -it began after 1000AD 1. Technological and agricultural innovations flourished together with the population. 2. Climate changed to warm which allowed crop yield to increase. 3. Still feudalism is the manorial system. 4. Crusade – in 1905 – military attempt to regain control of the Middle Easter Holy Land from Caliphate 5. Kings became the heads of nation states, which lead to reduce of crime and violence 6. In this time, the first universities were founded and intellectual life began How stuff works in Late M.P.? 1. It is marked by difficulties and calamities including famine, plague and war. 2. Black Death – between 1347 amd 1350, a mysterious disease known as the Black Death (the bubonic plague). It killed some 20 million people in Europe. 3. Economic expansion, political centralization, and secularization foreshadowed due to transition from medieval to modern. Despite of difficulties and calamities, it is where medieval empowerment stimulated. 4. Age of exploration 5. The church was weakened by conflicts and quarrels between church and state 6. Peasants’ revolt. What are the causes of end of M.P? -1453 the capture of Constantipole by the Turk -1453 the end of the hundred years war between the English and Fench because of invasion -1492 the Muslims being rejected from Spain -1492 the discovery of America by Columbus -1512 the Protestant Reformation starting with the beginning of Rennaisance Period. Heritage of Medieval Period During the medieval period there were many advancements. Justice and Law Codes: Justinian’s Code,Great Council (Parliament), Magna Carta Trade and Business: Marketplace & Trade Fairs, Banks  Architecture: Cathedrals, Castles,Romanesque, Medieval, Gothic Architecture Formal Learning: Guilds, Universities Public Conduct: Code of Chivalry, Heraldry,Holy Relics Art: Stained Glass Windows, Tapestries,Gregorian Chants, Medieval Music, Epic Poetry,Troubadours, Illuminated Manuscripts, Mystery Plays, Miracle Plays, Morality Plays,Architecture Farming: Horse-drawn plow, Horse Collar, Horseshoes Seven new sites that dated from the medieval period added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List. Bolgar Historical and Archeological Complex (Russia) Namhansanseong (Republic of Korea) The Grand Canal (China) Silk Roads : The Routes Network of Chang’an-Tianshan Corridor (China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyztan) Rani-ki-Vav (The Queen’s Stepwell) at Patan, Gujarat (India) Pyu Ancient Cities (Myanmar) Bursa and Cumalikizik: The Birth of the Ottoman Empire (Turkey) Some of the significant Medieval Heritage Aachen Cathedral Abbey and Altenmà ¼nster of Lorsch Abbey Church of Saint-Savin sur Gartempe Amiens Cathedral Archaeological Ensemble of the Bend of the Boyne Arles, Roman and Romanesque Monuments Bauhaus and its sites in Weimar and Dessau Beemster Polder Belfries of Belgium and France Benedictine Convent of St John at Mà ¼stair Bergpark Wilhelmshà ¶he Berlin Modernism Housing Estates Blenheim Palace Bordeaux, Port of the Moon Bourges Cathedral Canterbury Cathedral, St Augustine’s Abbey, and St Martin’s Church Castles and Town Walls of King Edward in Gwynedd Castles of Augustusburg and Falkenlust at Brà ¼hl Cathedral of Notre-Dame,Former Abbey of Saint-Rà ©mi andPalace of Tau, Reims The Causses and the Cà ©vennesMedieval Literature Medieval Literature England is the birth place of Medieval Literature Latin was the common language for medieval writings Clergy are the people who write religious works The early literature of this period consists of sermons, prayers, lives of saints and homilies. -some of the noted works are 1. Green Knight 2. Sir Gawain 3. The Pearl 4. The Book of the Duchess 5. The Parliament of Fowls 6. The  House of Fame 7. Troilus and Criseyde 8. The Canterbury Tales 9. The Legend of Women 10. The Complaint of Chauser to his Empty Purse Types of Writings Religious – dominant form of literature Composed of hymns, liturgy, hagiographies,religious poems Some works of this type: Golden Legend of Ja Cobous de Voragine; Dies , Stabat Mater Outstanding Jewish writers : Maimonides – Spain; Rashi – France Secular – it is more on romance, heroism and it is not in religious works Composed of epic, courtly love, political poetry, songs Prominent Jewish authors: Solomon ibn Gabirol and Yehuda Haleui Outstanding writer: Geoffrey Chauser Women’s Literature – in this type women of Medieval period are the writers and it is not about the works pertained to women of M.P. Composed of works that have been written by women, mostly nuns Noted authors : Clare of Asisi, Bridget of Sweden, Catherine of Seine – They are canonaized as saints and their works are reflections, revelations and prayers Marie de France and Christine de Viza – their works focused on courtly love Revelations of Divine Love – 1st published book in English language that was written by a woman Allegory – medieval lit. makes use of many literary devices and allegory is very prominent in the period. Much works relied on allegory to convey the morals that the author had in mind while writing are representation of abstract qualities, events and institutions. Most influential allegory – Psychomachia (Battle of Souls) by Aurelius Clemens Prudentius Some works on this type: Romance of the Rose, Everyman, Piers Plowman, Roman de Fauvel and The Divine Comedy. Characteristics of Medieval Literature Figures of speech are numerous Highly religious Frequently intended to teach morals Descriptions are ornate and pretty Techniques of the dream vision used frequently Pleasant aspects of nature predominate New forms of rhythm and rhyme Women take a place in literature Elegance of speech and manners Works were handwritten Love is considered as a pure love Conveying the classic culture of Greece and Rome Works are more on re-telling than new invent stories Next to religious, heroism is Dominant Names of the individual authors are much less important Why most of the works in Medieval Period are anonymous? Medieval lit. was copied by hand and many volumes were lost over the following centuries. Names of the authors did not mean much to medieval citizen, only if they were very famous. Thus, unimportant names would sometimes be left out of a book during the process of copying. If the original volume was lost, there wouldn’t be any written proof of authorship. And one more reason is that some books were controversial or anti, and any author connected with these books would be condemned to death. And to avoid any problems, even if there are no controversial contents of their work, they are not writing their names. â€Å"Listen, Understand and Appreciate – these will make your students respect and love you as their second parent† – anonymous