Michel De Montaigne Of Cannibals - Class Notes

• Nobel savages - the idea that pre-civilization is more noble, pure and natural 
• Montaigne had a different view on barbarism. He believed that people view barbarism as anything other than their own customs and culture. 
• "Good old days" - many people refer to the past as the good times (ex: paleo diet - that is how cavemen ate so it must be right) 
• He compared barbarism in different culture - cannibalism and religious persecution 
• Key terms - natural, barbarism 
• What makes a battle or war noble? Can one be noble is it it the cause that is noble? What is one fighting for? 
• Fear of "the other", the unknown, other beliefs, people or ways of life 
• Romanticization of the past 
• Barbarism - originally meant anyone who didn't speak Greek 

Michel De Montaigne (1533-1592)

Interesting quote from Of Cannibals by Montaigne.

"Now to return to my subject, I think there is nothing barbarous and savage in that nation, from what have been told, except that each man calls barbarism whatever is not his own practice; for indeed it seems we have no other test of truth and reason than the example and pattern of the opinions and customs of the country we live in. There is always the perfect religion, the perfect government, the perfect and accomplished manners in all things."

Work Cited

Puchner, Martin. "Michel De Montaigne." The Norton Anthology: World Literature. Shorter Third ed. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company, 2013. 1653. Print.
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/3600/3600-h/3600-h.htm

The Thousand and One Nights (14th C.)

The Thousand and One Nights is a fascinating collection of Middle Eastern literary works.  The genre is Arabic literature in the form of frame tales. Frame tales are stories in which they are set up to tell a story within another.  The text was written by a various number of unknown authors.  The production date is scattered over time depending on the specific piece.  The Thousand and One Nights encompass an assortment of exciting stories that cover romance, betrayal, mystery and deceit.  

Questions for the class

·         Did you find any symbolism within the story?

·         List some comparisons and contrasts of the story to modern culture.

·         The text is very sexually explicit. Was that a common occurrence in other texts during that time?

·         Do some further research on the origin of the text. The text is Arabic but has some Persian derivation. How did this text come together if by so many different authors?

Work Cited

Puchner, Martin. "The Thousand and One Nights." The Norton Anthology: World Literature. Shorter Third ed. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company, 2013. 1173-1199. Print.

http://www.afantasticallibrarian.com/2011/04

Inferno by Dante - Class Notes

• Dante chose not to write The Comedy in Latin but in his common language (Tuscan/Italian dialect)   

                     - Made it more accessible
                     - Challenged authorities at the time

• Vernacular - common language, vulgar 
• Dante is half-way through his life at the time of entering the inferno in his book (35 years)
• The journey into hell begins on Good Friday in 1300 
• His work was published before the printing press was invented so it had to be written on sheepskin and would have been extremely expensive 
• Calvinism focuses on predestination, the chosen/elite group 
• Martin Luther - had a different idea of being saved by faith not by good works 
• Reoccurring theme of fame and remembrance in many of the works we have read so far this term. Worst case scenario is to be forgotten, even if it is in a negative way people wanted to be remembered by the living.
• Dante was often carried or cradled by Virgil - father figure? 
• Dante was often rebuked by Virgil for inappropriate pity or for being overly fascinated by the figures in hell.   
• Guest friendship remained an important concept in the middle ages as in ancient times
• Worst kind of betrayal is that of family and kin 
• Acedia - sloth 

Punishment

A depiction of one of the many punishments for sinners in Dante's hell. Below are the greedy in the fourth circle.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inferno_(Dante)

Inferno by Dante Alighieri (1265-1321)

The Inferno by Dante Alighieri is a medieval masterpiece that depicts the horrors of hell from one man's view.  Dante does an unbelievable job taking the reader along on his own personal journey in this gripping tale. Inferno is truly a must read.

http://www.technologytell.com/gaming/42838/ea-working-on-dantes-inferno-video-game-adaptation/

Bisclavret

https://saintsuperman.wordpress.com/2009/03/10/bisclavret-whos-the-real-monster/

Marie De France Resource

Here is a link that pertains to some interesting information, interpretations and ideas about many of Marie De France's literary works by Washington State University.

http://public.wsu.edu/~brians/love-in-the-arts/marie.html

Bisclavret by Marie De France (12th Century)

Bisclavret is about a married baron who is secretly a werewolf and disappears for three days each week and transforms into a wolf.  The poem begins by presenting the werewolf’s relationship with his wife in pleasant terms.  The text states, “He’d married a worthy woman, truly; always she acted so beautifully.”  The story continues on with the woman questioning her husband on where he disappears to.  He refuses to tell her but as she continues pestering him, he succumbs and reveals his secret.  The werewolf’s transformation depends on his clothing which he must have in order to go back to his human form.  The wife hears the news and acts casual at the time, but inside is horrified and disgusted at the thought of her husband being a werewolf.  She thinks to herself, “Often and often passed through her head plans to get right out, escape, for she didn’t want ever to share his bed.”  The text goes on and the wife connects with an old admirer and together they plot and steal his clothes forcing the bisclavret to remain in wolf form.  The tale does not end there but continues on with adventure and revenge.  

De France, Marie, and Judith Shoaf. "Bisclavret." University of Florida. 1 Jan. 1996. Web. 6 Feb. 2015. <http://users.clas.ufl.edu/jshoaf/marie/bisclavret.pdf>.

Laustic (The Nightingale) by Marie De France

Sketch of a nightingale as referenced in Laustic. The fallen bird that the knight carried after the woman's husband killed represented the forbidden love the star crossed lovers shared.

http://www.painters-online.co.uk/Gallery/Brenda-Oliphant-Nightingale/_ga60325_pg1

Marie De France Manuscript

http://faculty.winthrop.edu/kosterj/ENGL201/arthur6.htm

Class Notes: Marie De France

•  Courtly love - some say it was a myth created by the stories in that time, much debate remains on what it was actually like during the 12th c. 
• The poem of Lanval begins during the Pentecost (a spring religious festival)
• Some consider France to be a feminist of her time
• France says in the prologue that her stories trace back to oral tradition and that she translated many of them from  other stories but there is little to no record supporting that so there is a possibility her poems are original. 
• The Nightingale and Lanval contrast each other in a way. The poem of Lanval ends with a happy ending with Lanval and his love together and The Nightingale ends in a tragedy.  
• Avalun - land of the blessed dead
• Lanval's love - fairy lover 
• People truly believed in fairies in that time in some cultures. 
• Fine amour - noble or fine love (French)
• Day of Pentecost represents new beginnings/rebirth. Relates to Lanval when he meets the fairy and has a "new start"
• Conflicting themes in text - Fairies and Christianity 
• The themes of lust and love affairs is not portrayed negatively which you would expect from a Christian nun. 
• Court in Lanval - new practice compared to the story of Beowulf

Marie De France 1150?-1200?

              Marie De France was an English writer who produced heartfelt poems concerning romance and the trials of love.  Little is known about France but that she lived around the 12^th c.  The language in her works suggest that she had some connection with the Duke of Normandy and Henry II who was the king of England during that time period.  Some guess France might have been illegitimate offspring of royal blood; therefore, was sent to a convent a young age.  

Questions for the class

•    Did you find any symbolism within the story? 
• List some comparisons and contrasts of the poems to modern culture.
•  Describe in detail what exactly is "Avalun"? Where else does it come up in other pieces of literature?
•  Do some research and find out more about how women were thought as and treated in that time and culture. Is France’s take on a women being a hero in Lanval unusual compared to different literature in that time? 
•  What are some current examples of “forbidden love” in modern culture as portrayed in Nightingale?  

Work Cited

Puchner, Martin. "Marie De France." The Norton Anthology: World Literature. Shorter Third ed. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company, 2013. 1029-1048. Print.

Shahnameh 940-1020

Islamic art located at the Brooklyn Museum

http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/43541/Bahram_Gur_and_Courtiers_Entertained_by_Barbad_the_Musician_Page_from_a_manuscript_of_the_Shahnama_of_Firdawsi_d._1020

Class Notes: Shahnameh by Abolqasem Ferdowsi

• Sekandar is Alexandar the Great - Greek king
• Story begins with poor treatment of Sekandar's mother. She had bad breath so the king had someone give her a herb that cured her bad breath but then the king decided he didn't like her so he sent her away. The woman was referred to as a "lovely moon" but no name was provided. 
• Sekandar was a Greek hero but in the story he is made more out to be a Persian hero. 
• Sekandar is named after the herb that cured his mother's malady (bad breath) 
• Assimilation of culture often occurred when one group of people conquered another. 
• Ceasar is mentioned in the text even though the text was produced before the time of ceasar (pg. 968) 
• Dara (Darius) - Sekandar's half brother (same father but different mother who must have had better breath than Sekandar's mother)
• Dara died - stabbed by traitors who supposedly did it for Sekandar but he was not happy about the murder
• Footnote on page 981 - Aristotle tutored Alexander. Alex writes letter to Aristotle in the text. 
• "Greatness too must pass: it is the prey, and its hunter is death." - The theme of fate and death continues on throughout the text. All must pass eventually. 
• Sekandar keeps making the same mistake - he is prideful and boasts. Several leaders tell him of this flaw in the text. (ex: pg. 975 Qaydafeh points out Sekandar's hubris.)
• Qaydafeh was a wise and knowledgeable leader who could have just killed Sekandar but lets him go and tells him to leave her and her army alone 
• Hubris - pride as a fatal flaw 
• New idea for the time compared to Beowulf - Doesn't matter if you die on a bed or with a sword in your hand, you still die. 
• "Absolute power corrupts absolutely." -Churchill 
• Sekandar writes letters to other leaders (not common for that time period) 
• Tribute - Sekandar asks for it from other leaders (ex: give me "this" and provide my army with "this" and I will spare you battle)
• Fate - common theme in text (ex: pg. 975 Qaydafeh tells Sekandar, "Foor wasn't killed because of your glory, and neither were Dara and the heroes of Sind. Their good fortune was at an end, and yours was in the ascendant....")

Beowulf Original Manuscripts

Photos of the manuscripts of Beowulf. They were damaged by fire in 1731 but they are still readable.

http://britishlibrary.typepad.co.uk/digitisedmanuscripts/2013/02/beowulf-online.html

Grendel by John Gardner

Recent book relating to the Story of Beowulf but focuses on the Character of Grendel specifically.

http://www.amazon.com/Grendel-John-Gardner/dp/0679723110

Beowulf Class Notes

• Some suspect the text was altered when written down and filled with a Christian overlay. Throughout the text, I was able to find many phrases that referenced Christianity but at the same time there was contradiction in the text. The story was a mix of pagan views and traditions mixed with Christian ones. 
• Alliteration in original story but much is lost of it due to translation
• Culture w/in text. Many of Beowulf's actions demonstrate the customs and values within the culture of that time and area
• Kennings - two word metaphors (ring-giver for king (pg, 949), hoard-guard for the dragon (pg, 947))
• Death price came up a couple times in the text. One of the offenses Grendel committed is that he killed without paying a death price. 
• What does this story teach us? What can we take from it? How does it apply to modern day
• Instancer of guest-friendship/reciprocation (xenia)
• Importance of the body in death/ funeral rights 
• Death in battle was looked up to in those times and is still prominent in cultures and certain situations today. 
• Beowulf attained fame and remembrance for his actions. 
• Suspension of disbelief ( must accept when reading or watching fantasy)

Beowulf

             Beowulf is a 9^th century, epic poem that depicts the triumphs and trials of the brave and heroic king, Beowulf.  The language of the poem is detailed and in depth, which hints prior production of the piece.  Some suspect it may have been passed down orally years before it was written down. The exciting tale provides the reader with a sense of Medieval English culture and customs during that time.  Beowulf gives a taste of the history and the up and downs of the relationships between several tribes, specifically, the Geats and the Danes.  

Puchner, Martin. "Beowulf." The Norton Anthology: World Literature. Shorter Third ed. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company, 2013. 885-960. Print.