Introduction to Medieval Literature, Chiefly in England: A Reading List and Bibliography

First Edition 1939. Second Edition 1948. First printing 1948. Second printing 1949. This reading list, with the accompanying bibliography, is designed to meet the needs of undergraduate or graduate students who wish to become acquainted at first hand with the literature of England between the years 600 and 1500 and with the literature of France, which after 1066 set the patterns which English writers tended to follow. Chaucer's works are omitted from the reading list, since they are often dealt with in a separate course and many bibliographical guides are available. But a brief list of the most important editions of the poet and of selected commentaries will be found on page 28. The readings are arranged in a roughly chronological order, following the sequence of the lectures. Any other order seems to leave many students, even after they have memorized columns of dates, without any sense of development or of the significance of periods.