THE EVERGREEN STATE COLLEGE
SUMMER QUARTER 2006
Special Topics In British Literature
ORD
&
MAGE
The Manuscript Tradition From Beowulf to Blake
Instructor:
Rebecca Chamberlain
360-866-2141
chambreb@evergreen.edu
Meeting Times: Wed. June 28th, July 19th, and 26th
Field Trip, July 20th, “Sacred Springs, Holy Waters”-Medieval Stories of Water
Time:
6:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.
Location:
Credits:
Expenses:
Seminar II, C 2109
4-8 credits
Independent Study can be arranged for additional credits.
Art supplies
“WORD AND IMAGE: The manuscript tradition from Beowulf to Blake,” will meet as a group
contract to read selections from early medieval manuscripts and Blake’s poetic etchings. Our work will explore
the relationship between word and image; bard and scribe; and the role of the manuscript tradition. Among
sources for inspiration will be Anglo Saxon and Celtic monastic traditions, Arthurian Romance, and an
overview of communication shifts: how language changes as it moves from oral invocation into manuscripts,
the printing press, and the flexibility of contemporary mediums. We will develop an appreciation of the bardic
oral, poetic, and mythological traditions that underlie the medieval manuscript traditions, as well as an
appreciation for the history, languages, and cultural influences that shaped these early literatures. We will
explore how Blake re-imagined himself as a prophetic bard and scribe, and how the forces of these literatures
inspires and shapes our world today. Our meetings will focus on critical discussions of several major texts, as
well as the theory and practice of various manuscript traditions. Students will work individually or form groups
to work on special projects and create their own manuscripts or etchings. They will also read, respond to, and
seminar on a selection of texts, create a personal bibliography of research or readings, and do a special project
or research paper on a topic of their choice in Medieval Literature.
This class gives us the opportunity to consider the lives and communities who created the manuscripts we will
be studying. The early monastic communities, and the manuscripts we will be reading, from Beowulf to Blake
for, were deeply rooted in a connection to the natural world, a love of song and poetic language, an appreciation
for the archetypal myths that inspire and give life meaning, and a reverence for beauty—and how it can be
cultivated in the intricate relationship between word and image, story and song.
For many, reflection and synthesis of life experiences are constant requirements of the human psyche.
Otherwise we live our lives "asleep," missing "the rapture of being alive." As Joseph Campbell says, "We are
so engaged in doing things to achieve purpose of outer value that we forget that the inner value, the rapture that
is associated with being alive, is what it's all about." Our goal is to find way to express that "inner value" --to
create space, a place for creativity and synthesis via reading, reflection, imagining, and for developing a
disciplined practice of writing and drawing. As we work to create our own manuscripts and writings, we
encourage the practice of engaging in life with our full attention and with all of our senses; to listen to the
language of trees, wind, animals, and silence, to consider the language we hear in dreams when we write; to
consider the images we see in dreams when we draw; to weave what is heard and what is seen, what is
remembered and what is imagined; to weave our inner and outer worlds together.
Required Texts: (Available in Bookstore) We will read from: Beowulf; Sir Gawain and the Green Knight; The
Mabinogion; Chretien De Troyes, Arthurian Romances; as well as Blake’s Songs of Innocence and Experience,
and Marriage of Heaven and Hell. Participants will also be encouraged to explore related medieval literature,
illuminated manuscripts, lyrics, poems, ballads, and other early texts along with articles on literary theory.
The Mabinogian--Translated by Jeffry Gantz--Penguin Classics--0-14-044322-3
Chretien De Troyes: Arthurian Romances--Translated by William W. Kibler--Penguin Classics--0-14-044521-8
Beowulf--Translated b Seamus Heany--Farrar, Straus & Giroux 1999--0-374-11119-7
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight--Translated by J.R.R. Toelkin--Ballantine Books, 1975--0-345-27760-0
William Blake--The Marriage of Heaven and Hell--Unabridged Dover, 1994--0-486-28122-1
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THE EVERGREEN STATE COLLEGE
SUMMER QUARTER 2006
Special Topics In British Literature
William Blake--Songs of Experience--Facsimile Reproduction with 26 Plates in Full Color--Dover--0-486-24636-1
Supplemental Readings: I may put some of my personal texts on reserve in the library. We will collaborate to
create a “Word and Image Anthology” that includes: Anglo-Saxon Riddles, Medieval Lyrics, Celtic
Invocations, assorted poetic works, essays on the manuscript tradition, essays on creating manuscripts and
prints.
A brief list of texts follows. *Texts that you probably should look at sometime.
Bain, George. Celtic Art: Methods Of Construction. New York: Dover, 1973.
*Backhouse, Janet. The Illuminated Page: Ten Centuries Of Manuscript Painting. London: The British Library, 1997.
*Blake, William. William Blake: The Complete Illuminated Books. Thames and Hudson.
*Johnson, Mary Lynn, and John E. Grant. Blake’s Poetry and Designs: A Norton Critical Edition.
*Chaucer’s Canturbury Tales: General Prologue, Wife of Baths Tale, or other tales.
Child, Francis James. The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, Vol. I. Mineola, N.Y.:Dover, 2003.
*Cirker, Blanche, Ed. The Book Of Kells: Selected Plates in Color. New York: Dover, 1982.
Crossley-Holland, Kevin. Tales from the Mabinogion. Overlook Press, 1985.
____________________.The New Exeter Book of Riddles. Enitharmon Press, 2000.
DeHamel, Christopher, A History Of Illuminated Manuscripts. Phaidon Press Limited, 1994. ISBN 0 7148 3452 1
De Pizan, Christine. The Book of the City of Ladies.
Finnegan, Ruth. Oral Poetry: Its Nature, Significance, and Social Context.
Gardner, John. Grendel.
Gerhardsson, Birger. Memory and Manuscripts, Oral Tradition & Written Transmission in Rabbininc Judaism
& Early Christianity. Grand Rapids Michigan, Wm B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. 1998. 0-8028-4366-2
Graves, Robert. The White Goddess.
Hammer, Richard. A Choice Anglo Saxon Verse. London, Faber and Faber, 1970.
Levin. Freddie. 1-2-3 Draw Mythical Creatures: A Step-by-Step Guide. Peel Productions, 2003.
Mallory, Works—Ed. Eugene Viniver—Oxford U. Press, 1971—0-192812173 The tale of the Sankgreal, p. 513-600
Mathews, John. Taliesin: The Last Celtic Shaman.
_____________. King Arthur and the Grail Quest.
Norton’s Anthology of English Literature, Volume 1.
Nye, Robert. Beowulf: A New Telling. New York: Hill and Wang, 1968.
__________.Taliesin. London: Faber and Faber, 1966.
*Ong, Walter. Orality and Literacy: The Technologizing of the Word.
White, T. H. The Once and Future King.
Course Equivalencies: Students can receive a total of four to eight quarter hours credit for upper division
college level work in British Literature, art history, or writing.
Expectations:
-Faithfully attends and fully participates at all meetings, workshops, and seminars.
-Reads and responds to the texts faithfully in reflective papers and discussions according to scheduled due
dates.
-Takes notes on class lectures and discussions, and completes all in-class experiential writing and drawing
projects.
-Maintains a portfolio of all individual research and work, class handouts, class notes (on lectures, workshops),
papers, and cumulative work. These will be turned in and reviewed at the final evaluation conference.
-Successfully completes all projects, presentations, workshops, writings, or assignments on time.
-Note that 4 credits in 5 weeks of upper division work should involve 20 hours a week of individual or group
work (on average), including class time; 8 credits involves 40 hours of work. You will need to create a
schedule to do readings, writings, and projects outside of class time to fulfill your hours.
VI. Assignments: (4 & 8 Credits)
1) Six reading response papers (1-2 pages) on each required text, turned in to the instructor and e-mailed to the
other participants by each due date. These papers will allow you to: 1) comment upon the readings, and 2)
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THE EVERGREEN STATE COLLEGE
SUMMER QUARTER 2006
Special Topics In British Literature
summarize, reflect upon, and integrate program topics, themes, and issues, 3) and prepare for seminar
discussions.
2) A final edited and revised reflective paper (3-5 pages) that synthesizes program readings, topics, themes and
issues. Once you have read the texts and had a chance to reflect on the cumulative readings, what is your
response? What new learning takes place? How does your understanding of the issues of orality and literacy—
related to the early manuscript tradition—shape your thinking about language, human consciousness, education,
culture, etc.? How does an understanding of these early traditions shape your world-view? What kinds of
creative or academic projects might you want to do next? This should be the basis for your self-evaluation.
3) Illuminated manuscript or etching inspired by nature or the readings. You will create a minimum of two-five
finished pages of illuminated manuscripts, one of which can be a cover design for a book. Color Xerox: Each
person will make a color xerox of one of their designs for each person in the class. These will be exchanged on
the last day of class. We will compile them into a group anthology of illuminations. Write your name, the
date, and a © on the back of each original design.
4) A short, annotated bibliography of all the texts and resources that you researched for the class.
5) A final project that you will present at our final group meeting. This should constitute half of your work in
the class:
a.) A piece of creative writing; either a personal essay (3-5 pages), or 2) 3-5 poems, a short story, or other
work inspired by the readings we do. You may choose to work with others from the class, the writing
center, or the instructors to edit and revise your work in a series of drafts.
b.) An audiotape of an stories or songs or a performance piece, a web page, video, or other creative work
that you develop in response to the readings.
c.) A piece of artwork, additional illuminated manuscripts and a hand-made book, or other project inspired
the natural world or the works we read.
d.) A Research Topic: Write a typed, double-spaced, research paper (5-7 pages) on a topic that intrigues
you. You will do research on a particular author or work, or on some aspect of medieval literature or
scholarship on Blake. What intrigues you? Perhaps you are interested in alliteration and kennings in
Anglo Saxon; Hildegard of Bingen; Early Irish Monastic Traditions; St. Brigit or early Abbesses;
Christine De Pizan; Thomas Mallory’s “Works;” Bardic Traditions and Taliesin; Arthurian history and
legend; Ballads; Lyrics or songs.
Students taking the class for eight credits must contract an additional four credits of work, or expand one of the
special projects. They must work for 40 hours a week.
Class Portfolio (With all work included): Due July 26 th
Each student is required to keep a class portfolio. You will turn this in for review before evaluation conferences. Include
your name and a table of contents. Record the topic and date of each item in your portfolio. Each section should be
arranged chronologically. The portfolio must be kept in a loose-leaf three ring binder with dividers between each
section, and should contain the following.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Syllabus and class handouts.
Class notes: lectures, films, etc.
In-class workshops. (Date and title each entry)
Seminar notes
Reading responses to required texts.
(A section of reading notes is strongly recommended.)
Final Synthesis paper.
Final Special Project as described above.
Self and Faculty evaluations (Three signed copies on official forms.)
Individual Assignment Due Dates: See handouts for details.
Meeting Topics: See handouts for details.
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THE EVERGREEN STATE COLLEGE
SUMMER QUARTER 2006
Special Topics In British Literature
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