ENG 346: Aspects of the English Language

ENG 346: Aspects of the English Language Lesson 9: Middle English Week: March 17-23, 2003 Place: Dial 147 Objectives By the end of this lesson, you should be able to do each of the following: Describe the basic characteristics of and major developments in Middle English. Describe the historical background of Middle English. Identify a passage written in Middle English. Define relevant terms. Assignments Write a rough draft of your linguistics guide and bring it to class on Friday. Activities Think Fast: Analyze the Middle English passage I assign you in class. Presentations: Introduction to Middle English (Professor Canada), Middle English phonology (Jennifer), Middle English morphology (Cresta), Middle English lexicon (Crystal), Middle English syntax (Marilyn), Middle English writing (Rachel) Workshop: Exchange rough drafts with a partner. Write comments on your partner’s draft, focusing on the draft’s content, clarity, style, and integrity. Think Again: Using what you have learned or reviewed in this lesson, analyze a passage written in Middle English. Conferences: During these one-on-one conferences, I will review some of your writing, orally quiz you on lesson objectives, and field your questions. Announcements: We will wrap up this lesson with announcements regarding upcoming lessons, as well as other relevant subjects. Terms Make sure you know the meaning and significance of each of the following terms: A.D. 1066 William Caxton Geoffrey Chaucer French loans Latin loans Norman Conquest Resources The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language contains extensive information on Middle English. The Cambridge History of the English Language contains extensive information on Middle English. Labyrinth Library: Middle English Bookcase features links to works written in Middle English. Medieval England features a painting of William the Conqueror and links to sites dealing with medieval castles and more. New Advent: Crusades contains information about one of the important historical developments of the period. The Origins and Development of the English Language contains extensive information on Middle English. A History of the English Language contains extensive information on Middle English. Updated March 17, 2003 © Mark Canada, 2003 mark.canada@uncp.edu

Introduction In our last lesson, we looked at Proto-Indo-European and Old English. In this lesson, we turn to Middle English. Discussion Middle English Like all languages, English has changed over the course of its life.  During its infancy, which we call Old English, it already was undergoing various changes as, for example, new words entered the language.  Some 600 years after English began, however, there occurred an incident that revolutionized the language.  In 1066, a man who came to be known as William the Conqueror led a group of Normans from the northern coast of France to England and defeated the Anglo-Saxons.  The Norman Conquest revolutionized English, eventually introducing numerous new words while also affecting English orthography.  During this period, which stretched roughly from 1066 until 1500, other developments were radically transforming the language.  If Old English can be likened to the infancy of the language, Middle English certainly was its adolescence--a time of turmoil and radical development. During this stage, English lost many of its inflections and took in numerous loan words from Norman French. Practice Below are some activities designed to help you master the knowledge and skills covered in this unit.   Referring to at least three developments during the Middle English period, explain some of the idiosyncracies of Modern English spelling.  Describe the basic features of Middle English, providing examples to illustrate its pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and written form. Compare the variety of spelling at the beginning of the Middle English period and at the end. What forces combined to effect the change?  In what important ways is Middle English different from Old English? What factors led to the changes that took place in the language?  We have no tape recordings of native speakers of Middle English. How, then, do we know how it was pronounced?  Describe the impact of French on English during this period.  Although the Normans conquered the English in 1066, the English language eventually won out over Norman French. Why? Conclusion In this lesson, we examined the history and features of Middle English. In our next lesson, we turn to Early Modern English.