Courtliness and Literature in Medieval England

Courtliness is an important feature of medieval literature. Ideals of social behaviour and personal refinement play an integral part in much of the literature and poetry of the period. Courtliness and Literature in Medieval England traces the development of courtliness from its emergence in the exclusive world of the aristocratic courts of the twelfth century to a bourgeois respectability in the fifteenth. Using such literary examples as Chaucer and the...
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Courtliness is an important feature of medieval literature. Ideals of social behaviour and personal refinement play an integral part in much of the literature and poetry of the period. Courtliness and Literature in Medieval England traces the development of courtliness from its emergence in the exclusive world of the aristocratic courts of the twelfth century to a bourgeois respectability in the fifteenth.

Using such literary examples as Chaucer and the 'Gawain' poet, David Burnley illustrates how the literature of the time reflected the framework of social and aesthetic ideals of medieval society, including the presentation of the hero and heroine of romance, the confrontation between courtly and religious values, and the conception of courtly psychology, courtly language and courtly literature. Above all, he reconsiders the question of 'courtly love'.

This book is intended for a wide audience of those eager to understand medieval values, and will be of particular value to students of literature in English and French departments. It is a valuable introduction to the subject which challenges many of our preconceptions of medieval authors and of courtly values; it also provides an insight into the origins of many later attitudes to the hierarchy of society. Full translations are provided of all the texts cited.