Includes bibliographical references and index.

"Readings in Medieval Texts offers a thorough and accessible introduction to the interpretation and criticism of a broad range of Old and Middle English texts from the eighth to the fifteenth centuries. Bringing together twenty-four newly-commissioned chapters by leading international scholars, the volume outlines current debates and theories as well as the major themes and literary issues of texts such as Beowulf, The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Juliana, The Owl and the Nightingale, Piers Plowman, Chaucer's Book of the Duchess, and the York Corpus Christi Play. Major aspects of methods of composition, authorial intent, reader-reception, and social and historical contextualization are foregrounded in this dynamic and path-breaking volume." "By bringing together new reflections on canonical, and some non-canonical, writings from the earliest period of English literature to c.1500, Readings in Medieval Texts offers a unique insight into medieval literary production that provides students with essential tools for close reading and textual analysis. An introductory chapter highlights overarching trends in the composition of English literature in the Anglo-Saxon and later medieval periods, and provides an overview of the textual continuities and innovations. Individual chapters themselves give detailed information about context, authorship, date, and critical views on texts, before providing fascinating and thought-provoking examinations of crucial excerpts and themes." "This book will be invaluable for undergraduate and graduate students on all courses in Medieval Studies, particularly those focusing on understanding literature and its role in society."--Jacket.

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