Includes bibliographical references (pages 391-394) and index.

ISBN 0-582-48368-9 Pbk : £4.50.

"This book, first published in the Longman Annotated Anthologies of English Verse series under the general editorship of Professor Alastair Fowler, provides a representative cross-section of non-dramatic English and Scottish poetry between 1300 and 1500 in freshly-edited texts with full annotation. John Burrow has chosen complete poems wherever possible, and substantial single extracts from works too long to give in full. The total of 7000 lines includes the work of Langland, Chaucer, Gower, Henryson and Dunbar, and extracts from Pearl, Patience and Sir Gawain, as well as less familiar items. The annotation is exceptionally full and helpful. There is an extensive General Introduction, separate introductions to individual poets, and headnotes to the individual poems. These guide the reader to a full understanding of each piece- its genre, theme, style, structure and metre- and its place in the literary history of the period. The footnotes explain in detail difficulties of interpretation and meaning, and cover the more important textual problems; and Professor Burrow also offers new readings and interpretations in a number of places. No anthology provides annotations of such amplitude and authority at this level. But the collection is not just an invaluable teaching aid; the general reader with a serious interest in poetry will find Professor Burrow's commentary makes the work of this long and complex period both accessible and enjoyable" -Publisher.

SACFinal081324