Old English Literature: A Short Introduction (blackwell Introductions To Literature)

Old English Literature A Short Introduction Daniel Donoghue By the same author Lady Godiva: A Literary History of the Legend Also available from Blackwell Publishing Introduction to Old English Peter S. Baker A History of Old English Literature Robert D. Fulk & Christopher M. Cain The Blackwell Encyclopaedia of Anglo-Saxon England Edited by Michael Lapidge, John Blair, Simon Keynes & Donald Scragg A Guide to Old English Sixth Edition Bruce Mitchell & Fred C. Robinson An Invitation to Old English and Anglo-Saxon England Bruce Mitchell Old Norse-Icelandic Literature: A Short Introduction Heather O’Donoghue A Companion to Anglo-Saxon Literature Edited by Phillip Pulsiano & Elaine M. Treharne Old and Middle English c.890–c.1400: An Anthology Second Edition Edited by Elaine M. Treharne Old and Middle English Poetry Edited by Elaine M. Treharne & Duncan Wu Old English Literature A Short Introduction Daniel Donoghue © 2004 by Daniel Donoghue 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148-5020, USA 108 Cowley Road, Oxford OX4 1JF, UK 550 Swanston Street, Carlton, Victoria 3053, Australia The right of Daniel Donoghue to be identified as the Author of this Work has been asserted in accordance with the UK Copyright, Designs, and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, except as permitted by the UK Copyright, Designs, and Patents Act 1988, without the prior permission of the publisher. First published 2004 by Blackwell Publishing Ltd Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Donoghue, Daniel, 1956– Old English literature : a short introduction / Daniel Donoghue. p. cm. — (Blackwell introductions to literature) Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index. ISBN 0-631-23485-3 (hardcover : alk. paper) — ISBN 0-631-23486-1 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. English literature—Old English, ca. 450–1100—History and criticism. I. Title. II. Series. PR173.D66 2004 829'.09—dc22 2003018469 A catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library. Set in 10/13pt Meridian by Graphicraft Limited, Hong Kong Printed and bound in the United Kingdom by TJ International Ltd, Padstow Cornwall For further information on Blackwell Publishing, visit our website: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com to my mentors Allie Contents List of Illustrations Introduction List of Abbreviations viii ix xvi 1 The Vow 1 2 The Hall 29 3 The Miracle 56 4 The Pulpit 80 5 The Scholar 100 Notes 126 Further Reading 131 Index 135 Illustrations A charter from early eleventh-century Herefordshire A reconstructed Viking Fyrkat royal hall in Denma