French Lessons in Late-Medieval England
The Liber Donati and Commune Parlance
9781802701036
181 pages
Amsterdam University Press
Overview
This volume presents fifteenth-century teaching and reference materials designed to support facility in French among the English. At its centre is the Liber donati, a collection of notes on French grammar and lexis that concludes on a lively series of dialogues showing French in action; also included is Commune parlance. These materials paint a vivid picture of the kinds of French that English learners might desire to wield and of the high levels of fluency they could achieve. As such, this edition makes an important contribution to the history of modern languages education and to recent reassessments of the longevity of French in medieval England. Its pairing of first-time modern-English translations with facing-page original text allows teachers and students of the Middle Ages and all interested in the history of language teaching to use these stimulating materials in many ways.Author Bio
Rory G. Critten teaches medieval literature in the English Department at the University of Lausanne. His recent publications treat French teaching in medieval England, medieval English multilingualism, and the cultural history of the medieval home.Á
