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13 - The Magic of Telecinematic Neo-Old English in University Teaching
- Edited by Rachel A. Fletcher, University of Glasgow, Thijs Porck, Universiteit Leiden, Oliver M. Traxel, Universitet i Stavanger, Norway
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- Book:
- Old English Medievalism
- Published by:
- Boydell & Brewer
- Published online:
- 17 December 2022
- Print publication:
- 29 November 2022, pp 243-264
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- Chapter
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Summary
Introduction
Today, the Middle Ages speak to us in many voices and through different media. In the telecinematic medium, this trend manifests itself in an approach to the Middle Ages which attempts to be as authentic as possible within the general framework of the productions of telecinematic fiction. This is visible in the depicted architecture, costumes and hairstyles, for instance, but also linguistically. The focus of this chapter is neo-Old English, that is, Old English speech created on a modern academic basis. In particular, it concentrates on neo-Old English in telecinematic discourse, which is defined as discourse in film productions for television and cinema. The TV series Merlin, for instance, originally broadcast between 2008 and 2012, is set in the early Middle Ages in ‘Albion’, with a protagonist who casts his magic spells in (neo-)Old English. The focus here is not on judging the correctness of the translations or specific acting skills. Rather, it will be argued that profiting from the popular appeal of the magic of the telecinematic revival of a past language stage is a rewarding challenge in the context of academic teaching.
What? – Taking Stock of Neo-Old English on the Screen
On the basis of a brief overview of current telecinematic projects involving Old English (Section 2) and a discussion of the current convergence of two popular trends, namely (linguistic) realism in telecinematic productions and medievalism (Section 3), the focus will shift to a reflection on the challenges (Section 4) and profits (Section 5) of teaching Old English with the help of telecinematic neo-Old English. It will be discussed how the students can experience first-hand that Old English was once a fully functional medium of communication – as it still is in its neo-Old English form – and not something dead and purely academic. This might kindle their interest in investing energy in its deeper study. Starting from chosen examples provided on the screen, teaching resources such as Peter S. Baker’s website ‘Old English Aerobics’ for phonology, morphology and syntax and research resources such as the Thesaurus of Old English and the Oxford English Dictionary for lexicology and semantics are introduced as aids in learning to understand, and maybe even create, (neo-)Old English.
Classical rhetoric in Anglo-Saxon England
- Gabriele Knappe
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- Journal:
- Anglo-Saxon England / Volume 27 / December 1998
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 26 September 2008, pp. 5-29
- Print publication:
- December 1998
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- Article
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This passage from The Wanderer demonstrates some of the rhetorical techniques which have been noted in Old English texts. Its most striking features are the rhetorical questions and the figure of anaphora which is produced by the repetition of ‘Hwær’. Another rhetorical element is the use of the theme (topos) of ubi sunt (‘where are…?’) to lament the loss of past joys. In classical antiquity, features such as these, which served to create effective discourse, were the products of ars rhetorica. This art was distinguished from the more basic subject of ars grammatica in that rhetoric, the ‘ars … bene dicendi’ (Quintilian, Institutio oratoria II.xvii.37), aimed at the good production of text (for oral delivery) with the aim of persuading the listeners to take or adopt some form of action or belief, whereas grammar, the ‘recte loquendi scientia’, was responsible for correct speech and also for the interpretation of poetical texts (‘poetarum enarratio’: Quintilian, Institutio oratoria I.iv.2). In terms of classical rhetoric, the above passage from The Wanderer could be analysed according to the three phases of the production of a text (partes artis) which pertain to both written and oral discourse: inventio (finding topics such as the ubi sunt), dispositio (arranging the parts of the text) and elocutio (embellishing the text stylistically, for example with rhetorical questions and other figures and tropes).
How and under what circumstances did the Anglo-Saxons acquire their knowledge of how to compose a text effectively?