Llewelyn Morgan
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- January 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199554188
- eISBN:
- 9780191594991
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199554188.001.0001
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Literary Studies: Classical, Early, and Medieval
The wealth of metrical forms adopted by classical poetry is one of its characteristic features. Yet metre features only sporadically in contemporary criticism of ancient poetry. This book makes the ...
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The wealth of metrical forms adopted by classical poetry is one of its characteristic features. Yet metre features only sporadically in contemporary criticism of ancient poetry. This book makes the case that metre was central to the Roman experience of literature, and should be restored to a central position also in interpretation of that poetry. By the time Roman poets came to write hexameters, choliambics, and sapphics, these metres could all claim rich histories, and consequently brought a wealth of associations in their own right to the poems they carried. Powerful effects can be achieved by manipulation of the established characters of their metrical media: by giving the metre of classical Latin poetry its proper weight, critics can restore to that poetry a critical, neglected dimension. In four main chapters on representative metres or metre groups, this book considers how Roman poets exploited the connotations of metrical form: the ‘Catullan’ associations of the Flavian hendecasyllable; the logic that produced the ‘pure’ iambic trimeter; the sapphic stanza between Catullus, Horace, and Statius; and the various strategies attempted by poets to subvert the superlative status of the benchmark metre, the dactylic hexameter. Also considered are sotadeans, priapeans, saturnians, elegiacs, and Horace's epodic structures. Connections between poetic practice and the academic study of metre in antiquity are highlighted, and attention is also given both to Greek perceptions of the metres they bequeathed to Rome, and to the effect on Roman versification of the perception that these forms were irreducibly Greek.Less
The wealth of metrical forms adopted by classical poetry is one of its characteristic features. Yet metre features only sporadically in contemporary criticism of ancient poetry. This book makes the case that metre was central to the Roman experience of literature, and should be restored to a central position also in interpretation of that poetry. By the time Roman poets came to write hexameters, choliambics, and sapphics, these metres could all claim rich histories, and consequently brought a wealth of associations in their own right to the poems they carried. Powerful effects can be achieved by manipulation of the established characters of their metrical media: by giving the metre of classical Latin poetry its proper weight, critics can restore to that poetry a critical, neglected dimension. In four main chapters on representative metres or metre groups, this book considers how Roman poets exploited the connotations of metrical form: the ‘Catullan’ associations of the Flavian hendecasyllable; the logic that produced the ‘pure’ iambic trimeter; the sapphic stanza between Catullus, Horace, and Statius; and the various strategies attempted by poets to subvert the superlative status of the benchmark metre, the dactylic hexameter. Also considered are sotadeans, priapeans, saturnians, elegiacs, and Horace's epodic structures. Connections between poetic practice and the academic study of metre in antiquity are highlighted, and attention is also given both to Greek perceptions of the metres they bequeathed to Rome, and to the effect on Roman versification of the perception that these forms were irreducibly Greek.
M. L. Gasparov
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198158790
- eISBN:
- 9780191673368
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198158790.003.0012
- Subject:
- Literature, Poetry, European Literature
The first chapter talked about the national versification systems in Europe as they exist in a close inter-relationship. The next chapter focused on the development of one or another verse form in ...
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The first chapter talked about the national versification systems in Europe as they exist in a close inter-relationship. The next chapter focused on the development of one or another verse form in particular languages. The other chapters talked about the cultural influences that defined the development and the struggles observed between the demands of the language and system of versification. Permanent interaction between literary and popular culture is important for the development of a particular verse forms.Less
The first chapter talked about the national versification systems in Europe as they exist in a close inter-relationship. The next chapter focused on the development of one or another verse form in particular languages. The other chapters talked about the cultural influences that defined the development and the struggles observed between the demands of the language and system of versification. Permanent interaction between literary and popular culture is important for the development of a particular verse forms.
M. L. Gasparov
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198158790
- eISBN:
- 9780191673368
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198158790.003.0010
- Subject:
- Literature, Poetry, European Literature
This chapter introduces the establishment of syllabo-tonic versification in Russian poetry, which had great importance for the way versification developed in many Eastern European languages. Czech ...
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This chapter introduces the establishment of syllabo-tonic versification in Russian poetry, which had great importance for the way versification developed in many Eastern European languages. Czech poetry was the first to assimilate the syllabo-tonic verse. Slovak literary verse repeated this evolution but there was a certain time-lag. During the 1840s, the consolidation of the syllabo-tonic system in German started to influence the Serbian and Croatian poetry and this rested on a long prehistory of gradual syllabo-tonicization of folk syllabic verse by literary verse. The writing of literary verse and Bulgarian versification started after several centuries of Turkish oppression. The syllabo-tonic system reached its apogee in European versification in the second-half of the 19th century.Less
This chapter introduces the establishment of syllabo-tonic versification in Russian poetry, which had great importance for the way versification developed in many Eastern European languages. Czech poetry was the first to assimilate the syllabo-tonic verse. Slovak literary verse repeated this evolution but there was a certain time-lag. During the 1840s, the consolidation of the syllabo-tonic system in German started to influence the Serbian and Croatian poetry and this rested on a long prehistory of gradual syllabo-tonicization of folk syllabic verse by literary verse. The writing of literary verse and Bulgarian versification started after several centuries of Turkish oppression. The syllabo-tonic system reached its apogee in European versification in the second-half of the 19th century.
M. L. Gasparov
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198158790
- eISBN:
- 9780191673368
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198158790.003.0011
- Subject:
- Literature, Poetry, European Literature
During the end of the 20th century, a crisis in the consolidated system of classic versification began to surface and become obvious at the turn of the 20th century. A quest for a free, organic form ...
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During the end of the 20th century, a crisis in the consolidated system of classic versification began to surface and become obvious at the turn of the 20th century. A quest for a free, organic form naturally linked to content meant freedom from rigid rhythm and traditional rhyme anda complete rejection of the metres and rhymes. The loosening of metre resulted into the tonic system versification forming two variants in the European systems of versification. The German vers libre was the first to become consolidated and its immediate model was classical poetry. Vers libre, syntactic or asyntactic, rhythmically more constrained or free, describes the last stage reached by European versification in its historical evolution.Less
During the end of the 20th century, a crisis in the consolidated system of classic versification began to surface and become obvious at the turn of the 20th century. A quest for a free, organic form naturally linked to content meant freedom from rigid rhythm and traditional rhyme anda complete rejection of the metres and rhymes. The loosening of metre resulted into the tonic system versification forming two variants in the European systems of versification. The German vers libre was the first to become consolidated and its immediate model was classical poetry. Vers libre, syntactic or asyntactic, rhythmically more constrained or free, describes the last stage reached by European versification in its historical evolution.
M. L. Gasparov
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198158790
- eISBN:
- 9780191673368
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198158790.003.0008
- Subject:
- Literature, Poetry, European Literature
Romance versification received another degree of organization through the regulated alternation of stressed and unstressed syllables, the syllabo-tonic system, which brought about German and English ...
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Romance versification received another degree of organization through the regulated alternation of stressed and unstressed syllables, the syllabo-tonic system, which brought about German and English versification. The first step towards incorporating Romance practice was introduced in German poetry. The second step happened when Germany was flooded by the influence of the fashionable courtly poetry of the French and as a result of this, German Minnessänger very soon displayed syllabic equalization and the syllabo-tonic sequence of stressed and unstressed syllables. The transition in English poetry, however, from alliterative tonic verse under the influence of Latin and French to a reworked syllabo-tonic system preceded approximately in the same way as in German. The history of English verse unfolds on the level of rhythm as well as on the metre.Less
Romance versification received another degree of organization through the regulated alternation of stressed and unstressed syllables, the syllabo-tonic system, which brought about German and English versification. The first step towards incorporating Romance practice was introduced in German poetry. The second step happened when Germany was flooded by the influence of the fashionable courtly poetry of the French and as a result of this, German Minnessänger very soon displayed syllabic equalization and the syllabo-tonic sequence of stressed and unstressed syllables. The transition in English poetry, however, from alliterative tonic verse under the influence of Latin and French to a reworked syllabo-tonic system preceded approximately in the same way as in German. The history of English verse unfolds on the level of rhythm as well as on the metre.
M. L. West
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199280759
- eISBN:
- 9780191712913
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199280759.003.0002
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Literary Studies: Classical, Early, and Medieval
This chapter examines the poetic traditions of Indo-Europeans. Topics covered include concepts of poetry, poetry as recall, poesy as construction, poesy as weaving, poesy as carpentry, the ship of ...
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This chapter examines the poetic traditions of Indo-Europeans. Topics covered include concepts of poetry, poetry as recall, poesy as construction, poesy as weaving, poesy as carpentry, the ship of song, the chariot of song, Graeco-Aryan metre, alliteration, metrical terminology, poetic prose, verse in a prose setting, hymns and praise, narrative poetry, personation, and codifications.Less
This chapter examines the poetic traditions of Indo-Europeans. Topics covered include concepts of poetry, poetry as recall, poesy as construction, poesy as weaving, poesy as carpentry, the ship of song, the chariot of song, Graeco-Aryan metre, alliteration, metrical terminology, poetic prose, verse in a prose setting, hymns and praise, narrative poetry, personation, and codifications.
M. L. Gasparov
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198158790
- eISBN:
- 9780191673368
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198158790.003.0002
- Subject:
- Literature, Poetry, European Literature
This chapter describes the syllabic structure of Common Indo-European verse, which has been preserved in the Baltic languages, Latvian and Lithuanian, with the latter as perhaps the one with the ...
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This chapter describes the syllabic structure of Common Indo-European verse, which has been preserved in the Baltic languages, Latvian and Lithuanian, with the latter as perhaps the one with the greatest degree of clarity. This clarity is probably due to the fact that the original syllabic system in Lithuanian folk versification has been preserved in a purer form compared with others. This chapter also discusses how other languages kept the Common Indo-European legacy. The Baltic language, for example, preserved the versification but only its lesser part, i.e., the short line verses and its derivatives. Slavonic folk poetry preserves the verses into a song, which is primarily lyrical and recited, which is primarily epic and spoken.Less
This chapter describes the syllabic structure of Common Indo-European verse, which has been preserved in the Baltic languages, Latvian and Lithuanian, with the latter as perhaps the one with the greatest degree of clarity. This clarity is probably due to the fact that the original syllabic system in Lithuanian folk versification has been preserved in a purer form compared with others. This chapter also discusses how other languages kept the Common Indo-European legacy. The Baltic language, for example, preserved the versification but only its lesser part, i.e., the short line verses and its derivatives. Slavonic folk poetry preserves the verses into a song, which is primarily lyrical and recited, which is primarily epic and spoken.
Richard Proudfoot
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199641819
- eISBN:
- 9780191749025
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199641819.003.0008
- Subject:
- Literature, 16th-century and Renaissance Literature, Shakespeare Studies
This chapter rejects the allegation, current since 1728, that Double Falsehood is Theobald’s original composition, masquerading as Shakespeare. Connection with the plays written by Shakespeare and ...
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This chapter rejects the allegation, current since 1728, that Double Falsehood is Theobald’s original composition, masquerading as Shakespeare. Connection with the plays written by Shakespeare and Fletcher between c.1602 and c.1614, especially their two collaborations, Henry VIII and The Two Noble Kinsmen, is demonstrated by close examination of the 100 line-end polysyllables in the verse scenes of Double Falsehood (a quantifiable feature of versification preserved by Theobald at rates of 60% and 40% respectively in his adaptations of Shakespeare’s Richard II (1715) and Webster’s The Duchess of Malfi (as The Fatal Secret, 1735)). Theobald’s ‘falsehood’ was to make a loud and very public claim for Shakespeare as sole author of a play, putatively the ‘lost’ Cardenio, that he had good reason to believe — but (too) strenuously denied — also contained the work of FletcherLess
This chapter rejects the allegation, current since 1728, that Double Falsehood is Theobald’s original composition, masquerading as Shakespeare. Connection with the plays written by Shakespeare and Fletcher between c.1602 and c.1614, especially their two collaborations, Henry VIII and The Two Noble Kinsmen, is demonstrated by close examination of the 100 line-end polysyllables in the verse scenes of Double Falsehood (a quantifiable feature of versification preserved by Theobald at rates of 60% and 40% respectively in his adaptations of Shakespeare’s Richard II (1715) and Webster’s The Duchess of Malfi (as The Fatal Secret, 1735)). Theobald’s ‘falsehood’ was to make a loud and very public claim for Shakespeare as sole author of a play, putatively the ‘lost’ Cardenio, that he had good reason to believe — but (too) strenuously denied — also contained the work of Fletcher
M. L. Gasparov
G. S. Smith and Leofranc Holford-Strevens (eds)
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198158790
- eISBN:
- 9780191673368
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198158790.001.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, Poetry, European Literature
When we read a poem composed in iambic blank pentameter, it reminds us of Shakespeare. When we read a poem composed in long lines without rhyme or rhythm, we think of Whitman. In this study of the ...
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When we read a poem composed in iambic blank pentameter, it reminds us of Shakespeare. When we read a poem composed in long lines without rhyme or rhythm, we think of Whitman. In this study of the history of European versification, the book shows how such chains of association link the poetry of numerous languages and diverse ages. Examining poetry written in thirty languages (from Irish to Belorussian) and over several millennia (from classical Latin and Greek to the experiments of the contemporary avant-garde), the book traces the ways in which the poetry of English, French, Russian, Greek, and other European languages has developed from a single common Indo-European source. The account is liberally illustrated with verse examples, both in their original languages and in translation.Less
When we read a poem composed in iambic blank pentameter, it reminds us of Shakespeare. When we read a poem composed in long lines without rhyme or rhythm, we think of Whitman. In this study of the history of European versification, the book shows how such chains of association link the poetry of numerous languages and diverse ages. Examining poetry written in thirty languages (from Irish to Belorussian) and over several millennia (from classical Latin and Greek to the experiments of the contemporary avant-garde), the book traces the ways in which the poetry of English, French, Russian, Greek, and other European languages has developed from a single common Indo-European source. The account is liberally illustrated with verse examples, both in their original languages and in translation.
Roger Pearson
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198159179
- eISBN:
- 9780191673535
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198159179.003.0019
- Subject:
- Literature, European Literature, Poetry
‘Un coup de Dés’ gives every appearance of having been composed at random, its text strewn across the page like dice along the baize, its words the flotsam from a shipwreck bobbing here and there on ...
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‘Un coup de Dés’ gives every appearance of having been composed at random, its text strewn across the page like dice along the baize, its words the flotsam from a shipwreck bobbing here and there on the waves of the turning pages. There is, of course, no conventional versification: no terminal rhymes, and no metrical regularity. Nevertheless, in his preface, Mallarmé speaks of the poem's ‘versification’, of a ‘prosodie, demeurant dans une reuvre, qui manque de précédents, à l'état élémentaire’.Less
‘Un coup de Dés’ gives every appearance of having been composed at random, its text strewn across the page like dice along the baize, its words the flotsam from a shipwreck bobbing here and there on the waves of the turning pages. There is, of course, no conventional versification: no terminal rhymes, and no metrical regularity. Nevertheless, in his preface, Mallarmé speaks of the poem's ‘versification’, of a ‘prosodie, demeurant dans une reuvre, qui manque de précédents, à l'état élémentaire’.
Paul Turner
- Published in print:
- 1990
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198122395
- eISBN:
- 9780191671401
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198122395.003.0003
- Subject:
- Literature, 19th-century and Victorian Literature
What makes Robert Browning’s poetry exhilarating is not optimism, but strenuous vitality. Life is presented as a challenge. Failure is inevitable but unimportant, so long as the fight goes on. The ...
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What makes Robert Browning’s poetry exhilarating is not optimism, but strenuous vitality. Life is presented as a challenge. Failure is inevitable but unimportant, so long as the fight goes on. The murdered Pompilia, refusing on her deathbed to admit ‘one faint fleck of failure’ in Caponsacchi’s attempt to save her life, expresses almost too literally this never-say-die spirit. Even Andrea del Sarto, the most depressed and defeatist of all Browning’s characters, is last heard planning to paint a vast mural in heaven, and stressing (‘as I choose’) that he is still, in a way, the master of his fate. This sense of irrepressible vitality is conveyed, not just through character, action, or explicit statement, but more immediately by language, versification, and poetic texture. Browning’s very individual style was evidently developed to satisfy the special feeling for ‘fact’ that he shared with Thomas Carlyle, and that drew him towards historical subjects.Less
What makes Robert Browning’s poetry exhilarating is not optimism, but strenuous vitality. Life is presented as a challenge. Failure is inevitable but unimportant, so long as the fight goes on. The murdered Pompilia, refusing on her deathbed to admit ‘one faint fleck of failure’ in Caponsacchi’s attempt to save her life, expresses almost too literally this never-say-die spirit. Even Andrea del Sarto, the most depressed and defeatist of all Browning’s characters, is last heard planning to paint a vast mural in heaven, and stressing (‘as I choose’) that he is still, in a way, the master of his fate. This sense of irrepressible vitality is conveyed, not just through character, action, or explicit statement, but more immediately by language, versification, and poetic texture. Browning’s very individual style was evidently developed to satisfy the special feeling for ‘fact’ that he shared with Thomas Carlyle, and that drew him towards historical subjects.
Clive Scott
- Published in print:
- 1998
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198159445
- eISBN:
- 9780191673634
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198159445.003.0002
- Subject:
- Literature, Poetry, European Literature
The French verse has its roots in Latin versification, although the former has undergone a few changes over the years. This chapter discusses the different features of French verse: French syllables, ...
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The French verse has its roots in Latin versification, although the former has undergone a few changes over the years. This chapter discusses the different features of French verse: French syllables, the French accent, rhyme, and structural properties.Less
The French verse has its roots in Latin versification, although the former has undergone a few changes over the years. This chapter discusses the different features of French verse: French syllables, the French accent, rhyme, and structural properties.
M. L. Gasparov
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198158790
- eISBN:
- 9780191673368
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198158790.003.0003
- Subject:
- Literature, Poetry, European Literature
This chapter describes how the Old Germanic versification still puzzles scholars studying its history. They have not yet succeeded in tracing the language’s evolution from hypothetical Indo-European ...
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This chapter describes how the Old Germanic versification still puzzles scholars studying its history. They have not yet succeeded in tracing the language’s evolution from hypothetical Indo-European syllabic verse. In the same way that its versification cannot be traced, English and German alliterative verse became extinct as well due to excessive looseness. Interestingly, while looseness of the language can be a cause of extinction, the Scandinavian language perished from excessive strictness. In both cases, it was replaced by new forms which were Romance in origin.Less
This chapter describes how the Old Germanic versification still puzzles scholars studying its history. They have not yet succeeded in tracing the language’s evolution from hypothetical Indo-European syllabic verse. In the same way that its versification cannot be traced, English and German alliterative verse became extinct as well due to excessive looseness. Interestingly, while looseness of the language can be a cause of extinction, the Scandinavian language perished from excessive strictness. In both cases, it was replaced by new forms which were Romance in origin.
M. L. Gasparov
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198158790
- eISBN:
- 9780191673368
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198158790.003.0006
- Subject:
- Literature, Poetry, European Literature
This chapter describes what happened in the phonological changes during the 3rd century AD in Greek and Latin languages, where opposition of long and short syllables was lost. This chapter talks ...
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This chapter describes what happened in the phonological changes during the 3rd century AD in Greek and Latin languages, where opposition of long and short syllables was lost. This chapter talks about how Medieval Greek and Latin syllabic verses developed into classical Greek and Latin quantitative metrics. This development had very important consequences for the whole of medieval European versification. Changing from classical feet metrics to the less constrained medieval syllabic rhythms required compensation, called rhyme, to consolidate the unity of verse lines. The Middle Ages often indulged in sonorous rhyming schemes in metrical poetry until Renaissance came and poets returned to more rigorous imitation of classical models.Less
This chapter describes what happened in the phonological changes during the 3rd century AD in Greek and Latin languages, where opposition of long and short syllables was lost. This chapter talks about how Medieval Greek and Latin syllabic verses developed into classical Greek and Latin quantitative metrics. This development had very important consequences for the whole of medieval European versification. Changing from classical feet metrics to the less constrained medieval syllabic rhythms required compensation, called rhyme, to consolidate the unity of verse lines. The Middle Ages often indulged in sonorous rhyming schemes in metrical poetry until Renaissance came and poets returned to more rigorous imitation of classical models.
M. L. Gasparov
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198158790
- eISBN:
- 9780191673368
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198158790.003.0007
- Subject:
- Literature, Poetry, European Literature
This chapter focuses on the three main systems of versification in the Romance language, namely Italian, French, and Spanish. All these versification went through almost the same three stages of ...
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This chapter focuses on the three main systems of versification in the Romance language, namely Italian, French, and Spanish. All these versification went through almost the same three stages of development. Among the three major Romance literatures, Italian poetry incorporated the Latin versification in the most direct and straightforward way. The history of French syllabics was somewhat more complex because among all the syllabic variations, it was a decasyllable that developed as a long form. The Italian endecasillabo and another variation is the octosyllable which was used as a short form. Spanish versification, however, was prolonged as the first stages of formation of syllabic verse remained for a long time in the pre-syllabic and quasi-syllabic stages.Less
This chapter focuses on the three main systems of versification in the Romance language, namely Italian, French, and Spanish. All these versification went through almost the same three stages of development. Among the three major Romance literatures, Italian poetry incorporated the Latin versification in the most direct and straightforward way. The history of French syllabics was somewhat more complex because among all the syllabic variations, it was a decasyllable that developed as a long form. The Italian endecasillabo and another variation is the octosyllable which was used as a short form. Spanish versification, however, was prolonged as the first stages of formation of syllabic verse remained for a long time in the pre-syllabic and quasi-syllabic stages.
Howard Jones and Martin H. Jones
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- July 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780199654611
- eISBN:
- 9780191851698
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780199654611.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Historical Linguistics, Syntax and Morphology
The Oxford Guide to Middle High German is the most comprehensive self-contained treatment of Middle High German available in English. It covers the language, literature, history, and culture of ...
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The Oxford Guide to Middle High German is the most comprehensive self-contained treatment of Middle High German available in English. It covers the language, literature, history, and culture of German in the period 1050–1350 and is designed for entry-level readers, advanced study, teaching, and reference. The book includes a large sample of texts, not only from Classical works such as Erec, the Nibelungenlied, Parzival, and Tristan, but also from mystical writing, chronicles, and legal documents; the selection represents all major dialects and the full time span of the period. Chapter 1 (‘Introduction’) defines Middle High German linguistically, geographically, and chronologically. In Chapter 2 (‘Grammar and Lexis’) each section begins with a summary of the main points; together, these form a stand-alone introductory grammar, and they are followed by detailed paragraphs for in-depth study and reference. Chapter 3 (‘Versification’) deals with metre, rhyme, lines of verse in context, and verse forms, and includes practical tips for scansion. Chapter 4 (‘Historical, Cultural, and Literary Background’) offers an account of the political and social structures of medieval Germany and a survey of the principal types of texts that originated in the period. Chapter 5 (‘Selection of Annotated Texts’) comprises over forty texts, each placed in context and provided with explanatory footnotes; the first two texts, to be taken together with the introductory grammar, are aimed at newcomers. A glossary provides full coverage of the vocabulary appearing in the texts and throughout the book.Less
The Oxford Guide to Middle High German is the most comprehensive self-contained treatment of Middle High German available in English. It covers the language, literature, history, and culture of German in the period 1050–1350 and is designed for entry-level readers, advanced study, teaching, and reference. The book includes a large sample of texts, not only from Classical works such as Erec, the Nibelungenlied, Parzival, and Tristan, but also from mystical writing, chronicles, and legal documents; the selection represents all major dialects and the full time span of the period. Chapter 1 (‘Introduction’) defines Middle High German linguistically, geographically, and chronologically. In Chapter 2 (‘Grammar and Lexis’) each section begins with a summary of the main points; together, these form a stand-alone introductory grammar, and they are followed by detailed paragraphs for in-depth study and reference. Chapter 3 (‘Versification’) deals with metre, rhyme, lines of verse in context, and verse forms, and includes practical tips for scansion. Chapter 4 (‘Historical, Cultural, and Literary Background’) offers an account of the political and social structures of medieval Germany and a survey of the principal types of texts that originated in the period. Chapter 5 (‘Selection of Annotated Texts’) comprises over forty texts, each placed in context and provided with explanatory footnotes; the first two texts, to be taken together with the introductory grammar, are aimed at newcomers. A glossary provides full coverage of the vocabulary appearing in the texts and throughout the book.
Jan Mieszkowski
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- September 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780226617053
- eISBN:
- 9780226617220
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226617220.003.0003
- Subject:
- Literature, 20th-century Literature and Modernism
This chapter examines how verse texts challenge the authority of sentence grammar. In combatting what they perceive to be the anti-egalitarianism of the sentence form, Whitman and Dickinson test our ...
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This chapter examines how verse texts challenge the authority of sentence grammar. In combatting what they perceive to be the anti-egalitarianism of the sentence form, Whitman and Dickinson test our understanding of the relationship between lineation and syntax. Whitman attempts to create an intrinsically democratic discourse in which no phrase or clause is superior to any other, whereas Dickinson tries to establish a sentence rhythm that will give individual words and phrases unique freedom as they function both syntactically and extra-syntactically. The chapter concludes that these poets show us what it would mean to denaturalize the sentence and to read without making the assumption that it is our dominant linguistic paradigm.Less
This chapter examines how verse texts challenge the authority of sentence grammar. In combatting what they perceive to be the anti-egalitarianism of the sentence form, Whitman and Dickinson test our understanding of the relationship between lineation and syntax. Whitman attempts to create an intrinsically democratic discourse in which no phrase or clause is superior to any other, whereas Dickinson tries to establish a sentence rhythm that will give individual words and phrases unique freedom as they function both syntactically and extra-syntactically. The chapter concludes that these poets show us what it would mean to denaturalize the sentence and to read without making the assumption that it is our dominant linguistic paradigm.
Fiona Sampson
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- January 2018
- ISBN:
- 9781474402927
- eISBN:
- 9781474426862
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9781474402927.003.0006
- Subject:
- Literature, Poetry
This chapter explores the ‘vertical’ or the simultaneous way in which non-denotative elements contribute to a piece or poem. This simultaneous quality is referred to as ‘density’. As so often with ...
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This chapter explores the ‘vertical’ or the simultaneous way in which non-denotative elements contribute to a piece or poem. This simultaneous quality is referred to as ‘density’. As so often with abstract forms, density is more easily spotted in music than in verse, as it is easier to believe there just is more going on at any one moment of a thickly orchestrated symphony than of a string trio: more diversity, even though not necessarily more in the way of musical ideas, and above all simply more noise. In poetry, however, the chapter sums up the principle of poetic density through an equation: D = CV (or, density = content × versification).Less
This chapter explores the ‘vertical’ or the simultaneous way in which non-denotative elements contribute to a piece or poem. This simultaneous quality is referred to as ‘density’. As so often with abstract forms, density is more easily spotted in music than in verse, as it is easier to believe there just is more going on at any one moment of a thickly orchestrated symphony than of a string trio: more diversity, even though not necessarily more in the way of musical ideas, and above all simply more noise. In poetry, however, the chapter sums up the principle of poetic density through an equation: D = CV (or, density = content × versification).
Paul H. Fry
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- October 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780300126488
- eISBN:
- 9780300145410
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Yale University Press
- DOI:
- 10.12987/yale/9780300126488.003.0007
- Subject:
- Literature, 19th-century Literature and Romanticism
This chapter takes a look at William Wordsworth's “The Poem to Coleridge” or its better-known title The Prelude. The Prelude is supposedly the culmination of Wordsworth's communication and ...
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This chapter takes a look at William Wordsworth's “The Poem to Coleridge” or its better-known title The Prelude. The Prelude is supposedly the culmination of Wordsworth's communication and relationship with Samuel Coleridge. It would be the great philosophical poem that Coleridge wanted him to write, the grand versification of ideas that Coleridge believed he shared in common with Wordsworth. Such a grand task, however, proves to be difficult for Wordsworth as he professes to be lacking in enough maturity to truly understand what it is that Coleridge wants him to say. Hence the title is fitting in a sense as it implies a promise of whatever long poem it may be. This chapter then explores the events, thoughts, and influences that would help Wordsworth in the creation of The Prelude, and studies the implications of the poem itself.Less
This chapter takes a look at William Wordsworth's “The Poem to Coleridge” or its better-known title The Prelude. The Prelude is supposedly the culmination of Wordsworth's communication and relationship with Samuel Coleridge. It would be the great philosophical poem that Coleridge wanted him to write, the grand versification of ideas that Coleridge believed he shared in common with Wordsworth. Such a grand task, however, proves to be difficult for Wordsworth as he professes to be lacking in enough maturity to truly understand what it is that Coleridge wants him to say. Hence the title is fitting in a sense as it implies a promise of whatever long poem it may be. This chapter then explores the events, thoughts, and influences that would help Wordsworth in the creation of The Prelude, and studies the implications of the poem itself.
Howard Jones and Martin H. Jones
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- July 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780199654611
- eISBN:
- 9780191851698
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780199654611.003.0003
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Historical Linguistics, Syntax and Morphology
This chapter describes the chief features of versification in poetry written in the Middle High German Classical period (c.1170–c.1230) and in the remainder of the Middle High German period. The four ...
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This chapter describes the chief features of versification in poetry written in the Middle High German Classical period (c.1170–c.1230) and in the remainder of the Middle High German period. The four parts of the chapter treat metre (anacrusis, interior of the line, cadence), rhyme (types of rhyme, rhyme schemes), lines of verse in context (rhythmical continuity or discontinuity between lines of verse, metrical and syntactical structures, rhyming couplets and syntactical structures), and verse forms (non-strophic verse, strophic verse in heroic and lyric poetry, the ‘Stollenstrophe’). Tips for the scansion of verse are included. Technical terminology in English and German is explained throughout. Examples are in the main drawn from the selection of texts (Chapter 5). In the case of lyric verse, the general account in this chapter is supplemented by metrical analyses of each song included in the selection.Less
This chapter describes the chief features of versification in poetry written in the Middle High German Classical period (c.1170–c.1230) and in the remainder of the Middle High German period. The four parts of the chapter treat metre (anacrusis, interior of the line, cadence), rhyme (types of rhyme, rhyme schemes), lines of verse in context (rhythmical continuity or discontinuity between lines of verse, metrical and syntactical structures, rhyming couplets and syntactical structures), and verse forms (non-strophic verse, strophic verse in heroic and lyric poetry, the ‘Stollenstrophe’). Tips for the scansion of verse are included. Technical terminology in English and German is explained throughout. Examples are in the main drawn from the selection of texts (Chapter 5). In the case of lyric verse, the general account in this chapter is supplemented by metrical analyses of each song included in the selection.
