(a preliminary outline)
The series of four classes will survey some segmental and prosodic features of earlier stages of English with emphasis on the ways in which verbal art can be used as a testing ground for linguistic reconstruction. Some familiarity with the sound structure, prosody, and metrical tradition of Old and Middle English will be useful, but will not be expected. The goal will be to introduce the students to analytical procedures in historical phonology and prosody that will enable them to identify similarities and differences between the phonological structure of the older stages of English and Present-Day English.
Each class will start with a presentation by the instructor, followed by questions, discussion, and analysis of selected poetic passages (Class 2 and Class 4).
Class schedule (preliminary)
Class 1: Old English phonology. Vowels, consonants, prosodic issues: syllable structure and stress.
Class 2: Old English alliterative meter, the basics. Reading and scanning Beowulf.
Class 3: Middle English phonology. Innovations, prosodic issues: syllable structure and stress. Unsolved problems.
Class 4: The evolution of Middle English verse in the context of sound change and cultural contacts. Reading and scanning Chaucer.
The lecture outlines and the verse passages to be discussed will be posted on the class website in advance.
ECLASS:
https://free.openeclass.org/courses/ENG261/==> Participants will receive a link for a dropbox
