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An Introduction to Piers Plowman - (New Perspectives on Medieval Literature: Authors and Traditi) by Michael A Calabrese (Hardcover)
About this item
Highlights
- William Langland's allegorical poem Piers Plowman is becoming ever more popular in medieval English literature courses.
- About the Author: Michael Calabrese, professor of English at California State University, Los Angeles, is author of Chaucer's Ovidian Arts of Love.
- 384 Pages
- Literary Criticism, Medieval
- Series Name: New Perspectives on Medieval Literature: Authors and Traditi
Description
About the Book
The author covers all three iterations of William Langland's Piers Plowman and discusses the various changes that occurred from one revision to the next, making this work unique in its ability to be taught alongside any version of a professor's choosing.Book Synopsis
William Langland's allegorical poem Piers Plowman is becoming ever more popular in medieval English literature courses. But most current introductions focus primarily on the B text, leaving a gap in available resources for the poem's study. As Piers Plowman continues to gain academic attention in all its three versions (the A, B, and C texts), teachers and students need a new perspective and new approach to the poem as an evolving whole.
This first comprehensive introduction to Langland's masterful work covers all three iterations and outlines the various changes that occurred between each. Useful for individuals reading any version of Piers Plowman, this engaging guide offers a much-needed navigational summary, a chronology of historic events relevant to the poem, biographical notes about Langland, and keys to characters and proper pronunciation. Calabrese's definitive and refreshingly lively volume allows readers to navigate this daunting poem and to contextualize it within the literary history of Western culture.
Review Quotes
"Provides a running summary of the poem through its three widely accepted 'versions, ' adding observations, lightly interpretive appreciations, and speculation about the author's reasons for various revisions. The readings are clarifying and astute, bringing out moments rarely mentioned and offering fresh treatments of famous passages; the critic's warm voice fosters enthusiasm."--Choice
"This lively book has no peers. . . . Readers seeking a one-stop shop for tools with which to engage with all things Piers could hardly do better than Calabrese's Introduction. . . . [A] magnificent book."--Medieval Review
About the Author
Michael Calabrese, professor of English at California State University, Los Angeles, is author of Chaucer's Ovidian Arts of Love.