The Age of Alfred: Rethinking English Literary Culture C. 850-950

King Alfred the Great (r. 871-899) remains a key figure in English literary history. Although his reputation as a scholar who was personally responsible for the translation of a number of Latin works is no longer secure, the figure of the wise king nevertheless casts a long shadow over vernacular writing from the late ninth century through to the twelfth. This volume takes stock of recent developments and debates in the field of Alfredian scholarship and showcases new directions in research. Individual chapters consider how English authors before, during, and after Alfred's reign translated and adapted Latin works, often in innovative and imaginative ways. Other contributions provide new contexts and connections for Alfredian writing, highlighting the work of Mercian scholars and expanding the corpus beyond the works traditionally attributed to the king himself. Together, these essays force us to rethink what we mean by 'Alfredian' and to revise the literary history of the 'long ninth century'. Preface and Acknowledgements 13 Introduction: Rethinking English Literary Culture c. 850–950. Amy Faulkner and Francis Leneghan 17 Old English Literature before Alfred: The Mercian Dimension. Christine Rauer 51 Writing Latin in the Age of Alfred. Robert Gallagher 73 The ‘Thing-Power’ of the Fabulous Alfred Jewel. Georgina Pitt 103 Alfredian Geographies. Nicole Guenther Discenza 129 The Old English Bede: Some Reflections on Origins and Text. Greg Waite 151 The Idea of Decorum in the Old English Dialogues. Susan Irvine 211 The Old English Pastoral Care: Date, Readership, and Authorship. Daniel Anlezark 229 Refrains and Repeated Verse Lines: Patterns in Sung Verse in the De consolatione philosophiae and the Old English Boethius. Karmen Lenz 257 The Singularity of the Old English Boethius. Adrian Papahagi 283 Latin Commentaries on Boethius’s De consolatione philosophiae as a Source of Added Material in the Old English Soliloquies: A Preliminary Study . Leslie Lockett 307 Bending Minds in the Old English Boethius. Erica Weaver 341 Easing Unease in the Old English Soliloquies and Boethius: A Mystical Turn. Michael Treschow 363 The Ninth-Century Psalter in England. M. J. Toswell 389 Examining Dualities in the Old English Prose Psalms. Emily Butler 409 King Alfred as the Skipper in Andreas. Richard North 429 Ælfred se casere: Kingship and Imperial Legitimation in the Old English Orosius. Omar Khalaf 457 The Winchester Scribes and Alfredian Prose in the Tenth Century. Emily Kesling 477 Chronicle Compilation and West Saxon Succession. Courtnay Konshuh 499 The Domboc in the Laws of Edward the Elder. Stefan Jurasinski 523 The Wayward Tongue of Folcleasung: Oaths, Bodies, and Communal Truth. Katherine O’Brien O’Keeffe 547 Why Did the Anglo-Saxons Switch from Verse to Prose? Malcolm Godden 565 Index 593