The Boundaries of the Human in Medieval English Literature

This book explores a wide variety of medieval writings (by Chaucer, Gower, the Gawain-poet, and Henryson, among others) to answer the question, In what way did medieval people think about animals? It ranges from birds and foxes, to the Bestiary, heraldry, and hunting, to the enigmatic figure of the Wild Man. Animals And 'wild Men' Are Everywhere In Medieval Culture, But Their Role In Illuminating Medieval Constructions Of Humanity Has Never Been Properly Explored. This Book Gathers Together A Large Number Of Themes And Subjects (including The Bestiary, Heraldry, And Hunting), And Examines Them As Part Of A Unified Discourse About The Body And Its Creative Transformations. 'human' And 'animal' Are Terms Traditionally Opposed To One Another, But Their Relationship Must Always Be Characterized By A Dynamic Instability. Humans Scout Into The Animal Zone, Manipulating And Re-shaping 'animal' Bodies In Accordance With Their Own Social Imagining - Yet These Forays Are Risky Since They Lead To Questions About What Humanity Consists In, And Whether It Can Ever Be Forfeited. Studies Of Birds, Foxes, 'game' Animals, The Wild Man, And Shape-shifting Women Fill Out The Argument Of This Book, Which Sheds New Light On Works By Chaucer, Gower, The Gamain-poet, And Henryson, As Well As Showing That Many Less Familiar Texts Have Rewards That An Informed Reading Can Reveal.--jacket. Note On References, Translations, And Abbreviations -- Introduction -- 1. The Bestiary: Establishing Ground Rules -- 2. Birds: The Ornament Of The Air -- 3. The Fox: Laying Bare Deceit -- 4. The Heraldic Image -- 5. Bodies In The Hunt -- 6. A Reading Of The Knight's Tale -- 7. The Wild Man 1: Figuring Identity -- 8. The Wild Man 2: The Uncourtly Other -- 9. Women And The Wild -- Conclusion -- Bibliography -- Index. Dorothy Yamamoto. Revision Of The Author's Thesis (ph. D.)--oxford Brookes University. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [236]-252) And Index. The Boundaries of the Human in Medieval English Literature 1 Preface and Acknowledgements 5 Contents 7 Note on References, Translations, and Abbreviations 9 Introduction 10 Chapter One— The Bestiary: Establishing Ground Rules 21 Chapter Two— Birds: The Ornament of the Air 43 Chapter Three— The Fox: Laying Bare Deceit 65 Chapter Four— The Heraldic Image 84 Chapter Five— Bodies in the Hunt 108 The Hunt Par Force 114 Dogs and Their Owners 124 Hunting and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight 132 Chapter Six— A Reading of the Knight's Tale 141 Chapter Seven— The Wild Man I: Figuring Identity 153 Is He a Man? 162 Wild Bodies 170 Chapter Eight— The Wild Man 2: The Uncourtly Other 178 Wild Men and Knights 179 Knights in the Wilderness 185 Valentine and Orson 196 Chapter Nine— Women and the Wild 206 Melusine: Shape-Shifter 221 Conclusion 234 Bibliography 245 Primary Sources 245 Manuscripts 245 Printed Works 245 Secondary Sources 251 Index 262 A 262 B 262 C 262 D 263 E 263 F 263 G 263 H 264 I 264 J 264 K 264 L 264 M 264 N 264 O 264 P 264 Q 265 R 265 S 265 T 265 U 265 V 265 W 265 Y 266