The Medieval Poetics of the Reliquary : Enshrinement, Inscription, Performance

Through interdisciplinary readings of medieval literature and devotional artifacts, The Medieval Poetics of the Reliquary shows how reliquaries shaped ideas about poetry and poetics in late-medieval England. Cover 1 CONTENTS 10 ILLUSTRATIONS 11 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 13 INTRODUCTION 15 CHAPTER 1 THE POETICS OF ENSHRINEMENT 33 CHAPTER 2 SILENT INSCRIPTION, SPOKENCEREMONY: SAINT ERKENWALDAND THE ENSHRINED JUDGE 60 CHAPTER 3 THE N-TOWN ASSUMPTION’SIMPOSSIBLE RELIQUARY 85 CHAPTER 4 ENSHRINING FORM: PEARL ASINSCRIPTIONAL OBJECT ANDDEVOTIONAL EVENT 107 CONCLUSIONA LYRIC POETICS OF ENSHRINEMENT 165 CHAPTER 5 RELIQUARIES OF THE MIND: FIGURATION,ENSHRINEMENT, AND PERFORMANCEIN THE PARDONER’S TALE 142 NOTES 180 BIBLIOGRAPHY 219 INDEX 239 Front Matter....Pages i-xvi Introduction....Pages 1-18 The Poetics of Enshrinement....Pages 19-45 Silent Inscription, Spoken Ceremony: Saint Erkenwald and the Enshrined Judge....Pages 47-71 The N-Town Assumption’s Impossible Reliquary....Pages 73-94 Enshrining Form: Pearl as Inscriptional Object and Devotional Event....Pages 95-129 Reliquaries of the Mind: Figuration, Enshrinement, and Performance in the Pardoner’s Tale....Pages 131-153 Conclusion....Pages 155-169 Back Matter....Pages 171-245