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Showing total 13 results
Start Over Topic literary criticism Publication Year Range Last 50 years Publication Type Reviews Journal papers on language & literature
13 results

3. Sisters Are Sisters: Identity in an Anonymous Middle English Poem.

Author

WUEST, CHARLES

Subjects
*POETRY (Literary form), *LITERARY criticism, *LOVE in literature, *IDENTITY (Philosophical concept) in literature, *THEMES in poetry
Abstract

The article offers criticism on the 15th-century riddle poem "I have a 3ong suster," written by an anonymous author. Topics examined include the definition of the word suster, which is believed to mean "beloved" or "sweetheart," possible sexual interpretations of the work and insights on the poem's exploration of identity.

Published
2015

4. Yeats and the Occasional Poem: "Easter 1916".

Author

PERLOFF, MARJORIE

Subjects
*ENGLISH occasional verse, *20TH century English poetry, *LITERARY criticism, *STANZAS, *HISTORY of poetics, *LITERARY characters, *TWENTIETH century
Abstract

This essay, reprinted from the 1968 volume of the journal, presents a literary critique of the poem "Easter 1916," by William Butler Yeats, focusing on the poet's engagement with the form of occasional poetry. Topics addressed include Yeats' use of stanzaic poetry conventions, the tradition of occasional poetry before and during Yeats' period, and Yeats' depiction of several characters within the poem.

Published
2014

5. Girdles, Belts, and Cords: a Leitmotif in Chaucer's General Prologue.

Author

BESSERMAN, LAWRENCE

Subjects
*BELTS (Clothing) in literature, *MIDDLE English poetry, *THEMES in medieval literature, *CLERGY in literature, *POETRY (Literary form), *LITERARY criticism
Abstract

The essay, reprinted from an earlier volume of the journal, presents a literary critique of the General Prologue from Geoffrey Chaucer's "The Canterbury Tales." Focus is given to the prologue's focus on girdles, belts and similar objects as a theme in the work. Commentary highlights Chaucer's use of the objects to criticize the lack of virtues in the religious figures in the story.

Published
2014

6. Readying for Surprise: Emory Elliott's Literary Historiography.

Author

Foster, Travis M.

Subjects
*AMERICAN literature, *LITERARY criticism, *NONFICTION
Abstract

The article reviews the book "National Dreams and Rude Awakenings: Essays on American Literature, from the Puritans to the Postmodern" by Emory Elliott.

Published
2012

8. Blasphemy or Blessing? Swift's 'Scatological' Poems.

Author

Rodino, Richard H.

Subjects
*SCATOLOGY in literature, *LITERARY criticism, *POETRY (Literary form)
Abstract

The article provides an overview of criticism regarding the English poet Jonathan Swift's "scatological" poems, with particular focus given to critical reactions to their sexual, scatological, and misogynistic content. Poems including "The Progress of Beauty," "Strephon and Chloe," and "The Lady's Dressing Room" are commented on, and the application of psychoanalysis to Swiftian criticism is explored.

Published
1978

9. The Structure of Sir Launfal.

Author

Anderson, Earl R.

Subjects
*INFLUENCE (Literary, artistic, etc.), *MIDDLE English poetry, *POETRY (Literary form), *LITERARY criticism
Abstract

The article discusses the Middle English poem "Sir Launfal" by Thomas Chestre, with particular focus given to the poem's relationship to its sources, the "Landevale" manuscript and the poem "Lanval, Graelent" by Marie de France. Chestre's use of structure and departures from his sources in style and content are also touched on.

Published
1977

10. REVIEW ESSAYS: Realism, Recreation, and Irresolution.

Author

HARTUNG, ALBERT E.

Subjects
*MIDDLE English poetry, *NONFICTION, *LITERARY criticism, *POETRY (Literary form)
Abstract

The article reviews the book "Middle English Debate Poetry and the Aesthetics of Irresolution" by Thomas L. Reed Jr.

Published
1992

11. Juliana and the Figures of Rhetoric.

Author

WINE, JOSEPH D.

Subjects
*OLD English poetry, *RHETORIC in literature, *LITERARY criticism, *POETRY (Literary form)
Abstract

The article discusses the Old English poem "Juliana" by Cynewulf, with particular focus given to its use of rhetoric and the assertion of critics including Rosemary Woolf that it is an inferior, shallow work compared to the poet's earlier output. The poem's religious and cultural themes are also commented on.

Published
1992

13. The Secular Scripture (Book).

Subjects
*FICTION, *LITERARY criticism, *NONFICTION
Abstract

Reviews the book 'The Secular Scripture: A Study of the Structure of Romance,' by Northrop Frye.

Published
1978