The Owl and the Nightingale/ Cleanness/ St Erkenwald

by Brian Stone (Translator)

• Used

  Paperback
  1977

  $3.49

  The Middle English poems in this book exemplify three major genres in medieval religious writing: saint's legend, Bible epic and religious debate. St Erkenwald tells how a bishop of London raised a pagan judge from the dead and sent his soul to heaven. In Cleanness (often known as Purity ) such events as the flood, the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah and Belshazzar's feast are recounted. The Owl and the Nightingale is a contest between an owl and a nightingale who debate the traditional morals of the Church and the ideals of courtly love.