Greenery Ecocritical Readings of Late Medieval English Literature

Humankind has always been fascinated by the world in which it finds itself, and puzzled by its relations to it. Today that fascination is often expressed in what is now called "green" terms, reflecting concerns about the non-human natural world, puzzlement about how we relate to it, and anxiety about what we, as humans, are doing to it. So called green or eco-criticism acknowledges this concern. Greeneryreaches back and offers new readings of English texts, both known and unfamiliar, informed by eco-criticism. After considering general issues pertaining to green criticism,Greenerymoves on to a series of individual chapters arranged by theme (earth, trees, wilds, sea, gardens and fields) which provide individual close readings of selections from such familiar texts as Malory'sMorte D'Arthur, Chaucer'sKnight's and Franklin's Tales,Sir Gawain and the Green Knightand Langland'sPiers Plowman. These discussions are contextualized by considering them alongside hitherto marginalized texts such as lyrics, Patience and the romance Sir Orfeo. The result is a study which reinvigorates our customary reading of late Middle English literary texts while also allows us to reflect upon the vibrant new school of eco-criticism itself.

Gillian Rudd is Senior Lecturer in English at the University of Liverpool.

Preface: Green reading * Earth and world * Trees *  Wilds, wastes and wilderness * Sea and coast * Gardens and fields * Bibliography