For the M MEMS Seminar "Texts and Approaches: Reading the Pre-Modern World"
Module 2: A Medieval English Book: MS Digby 86, Oxford Bodleian Library.
Led by Ela Majocha, School of Humanities
In this module we explore the themes around English Medieval manuscript production and focus on one of the most famous and most important manuscripts from the 13th century: Oxford Bodleian Library, MS Digby 86. It is a trilingual manuscript of more than eighty pieces, written in English, Anglo-French (Anglo-Norman) and Latin. The manuscript is important and intriguing on many levels:
almost all of it is written by one scribe, who could work in three languages
the selection covers a variety of subjects, from various literary fragments to medical, confessional, prognosticatory; the English fragments represent pre-Chaucerian language and atest the genre of fabliaux (English "fable"), of the
Middle English context of a unique trilingual manuscript from the last quarter of the 13th c.,
, last quarter of c. 13th
one of the most famous and most important manuscripts of the early Middle English period
contains over 80 texts in three languages, copied by a single scribe, variety of subjects
from various lit fragments to medical, confessional, prognosticatory, interesting
marginalia
week 1: Oxford, Bodleian Library, Digby 86, manuscript, compilation and languages
We will start of with an introduction to
We'll delve into the world of the compiler and the speculate about who the recipient could be
, a bit of outer history if need be
(to explain why the three lgs)
there is good scholarship regarding the compilation and provenance & historical context
old and new editions and commentaries
Marilyn Corrie. "The compilation of Oxford, Bodleian Library. MS Digby 86." Medium Aevum 66.2 (1997): 236-249. [Academic Research Library. ProQuest. 28 Feb. 2008 <http://www.proquest.com/> ] NB the ProQuest DB - Cambridge Uni none other - ask you to quote it as "The compLICation of Oxford, Bodleian Library." 
week 2: Historical context:
I'm inclined more towards palaeography and text comparison
week 3: Literary genres represented in the manuscript
For the palaeography exercise
transcription of a ten line fragment of "Stabat Mater" -- hand not too dissimilar to a
sample of King Horn I've got in my file (BritLib, MS, Harley 2253) -- if that's the one
Andrew used, will check
week 4:
notes about transcribing and editing from an English Medieval manuscript (diplomatic, semi-d., modernised)
2nd transcription exercise, 10 lines of "Stabat Mater" BritLib, MS Harley 2253 (will be
quite easy building on the first exercise - could be set as Homework if students cope
well with the class exercise)
compare the 10 lines of MS Digby 86 "Stabat Mater" to a c. 14th BritLib, MS Harley 2253
compare your transcription to the printed editions, can you tell what kind of editions
(diplomatic, semi-d., modernised)
I could go more into literature, as the MS has "Dame Sirith" (a pre-Chaucerian fabliau),
"Fox and the Wolf" (beast epic), also various English lyrics -- and unique Anglo-Norman
pieces, so relevant to those with French