Sunday, November 8, 2015

The Four Types Of Works A Medieval Author Would Write

By Mattie Knight


During the medieval times of Europe, many books about their era was written as writing was one of the most respected arts of that time. Of course when one would think of medieval literature, he would probably think about the literature that would stem from Europe during the medieval ages. During that time, there were four main genres that a medieval author would work on namely the theological works, the secular works, the allegories, and the works of women.

Of course the first one would be the philosophical or theological works since these types of works were the most popular types of works during that time. Now the church was the single most influential body that existed in the entire region. Now because of this, it was very common for famous authors to incorporate a lot of theological themes into their books.

Now if one would read some religious texts, then he would probably find the names of Thomas Aquinas, Peter Abelard, or Anselm of Canterbury. Specifically Saint Thomas Aquinas was known to be the most noteworthy religious writers because not only was he a good writer but he also had a very good understanding of the Bible. He was an extremely intelligent and wise man that had a lot of knowledge when it came to the scriptures.

Other than the theological works, there would also be some secular works as well. Some notable authors in this type of genre would be Sir John Mandeville who wrote the Travels of Sir John Mandeville and also Sir John Mallory. These people focused on other themes that were not focused on religious themes but on fiction, history, and other kinds of themes that were of interest to readers at that time.

Now another genre that was extremely popular among the people would be the allegories that were written by poets. If one knows about the famous William Shakespeare, then he should know about Geoffrey Chaucer as well as Chaucer was the predecessor of the very famous William Shakespeare. He was one of the most famous and influential poets of that time.

Although it was rare for females to be authors, there were a few who were mentioned. Most women during that time concentrated on theological works since that was the most popular kind. There were also a few that excelled in other genres as well.

Now if one would look at some of the most notable authors of that time, he would probably see Julian of Norwich at the top of the list. She was actually the very first woman to have published a book in the whole of England. What made her works pretty interesting was that they were based on visions she had when she was having a terminal illness.

So if one is interested in the literature of this time period, then here are some of the things that he may find interest in. Now the authors of those times were actually very influential to the authors of this modern time. In fact a lot of current works have been influenced by the works that were created during this very time period.




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