Propaganda in English medieval historiography

Propaganda occurs sporadically in the chronicles of medieval England, mainly in official histories (that is those commissioned by authority) and quasi-official ones (those not actually commissioned but representing the authority's point of view). It ranges from mere eulogy to forceful argument which may even involve deliberate misrepresentation. In monastic chronicles the propaganda is generally on behalf of the monastery itself, and is rarely that of the central government; in fact such chronicles tend to be critical of king and government. Government propaganda occurs more frequently in chronicles by other groups of writers, notably secular clerks. Although very few non-monastic chronicles were actually commissioned by the king (the only indisputable examples belong to the reign of Edward IV), a few are quasi-official, written probably to attract patronage and/or in a literary mode, especially that of romance literature, which tended to favour the king.Clearly government-sponsored history established no continuous tradition in England, comparable to that, for example, in France. Nor were quasi-official histories numerous. Therefore it seems that government propaganda was not congenial to most chroniclers in England, an impression confirmed by the fact that it only left a significant mark on the chronicles in exceptional circumstances, for instance at times of political crisis. Moreover, the chronicles containing it were by foreigners and/or were written when continental influence was particularly strong at court. The historiographical genre most characteristic of medieval England was the monastic chronicle, with its strong local attachments and generally independent attitude to the central government.     

Sexism in English from Sociolinguistics

Language, as a mirror, reflects every side of human society and the culture. As a social problem, sexism exists in all language, including English, reflecting women’s degraded social status in the men-dominated society. With the development of civilization, elimination of sexism against women has made some achievements. The paper tries to analyze the reasons of sexism from different perspectives by illustrating sexism in English, in order to advocate the beginning of language reforms to reduce sexism in English.     

English Folk-Drama

EYRBYGGJA SAGA. Translated from the Old Icelandic by PAUL SCHACH with introduction and verse translations by LEE M. HOLLANDER. The University of Nebraska Press and the American-Scandinavian Foundation, 1959. $4.25. Pp. xx, 140. Reviewed by Jacqueline Simpson.

THE LAXDOELA SAGA. Translated from the Old Icelandic with Introduction and Notes by A. MARGARET ARENT. Seattle. University of Washington Press. New York. The American-Scandinavian Foundation. 1964. pp. xlii, 210. $6.75. Reviewed by Jacqueline Simpson.

THE PSYCHOANALYTIC STUDY OF SOCIETY. Vol. III. Edited by WARNER MUENSTERBERGER, Ph.D. and SIDNEY AXELRAD, D.S.Sc. New York, International Universities Press, Inc., [1965]. Reviewed by E. P. Baker.

THE SALERNITAN QUESTIONS. By BRIAN LAWN. Clarendon Press. Oxford Univ. Press, 1963. Pp. 240. frontis. 63s. Reviewed by Eric J. Trimmer.

GODS AND MYTHS OF NORTHERN EUROPE. By H. R. ELLIS DAVIDSON. Penguin Books, 1964. Pp. 251. 4s. 6d. Reviewed by E. O. James.

GLAUBENSWELT UND FOLKLORE DER SIBIRISCHEN VÖLKER. Edited by V. DÓISZEGI. Budapest, Akadémiai Kiadó, 1963. Pp. 533. Reviewed by W. R. Mead.

SHAMANISM, ARCHAIC TECHNIQUES OF ECSTASY. By M. ELIADE. London, Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1964. Pp. xxiii, 610. Reviewed by W. R. Mead.

THE PEOPLES OF SIBERIA. Edited by M. G. LEVIN and L. P. POTAPOV. University of Chicago Press, 1964. Pp. viii, 948. Reviewed by W. R. Mead.

DIE KUNSTBLUME VON DER ANTIKE BIS ZUR GEGENWART. Geschichte und Eigenart eines volkstümlichen Kunstgewerbes. B. SCHIER. Veröffentlichungen des Instituts für deutsche Volkskunde xi. Berlin, Akademie Verlag, 1957. Pp. viii, 208: 5 coloured plates, 1 illustration, 1 diagram. Reviewed by Ellen Ettlinger.

JAHRBUCH FÜR OSTDEUTSCHE VOLKSKUNDE vii. Marburg, Elwert Verlag, 1963. Pp. 272 (7 pp. blank!): 3 photos, 4 illustrations, 19 tunes, 1 map. Reviewed by Ellen Ettlinger.

THE TELLTALE LILAC BUSH and Other West Virginia Ghost Tales. By RUTH ANN MUSICK. University of Kentucky Press, 1965. Pp. xviii, 189. $4.50. Reviewed by Jacqueline Simpson.

MAORI MYTHS AND TRIBAL LEGENDS. Retold by ANTHONY ALPERS. John Murray 1964. 30s. Reviewed by K. M. Briggs.

MORE HIGHLAND FOLKTALES. By R. MACDONALD ROBERTSON. Oliver and Boyd, 1964. 21s. Reviewed by K. M. Briggs.

DRAMA IN RURAL INDIA. By J. C. MATHUR. Bombay, Indian Council for Cultural Relations, 1964. Pp. 121. Illus. Bibliog. 40s. Reviewed by L. P. Elwell-Sutton.

THE PLACE-NAMES OF GLOUCESTERSHIRE. By A. H. SMITH. Part 4. English Place-Name Society, Vol. XLI. Cambridge University Press, 1965. Pp. xv, 274. 42s. Reviewed by Wilfrid Bonser.

BUYING THE WIND (Regional Folklore in the United States.) By RICHARD M. DORSON. University of Chicago Press. 574 pp. $7.95; 59s. 6d. Reviewed by A. W. Smith.     

English villages in the Londonderry plantation

Abstract

The English adventurers who created a ‘plantation’ throughout much of Ulster in the first quarter of the 17th century did so by seeking to transform the cultural landscape. The flowering of English cultural institutions could be enhanced within the appropriate environment, reasoned the plantation planners, and the ‘planting’ of villages was perhaps the most fundamental element of the programme to create that environment. The Ulster plantation provides an excellent opportunity to define early 17th-century English standards for the creation of a domestic settlement abroad, and perhaps also at home.     

1547年英国摄政改革初探

摄政制度是君主制国家中的一项重要政治制度,是在国王不能理政时期代行国王权力的一种制度.英国摄政制度经过近500年的发展,最终于1937年以成文法的形式确立.都铎中期是摄政制度的形成时期.亨利八世通过议会立法和遗嘱拟定了爱德华六世时期的摄政形式,但是,依据死去国王的授权来统治国家在现实中是难以推行的.爱德华六世继位以后,遗嘱执行委员会发起了一场摄政改革,以探求摄政的形式和摄政者合法性的来源,并最终制定了单一摄政者的摄政形式.这种摄政形式在爱德华六世时期被认为是合法且可行的,并得到了后世的继承.1547年摄政改革开启了都铎后期的政治制度变革,并成为有限王权体制的重要组成部分.     

英语写作教学量化管理

我国现有的英语教学普遍存在重教轻管的问题,这是英语教学费时低效的一个重要原因。写作是英语教学中的一大难点,也是外语教学研究领域的一大热点。以英语写作为例,先从量化管理的概念、英语写作教学量化管理的理论依据及其具体内容两个方面进行论述,指出量化管理是强化学习动机提高学习效果的有效方法,英语教学改革应走管理之路。     

The English Fairies

FORTY-FIVE STORIES FROM THE DODECANESE. Ed. from the MSS. of J. Zarraftis and trans, by R. M. Dawkins. Cambridge Univ. Press, 1950. £5 5s. Reviewed by E. O. Winstedt.

THE CONCEPT OF DEITY : A Comparative and Historical Study. The Wilde Lectures in Natural and Comparative Religion in the University of Oxford. By E. O. JAMES, D.Litt., D. D., Ph.D., F.S.A. Professor of the History and Philosophy of Religion in the University of London, Fellow of University College. Hutchinson's University Library, London. 1950. Pp. xiii, 200. 18s. Reviewed by S. H. Hooke.

A BOOK OF GYPSY FOLK-TALES, selected by DORA E. YATES, with a frontispiece by AUGUSTUS JOHN and a foreword by RUPERT CROFTCOOKE. London, Phoenix House, 1948. Pp. XVII, 197. Five illustrations. Price 12s. 6d. net. Reviewed by R. M. Dawkins.

THE LASCAUX CAVE PAINTINGS. By FERNAND WINDELS. Faber &; Faber, 1949. Price 42s. Reviewed by D. A. E. Garrod.

FOLK-SONGS OF CHHATTISGARH. By VERRIER ELWIN. With a comment by W. G. Archer. Oxford University Press (Indian Branch) 1946, LXI-466 pp., Price: Rs. 15. Reviewed by C. Von Fürer-Haimendorf.

NUESTRA GENTE : “NAMUY MISAG” : TIERRA, COSTUMBRES Y CREENCIAS DE LOS INDIOS GUAMBIANOS. Textos de Gregorio Hernández de Alba. Dibujos de Francisco Tumiña Pillimue. Universidad del Cauca, Instituto Etnológico. Popayán, 1949. Reviewed by Barbara Aitken.

JOSÉ CELESTINO MUTIS. Lufs DE HOYOS SÁINZ. Breviarios de la Vida Española; Editora Nacional : Madrid, 1949. Reviewed by Barbara Aitken.

CHILDREN'S GAMES THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. By LESLIE DAIKEN, B. T. Batsford Ltd. 1949. Pp. viii, 216. 18s.net. Reviewed by Iona Opie.

LE FOYER BRETON. By EMILE SOUVESTRE. Jean Vigneau, Paris, 1947. Reviewed by V. A..