English 325 week2 2A

1.

Back ground: Abelard and Heloise are buried together at the Père LaChaise Cemetery in Paris.

For readers of the 21st century, it is sometimes hard to imagine that the way that we think of learning and the divisions we make between disciplines--philosophy and theology, for example--is quite recent.  In the time Abelard and Heloiselived, Europe considered itself a part of "Christendom," one large church-state.

The Story of My Misfortunes:

http://legacy.fordham.edu/halsall/source/abelard-sel.asp

Discussion board post: But this is not titled "The Story of My Love" or "My Love for Heloise" -- it's a recounting of his misfortunes.  How do you think that this title affects the reading?  How would you describe his attitude (or his emotions) in this reading?  

200 words. No work cited.

2. (make sure write where is this quote from into beginning of explanation) (you can find a quote from The Story of My Misfortunes http://legacy.fordham.edu/halsall/source/abelard-sel.asp ).

Students will choose a short excerpt / quote from one of the readings of that week, type it in, then add a short (150 words or so) explanation for your choice. Was your selection important because it:

· is an example of beautiful or striking language?

· exemplifies a particular theme or character?

· makes the reader think about something in a new way?

· reflects a particular aspect of French culture?

· was just something that you liked?

For example:

"Whoever gets knowledge from God, science,

and a talent for speech, eloquence,

Shouldn't shut up or hide away;

No, that person should gladly display."  Marie de France

explanation:

In the opening lines to the Prologue to the Lays, Marie de France is providing her readers with an explanation for writing these stories down.  This is a very common and traditional rhetorical move informing readers about the ethos or qualifications of the speaker.  In this case, Marie is claiming that she is knowledgeable and eloquent and that these gifts come from God and therefore should be used.  I think it goes further than that; Marie, like most women of her day,* would have been expected to "shut up" and "hide away" as a matter of course, since women's voices were not welcomed in the public sphere.  By opening her work in this way, she preempts criticism about the appropriateness of her authorship.