The Well-Read Medieval Teen

A person who does not know history doesn't know anything. [He is] a leaf that doesn't know it came from a tree. -Michael Crichton, Timeline, page 73

 

Now, we all know that reading isn't very high on the average teenager's list of favorite pastimes; however, you are not the average teenager. You are part of something that is intellectual, social, intra and interpersonal, and character-building. You are re-creating the past, and to do that properly, you must KNOW the past. That doesn't mean that you should rent a bunch of videos and watch the way the director views history, because we know that films often show the past quite differently from the way it really was. But, you should be able to discuss the past with confidence, and to recognize the great events from history which shaped the way we view things today, and which opened the way for very important scientific, political, and social change.

Michael Crichton writes in his latest book, Timeline,

"Our understanding of the medieval period has changed dramatically in the last fifty years. Although one occasionally still hears a self-important scientist speak of the Dark Ages, modern views have long since overthrown such simplicities. An age that was once thought to be static, brutal and benighted is now understood as dynamic and swiftly changing: an age where knowledge was sought and valued; where great universities were born, and learning fostered; where technology was enthusiastically advanced; where social relations were in flux; where trade was international; where the general level of violence was often less deadly than it is today. As for the old reputation of medieval times as a dark time of parochialism, religious prejudice and mass slaughter, the record of the twentieth century must lead any thoughtful observer to conclude that we are in no way superior.

"In fact, the conception of a brutal medieval period was an invention of the Renaissance, whose proponents were at pains to emphasize a new spirit, even at the expense of the facts. If a benighted medieval world has proven a durable misconception, it may be because it confirms a cherished contemporary belief - that our species always moves forward to ever better and more enlightened ways of life. This belief is utter fantasy, but it dies hard. It is especially difficult for modern people to conceive that our modern, scientific age might not be an improvement over the prescientific period." - Acknowledgments, Timeline

 

In light of the fact that we really must read to understand the past, here is a list of books, articles, films, and various media which will help you to better understand the past. I have not written this list in correct bibliographic form because I think this is more accessible for you. Should you wish the publishing information, please e-mail me. The list is by no means comprehensive, so if you wish to add to this list, let me know!

Fiction:

Camulod Chronicles, Jack Whyte, 1966 to present
Specifically: The Skystone, The Singing Sword, The Eagle's Brood, The Saxon Shore, The Fort at River's Bend, Metamorphosis

Cliges, Chrétien de Troyes

Lancelot of the Lake, Anonymous. Oxford University Press, 1989

Lancelot::The Knight of the Cart, Chrétien de Troyes

Le Morte d'Arthur, Sir Thomas Malory

The Crystal Cave, The Hollow Hills, The Last Enchantment, The Wicked Day, Mary Stewart

The Mabinogion, trans. Lady Charlotte Guest, 1980

Middle Ages, Myths and Legends, H.A. Guerber, 1994

The Mists of Avalon, Marion Zimmer Bradley, 1983

The Once and Future King, T.H. White, 1958

The Queen's Man, Sharon Kay Penman, 1998; also the sequel, Cruel as the Grave, 1999

The Pendragon Cycle: Arthur, Merlin, Taliesin, Pendragon, Stephen R. Lawhead, 1988-1995

The Song of Roland, C.K. Scott-Moncrieff, 1919

The White Company, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, 1962.

The White Raven, Diana Paxson, 1988

Non-Fiction:

A Distant Mirror: The Calamitous 14th Century, Barbara Tuchman, 1978

After the Black Death: A Social History of Eary Modern Europe, George Huppert, 1998

Chivalry, Maurice Keen, 1984

Daily Life in Chaucer's England, Jeffrey L. Singman and Will McLean, 1995

Everyday Life of Medieval Travelers: Inventing the Middle Ages, Norman Cantor, 1991.

Growing Up in Medieval London: The Experience of Childhood in History, Barbara Hanawalt, , 1993

Life in the Middle Ages, Hans-Werner Goetz, 1993

Life in Medieval Times, Marjorie Rowling, 1977.

Literature and Society in Medieval France, Lynette R. Muir, 1985

The Hundred Year's War: England and France at War, c.1300-c.1450, Christopher Allmand, 1988

The Hundred Year's War I: Trial by Battle and The Hundred Year's War II: Trial by Fire, Jonathan Sumption, 1991 and 1999, respectively.

The Middle Ages: A Concise Encyclopædia, H.R. Loyn, editor, 1989.

The Sunne in Splendor, Sharon Kay Penman, 1998

Tournaments, Richard Barber and Juliet Barker, 1989

Specialty

Foods and Feasts:

Fabulous Feasts: Medieval Cookery and Ceremony, Madeline P. Cosman, 1995.

Cariadoc's Food Page: A website dedicated to medieval and Renaissance cookery

Films:

Remember, films can show you costume, medieval and Renaissance life, customs, language, and give you a historical reference, but may not be accurate in all detail. Consider the following:

Henry V
Rob Roy
Richard III, see the Sir Laurence Olivier version
The Lion in Winter
Romeo and Juliet
Ivanhoe
Elizabeth
the Brother Cadfael series
The Advocate,
A Man for All Seasons -The story of St. Thomas More as a man of conscience. Won six Oscars.
The Return of Martin Guerre, 1982, French-Based on trial records about an impostor in 16th century Southern France. An excellent movie, with solid historical advice given by Natalie Zemon Davis to the film makers. Try to see subtitled version, not the dubbed one.
Alexander Nevsky, 1938, Russia, War/Historical, No rating B&W -
The Seventh Seal, 1957, Sweden, Ingrid Bergman
El Cid (1961)
The Name of the Rose, (1986) -Based on the novel by Umberto Eco.
The Navigator: A Medieval Odyssey, (1988)
Braveheart, for fighting sequences only; this is a highly inaccurate film
Dangerous Beauty, rated R- get permission from your parents before you view this film, but the costumes are beautiful
Shakespeare in Love- don't think for a second this is a true story, but the portrayal of English life is wonderful

Links to SCA scholarship sites:

Books, Learning, and Language in the Late Middle Ages, Brisane de Ceichyth

This is not a publication of the Society for Creative Anachronism Inc., and does not delineate SCA policies. © 1999.
For questions about Scholarum Caidis, please contact THL Chretienne Angele de Courtenay,
mka Bonnie Black-Shockey: decourt@flashcom.net