Camp, Cynthia
MW 1 :50 PM
Park Hall 259
This will not be your typical literature class. We will spend limited time reading and analyzing literary texts. Rather, this course will be both seminar and practicum on the physical makeup, use, and decoding of medieval manuscripts. Medieval books predate the printing press: all are handmade (often lovingly and intricately), unique, and highly valuable items. Not only are they gorgeous objects in their own right, but they presume a different relationship between text and reader than do contemporary printed books. We'll get you the tools to understand and appreciate these compelling physical artifacts. In particular, we'll focus on the physical construction of books, the way we can analyze that construction today, and how to communicate our findings to various audiences.
The first unit of the course will be a practical introduction to medieval manuscript study. You’ll learn how manuscripts were made, how to handle them, how to read their texts, and how to talk about their decoration. We'll spend time in the Special Collections Library examining real-live medieval books, and you'll work with single leaves on your own.
In the second unit, we will be delving into the provenance (early life of) of one medieval manuscript owned by UGA, which we're calling the Hargrett Hours. In this unit, we'll build on the discoveries about this book's content made by earlier classes to investigate their claims that this book was made in Paris and was associated with the royal chapel of Sainte-Chapelle. Were they right? We'll find out!
If you are NOT an English major and want to take this class, please email Dr. Camp (ctcamp @ uga.edu) for the POD - if there's space left in class, it's yours.
Expect to participate daily and energetically, to do much group work (trust me, it is more friendly that way), to write regularly, to be frustrated by the course material, to do research that means something, to be amazed often by medieval scribes and artists -- and to study intimately books much older than this august institution.
Much of our reading and viewing will be done online; there is one required book. You are welcome (encouraged, even) to get a used copy of it. You will need this book from Week 1.
Raymond Clemens and Timothy Graham, Introduction to Manuscript Studies. Cornell University Press. ISBN: 9780801487088