Early Fiction in England

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'They secretly indulged all their desires, their joys and delights, whenever they could, day and night' In the twelfth century, fiction was reinvented in English literature. Stories of romance and adventure emerged which heralded new understandings of human experience, the relations between people and the significance of the individual. Above all, this fiction brought love into literary narrative, and the idea that the crowning goal of life is personal fulfilment. The pieces in this wide-ranging anthology, originally written in Latin, French or Middle English by authors such as Geoffrey of Monmouth, Chaucer and Marie de France, are inspirations for some of the best-known later works in literature. They are newly translated into clear modern prose, with glosses provided for Middle English texts. Edited with introductions by Laura Ashe