High or Low? Medieval English Carols as Part of Vernacular Culture, 1380-1450

Lisa Colton; Louise McInnes

doi:10.1007/978-3-030-18334-9_5

High or Low? Medieval English Carols as Part of Vernacular Culture, 1380-1450

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter

Abstract

The English carol’s mixture of vernacular and Latin lyrics has caused difficulties for its reception: was it once connected to high status, liturgical, Latin song of the church, or was its preservation in manuscript a fortuitous exception to the popular song of the Middle Ages that has otherwise all but vanished? The carol’s poetic topics—which range from the Nativity to satire and social commentary—have likewise compounded the problems of categorization for anthologists. In the present study, Colton and McInnes distance themselves from the nationalism and nostalgia that have led to carols’ primary reception as low-status lyric, arguing that the genre cut across social categorizations. Close analysis of several examples demonstrates ways in which carols crossed popular and liturgical traditions and underlines the potential significance of the carol for understanding insular devotional culture before 1450.

Original language	English
Title of host publication	Vernacular Aesthetics in the Later Middle Ages
Subtitle of host publication	Politics, Performativity, and Reception from Literature to Music
Editors	Katherine W. Jager
Place of Publication	New York
Publisher	Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Chapter	4
Pages	119-149
Number of pages	31
Edition	1
ISBN (Electronic)	9783030183349
ISBN (Print)	9783030183332, 3030183335
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-18334-9_5
Publication status	Published - 10 Aug 2019

Publication series

Name	The New Middle Ages
Publisher	Palgrave Macmillan

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10.1007/978-3-030-18334-9_5Licence: Unspecified

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Lisa Colton

L.M.Colton@hud.ac.uk

Person: Academic

Cite this

Colton, L., & McInnes, L. (2019). High or Low? Medieval English Carols as Part of Vernacular Culture, 1380-1450. In K. W. Jager (Ed.), Vernacular Aesthetics in the Later Middle Ages: Politics, Performativity, and Reception from Literature to Music (1 ed., pp. 119-149). (The New Middle Ages). New York: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-18334-9_5

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High or Low? Medieval English Carols as Part of Vernacular Culture, 1380-1450. / Colton, Lisa; McInnes, Louise.

Vernacular Aesthetics in the Later Middle Ages: Politics, Performativity, and Reception from Literature to Music. ed. / Katherine W. Jager. 1. ed. New York : Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, 2019. p. 119-149 (The New Middle Ages).

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter

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