Product Description

This innovative introduction to the Old English language focuses on what students need to know in order to engage with Old English literary and historical texts.

• A pioneering introduction to Old English designed for a new generation of students.
  
• Assumes no expertise in other languages or in traditional grammar.
  
• Opening chapters and ‘Quick Start’ sections cover the basics.
  
• ‘Minitexts’ give students practice in reading Old English.
  
• Includes two chapters on syntax and three on reading poetry.
  
• Anthologises fourteen readings, including ‘The Wanderer’, ‘The Dream of the Rood’ and ‘Judith’.
  
• The accompanying ‘Old English Aerobics’ website features additional readings and exercises.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #219106 in Books
• Published on: 2003-06-09
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 332 pages

Review
"In its references to web-sites and computer-links, [An Introduction to Old English] is very much a book of the twenty-first century; and many of its novel features - for example the chapter on the grammar of poetry, or the appendix on common spelling variants - will be extraordinarily helpful to teachers and students alike." Michael Lapidge, University of Notre Dame

"Baker's Introduction is the kind of book that students of Old English - and their teachers - have been waiting for for a long time." Hugh Magennis, Queen's University Belfast

"This is a truly outstanding textbook for today's student of Old English. Written in lucid and friendly prose, Baker brings the language to life in a manner that will inspire students." Elaine Treharne, University of Leicester

"Peter Baker's Introduction to Old English offers an innovative combination of the traditional and the cutting edge. Beginning with the basics of the language, the chapters proceed through intelligently paced levels so that by the end the user is reading the most sophisticated literature in Old English." Daniel G. Donoghue, Harvard University

"the fruit of years of sensitive, thoughtful and student-responsive teaching. [...] this work is a huge step forward in imaginative course design. It is accessible in manner and genuinely tries to address the needs of the modern student and teacher, taking them through a course step by step. [...] by far the best attempt yet to introduce Old English, and I enthusiastically recommend it to members." TOEBI Newsletter

"Peter Baker's excellent new book, a combined grammar and reader, deserves to find a central place in the university teaching of Old English. It is unabashedly designed to be accessible to absolute beginners, but students who progress attentively through the whole book will in fact find themselves in command of a great deal of what makes Old English language and literature tick. […] These chapters [on ‘Metre’, Poetic Style’, ‘The Grammar of Poetry’, and ‘Reading Old English Manuscripts’] constitute the real novelty of the book in their lucid summation of some essential truths that have rarely if ever been to clearly set out for beginners; the sections on poetry in particular deserve to be read by all students beginning the translation of Old English for the first time.” Notes and Queries

From the Back Cover
This innovative introduction to the Old English language focuses on what students need to know in order to engage with Old English literary and historical texts. Designed for a new generation, the book assumes no expertise in traditional grammar or in other languages.

An opening chapter reviews basic grammar for those who need to be brought up to speed. ‘Quick Start’ sections begin the major chapters, allowing students to learn the basics of Old English quickly. ‘Minitexts’ accompanying most chapters give students practice in reading the language, while a detailed introduction to poetic meter and style helps them to read poetry. The book as a whole contains more than 200 illustrative quotations, fourteen Old English readings including ‘The Wanderer’, ‘The Dream of the Rood’ and ‘Judith’, and a comprehensive glossary. Supplementary readings and exercises are available at the ‘Old English Aerobics’ website - http://www.engl.virginia.edu/OE/OEA/ - which complements the text.

About the Author
Peter S. Baker is Professor of Medieval Literature at the University of Virginia, Charlottesville. His previous publications include Byrhtferth’s Enchiridion (co-edited with Michael Lapidge, 1995), Beowulf: Basic Readings (1995), The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: A Collaborative Edition (F) and the website www.engl.virginia.edu/OE/

Customer Reviews

The Best Book for the Solo Learner
Professor Baker's relatively new book is the best one-volume start for someone learning Old English outside of a classroom setting. It is significantly better for this purpose than Mitchell's book, although Baker does not convey quite the same sense of enthusiasm that Mitchell does.

In addition to the expected format for a book such as this, which consists of grammar-oriented instruction, graded readings, and a glossary, there are excellent chapters on metrics, manuscript reading, and a fine bibliography and set of recommended readings. He even provides a chapter for the reader who might be deficient in common grammatical terms.

The highlight of the book, though, are the links to the online exercises, which provide a much more convenient method of practice. Focused practice is essential when learning a language, and the online exercises are much better than the usual handful of perfunctory exercises provided in graded grammars. In many such books, answers to the exercises aren't even provided.

In summary, I can wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone wishing to learn to read and appreciate Old English on their own.

An Excellent Primer and Invaluable Resource
As a learning tool, Peter S. Baker's Introduction to Old English succeeds marvellously in that it is concise and clear without erring on the side of oversimplification. The ordering of chapters is intuitive and the key concepts are easily accreted along the way; in comparatively little time readers will acquire a wealth of knowledge, and in its practicality the book is sure not to intimidate the uninitiated.

The basic review of English grammar is both thorough and efficient without being overly pedantic. Unfortunately, more and more students of English are finding themselves ill-equipped and poorly acquainted with the basics of grammar. Baker's review will familiarize them with the grammatical essentials while simultaneously providing a useful review to those more accustomed to them. There is sufficient treatment of the main topics in the text without any superfluous explication that might confuse the introductory reader. Baker's plain English explanations are unambiguous and, where possible, he offers Modern English correlates and analogues that effectively frame the linguistic topic being discussed.

The chapters on the style and grammar of poetry are essential resources. Poetry makes up such a significant part of the extant Anglo-Saxon literature that it would be a failure on the part of the author to leave the student stranded in the intricacies of the form. Taking the chapter on reading manuscripts into consideration, as well as the appendices, Baker helps the student build a truly solid foundation upon which to base further study. The glossary, for example, allows students who are as yet unfamiliar Anglo-Saxon word forms to easily find what they are looking for, and will furnish them with the skills they need to approach more ambitious dictionaries.

The companion web site provides a variety of resources for the student. The Old English "Magic Sheet" is a tool that students will find invaluable in their initial approach to Anglo-Saxon Literature. As the student refers to it repeatedly in his or her reading, he or she will quickly become more familiar with the forms and may soon be weaned off of it. In each chapter there are references to relevant "Old English Aerobics" exercises online, which can assist students in need of some basic practice with the material. The ability to look up a word, part of speech, or clause with the click of a button is a testament to the work that was put into developing the resource. While I must applaud the author's forward thinking and effective use of the technology, getting online may yet provide challenges at times for certain students, and the exercises themselves can prove somewhat short and elementary. A simple solution to these minor problems might be to include self tutorial exercises in a new edition, or to publish a companion workbook at some point in the future. To my knowledge, no such resource exists in Old English, and it must be said that there is simply no substitute for routine practice when learning a new language.

These minor concerns are truly subordinate to the effectiveness of the work as a whole. Though the book itself may not be a substitute for practice, passages appropriate for initiates to tackle and translate are included in the anthology, and students will find themselves far better equipped to approach Old English after having covered the main topics. It was with great pleasure that I found my own abilities dramatically improved after simply having covered the sixteen initial chapters. Introduction to Old English proves to be not only an exceedingly effective primer with regard to Anglo-Saxon literature, but an invaluable reference to accompany further readings and studies within the context of the language. Every student of Old English should sleep with a copy of this book under their pillow.

An easy read
I recently bought this book and found it to be very easy to read, rather than just have lists of grammatical tables like some books I have seen. The author recommends helpful websites throughout the book and makes use of 200 short passages that can be read as you go. All grammar is covered in the beginning chapters, and the following ones are devoted to metre, poetic style, grammar of poetry, how to read old english manuscripts, spelling variants, phonetics, and then an anthology of texts. The glossary is full of translations of every word used in the texts. I think this book is excellent for the beginner who wants to gain a sound overview of the language.