ILOCOS SUR COMMUNITY COLLEGE

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INSTRUCTOR: RODNEY A. QUISADA M.A.Ed.

EMAIL ADDRESS: [email protected]
MESSENGER: RODNEY QUISADA
CONTACT NUMBER: 0949-468-1648
(QUERRIES WILL BE ENTERTAINED FROM 8AM TO 5PM MONDAY-FRIDAY ONLY)
NOMINAL DURATION: 4 WEEKS

SUBJECT: LITERATURE AND HUMANITIES

MODULE TWO: ENGLISH LITERATURE

English literature is a broad term used in many educational settings. It refers to the body
of work written or spoken in the English language. For this module, we will focus only in
British an Irish literature which includes prose, poetry, both in written and oral traditions. 
The Old English language or Anglo-Saxon is the earliest form of English. The period is a
long one and it is generally considered that Old English was spoken from about A.D. 600 to
about 1100. Notable works from this period are the epic “Beowulf” and “Canterbury Tales”.
The 17th Century was largely dominated by the works of William Shakespeare whose
works include the famous “Romeo and Juliet”. In the Romantic period, most themes in both
prose and poetry is focused on life, love, and nature as shown in the odes of John Keats. Most
people regard his “ode to a Grecian Urn” as one of the best poems written at that time.the post-
romantic or otherwise known as Victorian period up to the the now modern literature saw a lot
of excellently written works but none may be more popular than the poems of Elizabeth and
Robert Browning (“How Do I Love Thee.. Let Me Count The Ways”).
The difficulty encountered in reading Old English Literature lies in the fact that the
language is very different from that of today. Stories are narrated in Old English language and
there was no rhyme in Old English poems.
This module will only discuss two examples, one in prose and the other in poetry and
should serve as an inspiration to the students to read more English literary pieces.

LE MORTE D’ ARTHUR by Sir Thomas Malory

Le Morte d'Arthur tells the story of King Arthur and his Knights at the Round Table.
Arthur, who is son of King Uther Pendragon, the greatest king of England, but was
raised by another family, takes his rightful place as king after he is able to pull the
sword called Excalibur from the stone. Although he rules wisely and is counseled by
Merlin the magician, Arthur makes enemies of other kings and is often at war.

When Arthur marries Guinevere, her father gives Arthur the Round Table, at which 150
men can sit. Guinevere, who is often present at the convening of the Round Table,
acts as a moral compass for the knights, rewarding knights who behave well and
chastising those who choose poorly.

Arthur is nearly betrayed by his sister Morgan le Fay, but he is helped by Nineve, a
sorceress who learned her magic powers from Merlin. Arthur then fights the Romans
when Emperor Lucius of Rome demands that Arthur bow to him. Although the war
requires several battles, Arthur, aided by a valiant knight by the name of Lancelot, and
his knights win and return to Guinevere and the other wives. Soon after, Lancelot
establishes himself as the greatest knight in table by his virtue, loyalty, and bravery.

Tristam (also known as Tristan), nephew of King Mark of Cornwall, is then introduced
(originally an Irish tale), and his adventures unfold. He falls in love with Isode (also
known as Isolde), who marries Tristam's uncle Mark. But Tristam and Isode remain
lovers. Tristam is exiled by Mark, which means he can no longer use his true identity;
thus, he fights as The Knight with the Black Shield. He eventually meets and fights
Lancelot in a duel predicted by Merlin. He became a knight of the round and he and
Lancelot become the best of friends.

Lancelot, who is in love with and completely loyal to Guinevere, rides one day in
search of adventure. He kills a dragon, sees the Grail, and is tricked into lying with
Elayne, with whom he has a son, Galahad. Guinevere, upon hearing of the affair, has
Lancelot banished from court; Lancelot then wanders from place to place in his grief.
Elayne, through her father, heals Lancelot through the Grail, and he eventually returns
joyously to Camelot and the Round Table.

Lancelot introduces his son, Galahad, to the court, and Galahad takes the Siege
Perilous, the seat at the Round Table reserved for the best knight who would
successfully fulfill the Quest of the Holy Grail (the cup of the Last Supper and believed
to contain the blood of Christ from his wounds at the Crucifixion) taken from England,
which no knight has been worthy enough to fill. A sword was set on a stone and
whoever can draw it is given the seat (much like how Arthur drew another sword the
Excalibur). Many knights tried including Lancelot, Gawain and Percival but they all
failed to draw the sword from the stone. Galahad draws the sword from the floating
stone, establishing him as the best knight in the world, but also accepting the sword's
curse — that it will later cause a grievous wound.

Most of the knights still set out separately on Grail Quest but all of them except
Galahad was proven unworthy. After he completes the quest, Galahad is made a king
who dies shortly thereafter, his companions Percival becomes a hermit, and Bors
returns to King Arthur's court.
Lancelot also returns to the court and continues his love for Guinevere. After a series
of trials, Guinevere is convinced of Lancelot's love for her. Although Arthur knows of
the affair and overlooks it, he is prompted by Mordred (Arthur's son by another wife) to
take action; Guinevere is sentenced to be burned at the stake. Lancelot rescues her
and takes her to his castle before returning her to Arthur. Lancelot again is banished,
along with his followers. Gawain swears vengeance for the death of his brothers killed
by Lancelot and insists that Arthur attack the knight. Arthur agrees, chasing Lancelot
until they reached France.

While Arthur and Gawain are away, Mordred makes himself King of England, claims
Guinevere as his wife, and attacks Arthur's army. Upon hearing the news, Arthur set
out to go back and reclaim his throne, but Gawain refused to go with him, blinded by
his rage to pursue and Lancelot. Gawain is mortally wounded and warns Arthur in a
dream to wait for 30 days before continuing his battle with Mordred. A truce was
declared, no one should draw swords. But in an unfortunate turn of events, a soldier
drew his sword to kill a snake. The soldiers thought somebody broke the truce and
battle continued. Arthur kills Mordred but is mortally wounded by him, as Merlin has
prophesied.

ACTIVITY 1:
Name 5 characters of the story
Example:
Uther Pendragon - greatest king of England and father of Arthur

William Shakespeare was an English playwright, poet, and actor, widely regarded as the
greatest writer in the English language and the world's greatest dramatist. He is often called
England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon" (or simply "the Bard"). His works consist of
some 39 plays, 154 sonnets, three long narrative poems, and a few other verses, some of
uncertain authorship. His plays have been translated into every major living language and are
performed more often than those of any other playwright. They also continue to be studied and
reinterpreted.
Here is an example of one of his most famous sonnets. A sonnet is a poem of fourteen lines
using any of a number of formal rhyme schemes, in English typically having ten syllables per
line. In this sonnet, he uses iambic pentameter, which each line is composed of 5 meters with
each meter containing 2 syllables and the second syllable is stressed
Example:
Shall I - compare - thee to - a sum - mer’s day?
SONNET 18 (SHALL I COMPARE THEE TO A SUMMER’S DAY)
Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer’s lease hath all too short a date:
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimmed,
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance, or nature’s changing course untrimmed:
But thy eternal summer shall not fade,
Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st,
Nor shall death brag thou wander’st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou grow’st,
So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see,
So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.
* The sonnet talks about an everlasting love, contrary of a day or a season which has an end.

ACTIVITY 3:
Submit a video of you reciting the sonnet in my messenger account. Follow the proper stress.

ASSESSMENT:
I. Arrange each event in CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER as they appear in the story. Write “1” for the first event,
“2” for the second…….. “20” for the last
______Arthur killed Mordred but he himself died too
______Arthur draws a sword from a stone
______a soldier drew his sword to kill a snake, ending the truce
______Arthur becomes king
______a truce was declared between the armies of Arthur and Mordred
______Guinevere,s father gave Arthur a round table
______Arthur went back to his kingdom to fight Mordred
______Gawain died
______Arthur refuses to bow before Emperor Lucius and fought the Romans
______Tristam fell in love with queen Isode and was banished by the king
______Tristam met Lancelot in a duel
______Mordred took the crown and claimed Guinevere as his wife
______Gawain and Arthur chased Lancelot
______Lancelot rescued Guinevere
______Guinevere was sentenced to burn at the stake
______Lancelot and Guinevere had an affair
______Tristam joins the round table
______Lancelot and Elayne had a son named Galahad
______Galahad retrieved the Holy Grail
______Galahad became the greatest knight in the world

II. Underline the stressed syllable in the sonnet

Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer’s lease hath all too short a date:
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimmed,
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance, or nature’s changing course untrimmed:
But thy eternal summer shall not fade,
Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st,
Nor shall death brag thou wander’st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou grow’st,
So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see,
So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.

III. ENCIRCLE the letter of the best answer

1. What is the name of the sword of Arthur?
A. Seige Peril B. Excalibur C. Clarent D. Holy Grail
2. Seat at the round table reserved for the greatest knight to take the Grail Quest
A. Seige Peril B. Excalibur C. Clarent D. Holy Grail
3. Believed to be the cup during the Last Supper
A. Seige Peril B. Excalibur C. Clarent D. Holy Grail
4. How many Knights can the round table seat?
A. 12 B. 24 C. 200 D. 150
5. How are Lancelot and Tristam alike?
A. They both betrayed their king B. they both went to the Grail Quest
C. They are both orphans D. they both died in battle
6. Why did Arthur go into battle against the Romans?
A. Arthur wanted to conquer Rome B. Arthur refused to bow before Lucius
B. Lucius kidnapped Guinevere D. Lucius killed the father of Arthur