This course will examine the concept and practice of authorship as it evolved through the Middle Ages, using medieval texts, medieval and contemporary theoretical discussions of authorship, medieval manuscripts (in facsimile and on the web), and recent hypertext editions of medieval texts. Beginning with a consideration of the Latin root of the word "author" (augere "to create"), the class will examine the intersections of authorship, creation, and authority, and their relation to medieval theological and cosmological tenets. Focus will be on the "whole book"-including the cultural, material, economic, technological, and political forces shaping the production and reception of a book, then and now. We will also consider the relation of medieval authorship and authority to manuscript production and dissemination, and consider ways that print culture and computer technology change this relation.
While print technology has never been able to do justice to the complexity of manuscripts, hypertexts are fast making amends. This course will take advantage of the growing resources of hypertexts on the web by studying both the texts they make available and the editorial theory behind their production-which in turn takes medieval authorship and editorial theory into consideration. The course will also take advantage of the varied resources already available in our own Special Collections, including several original manuscript pages, facsimiles such as those of Chaucer's Ellesmere Canterbury Tales, The Book of Kells, and several early printed books. We will also try to arrange a trip to the Cloisters in New York City, so students can grasp first hand the relation of art and architecture to the "world of the book." val authorship and editorial theory into consideration. The course will also take advantage of the varied resources already available in our own Special Collections, including several original manuscript pages, facsimiles such as those of Chaucer's Ellesmere Canterbury Tales, The Book of Kells, and several early printed books. We will also try to arrange a trip to the Cloisters in New York City, so students can grasp first hand the relation of art and architecture to the "world of the book."
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