CHAPTER I.

ON THE GENERAL STATE OF LITERATURE IN THE MIDDLE AGES TO THE END OF THE FOURTEENTH CENTURY.

Page Retrospect of Learning in Middle Ages Necessary 1 Loss of learning in Fall of Roman Empire 1 Boethius--his Consolation of Philosophy 1 Rapid Decline of Learning in Sixth Century 2 A Portion remains in the Church 2 Prejudices of the Clergy against Profane Learning 2 Their Uselessness in preserving it 3 First Appearances of reviving Learning in Ireland and England 3 Few Schools before the Age of Charlemagne 3 Beneficial Effects of those Established by him 4 The Tenth Century more progressive than usually supposed 4 Want of Genius in the Dark Ages 5 Prevalence of bad Taste 5 Deficiency of poetical Talent 5 Imperfect State of Language may account for this 6 Improvement at beginning of Twelfth Century 6 Leading Circumstances in Progress of Learning 6 Origin of the University of Paris 6 Modes of treating the Science of Theology 6 Scholastic Philosophy--its Origin 7 Roscelin 7 Progress of Scholasticism; Increase of University of Paris 8 Universities founded 8 Oxford 8 Collegiate Foundations not derived from the Saracens 9 Scholastic Philosophy promoted by Mendicant Friars 9 Character of this Philosophy 10 It prevails least in Italy 10 Literature in Modern Languages 10 Origin of the French, Spanish, and Italian Languages 10 Corruption of colloquial Latin in the Lower Empire 11 Continuance of Latin in Seventh Century 12 It is changed to a new Language in Eighth and Ninth 12 Early Specimens of French 13 Poem on Boethius 13 Provençal Grammar 14 Latin retained in use longer in Italy 14 French of Eleventh Century 14 Metres of Modern Languages 15 Origin of Rhyme in Latin 16 Provençal and French Poetry 16 Metrical Romances--Havelok the Dane 18 Diffusion of French Language 19 German Poetry of Swabian Period 19 Decline of German Poetry 20 Poetry of France and Spain 21 Early Italian Language 22 Dante and Petrarch 22 Change of Anglo-Saxon to English 22 Layamon 23 Progress of English Language 23 English of the Fourteenth Century--Chaucer, Gower 24 General Disuse of French in England 24 State of European Languages about 1400 25 Ignorance of Reading and Writing in darker Ages 25 Reasons for supposing this to have diminished after 1100 26 Increased Knowledge of Writing in Fourteenth Century 27 Average State of Knowledge in England 27 Invention of Paper 28 Linen Paper when first used 28 Cotton Paper 28 Linen Paper as old as 1100 28 Known to Peter of Clugni 29 And in Twelfth and Thirteenth Century 29 Paper of mixed Materials 29 Invention of Paper placed by some too low 29 Not at first very important 30 Importance of Legal Studies 30 Roman Laws never wholly unknown 31 Irnerius--his first Successors 31 Their Glosses 31 Abridgements of Law--Accursius’s Corpus Glossatum 31 Character of early Jurists 32 Decline of Jurists after Accursius 32 Respect paid to him at Bologna 33 Scholastic Jurists--Bartolus 33 Inferiority of Jurists in Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries 34 Classical Literature and Taste in dark Ages 34 Improvement in Tenth and Eleventh Centuries 34 Lanfranc and his Schools 35 Italy--Vocabulary of Papias 36 Influence of Italy upon Europe 36 Increased copying of Manuscripts 36 John of Salisbury 36 Improvement of Classical Taste in Twelfth Century 37 Influence of increased Number of Clergy 38 Decline of Classical Literature in Thirteenth Century 38 Relapse into Barbarism 38 No Improvement in Fourteenth Century--Richard of Bury 39 Library formed by Charles V. at Paris 39 Some Improvement in Italy during Thirteenth Century 40 Catholicon of Balbi 40 Imperfection of early Dictionaries 40 Restoration of Letters due to Petrarch 40 Character of his Style 41 His Latin Poetry 41 John of Ravenna 41 Gasparin of Barziza 42