The so-called Katherine Group is a group of five 13th-century Middle English texts composed by an anonymous author of the English West Midlands, in a variety of Middle English known as AB language.

The texts are all addressed to anchoresses (religious recluses) and praise the virtue of virginity.

The texts

edit

All five texts are preserved in the manuscript Oxford, Bodleian Library, Bodley 34. All except Hali Meiðhad are also in British Library, Royal 17 A XXVII. Additionally, British Library Cotton Titus D XVIII has Sawles Warde, Seinte Katherine and Hali Meiðhad.

Editions

edit

Hali Meiðhad

edit
  • Early English Text Society (1922)
  • A. F. Colborn (1940)
  • Bella Millett (1972), ISBN 978-0-19-722286-7

Literature

edit
  • Fletcher, A. J. (1993) "Black, white and grey in Hali Meidhad and Ancrene Wisse: evidence for dating from mention of religious orders' habits", in: Medium Aevum (1993)
  • Millett, Bella (1996) Ancrene Wisse, the Katherine Group, and the Wooing Group ISBN 0-85991-429-1
  • Millett, Bella & Wogan-Browne, J. (1990) Medieval English Prose for Women: selections from the Katherine Group and Ancrene Wisse. Oxford: Clarendon Press ISBN 978-0-19-811205-1
  • Tolkien, J. R. R.:
edit

The Katherine Group is similar in language and content to the Ancrene Wisse and the Wooing Group.[1]

References

edit
  1. ^ Michelle M. Sauer, 'Wooing Group', in Encyclopedia of Medieval Literature (2013), http://medieval_literature.enacademic.com.
edit