Textual criticism and Middle English texts /

Chaucer's works, accepted today as part of the canon of English literature, received this status only after many vicissitudes. Middle English, unlike Latin, had no authority or tradition; the writer using a vernacular then had no professional status. Textual criticism dominated by "transcendent" principles of editing inherited from the Renaissance fails to come to grips with the historical uniqueness of the medieval manuscript even today. Nevertheless, Chaucer's reputation has triumphed. The survival strategies used by Chaucer and other writers are carefully revealed. This text is not a manual for editors. From a different perspective Seth Lerer (Chaucer and His Readers, CH, Feb'94) also investigates the history of Chaucer's canonical status. These studies will redefine the importance and meaning of Middle English literature. Machan's study begins this process for textual criticism. Graduate. J. F. O'Malley; Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania