[eno_]

My sixth grader is reading Tolkien's translation of Sir Gawain. A high school honors English class should be comfortable with Beowulf, Caterbury Tales, and Sir Gawain in the original dialect, and they ought to be (but generally aren't these days) getting to know some Latin as well. Modern standards for schools suck, vide Dr. Moose (yeah, he's got a Ph.D.).

[aristeides]

I've got a Ph.D., in Classical Philology. Not very useful these days.

[concerned about politics]

My sixth grader is reading Tolkien's translation of Sir Gawain.

My 6th grader read Tolkien's Trilogy, plus the original. She liked it so much, my 5th grade boy is reading it, although some of the names have to be sounded out. He does quite well.

[Charles H. (The_r0nin)]

My sixth grader is reading Tolkien's translation of Sir Gawain. A high school honors English class should be comfortable with Beowulf, Caterbury Tales, and Sir Gawain in the original dialect, and they ought to be (but generally aren't these days) getting to know some Latin as well. Modern standards for schools suck, vide Dr. Moose (yeah, he's got a Ph.D.).

I agree, though I would say that they should be reading the Canterbury Tales in Middle English rather than all of Sir Gawain in it, simply because Chaucer's London dialect is more closely related to modern English than is the Pearl poet's. They've already done Beowulf (God, I love that poem!), and Canterbury Tales is next. At the end of the year, if we have the time, I'll let them read The Hobbit as a reward, though they'll have to discuss it in the context of Tolkien's response to the idea of hero expressed in Beowulf. Though I wouldn't want to dumb down the curriculum... </sarcasm>

[dmz]

eno wrote: high school honors English class should be comfortable with Beowulf, Caterbury Tales, and Sir Gawain in the original dialect,

____________

Absolutely LOL. Here are a few lines from Beowulf in the original dialect. Perhaps you meant they should be comfortable with a Modern English translation, as I'm not sure what high schools are teaching Old English these days.

Hwæt! We Gardena in geardagum,
þeodcyninga, þrym gefrunon,
hu ða æþelingas ellen fremedon.
Oft Scyld Scefing sceaþena þreatum,

5
monegum mægþum, meodosetla ofteah,
egsode eorlas. Syððan ærest wearð
feasceaft funden, he þæs frofre gebad,
weox under wolcnum, weorðmyndum þah,
oðþæt him æghwylc þara ymbsittendra

10
ofer hronrade hyran scolde,
gomban gyldan. þæt wæs god cyning!
ðæm eafera wæs æfter cenned,
geong in geardum, þone god sende
folce to frofre; fyrenðearfe ongeat

15
þe hie ær drugon aldorlease
lange hwile. Him þæs liffrea,
wuldres wealdend, woroldare forgeaf;
Beowulf wæs breme (blæd wide sprang),
Scyldes eafera Scedelandum in.

20
Swa sceal geong guma gode gewyrcean,
fromum feohgiftum on fæder bearme,
þæt hine on ylde eft gewunigen
wilgesiþas, þonne wig cume,
leode gelæsten; lofdædum sceal

25
in mægþa gehwære man geþeon.
Him ða Scyld gewat to gescæphwile
felahror feran on frean wære.
Hi hyne þa ætbæron to brimes faroðe,
swæse gesiþas, swa he selfa bæd,