Medieval Literature Worksheet for 17-Year-Olds: Mabinogion, Marie de France, Chaucer

Instructions

Read each section carefully and answer the questions to the best of your ability. Your responses should draw upon your knowledge of the Mabinogion, the works of Marie de France and Geoffrey Chaucer, and the historical context of the medieval period.

Part 1: Matching

Match the term in Column A with the most accurate description in Column B. Write the corresponding letter in the blank space.

Part 2: Critical Analysis

Answer the following questions in complete sentences. Your answers should be thoughtful and detailed.

1. Both the Mabinogion and the lais of Marie de France feature supernatural events and magical elements. Compare how these elements function in the two works. Consider the tone (e.g., mythological vs. courtly romance) and purpose within the narratives.
2. Geoffrey Chaucer is renowned for his literary masterpiece, The Canterbury Tales, yet he also authored the highly technical Treatise on the Astrolabe. What does the existence of these two vastly different works tell us about the intellectual life of a figure like Chaucer and the breadth of knowledge considered valuable in the late Middle Ages?
3. Considered together, how do these four topics—Welsh mythology (Mabinogion), Anglo-Norman courtly poetry (Marie de France), and English literature and science (Chaucer)—provide a more complex and nuanced picture of medieval Britain than one focused on a single language or culture?

Part 3: Key Concepts

Complete each sentence by choosing the most appropriate term from the word bank below.

1. Marie de France's "Lanval" is a famous example of a __________, a short, rhymed story of love, magic, and adventure popular in the high Middle Ages.
2. Unlike Chaucer's poetry, the tales of the Mabinogion are written in __________, the ordinary form of spoken or written language without metrical structure.
3. The frame story of The Canterbury Tales is centered on a group of people undertaking a _________ to the shrine of Thomas Becket.
4. The medieval code of _________, which dictated the moral and social conduct of knights, is a frequent theme in the romantic literature of the period.
5. Chaucer's scientific treatise details the construction and use of an __________, an instrument that could be considered an early analog computer for solving astronomical problems.

Answer Key

Part 1: Matching

1. 4 ____ Chaucer
2. 1 ____ Mabinogion
3. 3 ____ Marie de France
4. 2 ____ Treatise on the Astrolabe

Part 2: Critical Analysis

(Note: Student answers will vary but should reflect the key ideas below.)

1. A strong answer will note that in the Mabinogion, the supernatural is often deeply embedded in the world as an aspect of Celtic mythology; it is foundational to the identity of characters and the landscape. In Marie de France's lais, the supernatural often serves as an external force that tests the courtly love and chivalric values of the characters, acting as a catalyst for the plot within a more recognizably human world.
2. This demonstrates that a medieval intellectual like Chaucer was not confined to a single discipline. It shows that literature, language, science, astronomy, and public service were not seen as mutually exclusive fields. The ability to write both poetry that captures the spectrum of human society and a precise scientific manual indicates that the late Middle Ages valued a holistic and multifaceted form of knowledge, blending the arts and sciences.
3. Together, these works reveal that medieval Britain was not a monolithic culture. It was a multilingual and multicultural landscape where Welsh, French (specifically Anglo-Norman), and Middle English were all significant languages for literature and intellectual life. They show the coexistence of ancient Celtic mythology, the refined courtly culture imported from France, and the burgeoning literary and scientific traditions in English, painting a rich tapestry of coexisting and interacting societies.

Part 3: Key Concepts

1. Lai
2. Prose
3. Pilgrimage
4. Chivalry
5. Astrolabe