Ancrene Wisse

Ancrene Wisse or the Anchoresses Guide (Cambridge, Corpus Christi College, MS 402), written sometime roughly between 1225 and 1240, represents a revision of an earlier work, usually called the Ancrene Riwle or Anchorites' Rule, a book of religious instruction for three lay women of noble birth.



Robert Hasenfratz is Professor of English at the University of Connecticut. He is editor of Mystics Quarterly, soon to become The Journal of Medieval Religious Cultures; co-author with Thomas Jambeck of Reading Old English (2005); and producer of Lingua Latina, aka WinLatin, a Latin drill program for Windows XP.



Preface Introduction Ancrene Wisse 's Place in Literary History The Anchoritic Life Authorship Audience Date Structure Language Manuscripts Related Texts Critical Reception The Question of Mysticism Editorial Principles Select Bibliography Ancrene Wisse Author's Preface Part One Part Two Part Three Part Four Part Five Part Six Part Seven Part Eight Explanatory Notes Textual Notes Appendices One: Motif and Exempla Index Two: Proper Names Index Glossary