In Strange Countries: Middle English Literature and Its Afterlife: Manchester Medieval Literature and Culture

The essays are rooted in medieval literature but frequently range beyond the confines of the Middle Ages. They reflect the breadth of Anderson's own scholarly interests, especially in drama and Arthurian literature. There is a particular focus on 'Sir Gawain and the Green Knight' and 'Pearl', poems which preoccupied him throughout his scholarly life. There are also new reconsiderations of La?amon's 'Brut', Mirk's 'Festial', the Passion plays, and the manuscripts of the 'Pore Caitif'. Moving beyond the traditional purview of medieval literature, several contributors trace the afterlives of medieval themes in later literature. These essays include a consideration of the twinned trajectories of the medieval heroes Robin Hood and King Arthur from medieval literature to modern television, a comparison of La?amon's 'Brut' and Tennyson's 'Idylls of the King', and a recreation of the Bishop Blase procession which took place in industrial Bradford.

Contributors are Rosamund Allen, Ralph Elliott, Alexandra Johnston, Stephen Knight, Peter Meredith, Susan Powell, Gillian Rudd, Alan Shelston, and Kalpen Trivedi.