The Wandering Scholars
Encyclopedia
The Wandering Scholars is a non-fiction book by Helen Waddell
, first published in 1927 by Constable
, London. It deals primarily with medieval Latin lyric poetry and the main part is a study of the goliard
s. The text includes many of Waddell's own translations of Latin lyrics.
The book was at first published in a small edition because it was thought not to have popular appeal, but went through three editions in the first year. It was favourably reviewed by distinguished critics including George Saintsbury
, C. H. Haskins and Ferdinand Lot
. In recognition of her achievement, Waddell became the first woman to be awarded the A. C. Benson
Foundation silver medal by the Royal Society of Literature
.
Waddell is best known for bringing to light the history of the medieval goliard
s in this book. She also translated a selection of their Latin poetry in the companion volume Medieval Latin Lyrics, 1929 (reissued by Penguin Books, 1952). A second anthology, More Latin Lyrics, was compiled in the 1940s but not published until after her death.
The Wandering Scholar
, Op. 50 is a chamber opera
in one act by the English composer Gustav Holst
. The libretto
, by Clifford Bax
, is based on the book The Wandering Scholars.
Helen Waddell
Helen Jane Waddell was an Irish poet, translator and playwright.-Biography:She was born in Tokyo, the tenth and youngest child of Hugh Waddell, a Presbyterian minister and missionary who was lecturing in the Imperial University. She spent the first eleven years of her life in Japan before her...
, first published in 1927 by Constable
Constable & Robinson
Constable & Robinson Ltd. is an independent British book publisher of fiction and non-fiction works. Founded in Edinburgh in 1795 by Archibald Constable as Constable & Co. it is probably the oldest independent publisher in the English-speaking world still operating under the name of its...
, London. It deals primarily with medieval Latin lyric poetry and the main part is a study of the goliard
Goliard
The Goliards were a group of clergy who wrote bibulous, satirical Latin poetry in the 12th and 13th centuries. They were mainly clerical students at the universities of France, Germany, Spain, Italy, and England who protested the growing contradictions within the Church, such as the failure of the...
s. The text includes many of Waddell's own translations of Latin lyrics.
The book was at first published in a small edition because it was thought not to have popular appeal, but went through three editions in the first year. It was favourably reviewed by distinguished critics including George Saintsbury
George Saintsbury
George Edward Bateman Saintsbury , was an English writer, literary historian, scholar and critic.-Biography:...
, C. H. Haskins and Ferdinand Lot
Ferdinand Lot
Ferdinand Victor Henri Lot was a French historian and medievalist....
. In recognition of her achievement, Waddell became the first woman to be awarded the A. C. Benson
A. C. Benson
Arthur Christopher Benson was an English essayist, poet, and author and the 28th Master of Magdalene College, Cambridge....
Foundation silver medal by the Royal Society of Literature
Royal Society of Literature
The Royal Society of Literature is the "senior literary organisation in Britain". It was founded in 1820 by George IV, in order to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". The Society's first president was Thomas Burgess, who later became the Bishop of Salisbury...
.
Waddell is best known for bringing to light the history of the medieval goliard
Goliard
The Goliards were a group of clergy who wrote bibulous, satirical Latin poetry in the 12th and 13th centuries. They were mainly clerical students at the universities of France, Germany, Spain, Italy, and England who protested the growing contradictions within the Church, such as the failure of the...
s in this book. She also translated a selection of their Latin poetry in the companion volume Medieval Latin Lyrics, 1929 (reissued by Penguin Books, 1952). A second anthology, More Latin Lyrics, was compiled in the 1940s but not published until after her death.
The Wandering Scholar
The Wandering Scholar
The Wandering Scholar, Op.50 is a chamber opera in one act by the English composer Gustav Holst. The libretto, by Clifford Bax, is based on the book The Wandering Scholars by Helen Waddell....
, Op. 50 is a chamber opera
Chamber opera
Chamber opera is a designation for operas written to be performed with a chamber ensemble rather than a full orchestra.The term and form were invented by Benjamin Britten in the 1940s, when the English Opera Group needed works that could easily be taken on tour and performed in a variety of small...
in one act by the English composer Gustav Holst
Gustav Holst
Gustav Theodore Holst was an English composer. He is most famous for his orchestral suite The Planets....
. The libretto
Libretto
A libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata, or musical. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...
, by Clifford Bax
Clifford Bax
Clifford Bax was a versatile English writer, known particularly as a playwright, a journalist, critic and editor, and a poet, lyricist and hymn writer. He also was a translator, for example of Goldoni...
, is based on the book The Wandering Scholars.
Further reading
- " 'Jazzing the Middle Ages': The Feminist Genesis of Helen Waddell's The Wandering Scholars" in Irish Studies Review, vol 8, no 1, April 2000.