Memory and Confession in Middle English Literature

Kisha G. Tracy is Assistant Professor of English Studies, specializing in early British and world literatures, and Co-Coordinator of the Center for Teaching and Learning at Fitchburg State University. Her main research interests include medieval memory and confession, medieval disability, and higher education pedagogy.

“Memory and Confession in Middle English Literature deserves commendation for its recognition of the influence of post-Lateran IV penitential theory and practice on late medieval narrative fictions; one could wish more significant its insights into the cultural implications of that influence.” (R. W. Hanning, Speculum, Vol. 94 (4), October, 2019)

• 1 ​Introduction.- 2 Reducere ad memoriam: A Brief Overview of Confession and Memory.- 3 Langland: Piers Plowman, Recollection, Confession, and the Penitent.- 4 Gower: Confessio Amantis and the Fear of Forgetting.- 5 Chaucer: Romances and the Temporality of Confession.- 6 Gawain-Poet: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, To Forget or Not to Forget.- 7 Final Thoughts.