For the first time available in paperback, this classic anthology provides readers with important literary works composed during the Middle English period (1100-1500) in England, Scotland, and Ireland. The editors provide glosses for all unfamiliar words and obscure phrases and every selection refers to at least one definitive edition where details of recent scholarship can be found. Modern punctuation and capitalization are used throughout and variant spellings are kept to a minimum to avoid unnecessary confusion. The introduction discusses important literary and linguistic questions; the headnotes and bibliography offer extensive guidance to secondary sources; and the appendixes clarify pronunciation, verb use, and dialect variations.