Reading Practices

Abstract

The study of “reading practices” looks at the who, what, where, when, why, and how of medieval reading. These practices developed from the early monasteries into the schools and universities and out to the lay population of the later Middle Ages. Rather than a straightforward evolution from oral to privately read literature, attention to medieval practice reveals that across this period, many modes of reading and engaging with texts coexisted, depending on the individuals, texts, and contexts involved.