The Preacher and His Audience: On Continuity in Medieval English Homilies

Abstract

Ælfric's writings, in particular his Catholic Homilies, were not forgotten by the generations that followed; they continued to be copied and read even after the Norman Conquest. It is sometimes assumed that Orm, the author of the Ormulum - a collection of poetic homilies written in the middle of the 12th century, could have relied on Ælfric's works as well. This article examines how the writings of Ælfric and Orm represent the preacher and his sources as well as how they handle the relationship between the preacher and his audience.