the book of margery kempe an abridged translation

Kempe's book is widely cited as the first autobiography in English however, scholars disagree on whether it can accurately be called an autobiography, or whether it would be more accurately classified as a confession of faith or autohagiography. Prior to the discovery of the full text, all that was known of Kempe's book were pamphlets published by Wynkyn de Worde in 1501 and Henry Pepwell in 1521 which contained excerpts from The Book of Margery Kempe. Butler Bowdon (1910-1984) at an auction held by Sotheby's in London on 24 June 1980. The manuscript was purchased by the British Library from Captain Maurice E. Butler-Bowdon, was found in a country-house in Derbyshire in the early 1930s, and was identified as Margery Kempe’s book by Hope Emily Allen in 1934, who was instrumental in the publication of the second modern, and first scholarly, edition of the text. Recent research by Anthony Bale suggests that Salthows was one Richard Salthouse, a monk at Norwich’s cathedral priory. Modern editions of Kempe's book are based on a manuscript copied by a scribe named Salthows sometime in the fifteenth century (the original manuscript has been lost). Kempe claimed to be illiterate and her book was dictated to two scribes who set it down. It is structured into two 'books' totaling 6047 lines the first book containing 5246 lines and the second book consisting of 801 lines.

Kempe's book is written in the third person, employing the phrase 'this creature' when referring to Kempe in order to display humility before God, via the distancing from her self by abandoning the first-person narrative form. The book is also notable for her claiming to be present at key biblical events such as the Nativity, shown in chapter six of Book I, and the Crucifixion. These interactions take place through a strong, mental connection forged between Kempe and said biblical figures. It details Kempe's life, her travels, her accounts of divine revelation including her visions of interacting with the Trinity, particularly Jesus, as well as other biblical figures. The Book of Margery Kempe is a medieval text attributed to Margery Kempe, an English Christian mystic and pilgrim who lived at the turn of the fifteenth century. Manuscript of The Book of Margery Kempe, chapter 18 (excerpt)

The book of margery kempe an abridged translation