讲座人：英国阿伯丁Dr. Michelle Macleod（武汉大学-英国阿伯丁孔子学院外方院长）

讲座题目为：The importance of place in Gaelic folk-song（盖尔语民歌中场所的重要性）

讲座时间： 2017年12月14日（周四）下午2:00—3:30

讲座地点； 外语学院三楼学术报告厅（3008）

举办单位； 英文系

讲座提要

Gaelic song is recognised by many as an important and emblematic cultural artefact in Scottish society. The professional poet in medieval Gaelic Scotland (andIreland) was a highly trained and honoured individual; he would have studied for seven years to achieve this status and was a valued member of the chief’s court. At the same time, it is likely that song and verse enjoyed a special place in the vernacular with some of the earliest Gaelic folk-songs still being sung belonging to the 16^thcentury. While the professional verse amazes in its technical brilliance, it does not defer to emotion and its themes are constrained by the contracts of patronage and reflect the chief and his political ambition. The vernacular song, on the other hand, reflects the lives and experiences of the common people: it is thematically diverse and emotionally evocative. This presentation will explore, using examples from the 17^thto the 20^thcentury, one of the major themes of Gaelic folk-song: that of the connection to place. The Gael’s affinity to place, and to nature in particular, is both literal and symbolic: songs about land are equally songs about culture, about history, about family and about love. Through an appreciation of Gaelic song, one can gain a valuable insight into Gaelic Scotland of the past and present.