In Ivanhoe, Walter Scott employs "medieval English" dialect to imbue the novel with a sense of historical authenticity and place. The use of medieval dialect serves several purposes in the book, and it occurs throughout as characters speak to and interact with one another. Firstly, it provides readers with a more immersive experience than using strictly contemporary English might. By integrating some aspects of an earlier dialect of spoken English into dialogue and narrative descriptions, Scott is allowing readers to “hear” the voices of the past as they might actually have sounded.
It's important to note that the actual spoken language of the period would be very unfamiliar to the reader, as neither Anglo-Saxon nor Norman French bear much resemblance to contemporary English. Knowing this, Scott incorporates some elements of medieval speech conventions into his writing, while keeping most of the syntax and vocabulary unchanged. The structure of the language on the page is not dramatically changed from contemporary English, but it contains lots of small differences which add up to a greater whole. For example, characters use period-specific phrasing consistently, substituting “thee/thy/thou” for the more modern second-person pronouns "you/your."
Terms like "wherefore," meaning "why," and expressions of movement or location such as "hither and yon" (here and there) further contribute to the medieval ambiance the language provides. Scott also incorporates obsolete or uncommonly spoken English words like "methinks" (it seems to me) and "verily" (certainly) into his characters’ speech as they would have appeared in dialogue in the 12th century. These linguistic choices are not merely decorative; they are integral to creating a sense of time and place. The novel’s language works to ground the reader firmly in its historical context. It's not exactly historically accurate, but it contains many small accuracies, and it serves a larger authorial purpose.
As Prior Aymer chastises Bois-Guilbert for hitting a serf, the author employs 12th-century English dialect and period-specific language to point to one of the novel’s central political concerns:
Nay, by St Mary, brother Brian, you must not think you are now in Palestine, predominating over heathen Turks and infidel Saracens; we islanders love not blows, save those of holy Church, who chasteneth whom she loveth.
The formal, archaic language in this comment reflects the time period and setting of Ivanhoe, helping readers to immerse themselves in the medieval world the novel depicts. The use of terms like "Palestine," "heathen Turks," and "infidel Saracens" here further enriches the historical context. Bois-Guilbert and Aymer have just returned from the Crusades, wars over lands in the Middle East fought between Christians and Muslims in the medieval period. The term "Saracen" is an important one here, as it’s used often in the novel's exploration of historical prejudices and conflicts. This term was commonly employed during the Middle Ages in Europe to refer to Muslims, especially those against whom the Crusades were waged. By incorporating "Saracen" into the dialogue, Scott anchors the story in a specific historical moment. He also highlights the deep-seated animosities and misunderstandings that characterized Christian-Muslim relations during this period. In order to justify the expense and violence of the Crusades, religious leaders like Prior Aymer and Knights Templar like Bois-Guilbert pushed the narrative that Christians were righteous conquerors and Muslims were “heathens.”
