LECTURES ON EARLY ENGLISH LITERATURE

LECTURES ON EARLY ENGLISH LITERATURE

by

Robert A. Albano

MERCURYE PRESS
HUALIEN

LECTURES ON EARLY ENGLISH LITERATURE Robert A. Albano

Originally Published by Bookman Books Ltd., Taipei as LECTURES ON ENGLISH LITERATURE, VOL. 1: THE MIDDLE AGES (2000) LECTURES ON ENGLISH LITERATURE, VOL. 2: THE RENAISSANCE (2001)

All Rights Reserved 2009 by Robert A. Albano No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, or by any information storage retrieval system, without the written permission of the publisher.

MERCURYE PRESS
HUALIEN

TABLE OF CONTENTS PART I: THE MIDDLE AGES 1. Introduction ...... 11 2. Two Old English Poems 27 3. Beowulf (1st) .. 45 4. Beowulf (2nd) .. 63 5. Beowulf (3rd) .. 83 6. Sir Gawain (1st) . 103 7. Sir Gawain (2nd) . 123 8. Canterbury Tales (1st) 145 9. Canterbury Tales (2nd) ... 167 10. Canterbury Tales (3rd) 189 11. Canterbury Tales (4th) 211 12. Lyrics and Ballads .. 231 13. Medieval Drama (1st) . 253 14. Medieval Drama (2nd) . 275

TABLE OF CONTENTS PART II: THE RENAISSANCE 15. Introduction .... 301 16. Astrophil and Stella (1st) 319 17. Astrophil and Stella (2nd) 341 18. Shepheardes Calendar 363 19. Doctor Faustus (1st) 387 20. Doctor Faustus (2nd) ... 409 21. Shakespeares Sonnets (1st) 433 22. Shakespeares Sonnets (2nd) 455 23. Shakespeares Sonnets (3rd) 477 24. John Donne (1st) . 499 25. John Donne (2nd) 521 26. Paradise Lost (1st) . 545 27. Paradise Lost (2nd) 569 28. 1 Henry IV (1st) . 589 29. 1 Henry IV (2nd) 613

LOEEL

PART I THE MIDDLE AGES

LOEEL

LECTURE 1
AN INTRODUCTION TO THE HISTORY AND LITERATURE OF THE MIDDLE AGES The first question you should ask yourself when you hear the expression Middle Ages is the middle of what? For many, many years scholars and historians have designated the two great periods of literature, culture, and the arts in Western Civilization as the Classical Age and the Renaissance. The Classical Age marks the period, first in Greece and later in the Roman Empire, when culture flourished. The Renaissance marks the achievement of culture first in Italy and then throughout Western Europe. The time periods for these two great eras are as follows: Classical Age Renaissance 500BC to 500AD 1350 to 1660

Well, what about the period in-between? Scholars have unimaginatively and perhaps condescendingly called this period the Middle Ages. It comes in the middle of the Classical Age and Renaissance. One of the reasons for the negative treatment of this time period is that for many years so little was known about it. A second stumbling block, especially in England and France, is that the national languages of the earlier time period were often too archaic to be understood easily by later generations. Today, however, far more is known about the Middle Ages, or Medieval period (medieval means

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middle ages); and there is much literature and art from this time period that also deserves to be called great. In England the Renaissance began much later than the rest of Europe. An easy date to remember that we can use to designate the beginning of the English Renaissance will be 1500. However, we should keep in mind that this date, like those listed above, is an approximation and does not necessarily indicate a precise beginning or ending of any time period. The Middle Ages in England, then, lasted for about 1000 years, from 500 to 1500 AD. We can further subdivide the English Middle Ages into two periods: Old English Middle English 500 AD to 1100 AD 1100 AD to 1500 AD

These divisions are based on changes in language that have occurred in English since 500 AD. In fact, language experts usually divide the English language as falling into three stages: Old English, Middle English, and Modern English. In regards to language change, Modern English begins around 1500 because, for the most part, the grammar and vocabulary and pronunciation of English became fixed in a form similar to what we still use today. THE OLD ENGLISH PERIOD Old English, on the other hand, was far different from Modern English and is actually more Germanic in grammar and vocabulary. If we know a little bit about the history of England, we can see why this is so. From 50 BC to about 450 AD, England was dominated by Rome. There were some native tribes

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living in England, such as the Britons, the Picts, and the Scots. These natives spoke in a Celtic language, not in English. The Romans introduced the Latin language and Christianity in England, but these Roman features did not survive when the Romans left around 450. At that time Rome was having great difficulties protecting itself against invaders, and they had to recall all of their soldiers to defend the Roman Empire (which, as we all know, would fall). This left the possession of England back in the hands of the native Celtic tribes, but much fighting occurred among these tribes. Further, one of the Celtic leaders (according to one historical source) made the mistake of asking for help from their neighbors in Germanic (Germany) lands. The Germanic tribes came originally to help the Celtic leader, but soon realized that the island of England seemed like an ideal place to settle. With Rome out of the way, England was practically free for the taking. The names of the Germanic tribes who came to England were the Angles, the Saxons, the Frisians, the Jutes, and others. The first two were the most predominant. The Germanic warriors eventually overpowered the smaller Celtic forces and settled permanently in England. Today, many English regions are still named after the two largest Germanic tribes: East Anglia, Wessex (West Saxon), Sussex (South Saxon), and Essex (East Saxon). Eventually, the language of these invaders soon began to replace the Celtic languages as the predominant language of the land; and as this Germanic language grew and developed somewhat differently from what was happening in the German lands, the birth of the English language takes place. This spoken language is

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usually named Anglo-Saxon after the two Germanic tribes that dominated the region. However, given our historical perspective, we call their language Old English. The language of the original inhabitants, the Celts, still survives today. As the Angles and Saxons took over southern and eastern England, some of the Celts headed west to what is modern Wales today and others headed north to Scotland. The Welsh language is one example of the original Celtic dialects. THE CHRISTIAN INFLUENCE The history (and literature) of England is dominated by a Christian influence. But this was not always the case. The Romans had brought Christianity to England with them before 450. However, when the Romans left England, so too did the religion. It was not until the year 597 that the missionary St. Augustine came from Rome to convert the pagan tribes of England to Christianity. So successful was the mission of St. Augustine (who should not be confused with the popular 4th century philosopher of the same name) that by 700, within a period of approximately 100 years, the majority of people in England had converted to the Catholic faith. One of the earliest surviving works of literature from England in this early period is the Historia Ecclesiastica (a religious history of England) written in Latin by a churchman named Bede. This religious document from the year 731 is important not only because it reveals the growth and development of Christianity in England but also because it provides the best history of early England for that time period.

The Middle Ages WAR AND CONFLICT

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This history of England is also dominated by conflict. First there was the conflict between the Romans and the Celtic tribes. Then there were the internal conflicts among the various Celtic tribes after the Romans left. Later there was the conflict between the Celts and the Anglo-Saxons. And once the Celts were pushed aside, there were the internal conflicts among the various Germanic tribes. England was a land of many kingdoms, and the Germanic desire for land continued to be a reason for conflict for many years. During the 9th century, the conflicts increased even more: invaders from the Scandinavian countries came to England and realized how easy it would be to take land from a people lacking any sense of unity. These invaders, known as the Norse or Vikings or Danes, came close to conquering all of England. If they had succeeded, there would have been no England and no English language today. Fortunately, one of the Saxon kings, King Alfred of Wessex, later to be known as Alfred the Great (871899), united England at the end of the 9th century and was able to put up a stiff resistance against the Viking invaders. Eventually, a treaty of peace was established; but the Anglo-Saxons lost about half of England to the Norse invaders. This northern region of England was known as the Danelaw. The new settlers spoke the Norse language, not Anglo-Saxon. But the Norse settlers soon were on friendly terms with their AngloSaxon neighbors, and business and language exchanges soon became commonplace between them. The English language changed as a result of such exchanges, and

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even today many Norse words still form a noticeable (but not large) part of the Modern English vocabulary. Alfred the Great should also be recognized for being a man of learning and letters, and he was, most likely, responsible for establishing one of the most important works of literature in the Old English language: the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. Although many of its entries are sketchy and incomplete, the Chronicle is important to modern readers because it reveals many details about the development of the English language as well as documenting many historical facts about England. One of the best surviving literary works from England during the 10th century is the Battle of Maldon. This short heroic poem is significant not only because of its literary merits: it is also significant historically because it recounts events of the Viking invasion. THE LOST LITERATURE OF ENGLAND The amount of poetry and even prose literature that has survived from the Old English period is scant. Less than 5% (maybe only 1 or 2%) of all the poetry from that time period survives. There are several reasons for this: 1) The Oral Tradition: During the Middle Ages, most of the people could not read or write. Instead, they had to rely on professional story-tellers (also known as bards or scops) who would memorize long epic poems and recite them to their audiences. These story-tellers would usually

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2)

3) 4)

5)

take on an apprentice, who would listen to and memorize the tales told by his master. In this fashion, stories could be passed down from one generation to the next for hundreds of years without ever being written down. Destruction Caused by Wars and Conflicts: Pillaging, looting, and burning were common activities of invaders. One of the great monasteries in northeast England, the Monastery at Lindisfarne, was burned during the Viking invasions. This monastery reportedly held the largest library in England at the time. Natural Disasters (flood, fire, storms) The Expense of Parchment: In England at this time sheepskin, or parchment, was used instead of paper. It was very difficult and, hence, expensive to make parchment. Moreover, usually only monks and other members of the Catholic Church knew how to read and write. Since they felt that religious documents were far more important than secular poetry, they would only use parchment for Christian writing. The Re-Use of Parchment: Modern x-rays reveal that many Old English documents once contained previous material, but the letters or characters were scratched out so that a new document could be written instead. Thus, many documents that the Anglo-Saxons considered unimportant were simply erased.

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The Middle Ages THE TWO LITERARY TRADITIONS

Despite the loss of most Anglo-Saxon documents, enough material has survived, miraculously, to give us some idea of the literature and culture of England from that time period. Outside of historical documents, two literary traditions are evident: (1) Heroic Poetry and (2) Christian Poetry. Two examples of the first category are The Battle of Maldon (mentioned earlier) and the only surviving Old English epic, Beowulf. In these works readers can discover the importance of kinship and the idea of the Heroic Code that seem to be at the heart of Anglo-Saxon society. A reader can also learn about the importance of Revenge (or the Blood Feud) in that society. This act seems to hold the status of a sacred duty for all members alike. The Christian Poetry from that time contains heroic elements. The saints and even Jesus Christ are often depicted as warriors heading out to do battle for their religious cause. One prime example of this type of literature is The Dream of the Rood. In this poem Christ is depicted as a young hero as well as a symbol of Christian virtue. Some poems, however, do not quite fit the categories above. For example, The Wanderer is more of a lament than an example of heroic poetry. In this poem a man bemoans his fate, his separation from his lord and kinsmen, who are dead. But like heroic poetry, this poem does reflect the importance of the relationship between a lord and his men (or retainers), a relationship that seems like the closest of family ties.

The Middle Ages FEATURES OF ANGLO-SAXON POETRY

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Medieval literature is mostly poetic, not prosaic (prose). Although Old English poetry is quite different from its modern counterparts, a number of key poetic devices, most of which are still used by poets today, were used by the Anglo-Saxon poets: 1) Alliteration: The repetition of key consonant sounds is still used today, sometimes for comic effect as in the example of Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers (with an alliteration on the p sound). Alliteration, however, is a far more serious device for the Anglo-Saxon poets; and it became as common a device as rhyme would be in many modern poems. The AngloSaxon poets did not use rhyme. 2) Meter: Anglo-Saxon poetry also had its own complex metrical patterns. 3) Synonyms: Using words with similar meanings was often done with common words for that culture. The Anglo-Saxons had many words for lord and warrior as well as for common objects such as sword or shield. In Caedmons Hymn, an extremely short poem, the poet uses several other terms to refer to God: (a) Holy Creator, (b) Mankinds Guardian, (c) Eternal Lord, (d) Master Almighty.

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The Middle Ages 4) Synechdoche: A figure of speech in which a part signifies the whole. For example, keel could be used for ship, or foot can be substituted for soldier. 5) Metonymy: A figure of speech in which an object closely associated with a word is substituted. For example, iron can be substituted for sword, or crown could be substituted for king. 6) Kenning: Figurative words that are compounds. This is a prominent feature of Anglo-Saxon poetry and reveals the imagination of the poet, who would refer to the sea as a whale-road or to a human body as the life-house. 7) Irony: Figurative language where the attitude is distinctly different or even opposite to what is being said [saying one thing but meaning another]. For example, fighting or war could be referred to as battleplay. In Anglo-Saxon poetry, the irony is usually grim. 8) Understatement: The opposite of exaggeration, to underplay the significance of an idea. For example, when Beowulf receives gifts, the narrator states that he had no need to be ashamed before fighting men of those rich gifts. The author is actually saying that Beowulf has every reason to be proud of his accomplishments. 9) Litotes: This is actually ironic understatement. A good example of this occurs in The Battle of Maldon. The poet states the following about one group of

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warriors: they cared not for battle. What he means by this is that those men were cowards. If one is able to take the time to face the challenges presented by the Anglo-Saxon language, one will discover the richness and beauty of a unique poetry from a fascinating culture of long ago. THE MIDDLE ENGLISH PERIOD The English language changed dramatically around 1100 AD, and the reasons for this are simple. In the year 1066 King Edward (also known as Edward the Confessor) died. Since he did not have any sons, there were many disputes over who should be the next king of England. One of the claimants was William, the Duke of Normandy. Although many Englishmen opposed him, William and his Norman soldiers came to England from France and fought for the throne in a famous historical conflict known as The Battle of Hastings. William was victorious, and he ruled England from 1066 to 1087. King Williams victory had a tremendous effect on England, a lasting effect that would change the language, the culture, and the literature of England. William spoke French (a dialect known as Norman French), and the members of his court, who were, naturally, all Normans, also spoke French. Thus, initially, England was a land of two languages: AngloSaxon and Norman French. Norman French, though, became the more prestigious of the two since it was the language of the court; and any Anglo-Saxon who hoped to be part of the court had to learn French. Thus, for a

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while, French became the language of the aristocracy while Anglo-Saxon was the language of the peasant class. French would remain the dominant language of the English court for over 200 years. Yet, an interesting event occurred. Rather than Norman French replacing Anglo-Saxon, the two languages began to merge, to blend together to form an entirely distinct language. Today, we call this new language Middle English. Yet, Middle English was a language that developed and changed continually. Documents written in the Middle English of the 12th century are far more like AngloSaxon, but documents written in the 15th century seem much closer to Modern English. English was a fluid language that was open to great change. French culture, French ideas, and French literature also affected and changed the course of literature in England. During the Anglo-Norman period (circa 1066-1330), three languages actually existed in England: (1) French, (2) Middle English, and (3) Latin. Latin was the language of the Catholic Church, and the only education one could receive at that time would be a religious one. Thus, Latin was the language of scholars; it was the language used for important documents and records. It was the language used for religious writing and even much secular writing. However, poets often prefer to write in their native language, so we find in England that the literature from this time period exists in all three languages.

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TYPES OF MIDDLE ENGLISH LITERATURE From the early Middle English period a number of lyrics and ballads have survived, thus indicating that many people in England still preferred their native language for creative writing. Lyrics are often simple and short poems, usually about love or nature, but can also include religious topics or ideas. Ballads are longer narrative poems that have survived from an oral tradition. The topics of these poems can be adventurous, like the Robin Hood ballads, but often they depict tragic events, including death. Like the Anglo-Saxon period, much of the literature from the Middle English period is historical. In the year 1136 Geoffrey of Monmouth wrote his History of the Kings of Britain in Latin. One of the earliest accounts of the King Arthur legend appears in this work. Monmouth, like many historians from the time, also exhibited a creative impulse in his writing. He included legendary and fantastic tales from the past (obtained through the oral tradition) and appears to have invented much of his material as well. The ideas of objectivity and accuracy were not crucial to the writing of history at that time. One of the earliest works in Middle English is also a history book entitled Brut by Layamon. This poetic history not only provides a good example of the English language around 1205, but it also exhibits some qualities of Old English poetry (such as alliteration) and more contemporary innovations of the time (such as rhyme). The fictional quality noticeable in Monmouths work is also present here as Layamon includes Celtic folklore and even expands upon the King Arthur legend.

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The King Arthur legend actually reached its full development in France. Arthur began as a Celtic hero and king (probably in the 5th century), fighting against the Anglo-Saxons who invaded England. When the Britons (a Celtic tribe) found the Germanic invaders too powerful to resist, they fled to a region in France, Brittany. The Britons continued to speak in their Celtic language and to pass down the stories (from the oral tradition), including their stories of King Arthur, for many generations. The stories of King Arthur returned to England from France in their more sophisticated forms. And Arthur became (in fiction) not just a King of the Celts, but a legendary King for all of England. Eventually, in the 15th century, the tales would be collected and set down in English by Sir Thomas Malory in his famous Morte Darthur (written in approximately 1470). Most writing during the Middle English period was religious. A university education usually meant studying to become a priest. Thus, the educated members of the society were religious and usually wrote in Latin. The majority of people in England still could not read or write. During the 14th and 15th centuries, a number of English writers (the Mystics), such as Julian of Norwich, wrote about their having religious visions that, they believed, came directly from God. THE ZENITH POETRY OF MIDDLE ENGLISH

The second half of the 14th century is undoubtedly the best period of Middle English literature. In 1336 King Edward III (who spoke both English and French but who was probably more comfortable with

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English) began a war with France because he felt that he also should be the monarch of that land. Edward III needed money to support his war, and his levying of taxes helped give rise to the beginnings of capitalism in England. Perhaps more importantly, Edward IIIs own use of English and the feelings of resentment against France (the enemy of England) and things French (especially the French language), gave the English language a more prominent position in the courts of England. By this time most members of the court could speak little or no French and would have to send their children to France if they wanted them to learn French. So, English began to establish itself as the primary language of the land and the dominant language of poetry. From 1350 to 1400 the greatest works of Middle English appear. The best known writer of that time period is Geoffrey Chaucer, who worked not only as a writer but also as an ambassador, administrator, and counselor in the court of Edward III and, later, for King Richard II. Chaucers most notable work is The Canterbury Tales (circa 1386-1400), a remarkable literary achievement wherein the poet not only beautifully retells popular and serious stories from his age but also creates fascinating character portraits that reveal significant details about the life and times of 14th century England. Other great works of literature from this time period include Piers Plowman by William Langland, Confessio Amantis by John Gower, and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and Pearl, both by the same anonymous writer. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is a medieval romance (a narrative of adventure) that developed out of the King Arthur stories. But both

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Pearl and Piers Plowman can be described as examples of religious allegory (where all of the characters and scenes represent or symbolize Christian ideas). DRAMA The dramatic literature of the Middle Ages is far less significant than the poetry of that time. The plays that were performed were usually church performances using religious stories and amateur actors (usually members of the parish). The first type of drama to emerge is the Mystery Play (stories of the mysteries from the Bible, such as the story of Noah and his ark). By the 15th century, original plays depicting religious ideas and beliefs were created. These Morality Plays often used the device of personification (the giving of human qualities to inanimate objects or ideas). In such a play a vice such as Gluttony could become personified, or a virtue such as Charity could also take human form. The greatest and best-known Morality Play is Everyman.

LECTURE 2
TWO OLD ENGLISH POEMS

THE DREAM OF THE ROOD The Dream of the Rood is one of the best surviving examples of the Religious Tradition in Old English poetry. The poem has survived from a manuscript dating from the 10th century. However, an archaeological discovery from the 8th century, a stone cross called the Ruthwell Cross, contains passages from the poem. So, the poem originally dates from the 8th century or possible even before that time. The Dream of the Rood is poetic. However, as is the case with many Old English poems, modern translations often come in the form of prose because it is far easier to translate the meaning of the poem more precisely by using prose. Perhaps the most important poetic device used in this poem is personification. Here the Cross, upon which Jesus Christ was crucified, becomes alive and is able to speak. It tells the story of the role it played in the Crucifixion to the narrator of the story. The word Tree is often used as a synonym for Cross. Another important poetic feature of the poem is the use of a narrative device that we can call the Dream Vision. In Middle English poetry, Dream Visions are common; but in Old English they are quite rare. The poem contains three parts. (1) The poem begins with the Narrator, whom we can also call the Dreamer, telling about his feelings of humiliation and inadequacy because of his sinful nature. The narrator

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then explains that he had a dream about a Tree and that the Tree spoke to him. (2) The middle part of the poem is the longest, and this section is actually a monologue spoken by the Tree as the Tree (or Cross) explains its part in the Crucifixion. (3) In the third part the narrator speaks once again as he explains the effect that his dream has had upon him. The first and third parts of the poem are relatively short and form a literary frame of the narrative, a kind of enclosure that contains the primary component of the poem. The structure of the poem is also complicated and enhanced by the time frame. The Dreamer first sees the Tree in all of its glory, the end result of its experience. Then, when the Tree recounts (tells of) its history, the Tree describes its initial appearance and lowly state. In other words, the time order is reversed. This is known as a flashback or cutback. SYMBOLISM The meaning of the poem, though, only becomes clear if one understands the symbolism of the Cross. In the monologue provided by the Cross, the reader learns of a change (or dynamic quality) that has occurred in it. Initially, the Tree is humiliated by the role it has to play in the Crucifixion or execution of Jesus Christ. But later the Tree explains that it has achieved a position of Glory because it played a significant role in Christs destiny. Therefore, the Tree is honored for its association with Jesus Christ. The change is one from Humiliation to Pride. Likewise, the Dreamer goes through a similar change. Initially, he is distraught over his sinful nature.

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But the dream he has about the Cross inspires him: it gives him hope. In a sense, then, the Dreamer is like the Cross. Or we can say that the Cross symbolizes the Dreamer. The Dreamer learns that there is Hope: he can put aside his sinful nature and still achieve the Glory of entering the Kingdom of Heaven, of being with God. The symbolism works on one further level. For both the Cross and the Dreamer symbolize all Christians. All Christians can put aside their sinful natures, all Christians can escape the humiliation that comes with committing acts of sin, and all Christians can enter the Glory of Heaven and be with God. SUMMARY AND INTERPRETATION The prose translation of the poem is divided into six paragraphs. The first and sixth paragraphs are the frame. The other four paragraphs are the monologue of the Cross. In the first paragraph we find that the translator has attempted to retain some of the Old English poetic features of the original. For example, the translator uses alliteration in the expressions brightest of beams or fair in the form. Synonyms are also used: for example, the Tree is also referred to as a beacon and (negatively) gallows. Moreover, there is an expression of understatement or, actually, litotes: This was surely no felons gallows. The statement, of course, means that this magnificent Tree could only hold the Savior of Mankind, Jesus Christ. The narrator sees the Tree in its final form, or resurrected form, after it has been magnificently transformed by the power of God. But the narrator, who

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describes himself as stained with sins, feels all the more lowly by comparison. The Tree, bright and shining and covered in gold, begins to bleed. This, quite simply, symbolizes the wound that Christ received from a Roman soldier, who pierced the side of Christ with a spear, and the wounds from being nailed to the Cross. This action, this bleeding of the Cross, though, complicates the symbolism of the poem. For now we see that the Cross is itself a symbol of Christ. And, from the Christian view, Christ represents all of mankind; for Christ was the savior for all of mankind. Thus, we can say of this poem that the Cross symbolizes Christ and the Dreamer and all mankind. But then, so too does Christ symbolize the Dreamer and all of mankind. So, we have a complex interweaving of symbolism among (1) the Cross, (2) Jesus Christ, (3) the Dreamer, and (4) all of mankind. The blood is also important to emphasize the Christian notion of the sacrifice that Christ made for man. Christ bled, Christ suffered, Christ endured a painful death in order to save mankind from sin, from sinful natures. Like all Christians, the Narrator must feel both sad and grateful for the sacrifice that Jesus Christ had made. The monologue of the Cross begins in the second paragraph. One of the words most noticeable in this section of the poem is the word foes, which mean enemies. Since the men who cut down the Tree are the enemies of Christ, they thus become the enemies or foes of the Cross and all Christians as well. Another important feature of this part of the poem is the use of synonyms for Christ, who is called a young Hero and a Warrior. The Anglo-Saxons were a hearty and brave people, and the Heroic Poetry that has survived today reveals the importance of courage in

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their society. For these people to embrace Christ, they would have to see him as a hero, as someone who is brave and fearless. So, the Tree describes Christ as bold and strong and stouthearted, as someone who will not let the cruelty and pain inflicted by his enemies change the nature of his courage. The Tree also emphasizes the blood. The Tree, too, is wet with blood, like Christ. The Tree, in a sense, becomes Christ. The connection (or sympathy) between Christ and the Cross is enhanced when the Tree states that the Romans mocked us both together. Of course, the Crucifixion was a horrible act. The Tree uses hyperbole (exaggeration) to emphasize the tremendous impact of the event, for the Tree states that all creation wept. Here the Cross emphasizes not only the sadness of the event, but the significance of it as well. The Crucifixion of Christ affects all of creation, as Christians see it. Through this sad act, man can achieve something good, the Glory of God. This description is intended to affect the Narrator: the Narrator must realize that the pain Christ experienced was for his sake as well. Christs sacrifice is what allows the Narrator to give up his sinful nature and turn toward God. In the third paragraph the Cross acts meekly, and this attribute ties him to Christ as well. Christ submitted to his enemies because he knew that it was part of his destiny, just as the Trees destiny is to play a role in the Crucifixion. And, symbolically, all Christians must submit to earthly suffering before achieving the joys of Heaven. The Cross relates how some of Jesus Christs followers take the body of Christ and place it in a tomb, which is referred to by a kenning, earth-house. The

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section ends with the Tree explaining that it too was cut down and buried. Again, the Tree becomes Christ. Both the Tree and Jesus Christ suffer, and both are entombed (or buried). Like Christ, the Tree is eventually freed from his tomb. Followers of Christ recognize the importance of the Tree and decorate it in gold and silver. The precious metals represent the spiritual wealth that one receives upon entering Heaven. In the fourth paragraph the Tree explains the lesson directly to the Dreamer, just in case he did not understand the meaning of his vision. The Cross states that it had experienced the change from sorrow and evil to honor and glory. Moreover, the Cross explains that such glory and honor are not only reserved for the Tree. Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ, also received a place of honor; and such a place of honor can be obtained by all men and all women since Christs suffering occurred for the sake of all men and all women. In the fifth paragraph the Cross leaves the Dreamer with a command, a command that comes not from the Tree, but from God. The Tree tells the Dreamer to go out and tell others about his vision, about his seeing the Tree and hearing the story the Tree had told him. In other words, the Tree tells the Narrator to go out and spread the word of God. God has given the Dreamer a special task. God is honoring the Dreamer by trusting him with such a special mission. The Cross also adds a warning to his message, for it mentions Doomsday, which means Judgment Day. Christians believe that all men and women must, on the last day of existence, when the earth will come to an end, give an account of themselves. God will judge each and every one, and only those who are judged

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favorably by God will be able to enter the Kingdom of Heaven and receive Gods Glory. Those who cannot give a favorable account of themselves (those who are unwilling to taste bitter death as Christ had) will be speechless before God. But the Cross also suggests that if a person wears the best of tokens (which means the Cross but which symbolizes a good Christian life), that person has no need to be afraid because that person will dwell with God in Heaven. In the sixth and last paragraph, we return to the frame, where the Narrator speaks directly to the readers. The Narrator explains that he prayed and endured hardship, but eventually he realized that there is hope for himself, just as there is hope for all of mankind. The Narrator emphasizes the brevity of earthly existence, of human life. He is suggesting that earthly existence is far less important than the existence of the next life, which lasts for all of eternity. More importantly, the Narrator believes that all of his friends are in Heaven, delighting in the Glory of God; and he wants to be with them. In Heaven there is a great feast. Eternity in Heaven is a time of joy, a time of celebration, a time of bliss. There are no earthly terms to adequately describe the wonders of Heaven; but the idea of a feast is perhaps the closest word that can begin to suggest what awaits men and women when they enter Heaven. The Narrator also emphasizes the idea of Hope. Christs suffering and death on the Cross brought Hope to mankind. All people now have the hope of receiving Gods favor and His blessing. Near the end of this section, there is an allusion (a literary reference) to the Harrowing of Hell.

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Christians believe that after Christ was crucified and died, His spirit descended into Hell. There he encountered Adam and Moses and Abraham and all other individuals (Old Testament prophets and holy men) who lived good and holy lives according to Gods rules. Jesus Christ then brought these people to Heaven when he ascended there three days after the Crucifixion. The reference to the Harrowing of Hell is important to medieval Christians. Religious leaders taught that only by knowing Christ and by following Christian principles could one gain access to Heaven and receive Gods blessing. Anyone who does not believe in God and Christian principles will be denied spiritual access to Heaven upon their earthly deaths. Thus, the mission of the Narrator is an extremely significant one for medieval Christians. By telling everybody about his dream, the Narrator hopes to convert others to Christianity. By doing so, he will be saving them because he will be giving them the hope and the opportunity of gaining access to Heaven. Like Christ, the narrator will then become a savior. The poem ends with the image (imagery) of Christ in Heaven, living and rejoicing with the saints and angels in the Glory of God. The ending of the poem reflects the ending that all earthly inhabitants should aspire to. All Christians should aspire, should hope, to enter the Kingdom of Heaven and rejoice with the angels, the saints, Jesus Christ, and God.

The Middle Ages THE WANDERER

35

Another famous poem that has survived from the Old English period is The Wanderer. This poem can best be labeled as an elegy (a poem of lamentation for the dead) or lament. Like the translation of The Dream of the Rood, the translation of this poem has been made in prose but also contains many of the poetic features of the original. Perhaps the most notable feature of the poem is the emphasis on the comitatus, the band or tribe of men who follow one particular lord or king. The comitatus was a particularly close group of warriors, and strong feelings of fellowship developed among the men. In many cases, this fellowship, this bonding of men, would be closer than family relationships. In this particular poem, the narrator moans and laments the loss of his companions and, more importantly, the loss of his lord. The theme and sorrowful tone of this piece are also repeated in Beowulf, the great surviving epic of the Old English period. The tone may be described as being one of melancholy. The story of the poem concerns the exile of the narrator who, now that he has lost his lord and other companions, must roam from one land to the next, lonely, desolate, and miserable. The poem can easily be divided into two parts, the first dealing with the specific details of the narrators situation and the second dealing with a more general treatment of the theme. Each of the two parts can be further subdivided into three sections:

36 I.

The Middle Ages The Narrators Thoughts A. His Hopes of Finding Comfort (followed by the voice or words of the poet) B. His Thoughts (Delivered like a Soliloquy) As He Searches for a New Home C. His Imagining That He Sees His Old Companions (a Dream Vision) General Comments A. Expansion of the Theme Generalized to Include Everybody B. Ubi Sunt Theme (Where are those who have gone before?) From a Medieval Poem C. Conclusion and Thoughts about Doomsday (One should place his hope in Heaven)

II.

In the prose translation, Part I is six paragraphs long and Part II is four paragraphs. PART I: SUMMARY AND INTERPRETATION In the first paragraph the Narrator uses the metaphor that a person who is alone is like a swimmer in an icy-cold sea. The metaphor helps us to feel the trouble, the pain, and the struggle that the Narrator is experiencing. Cold water tightens the muscles of a swimmer, making movement slow and difficult; yet if

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the swimmer does not move, he or she will drown. But since the Narrator is troubled in heart, the reader quickly realizes that his torment is psychological, emotional, and spiritual. The Narrator also describes himself as an Exile, someone who cannot return, who has no place to call home. The paragraph ends with the narrator explaining that his fate is fully-fixed (note the use of alliteration). The Narrator, like the majority of people during the Middle Ages, believes that his Destiny is determined for him, that he has no choice. In other words, life presents a certain path that each of us can take but does not allow us to move off of that path. The idea that Destiny or Fate is fixed has long been an issue of debate and appears repeatedly throughout the literature of Western Civilization. The Christian view is a complicated one and seems to incorporate both views (predestination and free will) simultaneously (a mystery that is beyond the understanding of mankind). The opposite idea of fixed fate is referred to as Free Will. People who favor this view believe that mankind has a choice. People can shape their own destiny. But the Narrator clearly believes in Fatalism. He has no choice but to accept the harsh and grim reality that the world presents. Such a grim view seems common in Old English literature, and one may readily assume that many people in this time period did not experience much pleasure in life. This would easily explain the acceptance and rapid growth of Christianity in England during the 7th century. Since St. Augustine and his missionaries would offer an afterlife that was peaceful, serene, glorious, and joyful, like a great feast, the inhabitants of a cold and harsh world would be eager

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to accept the hope of eventually going to Heaven and enjoying the comforts that would be offered there. The Narrators words are interrupted in the brief second paragraph. The interruption can be called authorial intrusion. Here the poet directly summarizes the Narrators situation as a man who has faced a hard life, war, and the death of those he was closest to. Note that the author also uses the kenning earth-walker to refer to the Narrator. The imagery of this device gives the reader the impression that the Narrator must roam the world continuously, without rest, never finding a home. In the third paragraph the Narrator notes that his custom is to keep his thoughts and his troubles to himself. This is fortunate since, as he says, he now no longer has anyone to talk to. Basically, the Narrator is saying that speaking, or complaining, about his situation would be futile, useless. Complaining about the situation will not make it any better or easier. Getting angry over his bitter fate also will not improve his situation. So, the Narrator knows that he must remain cool and complacent over his fate. He does not believe his fate is alterable. The Narrator is also using understatement when he states that getting angry will not bring help. What he is suggesting is that getting angry can bring great harm to the angry person and perhaps even cause others to resent him. Those eager for fame know how to keep a cool head, to hide their anger. This idea can also be seen in the character of Beowulf, the Anglo-Saxon hero who achieves great deeds but knows how to remain calm and rational since these qualities help him to accomplish such acts of greatness. Indirectly, the Narrator is providing some insight about Anglo-Saxon culture, which placed value

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in cool and rational thinking and which condemned rashness and anger and hot-headed behavior. In the fourth paragraph the Narrator refers to his lord or king as a gold-friend. As can also be seen in Beowulf, one of the customs of the Anglo-Saxon king would be to give rings and other treasures made of gold to his men (or retainers). The expression gold-friend indicates the closeness of the king to his retainer, whose bond was probably also like that of father to son. The Narrator also mentions their place of dwelling, the mead-hall. Mead was an alcoholic beverage made from honey, but the mead-hall was more than just an eating place. Such a hall, made of wood, not stone, in those days, would be a large structure with one great room where the band of warriors would eat, sleep, and live. Castles and other larger structures containing separate living quarters would come later in Englands history. The hall in the poem represents home, security, companionship, and pleasure. All these are now missing for the Narrator. So, the Narrator searches for a new lord and a new home. In the last line of the paragraph, the Narrator notes that now all delight has gone. This suggests that material goods are merely transitory in nature. That is, they do not last. This is an important Christian concept that can be seen in the medieval play Everyman. Christians believe that all people should focus on spiritual rewards that one can eventually earn in Heaven rather than the earthly rewards of food or sensual pleasures. Heaven does last for all of eternity, but physical pleasures do not last. A popular American expression echoes this sentiment: "You cant take it with you. When you die, you cannot take your money with you. Nor can you take your house or car or any other material possessions. The implication is that material

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possessions, in the long run, just are not really all that important. The Dream Vision begins in the fifth paragraph of the poem as the Narrator remembers the kind and generous times that he spent with his lord. But the Narrator wakens from his vision back to the grim reality of his present situation. The sorrows of the Narrator deepen in the sixth paragraph as he recognizes that the misery of his existence is made all the more miserable when he compares it to the wonderful and glorious times of his past. The Dream Vision continues in this section as the Narrator views the spirit or ghosts of his comrades. PART II: SUMMARY AND INTERPRETATION The idea of despair is brought up in the seventh paragraph. The Narrators dark thoughts are both literal and symbolic. Obviously, there is the emotional despair over the loss of his lord and friends and home. But the despair is also symbolic, working on the religious level. In medieval Christian belief, the idea of despair suggests a loss of spirituality, the idea that God has somehow abandoned you (or perhaps even that God does not exist). Such spiritual despair, as Christians see it, can lead to sin and to the loss of spiritual salvation. The Narrator of the poem calls for patience. One must be patient in order to leave the miseries on earth and attain the joys of the Heavenly afterlife. A reader should also note how the poem shifts direction in this paragraph. In the earlier paragraphs, the Narrator focuses on himself. In this paragraph the Narrator becomes more general as he teaches the lesson

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that he has learned from his own experience. Notice how the Narrator states that the wise man (meaning all of us) should avoid certain kinds of behavior (do not be fearful, do not be hasty of speech, and so forth); for such behavior indicates a lack of patience and a lack of wisdom. The words of warning continue in the eighth paragraph, with the wise man becoming the wise warrior. Here the Narrator suggests that all of us should look to the future. Actually, he is asking us not just to live in the present. The Narrator mentions Death, and that idea naturally leads to the idea of the Afterlife and the idea of Heaven. What happens on earth, what happens in the present, is of little importance. The imagery of ruin is prominent in this paragraph. Images of a broken and destroyed mead-hall or wine-hall are linked with the sad and forlorn figures of a lord and his weary retainers. Earthly joy, the joy that these men once experienced, has vanished. The Narrator is suggesting that one must contemplate more permanent joy (the joy of Heaven) in order to make sense out of life and withstand its hardships. The reader should also note that similar imagery appears in another Old English poem, aptly titled The Ruin. The Narrator talks about the old works of giants in the ninth paragraph. This is a reference to the ruins of the structures built by the Romans hundreds of years earlier. Many Anglo-Saxons living in England during the eighth century probably had little knowledge of the Roman presence in England; and, indeed, to someone living in small huts or slightly larger wooden halls, the presence of massive stone structures could be satisfactorily explained by the presence of giants. A

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belief in giants and monsters was prevalent during the Middle Ages, and the Narrator is probably sincere in his belief that giants once roamed the land. The Narrator is thus suggesting that even the giants, a race of individuals that were bigger and stronger and mightier than the race of man, eventually perished. They, too, were transitory. Their earthly existence also lasted for only a short time. And if the giants cannot last, what can man expect but to perish as well. The ubi sunt passages begin in this section as well: Where has the horse gone? Where the young warrior? Where is the giver of treasure? All of these questions, all of which ask about the joys of earthly existence that no longer are available, indicate the transitory nature of life and mankind. Nothing lasts forever. Everything perishes. Everything dies. There is, according to our narrator, once force, one power, that strikes and overpowers everything else on earth. That force is Fate the mighty. Fate is a great power; but, according to Christians, that power is in the employment, the service, of an even greater power. And that power is God. The Narrator or Wanderer is now finished; and the poet speaks directly for the second time in the tenth and last paragraph. The poet repeats the Narrators message about not complaining, about controlling ones words and ones temper. Do not speak until you know the remedy, the solution, to your problems. What is that solution? The solution comes with Christian patience

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and understanding. Be calm, be patient, the poet is telling us. If we do this, he writes, then we will receive the comfort of God, the Father, up in Heaven. Again the reader should notice the use of the word courage. Courage is a quality of a great warrior, and the poet is implying that it is also the quality of a great Christian. Another word that bears special notice here is stability. Earthly existence is unstable. It is rocky; it is chaotic. But the Christian solution will remove man from such chaos. Let me make one final comment on this poem. The imagery of winter is another prominent device used by the poet. In paragraph 1 the poet uses frostcold sea. In paragraph 5 he notes the fall of the frost and snow. And in paragraph 9 he mentions winter directly and hailstones. Winter, of course, is a period of hardships and harsh weather; and in parts of England the winters can be quite severe. Seasonal imagery (and symbolism) is a common poetic device of poetry throughout the ages. Winter naturally suggests hard and cold times, but it also symbolizes the later part of life: old age. The Narrator of The Wanderer has lived a long and hard life. Although he has long passed the springtime of his youth, he can look forward to experiencing the eternal spring (the joys and glory of a Heavenly existence) in the afterlife.

LECTURE 3
THE FIRST LECTURE ON BEOWULF AN INTRODUCTION TO THE OLD ENGLISH EPIC Only one epic that is, only one ancient epic (as opposed to the modern epic) exists in the literature of England; and that epic is Beowulf. The epic also generally marks the beginning of English fictional literature although there is some debate as to when Beowulf was originally created. Since it is a work from the oral tradition, the actual date of origin cannot be precisely determined. Scholars have suggested dates anywhere from the 7th century to the 10th century. I tend to agree with those who support the earlier dates. The 8th century seems most likely. Beowulf was written in Old English and contains many of the typical features of Old English poetry. However, as is the case with other Old English poems, many modern translators prefer to translate it in prose to order to retain the meaning of the epic as closely as possible. Only one manuscript of the epic survives, and that manuscript was written approximately at the end of the 10th century. Unfortunately, that manuscript has deteriorated over time and was further damaged in a fire during the 18th century. We are lucky that it has survived at all. The epic can be divided in several ways. Since it is an epic, the obvious divisions can be based on the

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three episodes, the three battles that the hero Beowulf fights: 1. The Fight against Grendel 2. The Fight against Grendels Mother 3. The Fight against the Dragon However, a two-part dividing system may actually be more useful in understanding the meaning and themes of the poem. The two parts are different in regards to both time and place: (1) In Zealand (Denmark), the land of the Danes, when Beowulf is in his youth (perhaps around age 20 or 25) (2) In Geatland (southern Sweden), the land of the Geats, when Beowulf is well advanced in years (approximately 75) Distinct differences in theme and tone also distinguish the two parts. The two separate settings of the epic concern Scandinavian tribes during the 5th and 6th centuries, and these Scandinavian or Norse people may have been related to the Angles and Saxons in some way (perhaps through inter-marriages). Thus, the story of Beowulf became a part of the Anglo-Saxon oral tradition as well as a Scandinavian story. An important historical footnote should be added here. In the epic the young Beowulf serves Hygelac, the King of the Geats. Hygelac was an actual historical figure whose war against the Franks in 521 AD is recorded in an historical manuscript entitled Historia Francorum by Gregory of Tours. Hygelacs war

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against the Franks is also alluded to in the epic. This date is important because it suggests a starting point when the oral tale of Beowulf could have begun. The character of Beowulf does not appear elsewhere in literature or in any of the historical records. This is hardly surprising, though, since so much Old English literature was never written down; and that which was written down has been destroyed. Historical records do note, however, that during the 8th century the kingdom of Mercia (in England) had a king named Beornwulf, and Beornwulfs successor was named Wiglaf. In the epic Beowulf has a nephew named Wiglaf, who helps him in his battle against the dragon. The connection of these two names together in the historical records and the similarity of the two historical names to the characters in the epic can hardly be attributed as mere coincidence. Thus, my view is that Beowulf has possible origins from Mercia during the 8th century. At the very least, the Danish tale probably came to England around this time. The epic of Beowulf marks the high point, the crowning achievement, of the secular (non-religious) Heroic Tradition in Old English poetry. Other examples of the Heroic Tradition are short, not epics. In Old Norse there is, for example, the Elder Edda; and in Old English we can add The Battle of Maldon and The Battle of Brunanburh as examples of the tradition. One extremely important feature of Beowulf is its use of digressions. Several times throughout the epic the poet will break away from the main action of his story and allude to, sometimes briefly and other times at quite some length, to other tales of legendary or historical significance. The use of these digressions is a commonplace feature of the Heroic Tradition and can be

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seen not only in the Old English epic but in the Scandinavian Heroic Tradition as well. These digressions are important for modern readers for at least two reasons: (1) They give us some idea as to the breadth and scope of Old English poetry, much of which, as mentioned previously, is now lost to us today. (2) The themes and ideas of the stories told in the digressions echo and reinforce the themes and ideas of the story of Beowulf and his adventures. Although Beowulf is clearly a secular poem originated by pagan people living in pagan times, there are elements of Christianity in the poem. Some scholars argue that Beowulf should be regarded as a Christian poem because of these elements. However, such elements reveal a rather thin knowledge of Christian beliefs and seem to be added to the pagan poem. A reader must remember that the scribe (the person who copied the manuscript) was probably a monk since most of the people who could read or write received their education from the Catholic Church. And the copying of manuscripts was usually one of the tasks of the religious members of the monastery. In order for the monk to receive permission to copy a pagan manuscript, he was probably asked by his superior to incorporate Christian ideas. Most members of the Church felt that all of their work should be done for the greater glory and honor of God. Thus, the 10th century monk who copied the epic added Christian features to the pagan work that probably fascinated him so intensely. Among the Christian features are the following:

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1. A belief in one God. 2. The connection of the monster Grendel with the race of Cain. However, the poem certainly elaborates and fictionalizes the Biblical notion of what became of the race of Cain. 3. A condemnation of heathen or pagan worship. Yet the inclusion of pagan worship seems to indicate the beliefs of the original story. One should note, however, that there is no mention of the saints, no detailed explanation or even mention of Christian theology and practice, and no deep philosophical issues related to Christianity. In other words, the Christian aspect of the poem is not integral or important to the story itself (unlike what we see in The Dream of the Rood, an obvious example of the Christian Tradition in Old English poetry). In fact, in most instances in the epic, we could simply substitute the word gods or fate for the word God to eliminate many of the Christian elements. An important feature of the secular Heroic Tradition is the Concept of the Hero. Qualities of courage and strength are important to the Anglo-Saxons, as they were to the ancient Greeks. In addition, a certain amount of wisdom was also an important feature. Being cool-headed or level-headed is a feature of the warrior that is noted in the Old English poem The Wanderer, and this is a quality that Beowulf also exhibits when he is ridiculed by a Danish warrior named Unferth. One additional quality of the hero that should be mentioned

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is the act of boasting. Boasting is an acceptable quality to the Anglo-Saxons provided that the man making the boast can back up his words by his deeds. In the Old English epic, Beowulf tells of his exploits, his acts of courage in a somewhat boastful manner. But Beowulf does not overplay his role; he does not exaggerate or get loud and boisterous in his claims. This quality of boastfulness can also be seen in the Greek hero Odysseus in Homers epic The Odyssey (from the 8th century BC). DEFINITION OF AN EPIC Before proceeding to a discussion of Beowulf, a reader may find it helpful first to be familiar with the definition of an epic. In Western Civilization the older (as opposed to modern) epics are relatively few. They would include Gilgamesh from ancient Babylon, The Iliad and The Odyssey from ancient Greece, The Aeneid from Rome, The Song of Roland from France, and, of course, Beowulf from England. These epics contain most, if not all, of the following features or devices: 1. The epic is a long narrative poem. 2. It has an elevated or elaborate style (for Beowulf, refer to the features of Old English poetry discussed earlier). 3. The protagonist is a character in a high position (Beowulf is a hero and, later, a king). 4. The central hero is involved in adventures (each adventure forming an episode or separate shorter story within the larger work).

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5. The epic is developed out of an oral tradition (The Iliad by Homer, for example, recounts the story of the Trojan War, which occurred around 1200 BC. Homers epic was written four hundred years later.). 6. The hero is a figure of national or international importance (or of legendary or historical significance). 7. The setting is vast, covering many nations or lands and may even include the underworld. 8. The central actions are deeds of great valor or superhuman courage. 9. Supernatural forces (gods, angels, demons, or monsters) usually intervene or interfere in the action. Beowulf contains all of these features. The prose translation of Beowulf is divided into 13 sections: 1. Prologue: The Early History of the Danes 2. The Hall Heorot Is Attacked by Grendel 3. The Coming of Beowulf to Heorot 4. The Feast at Heorot 5. The Fight with Grendel 6. Celebration at Heorot 7. Grendels Mothers Attack 8. Beowulf Attacks Grendels Mother 9. Further Celebration at Heorot 10. Beowulf Returns Home

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The Middle Ages 11. Beowulf and the Dragon 12. Beowulf Attacks the Dragon 13. Beowulfs Funeral

For convenience sake, references will be made to these sections (or chapters). THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE DANES Beowulf begins with a digression on the early history of the Danes. To the modern reader, this may seem odd or confusing. But one must remember the function that oral literature played in medieval and ancient times. Such literature not only provided entertainment for the people; it also provided a sense of history. Therefore, the addition of a genealogy (a record of the ancestors of a king or other important figure) in the epic is not so surprising. One must also keep in mind that the story-teller or scop worked for a lord or king, and he would want to win the favor and appreciation of his lord by including his history. In all likelihood, a king would have required the story-teller to include his genealogy. The main action of the story concerns King Hrothgar (the Danish king), who is having troubles with a monster named Grendel and who is helped out of his predicament by Beowulf. The prologue or opening of the epic, however, begins with a Danish king named Scyld Scefing, who is King Hrothgars greatgrandfather. The prologue thus establishes the direct immediate ancestors to Hrothgar:

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Scyld Scefing | Beow | Healfdene | Hrothgar

The prologue praises both Scyld and Beow, but the most important feature of the prologue concerns the death and burial of Scyld. Scyld is given a ship-burial: his body is carefully placed within the hold of the ship, and weapons and treasures of various kinds are placed with him. The ship is then sent out to the sea, without a pilot, to go wherever the winds and currents may take it. Burial practices are a feature of every society, and the differences among those practices reveal something about the culture of the people. Here we can see the honor and importance that is attached to a good leader of the kingdom, one who improved the lives of his people. More importantly, we can see that the role of fate is significant for the Anglo-Saxons. In the translation the text notes the following about the funeral: Men cannot say who received that cargo, neither counselors in the hall nor warriors under the skies. The pagan Danes (and Anglo-Saxons) are not sure that there is an afterlife. They simply do not know if Scyld travels to some kind of heaven or if he merely sinks to the ocean floor. Their doubts about the existence of an afterlife perhaps help to explain their fierce approach to life, a life that is often full of hardship and pain. There seems to be little

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amusement or humor in Anglo-Saxon literature. Grim is perhaps a better word to describe it. This distinguishes the Old English literature from the literature of the Middle English period, when the majority of people fully believed in the Christian concept of Heaven and the hope of a better existence. In ancient and medieval times, fame for deeds on earth are more important than expectations of a glorious afterlife. There are two ways that ones fame can survive through the ages: (1) monuments and (2) the oral tradition of story-telling. The ancient pyramids of Egypt were erected to honor the departed kings and rulers of that land, and the kings of Egypt spent a great deal of effort and time to ensure that their burial places would be large and magnificent. Moreover, the Egyptian rulers would also be buried with treasures. Putting treasures in with the departed (the dead) does not necessarily indicate an act of honor. It could also mean that the people believe that the dead will be able to use that treasure (or weapons) in the afterlife. So, we may assume that at least to some extent the Anglo-Saxons at least considered the possibility of the afterlife. Although Scylds monument drifts away on the sea, at the end of an epic the mourners of Beowulf build the departed hero a burial mound, which serves the same purpose (although it is not so spectacular) as the ancient pyramids. And, of course, both Scyld and Beowulf are remembered through the oral tradition since both are subjects of the epic Beowulf. For many years scholars and historians believed that the description of the elaborate ship-burial in Beowulf was a product of a creative imagination, that the writer simply made all of it up. However, in the 1930s an important archaeological discovery was made at

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Sutton Hoo in England. At that time a group of burial mounds were opened, and in the largest of these was a ship containing a human corpse buried with weapons and treasures. These objects were carefully restored and are now housed in the British Museum. The objects correspond very closely to many of the objects described in Beowulf, including a warriors helmet with the boar decorations. One cannot help but think that the storyteller who first told the story of the epic in its entirety was an eye-witness of the ship burial at Sutton Hoo. Since archaeologists place the date of the ship burial in the 8th century, that would also tend to corroborate (to help prove) the theory that the epic was created about that time. One of the remarkable aspects of the Sutton Hoo ship is that it was buried extremely far from the shore. The Anglo-Saxons would have had to go through a great deal of struggle and time in order to carry or drag it inland. Obviously, the king who was buried there must have been highly respected in order for so much trouble to be taken on his behalf. One other comment needs to be made in regards to the ship-burial in the prologue of the epic. Beowulf begins and ends with burial ceremonies. At the end of the epic, elaborate details are given in regards to Beowulfs own burial. The originator of the story gave much thought to the structure of his work. The two burials serve as a frame for the epic, but also serve to remind the reader of the importance of the burial ceremony to the Anglo-Saxon people. Although the two burials are quite different in the particulars (one is a ship-burial, the other is a funeral pyre and burial mound), they both serve to underscore the respect and honor that the Anglo-Saxons would give to the dead, especially their departed kings.

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The Middle Ages THE SPEECHES OF THE HERO

One of the notable characteristics of the Old English epic is the use of speeches. Particularly notable are the speeches of the hero. Beowulf, the hero, always speaks in a cool, calm voice. He is level-headed. He does not become rash. He does not become angry. Instead, he uses sound judgment to respond to his friends, his enemies, and his superiors. The AngloSaxons wanted their heroes to be not only brave, as Beowulf is, and strong, as Beowulf most assuredly is, but wise as well. But in addition to the wisdom, there is also a protocol, a procedure, a proper way of speaking that seems to be followed in various situations. One of the first examples of this manner of polite speaking occurs early (in the third section, The Coming of Beowulf to Heorot) in the epic. When Beowulf and his 14 companions arrive by ship in the land of King Hrothgar, a guard approaches them and questions them about their coming. Although Beowulf is not afraid of the guard, he speaks to him politely. Beowulf is a guest in a foreign land; and he behaves courteously, as a guest should, respecting the authority of those who live there. Beowulf explains his place of origin, noting both his king and his own father. Family ties were important and respected in that society. Then Beowulf explains his purpose, but he does so in a modest fashion: I may teach Hrothgar remedy for that [the attacks by the monster Grendel]. At this point Beowulf has no need to boast, for he comes in friendship to lend aid to Hrothgar. A better example of polite speaking occurs later in the same section. Beowulf is granted an audience to

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speak with King Hrothgar, and at that time Beowulf explains in greater detail the purpose of his coming to Hrothgars kingdom. We might call these lines Beowulfs resume speech. In these lines Beowulf lists his accomplishments, but he does so respectfully to Hrothgar, who is a king. Although Beowulf has the strength to face Grendel openly, he first asks permission from Hrothgar. A guest does not presume to undertake any action without his hosts permission. So, Beowulf asks permission, verbally submitting his credentials to Hrothgar. Beowulf thus relates his accomplishments: 1. Trapping five enemies when he himself was bloody with wounds 2. Destroying a family of giants 3. Slaying water monsters at night 4. Suffering great pain 5. Avenging an affliction (murder) of his people 6. Grinding enemies to bits Beowulf does not feel the need to elaborate or exaggerate his accomplishments. His reputation speaks for itself, and Hrothgar himself had earlier told his own officer (in this same section) that he was already familiar with Beowulfs strength and exploits. So, Beowulf moves quickly to his point, that he wishes to face the monster Grendel in hand-to-hand combat. A reader might also note here that Beowulf uses litotes when he states that Grendel cares not for weapons. This line indicates, as it becomes clear later in the epic, that Grendel is impervious to weapons; swords and spears cannot harm him. In a way, though, Beowulf is also boasting. Yet Hrothgar and his men

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could hardly fail to be impressed by the willingness of the hero to undertake such a challenge. Toward the end of his speech, Beowulf acknowledges that there is a possibility that he could die in his struggle against Grendel. Such is a quality of the hero: the willingness to face death. For the AngloSaxons, dying in the face of battle was probably considered a proper way to die. For the Old Norse, to whom the Anglo-Saxons were closely aligned, an entrance into Valhalla (a glorious resting place of the dead) was only granted to heroes, to those who were deemed worthy. Beowulf surely proves himself worthy of such treatment. When his life is nearly over, Beowulf relates that he really does not care what happens to his corpse (his dead body) since in all likelihood Grendel will probably have eaten it. Instead, Beowulf is more concerned with those who will be alive when he is gone: he asks Hrothgar to send his mail-shirt (his battle garment) to his lord, King Hygelac. By doing this, Hrothgar will be letting Hygelac know that Beowulf died bravely. A side note should be made here. In the 8th century a warrior in England did not wear plate armor. That would come later. Instead, the warrior would wear a shirt made of many small iron rings that would be welded together. This is the mail-shirt, which was a fairly effective way for a warrior to resist the cuts and slashes of swords and spears. In later centuries the mailshirt would be worn underneath plate armor. Beowulf ends his resume speech with this line: Fate always goes as it must. The Anglo-Saxon concept of fatalism is expressed here and elsewhere, such as in The Wanderer. The concept seems to be more of a pagan concept than a Christian one (although

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it can be both). The grim determination of the hero to face death and accept the consequences is both courageous and stoic. The Anglo-Saxons appear to accept whatever fate sends them, whether it is good or bad. Thus, they exhibit a patient, unemotional acceptance of the hard and bitter reality that constantly faced them. THE ROLE OF UNFERTH Before Beowulf encounters the first monster in the epic, his host, King Hrothgar, treats him with hospitality and kindness. Hrothgar invites Beowulf and his men to a feast in his mead-hall, which is named Heorot (or Hart). Like any feast, this one includes eating, drinking (mead and wine), entertainment, and loud talk (in the 4th section of the epic, The Feast at Heorot). During this occasion one of Hrothgars men, a warrior named Unferth, speaks unpleasantly to Beowulf. Unferth is drunk. Moreover, he is jealous of Beowulf and thinks that he can humiliate Beowulf by his speech. There is no doubt that Unferth is rude and presents a manner of speaking that is not acceptable to AngloSaxon society. Unferth tells a story that he had heard about Beowulf. This story also is a digression from the main tale. As Unferth relates, when Beowulf was younger, he was in a swimming contest with a young man named Breca. The swimming contest lasted for seven days, and Breca was the winner. Unferth states that Beowulf was a fool for risking his life in such a perilous way. Moreover, Unferth claims that Beowulf cannot be so strong if he cannot even beat a man in a swimming

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contest. In other words, Unferth is claiming that Beowulf is someone who boasts foolishly, that his deeds are far less than his words. Beowulf would naturally be angry with Unferth, yet the hero remains cool and responds in a rational way to Unferth. First, Beowulf explains why he lost the swimming match. He explains that during the contest a sea-monster pulled him under the waves. Beowulf fought with the sea-monster and killed it, but then he had to fight against several more sea creatures that attacked him while he was still under the water. Breca was able to finish the race first because he had the good fortune or luck to avoid the monsters. Beowulf then modestly boasts that never before had Breca or any other man encountered and defeated so many seamonsters. After Beowulf justifies himself in the account of the swimming contest with Breca, he then switches tactics and accuses Unferth directly. The entire time, though, Beowulf remains calm, not angry. Beowulf states, directly and honestly, that he never heard of any great deed or exploits from Unferth. However, Beowulf states that he did hear one story about Unferth. As Beowulf explains, Unferth is guilty of his own brothers death. Fratricide (the killing of ones brother) is a terrible crime, and the Anglo-Saxons thought very poorly of one who was guilty of such an act. Then, Beowulf gives the final verbal blow to end this debate, this war of words, with Unferth: Beowulf states that King Hrothgar would not be facing such humiliation and torment at the hands of Grendel if Unferths deeds were as powerful as his words. In this way, Beowulf is saying that it is Unferth himself who is guilty of empty boasting, of claiming to be a great hero when his deeds

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show him to be less than such. In this way, Beowulf wins the debate. Such verbal skill reveals his wisdom as well as his cool-headedness. Later in the epic, after Beowulf vanquishes (defeats) Grendel, Unferth pays more respect to Beowulf. Unferth even loans Beowulf his prized sword (in the 8th section of the epic, Beowulf Attacks Grendels Mother). Unferth recognizes that he had earlier behaved badly and spoken badly toward the hero. In this way, then, the character of Unferth is used as a contrast, a character to show negative and improper behavior in Anglo-Saxon society. More importantly, the character of Unferth allows Beowulf the opportunity to show his level-head and wise manner of speaking. The scene with Unferth has a parallel in the Greek epic The Odyssey. When the hero Odysseus travels to an unknown land, a character named Seareach speaks inhospitably toward him and challenges him much in the same way that Unferth challenged Beowulf. Like Unferth, Seareach is also taught a lesson. The striking similarity between these two scenes might be more than a coincidence even though the two epics were written in different lands and even though the Old English epic was written 1600 years after the Greek one. The oral tradition relies on oral formulas (set passages that can be memorized and used in different stories). Perhaps the Beowulf poet had heard the tale of Odysseus in its entirety. But it is also possible that the scene of Seareach survived as an oral formula that managed to be passed from one land to another and from one generation to another until it made its way into AngloSaxon England.

LECTURE 4
THE SECOND LECTURE ON BEOWULF THE MONSTER GRENDEL The first great opponent that Beowulf faces is the monster Grendel. From the Christian point of view, Grendel is a descendant of Cain. In the Book of Genesis, the first book of the Old Testament (of the Bible), Cain is one of two sons of Adam and Eve. As the story is told in Genesis, Cains brother, Abel, works with animals and, therefore, is able to make animal sacrifices to God. Cain, on the other hand, is a farmer. He grows crops and can only sacrifice plants to make God happy. God prefers the sacrifices that Abel makes and, therefore, holds Abel in higher esteem than He does Cain. Cain becomes jealous and murders Abel. This, from the Christian point of view, is the first murder in history. The story of Cain and Abel probably stems (originates) from the differences between tribes of people, some who raised crops and some who herded animals. But the Christian view is that murder is one of the most grievous of sins and those who commit such acts will be punished. In this sense, then, the story functions as a warning against those who plan to commit such a crime. God punishes Cain by making him and all of his descendants (the race of Cain) outcasts: that is, Cain will no longer be able to take part in the activities of other men. He will no longer be able to live with them or even associate with them. The race of Cain thus

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becomes a group of outsiders who cannot come into the towns of other tribes. Historically, the race of Cain probably suggests the tribes of nomadic wanderers in Western Civilization. These nomads would be considered inferior and perhaps even dangerous to their more civilized counterparts. From the Christian viewpoint, the story of Cain and Abel justifies the banishment of criminals, of anyone who is considered evil by the Christian society. Therefore, Cain represents evil to the Christians; and if Grendel is from the race of Cain, Grendel must also be evil as well. But the story of Beowulf is originally a pagan one, not a Christian one. Did the pagan Anglo-Saxons of the 8th century also view Grendel as a figure of evil? The answer is yes, but their concept of evil would assuredly be different from the Christian view. In ancient times the stories (or myths) are full of giants and monsters and demons of different sorts. In medieval times the belief in monsters persisted, probably for the same reasons. Monsters and dangers in myths usually represent the fears of ancient people. For example, sailing at that time was extremely dangerous. The ships were perhaps not as skillfully built, but the dangers of sailing were identical to today (storms, typhoons, tricky currents, and so forth). Ancient people might explain the destruction of a ship by saying that some gigantic sea-monster attacked it rather than acknowledging the more scientific explanation that we use today. In other words, myths serve an etiological (etiology) function: they use a supernatural explanation to explain a natural event. When lightning struck, it was due to Zeus throwing down his lightning bolts from Mount Olympus. If a ship

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sank, the reason was that a sea-monster (or Poseidon, the God of the Sea) pulled it down. The monsters on land also represent similar kinds of fears. A traveler journeying into an unknown land could be attacked by robbers or could experience death from some natural occurrence (a wild animal or a landslide, for example). But to the superstitious people living in older times, the idea of monsters to explain the disappearance or death of a neighbor or family member might naturally stem from their own nightmares (which also represent subconscious fears) as they struggle to accept the tragic loss in their lives. Grendel, more than likely, is the product of a story-tellers nightmare. In the first description of Grendel (in The Hall Heorot Is Attacked by Grendel), the monster is described as a rover of the borders who lives in the moors or fens. Grendel lives in an area that would have been dangerous to the Anglo-Saxons even if there were no monsters living there. Swamp land or treacherous ground might account for the deaths of many an inhabitant of old England. A rover of the borders suggests a nomadic individual. For the civilized inhabitant of a town or village community, an individual who lived in a wilderness would certainly be suspicious and probably considered dangerous. Of course, the dangers of the unknown world are superhuman and supernatural. In his first attack on Heorot, the Hall of the Danish King Hrothgar, Grendel grabs 30 warriors (thanes) at once and kills them. This gives us some idea as to the size and strength of this nightmarish creature. But we also must keep in mind that the courage and strength of a hero, like Beowulf, can only be

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measured by the size of his deeds and accomplishments. Weapons cannot harm Grendel. When Beowulf first addresses King Hrothgar (in The Coming of Beowulf to Heorot), he says he has heard that the monster in his recklessness cares not for weapons. This understatement (litotes) really means that swords and spears cannot harm Grendel. This becomes quite evident later during Beowulfs fight with Grendels mother, who cannot be harmed when Beowulf strikes her with the sword that Unferths lends him. Thus, Beowulf must face Grendel in hand-to-hand combat, it is his pure strength against the monsters. Wrestling has long been a sport (since ancient times) that appeals to man: one man pitting his strength against another. The poet thus sets up his readers for what will surely be the greatest wrestling match of all time. Since Beowulf can defeat a monster who can easily sweep and devour 30 warriors, Beowulf, then, actually has the strength of more than 30 men. Beowulf is entertainment; and the scene where Beowulf fights with Grendel and rips off the monsters arm must surely have entertained the Anglo-Saxons as much as or more than a boxing match between the heavyweight champion of the world and the number one contender. We can say, then, that one purpose or function of Grendel is to make Beowulf look good. One purpose of the epic poem is to praise the hero. And it is easy to praise a hero who can accomplish such super-human deeds.

The Middle Ages THE DIGRESSION ON FINN; THE REVENGE THEME

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As mentioned previously, the digressions in Beowulf provide the modern reader with some idea about the scope and content of Anglo-Saxon poetry that is now lost. One of the best examples of a digression that preserves both the history and literature of AngloSaxon times is the digression on Finn. This digression occurs after Beowulf defeats the monster Grendel (in section 6, The Celebration at Heorot). To celebrate Beowulfs victory, King Hrothgar presents the hero with a fabulous feast; and, as typical on such occasions, the scop (or story-teller) tells stories and sing songs about famous heroes and events from the past. The story about Finn is one of the longest digressions in the epic. Like other stories, the scop sings this one for the purpose of entertainment. But the digression actually serves two other purposes: (1) For the Danes and the Anglo-Saxons, the digression preserves a piece of their history. (2) For the epic overall, the digression echoes an important theme of the work, the theme of revenge. The story concerns two warring tribes, the Frisians (or Jutes) and the Danes. The important characters of the tale are listed below: Frisians King Finn Danes King Hnaef (son of Hoc) Hengest Hildeburh (sister to Hnaef)

We can gather from the tale that Hildeburh (a Dane) has been married to King Finn (a Frisian) for many years because Hildeburh and Finn have a grown son. In

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Anglo-Saxon and Old Norse societies, a princess of one land was often married to a king or ruler of another land in order to secure peace between the two warring nations. Such a woman thus becomes a pledge of peace between the two tribes. But such marriages were usually political: there was not necessarily any love between the husband and wife. In other words, the union is an arranged marriage. The woman probably had no say in the matter. Although such marriages were a frequent occurrence, they usually failed to secure the peace. Warring tribes often found some excuse to engage in battle anyway, as the Finn digression and other tales suggest. The digression begins at a point where a battle between the Frisians and the Danes is just about over. Many deaths have occurred on both sides, and only a few warriors are left alive on either side. In the battle Hnaef, who is both the King of the Danes and Hildeburhs brother, is killed. Hildeburhs son is also killed in the fighting. Hildeburh, quite naturally, would be quite upset about losing both her son and brother. Anyway, the Frisians and the Danes set up a temporary peace treaty so that they can provide a proper funeral ceremony for their dead. In addition, Hengest and the other Danes are unable to return home because winter has come. They cannot sail in the bad weather. So, the Danes are forced to live in peace with the Frisians until they can return to their own land. One of the aspects of this digression that a reader should notice is that the story-teller has a bias in favor of the Danes. The reason for this is obvious: the storyteller is himself a Dane telling his story to his Danish ruler, King Hrothgar, and the other Danish retainers

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(men or warriors). Thus, the story-teller places most of the blame for the deaths on the Frisians. Another aspect of the digression that is worth noting is the inclusion of the funeral ceremony. Funerals play a role in the main story of the epic both at the beginning (with Scylds ship burial) and at the end (with Beowulfs funeral pyre and monument). The funeral in the Finn digression is described in grisly horror: heads melted as blood sprang out. This is done, most likely, so that the readers will feel emotion, a sense of outrage, at the terrible deeds of the Frisians. Obviously, the funeral also establishes the sorrow of Hildeburh, who looks on as her brother and son are burned on the funeral pyre. But the funeral ceremony is also a structural device to connect the digression to the main story in the epic. While Hengest and his companions are staying with the Frisians, they are constantly reminded about their dead companions. Hengest and the others become angry with the Frisians at such times and plot revenge. For the Anglo-Saxons, loyalty to ones king and fellow warriors is an absolute quality. If ones companion was killed, a warrior was bound by a sense of duty to get revenge. Hengest and the other Danes also feel that they owe their fallen comrades such an act of revenge. The idea of revenge is commonplace in several parts of Beowulf and in other Anglo-Saxon works. In the main part of the epic, revenge becomes a common motivating factor for much of the action in the story, and this theme of revenge appears in all three episodes:

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The Middle Ages 1) During Beowulfs first night in Hrothgars Hall, Grendel kills Beowulfs companion, Hondscioh. So, Beowulf wants to kill Grendel in revenge. 2) During the second night in Hrothgars Hall, Grendels mother kills Aeschere, a counselor to King Hrothgar. Hrothgar asks Beowulf to kill Grendels mother for him as an act of vengeance. 3) Grendels mother wants to kill the warriors in Hrothgars Hall in order to get revenge for her sons death. 4) Later in the epic, Beowulf explains how he led an attack in revenge against the Frisians who had killed Hygelac, the King of the Geats. (The dislike of the Frisians by the Geats and Danes is also another factor that unites the main tale with the digression.)

The scops story of Finn ends with Hengest being reunited with some other Danes after winter. The digression is somewhat unclear whether Hengest went back home to get help or if the other Danes came while Hengest remained at Finns Hall. This story would have been well known by the Danes (and Anglo-Saxons). So, the Anglo-Saxon audience would not necessarily share the modern readers confusion on this point.

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In any event, Hengest and the other Danes wage another battle with Finn and the Frisians. This time Finn is slain and the Frisians are defeated. Hengest and Hildeburh then sail back home to Denmark. The story makes it clear that revenge is an imperative. No matter what personal thoughts one may have, the duty to get revenge outweighs any and all other duties. A man must get revenge for the death of his king or comrade or die in the attempt. The story about the Danes and Finn was probably an extremely popular one in Anglo-Saxon England. A piece of the story also exists in a separate lay (a poetic song) entitled The Fight at Finnsburh. In this lay, which exists only as a fragment, the initial battle between the Danes and the Frisians is described. However, the lay is important because it proves that this secular tale was popular enough to have been written down in Old English on more than one occasion; and the textual clues in Beowulf suggest that it was well known to the Anglo-Saxon audience. THE DIGRESSION ON SIGEMUND Another story that the scop tells during the feast in the hall (also in section 6, The Feast at Heorot) concerns a famous Old Norse hero named Sigemund. The character of Sigemund does exist in Norse literature. And the Danes and Anglo-Saxons probably knew this hero as well as the Greeks knew Hercules. This digression appears before the digression on Finn. Before the digression begins, though, the reader should note that Hrothgars story-teller first creates a new tale about Beowulf. The story-teller wrought a new tale in well-joined words to recite in turn

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Beowulfs exploit. In other words, a good story-teller in Anglo-Saxon times also had to be creative; he had to know how to create a story on the spot (extemporaneously) whenever a great deed was committed or performed. This line thus gives the modern reader some clue about the Oral Tradition, in which new stories would be created immediately after an important event occurred. Later generations of storytellers could then elaborate upon the new tale until it took on epic dimensions. The digression on Sigemund is quite short compared to that on Finn. The Anglo-Saxon audience would certainly know all about Sigemund, and it would take a tale as long as that of all Beowulf to include all of Sigemunds adventures. The digression is also a part of the scops entertainment, but it is important to the reader of Beowulf because of the parallels between it and the main tale of Beowulf: 1) Both Beowulf and Sigemund are great heroes with superhuman strength. The poet wants to praise Beowulf in the most complimentary way by favorably comparing him to the greatest hero of all time. 2) Sigemund travels with a close younger companion named Fitela. In the second part of the epic, Beowulf faces a challenge with the help of his cousin, the young Wiglaf.

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3) Both Sigemund and Beowulf fight dragons. In a way, this digression thus foreshadows the second part of the epic, but not completely. Beowulfs fight with a dragon ends much differently from the way Sigemunds fight ended. The scop states that for his deeds Sigemund achieved no little glory. This is quite an understatement, for Sigemund achieves the greatest of glory for his deeds. The defeat of the dragon thus represents the achievement of glory. The achievement of glory is an important theme in this literature. To achieve glory means to be praised. To be praised means to have ones deeds and actions told and retold by storytellers for many generations. To have ones deeds retold means achieving a kind of immortality. Again, the modern reader must remember that the Anglo-Saxons were not sure that an afterlife would occur or, if it did occur, whether it would be all that wonderful. For the Anglo-Saxons, the reputation one had on earth was far more important than any idea of what might happen after death. Therefore, for the story-teller to compare Beowulfs deed to the deeds of Sigemund is to suggest that Beowulf has achieved the glory that is associated with Sigemund. No finer praise could be made. The digression is also important because it foreshadows the second part of the epic when Beowulf fights the dragon. Such foreshadowing also suggests the role of fate in Anglo-Saxon culture. Beowulf is destined to be a great hero, he is destined to fight the dragon, and he is destined to die in that fight. No Anglo-Saxon, not even the greatest of their heroes, can

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escape the forces of fate. The darkness, suggested in such foreshadowing, becomes all the more ominous in the actions and tone of the second part of the story. THE DIGRESSION ON HEREMOD One other digression occurs during the banquet after Beowulf defeats Grendel (in section 6, Celebration at Heorot). This is the digression on Heremod. Actually, this digression actually appears in two different parts of the epic, the second part appearing after Beowulf defeats Grendels mother and is given another feast in Heorot, Hrothgars Hall (in section 9, Further Celebration at Heorot). The first appearance of the Heremod story begins immediately after the digression on Sigemund. The story-teller has just finished providing Beowulf and the other listeners with a story of a great hero. So, he follows it up with a story of a great villain. Sigemund is, in this sense, a positive role model for Beowulf to emulate. Beowulf should try to be just like Sigemund in order to win lasting glory and fame. Heremod, on the other hand, is the negative example. Beowulf should try to be as different from Heremod as possible. Heremod was a terrible man who once had the possibility of achieving glory but who instead threw it all away. From the Christian point of view, Heremod was simply a man consumed by evil. He was a sinner. Although the early Anglo-Saxons were pagans and did not follow Christian beliefs, they still had a strong sense of morality, of right and wrong behavior. Heremod, who was once a King of the Danes, is a criminal in the eyes of the Anglo-Saxons. The storyteller notes at the end of the first digression on the

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Danish king that crime took possession of Heremod. The word crime here suggests a defect of personality as much as an act of crime. Later in the Middle Ages, many religious individuals and writers would warn people to avoid the Seven Deadly Sins: (1) pride, (2) greed, (3) anger or hate, (4) gluttony, (5) envy, (6) lust, and (7) sloth. For Christians, these sins were harmful because they would lead an individual to commit more serious sins (mortal sins, as the Catholics would call them). For example, anger could lead to murder, or lust could lead to adultery. For pagan people, these negative attributes were also problems for a society or community of people; and, so, they would consider them as crimes, as outrages against the tribe or nation. In the first passage on Heremod, the reader can see that this figure also shares several qualities or attributes that Beowulf himself possesses. Heremod is strong and courageous, he has had many adventures, and he has performed several heroic deeds. In addition, he was a king (as Beowulf himself will become a king later in his life). But then he became fierce-hearted; he became a creature of hate or anger. For a king, this is especially a terrible attribute. As seen elsewhere in the epic (and in other literature), the people depend on their king not only for political leadership but also for spiritual sustenance and guidance as well. All of the people in a land suffer when their king becomes evil or criminal. The passage on Heremod, then, functions as a warning to Beowulf. A great hero must be careful not to let his great strength and his reputation affect his mind and turn him against his people. The hero should not become a criminal like Heremod. These passages on Heremod are also helpful to the modern reader in

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understanding the values of the Anglo-Saxon and Danish people. They may have been a fierce people who led hard and cruel lives at times, but they also believed that there was a proper mode of behavior that was necessary for their survival and welfare. The direct warning to Beowulf becomes clear in the second passage or section on Heremod. Before Beowulf leaves for home, King Hrothgar speaks to him and again warns him to avoid becoming like Heremod. The warning was subtle and indirect in the first passage: the scop tells the story and the reader has to infer (figure out) that there is a message in the story. But in the second passage, the reader does not have to guess. Beowulf, the young warrior who still has a long life ahead of him, is being counseled by Hrothgar, the wise old king who looks upon Beowulf as if he were his own son. In a sense, then, Beowulf is receiving fatherly advice from the Danish king. In the second passage, more of Heremods faults are listed: 1) He killed his companions. This is extremely serious, an act against the comitatus (tribe of warriors). The community of warriors is closer than ones own family members are. To kill a member of ones own tribe is worse than killing ones brother. 2) He became blood-thirsty. This is the crime of anger or hate mentioned above. The reader might also recall the warning against becoming angry or upset in The Wanderer.

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3) He was not a giver of rings. This understatement is actually suggesting that Heremod became greedy. Greed is also a crime to the pagan people. Here Heremod is in direct contrast to Hrothgar, who is noted for his generosity, for being a good king, for being a source of comfort and aid for his people. In essence, then, Hrothgar is telling Beowulf to be a good king, to be generous to his people, and to control his temper. Also in this passage on Heremod the reader can discover something of the Anglo-Saxon philosophy regarding the origin of crime (sin). The word crime is more appropriate than the word sin here because, although there are several references to the Christian God, there is no mention of Satan or any deeper Christian theological references in regard to the nature of sin. Once again, the Christian words or lines are of a superficial nature and appear to be added to a pagan text. The philosophy and language of the text thus suggests the pagan Anglo-Saxon belief or philosophy regarding criminal behavior. Hrothgar asserts that Heremod lived an easy life of plenty. As a hero, he was worshipped and honored and given everything he wanted. Life was too easy for him, and he became a creature of pride. He felt that he deserved everything he received and more. The metaphor that Hrothgar uses next is especially non-Christian: Hrothgars states that Heremods watcher, or souls guardian, then went to sleep. The idea of a soul is not solely a Christian one, and the belief that man might have a soul exists in pre-

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Christian times. The soul, in this passage, thus becomes equated to the sense of virtue and proper behavior shared by the Anglo-Saxon community. Then, as Hrothgar continues his metaphor, the Danish king states that once Heremods watcher is asleep, then the slayer comes with his bow and shoots a bitter arrow into Heremods heart. Both the watcher and the slayer are personifications (or even allegorical figures) of virtue and vice, respectively. But the watcher might also be viewed as mans own internal sense of morality, of right and wrong, while the slayer represents the behavior of a man who allows himself to abandon his sense of right and wrong and engage in criminal behavior. Hrothgars words do not necessarily suggest that he believes that the watcher and slayer are actual spirits or gods who play a role in the affairs of man. Rather, he is metaphorically describing the weakness of a man who allows negative qualities or criminal thoughts to take possession of his heart and mind. Like the Christians, the Anglo-Saxons believed that fate would somehow punish a man who became crooked or criminal. This idea of punishment can also be seen in ancient literature like The Odyssey, where, in the section describing the Underworld (the place where the dead dwell), certain individuals who have offended the gods are eternally punished. The idea of fates judgment or doom is also a strong part of Anglo-Saxon belief. Heremod, as the first passage about him in Beowulf suggests, eventually leaves the Danes and joins up with the Danes enemies, the Jutes. But the Jutes eventually turn against Heremod and execute him. Thus Heremod receives a proper punishment, a (presumably) cruel death at his enemies hands.

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In the second Heremod passage, Hrothgar emphasizes that Beowulf should take great care to avoid becoming too proud. Have no care for pride is an understatement that Hrothgar makes. Avoid pride at all costs, he is actually telling Beowulf, or the results will be terrible. The reader should also note the use of foreshadowing in Hrothgars words. Hrothgar warns Beowulf that someday his strength will diminish. He will eventually die in some way. Hrothgar even suggests that one of the possible ways that he could die is by fires fangs. Although this is a personification to suggest that Beowulf simply could be killed by fire, one cannot help but notice that words also seem to describe the dragon in the later part of the epic. The warning, though, is what is important here. Beowulf will eventually die. He cannot avoid his fate. Therefore, he should think about what he will leave behind. In other words, Beowulf can leave behind his reputation for being a great hero who has achieved deeds of glory (like Sigemund), or he can leave behind a negative reputation for being a proud and greedy criminal who could not control his own heart and his own mind (like Heremod). FORESHADOWING AND FATE The relationship between the poetic device of foreshadowing and the Anglo-Saxon notion of fate noticeable in Hrothgars warning to Beowulf should be given added emphasis. Other examples of foreshadowing and fate occur throughout the epic, and such examples create an atmosphere (or tone) of fatalism: death is inevitable, death can happen at any moment. During the Middle English period, many of

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the authors will use the symbol of Fortunes (or Fates) Wheel. Good fortune can disappear tomorrow, and bad fortune can last for years or a lifetime. There is not necessarily any logic or fairness to it. Such an idea, though, existed in the Anglo-Saxon period. Misfortune was a daily part of many lives, and during periods of prosperity the people of a kingdom would not be surprised if there was a sudden reversal to their fortune and their lives became miserable thereafter. Even the use of the word fate appears frequently throughout the epic. For example, in the first section of the epic (The Earlier History of the Danes), the poet notes that Scylds death occurs at the fated time. This first section sets the tone for the entire epic, and so the reader is immediately thinking about the concepts of death and fate from the beginning of the story. Although this tone will be much stronger in the second part of the epic, when Beowulf is an old man, the tone is evident and noticeable throughout the first part. The reader is constantly reminded of the role of the role of fate in everyones life, and the ultimate fate for all of us is death. The idea of fate is also evident in the speeches of the hero. For example, when Beowulf describes his swimming match with Breca (in The Feast at Heorot), he states, Fate often saves an undoomed man when his courage is good. The hero must be humble and recognize his limitations. He must acknowledge that he shares the same ultimate fate as all men; and, therefore, he must not allow his pride to become too large and overwhelm his better judgment. King Hrothgar is a good king. He gives golden rings and other precious gifts to his people. He rules his land wisely and justly for many years. But he, too,

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becomes a victim of fate. The monster Grendel attacks Heorot and Hrothgars people for a period of twelve years before Beowulf arrives and defeats the monster. Why does Hrothgar have to suffer for so long? It is his fate. Hrothgar, in a sense, is like the Biblical character Job. Job is a good man who suffers greatly because it is Gods will. Hrothgar is a good man who suffers because it is his fate. There is no logical explanation for this. There is no fairness or justice for this, at least not so in earthly terms. In the epic, Hrothgar and his followers try to appease their pagan gods by sacrificing animals. The gods (or fates) interfere with the lives of men capriciously (at a whim), and man can only try to please and appease their gods. But they cannot stop them. Both the pagan Greeks and the Christians believed in the force of fate. For the Greeks, the Fates were more powerful than the gods were. Even Zeus, the king of the Olympian gods, could not alter the will of fate. For the Christians, fate is a force that is under Gods power. Fate is a concept to express Gods will (or desire). But, in a sense, the end result is the same. Both the early Greeks and the early Christians felt that there was a force in their lives that they could not control. Such a force was not always fair and could sometimes be quite cruel. The big difference, though, is that the Christians always had hope for a better afterlife in Heaven. Thus, they could endure the hardships of life with the assurance of something better to come. The Anglo-Saxons, on the other hand, are like the Wanderer. They move helplessly from one stage of life to the next, never really expecting something better to come along.

LECTURE 5
THE THIRD LECTURE ON BEOWULF HROTHULF AND FORESHADOWING One of the most notable examples of foreshadowing concerns the character of Hrothulf. Hrothulf is the nephew of King Hrothgar and Wealhtheow. He plays a very minor role in the story about Beowulf. In fact, a reader may initially wonder why Hrothulf is in the epic at all. But there are two lines about Hrothulf that contribute to the dark mood of the epic. Both of the lines occur during the feast in Hrothgars Hall after Beowulf kills Grendel (in The Celebration at Heorot). The first of these lines occurs when the poet describes Hrothulf sitting next to his uncle, Hrothgar, and drinking mead. The poet then adds, Heorot within was filled with friends: the Scylding-people had not then known treasons web. This line foreshadows a future event for the Danes: Hrothulf will one day, after Hrothgars death, commit some act of treason against Hrothgars son, who will be the next king of the Danish tribe. The second example occurs during a short speech made by Wealhtheow. Hrothgars queen incorrectly predicts that when Hrothgar has passed away, Hrothulf will act honorably and rule the kingdom justly since Hrothgars sons may be too young to take command. The queen adds one other comment about Hrothulf: I think he will repay our sons with good if he remembers all the favors we did to his pleasure and honor when he was a child. Although Wealhtheow

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does not know it, her line is ironic. The exact opposite will happen. From Wealhtheows speech we might conclude that Hrothulf is her blood nephew and Hrothgars nephew by marriage. If that is the case, then Hrothulf may not feel that he was part of Hrothgars tribe. So, he would not share, then, the bonds of the comitatus (group of warriors), the ties of loyalty, that are common among such tribes. If his loyalties are attached to another tribe, a tribe that might later become an enemy of the Danes, his act of treason would be justified according to AngloSaxon and Danish custom. But certainly from the Danish point of view, Hrothulfs act of treason against Hrothgars son is also an act of ingratitude against Hrothgar and Wealhtheow, who have raised Hrothulf as their own son and treated him with the honor and respect of a prince. Thus, the Danes would certainly view Hrothulf as breaking the ties of loyalty to his king, his father, and his tribe. More generally, the Hrothulf lines contribute to the pervading atmosphere of death and doom throughout the epic. Fate not only envelops and ruins individuals: it also can bring an entire kingdom to ruin. This also is suggested in the second part of Beowulf when Beowulfs own kingdom of the Geats will also fall to ruin upon Beowulfs death. THE COUNTRY BUMPKIN MOTIF Some of the lines in Beowulf are curious and do not quite seem to fit in with the rest of the epic. Perhaps the most curious line is the allusion to Beowulfs youth. When Beowulf returns to the land of the Geats (in Beowulf Returns Home), he tells of his deeds in

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Hrothgars kingdom and exchanges gifts with Hygelac, his own king. The poet directly comments about Beowulfs honorable conduct and then adds the following: He had long been despised, so that the sons of the Geats did not reckon him brave, nor would the lord of the Weather-Geats do him much gift-honor on the mead-bench. The suggestion here is that Beowulf was an embarrassment to his uncle, the king, and that everyone considered him to be Hygelacs poor countrybumpkin cousin, a kind of misfit that one only accepts and treats kindly because he is part of the family. This idea is also a kind of Cinderella motif, the story of a wretched and despised youth who later achieves greatness. There are no other lines in the epic itself that sheds any light on Beowulfs childhood. Perhaps the Anglo-Saxons had other tales about the young Beowulf, but they no longer survive today. The line does, however, suggest, that maybe the Anglo-Saxons and Danes shared an idea that is popular in many fairy tales and works of childrens literature: do not feel bad if you experience problems or failures or weaknesses. You can still grow up to be great. You can grow up to be a princess like Cinderella or a hero like Beowulf (or a success like the protagonist of a Horatio Alger story). THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN KING AND KINGDOM Another motif that appears in Beowulf as well as many works of ancient literature concerns the relationship between the king and his kingdom. The idea inherent in this motif is that the state of the state depends upon the state of the ruler. Basically, this

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means that if the ruler is good and prosperous and happy, then everyone in the state (nation, land, or kingdom) will also be good and prosperous and happy. But if the ruler (or king) suffers, the entire land suffers as well. The idea appears several times in Beowulf. Of course, when Grendel attacks King Hrothgars Hall, both the King and everyone else in his kingdom suffer. The state (or condition) of the state (or kingdom) parallels the state (or condition) of the king. Hrothgar is described as being sad and miserable, and so too are all of his subjects. Another example of a land experiencing misery because of a problem with the king occurs in the Heremod digression. But positive examples (the happy land and the happy king) are also provided: (1) Hrothgars kingdom before Grendel attacks it, (2) Scyld Scefings kingdom, and (3) even Beowulfs kingdom for the fifty years that he rules the Geats. The greatest development of this motif, though, occurs toward the end of the epic after Beowulf has encountered the dragon and is dying from his wounds. After Beowulf is dead, the kingdom of the Geats will fall. As the poet states, Now may the people expect a time of war. The poet adds that the Geats will suffer defeat from the hands of their enemies, and the survivors will be forced to leave their homes (like the speaker in The Wanderer). In other words, once the king (Beowulf) dies, so too dies the kingdom. This motif, this relationship between king and kingdom, goes back to ancient times. The earliest version is known as the myth of the Fisher King. The motif also appears in the oldest existing epic, the Babylonian Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh is initially described

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as a selfish and cruel king, and all of his people suffer from his behavior. The idea can also be seen in The Odyssey: Odysseuss own home and land are in ruins as he struggles for years to return. Perhaps the most notable example in classical literature is Oedipus the King. The city of Thebes is suffering from famine and plague because the king has committed two horrible crimes: he has killed his own father and slept with his own mother. Thus, the land suffers because the gods (or fate) are angry with Oedipus. In Beowulf the motif contributes to and strengthens the feeling or atmosphere of doom and gloom, the sense of fatalism that is so much a part of the Anglo-Saxon life. The Anglo-Saxons seem to expect the worst. There just does not seem to be much hope. DIFFERENCES BETWEEN PART I AND PART II Although the tone of fatalism persists throughout the entire epic, the tone or atmosphere of Part I is quite distinct from that of Part II. The two parts of the epic are divided by geography (the land of the Danes versus the land of the Geats) and by time (the events of Part I occurring 50 years previous to the events of Part II). More importantly, the overall feeling and atmosphere of the two parts are also quite distinct. These differences can be charted in the following manner:

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The Middle Ages PART I Danish Kingdom Young Hero Enthusiasm Confidence Banquets Revelry Camaraderie Heroic PART II Geatish Kingdom Aged Hero Hesitation Confusion, Perplexity Funeral Mourning Solitude Elegiac

In Part I Beowulf is a young man who comes to Hrothgars kingdom because he wants to test himself, to pit his strength and courage against the strongest and most vicious monster of his age. Beowulfs own speech expresses his enthusiasm for the deadly task he wants to perform. He is eager to meet Grendel, and even the thought of his own death cannot stop him. Moreover, Beowulf is a confident man who knows but does not care that Grendel cannot be harmed by swords or other weapons. Beowulf has confidence in his own strength, the strength of 30 men, as the poet tells us. Although he may acknowledge that death is a possibility, Beowulf fully seems to believe from the very first that he will defeat the monster. As Beowulf tells the guard on the Danish coast, he hopes to teach Hrothgar remedy to overpower the foe. Beowulf has already tested his strength in the past and has always been successful. His past successes give him confidence of a future success. The deeds of the hero in Part I are accented by the ceremony of the banquet. In fact, three great feasts or banquets occur: one to welcome Beowulf, one after Grendels death, and one after the death of Grendels

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mother. The banquet is a time of rejoicing and merriment. Eating, drinking, boasting, story-telling, and singing contribute to the general sense of relief and exhilaration that the warriors feel once their terrible enemy is defeated. This feeling of revelry and celebration becomes all the more joyous since the giving of gifts is also part of the ceremony. Hrothgar presents gifts to the hero for his courage and success. It is like Christmas and an award ceremony wrapped up as one. One final feature worth noting in Part I is the sense of camaraderie (or fellowship) that exists between Hrothgar and his retainers and between Beowulf and his men. When Beowulf sleeps in wait for Grendel, his men are right beside him. They are willing to take his risks and fight his fight. They try to help Beowulf kill the monster. Like Beowulf, they do not hesitate in their duty. Later, when Hrothgar and the Danes leave the pond or pool that Beowulf has jumped into in order to pursue Grendels mother, the Geats, Beowulfs men, stand by. They do not want to leave their hero and lord. They know their duty is to serve him in any way possible, and they will not shirk (or abandon) their duty. The tone of Part I, then, is largely Heroic. It is far more uplifting than the second part. In Part II Beowulf is an aged hero in his own kingdom of the Geats. He is not going out to seek adventures. He is at home enjoying the final years of his life. The arrival of the dragon is unexpected. Unlike the enthusiastic and eager young hero of Part I, the older Beowulf pauses and hesitates. He takes time to reflect on his past, on his relationship with Hygelac and the other retainers, and on his past deeds. The best is behind him and over. Beowulf almost seems confused or

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perplexed about how to act. Since he is king, he feels compelled to face the dragon. But even then he reflects about his conflict with Grendel (an event now 50 years past) and dryly comments that this fight will be different: I expect here hot battle-fire. The outcome will also be different. Beowulf will not survive. There is ceremony in Part II, but it is a sad and solemn ceremony. It is that of the funeral. The section on the funeral is as long as the section on Beowulfs fight against the dragon. And since the funeral is the closing scene of the epic, it is the mood of sadness and mourning and death that the reader experiences last. There is no feast, no celebration, no reward, and no hope for the future. There is certainly no joy. Part II also lacks the feeling of fellowship noted in the first part. Beowulf proceeds to face the dragon alone. Although initially some of the younger retainers go along with him, the minute the dragon appears, they flee in terror (with the exception of Wiglaf, Beowulfs cousin). The retainers do not have a sense of loyalty. They do not protect their lord. They do not do their duty. Beowulf is alone, and a sense of solitude is actually established toward the very beginning of this part of the epic. In explaining the origins of the treasure that appear in the dragons cave, the poet presents (in a digression) the last survivor of a tribe who buries the riches of his king and comitatus, since all of them are dead and no longer have use for such wealth. The last survivor also gives the following speech: War-death has taken each man of my people. The company of retainers has gone elsewhere. The hard helmet must be stripped of its fair-wrought gold, of its plating. And even so the coat of mail, which

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withstood the bite of swords after the crashing of the shields, decays likes its warrior. There is no harpdelight, no mirth of the singing wood, no good hawk flies through the hall, no swift horse stamps in the castle court. Baleful death has sent away many races of men. Decay. Ruin. Death. Mourning. These initial images in the second part of the epic create the mood that runs through Part II from beginning to end. The last survivor is also a man of solitude, like Beowulf and like the Wanderer. There is no place for him to go. There is nothing else for him to do. The treasure that he buries in the mountainside represents the glory of his race, a glory that is now forever lost and forgotten. Once again, a feeling of hopelessness pervades the tale. The tone of Part II is Elegiac. It is a lament. It is a funeral oration. It is a speech about death. THE WOMEN IN BEOWULF Several female characters appear in Beowulf: Wealhtheow, Hildeburh, Hygd, Freawaru, Modthryth, and Yrs (one might also add Grendels mother to the list). Several of these characters symbolize a single idea: a princess may marry a king of an enemy tribe as a pledge of peace. But in every case the peace does not last for long. For example, although Wealhtheow marries Hrothgar, her nephew (Hrothulf) will eventually bring conflict to the Danes. There is also the example of Hildeburh, who appears in the digression on Finn. Although Hildeburh is a Danish princess who marries King Finn of the Frisians, the Danes still attack the Frisians and later even succeed in killing Finn. The third example of this motif or idea is Freawaru. This woman is the daughter of King

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Hrothgar. We hear about her in detail when Beowulf returns to his own land (in Beowulf Returns Home) and describes his adventures abroad to Hygelac, his own king. Beowulf describes how Freawaru passed the mead cup in Heorot. More importantly, he explains how the princess will be married to Ingeld, the king of the Heatho-Bards. Beowulf, speaking, perhaps, for the poet, explains that the marriage will most likely not stop the conflict between the Danes and the Heatho-Bards: Yet most often, after the fall of a prince in any nation, the deadly spear rests but a little while, even though the bride is good. In other words, the marriage cannot prevent war. Beowulf goes on, at some length, to relate how some of the Heatho-Bards may some day pay a visit to the Danes and see how the Danes are now in possession of the swords and other weapons that once belonged to the Heatho-Bards themselves. Seeing those swords will bring to mind the deaths of their relatives and ancestors, of the relatives who died while fighting the Danes. This, quite naturally, will make the Heatho-Bards angry; and fighting will once again occur between the two tribes. Beowulf concludes by saying, Therefore I do not think the loyalty of the Heatho-Bards, their part in the alliance with the Danes, to be without deceit do not think their friendship fast. Beowulf thus foreshadows the doom and fate of the Danes. The relationship and similarity among the Wealhtheow, Hildeburh, and Freawaru stories are used to present a very real criticism of the Anglo-Saxon and Danish societies. The tendency to violence and revenge is a threat to the existence of all of the tribes. Violence only brings about more violence, and revenge only

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brings about more revenge. It is an endless cycle that only results in the death and destruction of everybody and everything involved. The Anglo-Saxon poet, through this long speech made by Beowulf, is thus recognizing a failing (a problem) of his own people. In a sense, the Beowulf poet is making a plea for peace. A female character who presents a much different lesson is Modthryth. This character also appears in the section where Beowulf returns to his homeland and tells King Hygelac of his marvelous adventures in the land of the Danes. The story of Modthryth is also a digression: Modthryth is used as a character to contrast with Queen Hygd, the wife of Hygelac. The story of Modthryth also seems to be an early version of a fairy tale (like the country bumpkinCinderella motif mentioned earlier). Modthryth is initially an evil queen or princess who would put to death any man who dared to look at her. Modthryth is, in a sense, a female version of Heremod. Both are leaders of their kingdoms who turn to crime. But for Modthryth, the story turns out happy at the end. Modthryth marries Offa, a king of the Angles, and for some reason has a change of heart and becomes afterwards famous for generosity. Perhaps there is also a link to the Taming of the Shrew story (made famous in the play by Shakespeare), in which a stubborn and argumentative woman is treated roughly by her husband until she behaves more to his liking. Modthryth, then, represents two key ideas: (1) Like Heremod, she represents the poor behavior of a bad ruler and thus presents a contrast to the Anglo-Saxon values of generosity and leadership. (2) She suggests or symbolizes the idea of reclamation or rehabilitation. A

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person does not have to persist in a life of crime (or sin). That person can give up such criminal behavior and lead a good life. The story of Modthryth also suggests two later popular tales: (1) The Taming of the Shrew story and (2) the fairy tale where the unsuccessful suitors of a princess are put to death. THE ROLE OF WIGLAF Although the tone of the second part of the epic is so dark, there is a positive element with the character of Wiglaf. Wiglaf is the young relative of Beowulf who, with several other retainers, goes with the hero to face the dragon. However, out of all of Beowulfs retainers, only Wiglaf regrets any cowardly behavior on his part and rushes to Beowulfs side to help him kill the dragon. Wiglaf makes two speeches that are particularly important in revealing the attitude of fellowship that is so much a part of the comitatus and that exhibits the special relationship between the lord and his retainer. The first of these speeches occurs right after Beowulf leaves to face the dragon (in Beowulf Attacks the Dragon). The retainers run off, afraid; and only Wiglaf feels sorrows surging in his breast. The retainers have acted cowardly and should feel a deep sense of shame. Of course, their action is in direct contrast to the actions of Beowulfs retainers who stood by their lord when he faced Grendel. The epic thus once again employs the device of portraying both positive and negative ways of behavior (just as it did, for example, with the digressions on Sigemund and Heremod, the positive and negative kings). In his speech to the cowardly retainers, Wiglaf reminds his fellows of the honors and treasure that

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Beowulf had given to them in the past. Thus, he is saying that they are not only cowards, but they are ingrates (ingratitude) as well. Perhaps Wiglafs most important line in this speech is this: God knows of me that I should rather that the flame enfold my body with my gold-giver. Wiglaf would prefer to die with Beowulf, his gold-giver, than behave in such a cowardly and ignoble manner. Wiglafs statement is also reinforced by the behavior of Beowulfs retainers in Part I, for they do risk death (and even one, Hondscioh, dies) rather than run from the terror of Grendel. For Wiglaf, and for the retainers in the first part of the epic, death is preferable over shame. A more direct criticism of the cowardly retainers appears in Wiglafs second speech, which occurs after Beowulf has received his death wound (in Beowulfs Funeral). Once again Wiglaf reminds the retainers of the generosity that Beowulf had shown to them in the past, and follows that comment with another example of Anglo-Saxon litotes: The folk-king had no need to boast of his war-comrades. This line actually implies that Beowulf would regret the behavior of his retainers and, perhaps, would even feel sorrow because of the way they acted. The line does present Beowulfs perspective. A retainer would naturally want his lord to think highly of him. But the retainers who abandoned Beowulf know that their lord would not have any praise for them. The one chance that they had to prove themselves to their lord is over, and they will have to live with the guilt of their actions until their deaths. Wiglaf emphasizes the same idea with another example of understatement: Too few defenders thronged about the prince when the hard time came upon him. In fact, there was only one defender, Wiglaf. The line suggests

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that the other retainers are responsible for Beowulfs death. They (perhaps) could have saved him. Poor behavior in the comitatus, not standing up to protect ones own lord, is a crime to the AngloSaxons. And with crime inevitably come punishment. In another example of foreshadowing, Wiglaf predicts that the Geats will suffer now that Beowulf is gone: Now there shall cease for your race the receiving of treasure and the giving of swords, all enjoyment of pleasant homes, comfort. Each man of your kindred must go deprived of his land-right when nobles from afar learn of your flight, your inglorious deed. Death is better for any earl than a life of blame. Once again, the state of the state (the condition of the nation) idea is suggested here. When Beowulf was king, the retainers (or earls) lived a life of comfort and reward. But now that the king is dead and since his death is due to a crime committed by his retainers, the retainers will lose their wealth, their homes, and their land. All that will be left to them is a life of shame, and that is a far worse thing than death. The reader should also note the use of the word inglorious. The retainers have not achieved glory. Their lives, therefore, have been wasted. The character of Wiglaf thus represents the proper way of behavior for a retainer in Anglo-Saxon and Old Norse times. He represents the ideal of the heroic culture, an ideal that was not always achieved by every retainer in every kingdom in medieval times.

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Although it is not a digression, there is a smaller story within the epic regarding a certain man (called the thief at one point) who enters the dragons lair and steals a golden cup (in Beowulf and the Dragon). This act causes the dragon, which had been sleeping beneath the earth for three hundred years, to awaken. The dragon becomes angry that one of his treasures is missing; and, so, he flies off at night and gets revenge (again note the idea of revenge) by spitting fire and burning the dwellings of the Geats. The information about the man (or thief) is sketchy. Apparently, he was a servant (or maybe even a slave) who committed some act against his lord. Th epic describes him as a man guilty of wrong-doing although it never reveals just what exactly he had done. For the Anglo-Saxons, this is not an important detail. It is sufficient to say that he acted against his lord. To act against ones lord is a terrible crime, and it is unlikely that the Anglo-Saxons felt any sympathy for him. The man himself also recognizes his crime since he risks his life to steal the cup in order to give it to his lord. Although it is not directly stated, there is a hint of the crime and punishment theme in this brief story. Once Beowulf discovers the role of the thief in awakening the dragon, he forces the man to lead him to the dragon. The man is, of course, reluctant, and afraid. As the poet notes, the sad-hearted slave wretched, he must direct them to the place. The mans own fear, though, is the only punishment that he receives. The dragon himself is also worth noting. Obviously, he is a symbol of greed. Even though he has an enormous treasure in his barrow or lair, the loss of a

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single item, the cup, awakens him, angers him, and causes him to bring terror and destruction to the country of the Geats. The dragon is also described as hot and fierce-hearted. Perhaps this description of him being hot-tempered is to suggest that such a quality is appropriate for a monster, but not for a man. Again, we might recall the lesson of being hot-tempered that is taught in The Wanderer. But we actually have to look no further than the digression on Heremod. Heremod is also described as fierce-hearted and is also a figure associated with greed. Thus, in a sense, Heremod can be figuratively described as a kind of monster. A reader should note that the actual Old English manuscript of Beowulf is badly damaged in the sections concerning the early descriptions of the dragon. Scholars have done their best to reconstruct the text, but some errors are likely to have occurred. In recent years one scholar (Raymond Tripp) revised the standard reconstruction with a text suggesting that the dragon is literally Heremod. The idea is interesting even though it is open to debate. Where did the dragon come from? What are the origins of dragons? A dragon could be another example of mans nightmares taking literary form (perhaps derived from our fears of reptiles, especially snakes, and fire). The similarity in the descriptions of Heremod and the dragon do add validity to such a hypothesis, but the allusion that Heremod died at the hands of his enemies contradicts it. The modern reader will probably never know what the Anglo-Saxons truly thought about the dragon or whether the dragon was, indeed, Heremod himself. Unfortunately, the heroic literature of Anglo-Saxon times is just too scant for us to know more on this issue.

The Middle Ages BEOWULF AND THE TREASURE

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Toward the end of the epic, when Beowulf lies dying from the death wound that he has received from the dragon (in Beowulf Attacks the Dragon), he has a few moments left to speak to Wiglaf. The hero asks his younger kinsman to bring some of the treasure out of the cave so that he may look upon it before he dies. Beowulf tells Wiglaf, Be quick now, so that I may see the ancient wealth, the golden things, may clearly look on the bright curious gems, so that for that, because of the treasures richness, I may the more easily leave life and nation I have long held. Beowulfs desire to see the treasure does not imply a sense of greed. At the beginning of the epic, the ship-burial of Scyld involves the placing of treasures in the ship just as treasures are placed in the pyramids of the ancient Egyptian kings. Similarly, at the end of the epic, the treasures from the dragon cave are placed in the funeral barrow or mound: They let the earth hold the wealth of earls, gold in the ground, where now it still dwells, as useless to men as it was before. The burial of treasures with a king does indicate a belief that perhaps the king can make use of the treasures and weapons in the afterlife. But for the Anglo-Saxons (and the Danes), the afterlife was uncertain. They were not positive that a glorious life would follow after death. The poets line about the treasure being useless is, on the other hand, certainly an additional comment to the warning against greed made earlier in the epic. Beowulfs last gesture of looking at the treasure, then, is not a gesture of greed, not a gesture of believing that he will be taking the treasure with him on his journey toward death. Rather, Beowulf is concerned

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with life and the living. The treasure is a symbol of those who lived before him and of the glorious deeds that have been committed in past times. The testimony to the past is, perhaps, Beowulfs own self-assurance that he too has contributed to the deeds of glory that entered in the records (the literature, the poetry) of the Anglo-Saxons. He dies the death of a hero, a final act of glory that allows him to leave the world with a sense of peace or, perhaps, satisfaction in knowing that he has lived his life according to the ideal standards of the Anglo-Saxons and Danes. Like the treasures themselves, his own life is a testament to the greatness of mans existence. THE LANGUAGE OF BEOWULF As already mentioned the language of Beowulf is Anglo-Saxon, bearing perhaps more similarities to German than to Modern English. But the language of Beowulf is also poetic, a language rich in meter and in figures of speech. A student who reads only a prose translation of the epic misses both the feel and the context of the original Anglo-Saxon tale, which originally was recited as one of many tales in the Oral Tradition of the Anglo-Saxon people. The modern reader should try to imagine what it would be like, sitting around a fire, listening to the story-teller weave his magical stories about heroes and monsters and dragons. The first eleven lines of Beowulf follows with a literal translation:

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2) 3)

4)

5)

6)

8)

10)

11)

Truly, we [of] Spear-Danes in days of yore kings of a people glory heard of how the warriors Deeds of valor performed. Often Scyld Scefing enemies pressed many tribes mead-benches deprived of; [he] terrified Eruli (or warriors) even though more previously arisen in poverty found he for that comfort lived to see: prospered beneath the skies, memorial of honor flourished, until him everyone those around dwelling over whale-road [sea] to hear should tribute to pay That was good king!

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First sentence: Truly, we have heard of the glory of the Spear-Danes, the kings of the people, in the days of yore, of how the warriors performed deeds of glory. Line 5: mead-benches: symbolic of Germanic chieftain (equivalent to a throne)

LECTURE 6
THE FIRST LECTURE ON SIR GAWAIN AND THE GREEN KNIGHT INTRODUCTORY COMMENTS Many scholars consider Sir Gawain and the Green Knight to be the best example of the Medieval Romance. And this work of literature certainly is worthy of that claim and more: Gawain is also one of the greatest works of English literature. A medieval romance is a long narrative poem with (1) knightly adventures and (2) courtly love. Although the word romance suggests love today, when the term is applied to literature, the aspect of adventure is the key element. Such adventures would include the knightly hero (1) fighting or jousting against other knights, (2) fighting against giants or monsters, and (3) encountering magical or supernatural creatures. Throughout the Middle Ages many people believed in fairies or demons, giants or monsters. Such beliefs added a sense of enchantment to life, but it also helped to explain matters that people at that time could not explain in any other way. Perhaps, though, we should not be so critical of their superstitions. Even in the 20th century people have believed in strange creatures like the Loch Ness Monster, the Abominable Snow Man, and aliens from outer space. The belief in such fantasies may serve (1) as a psychological need for some people who subconsciously desire to express their imaginations or (2) as an emotional release for the common fears that all of us experience in childhood. In any event, the

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belief in the fantastic also serves to arouse our curiosity and entertain us. The aspect of courtly love, however, should not be overlooked. In Gawain the element of courtly love is crucial to the story. The word courtly suggests, of course, the court of the king or queen. Courtly love is the kind of love, then, exhibited by the best and noblest gentlemen and ladies of the land. It is polite; it is genteel. It suggests good manners and good breeding. In a sense, then, it becomes a social code, a set of rules about how to behave and how to speak when one is pursuing a member of the opposite sex. One key aspect of medieval courtly love is that the lady is sovereign. In other words, she is the boss. She is in control of the love-making. The man, on the other hand, is the humble worshipper of the lady. He adores her. He gets down on his knees to her as if she were a goddess. There is a common expression for this idea: the lady on the pedestal. Like the image of a statue of a Greek or Roman goddess on a stone stand (or pedestal) which the ancient Greeks or Romans might worship, the man treats the woman that he loves with great respect. He looks up to her. He prays that she will notice him. Often, however, the depiction of courtly love in medieval romances can also include a relationship of adultery. The most prominent example of this situation occurs in the stories about King Arthur. Sir Lancelot, a knight who serves Arthur and is an extremely close friend of his, falls in love with Arthurs wife, Queen Guenivere. Despite the pain that they know Arthur will feel, Lancelot and Guenivere cannot help themselves. Their passion is so strong that they have an affair. But the conflict between Arthur and Lancelot that follows eventually destroys Camelot, the kingdom of Arthur. In

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Gawain the hero does not directly commit an act of adultery, but there are several scenes where he is sorely tempted to do so. In medieval romances where adultery is a part of the action, the lord and the lady (the adulterous pair) still follow the social conventions and manners of courtly love. Two motifs of medieval romances appear in Gawain: (1) the beheading game and (2) the idea of temptation and seduction. Both of these details will be discussed in detail later, but the reader should note that these motifs are common to other medieval romances. Although Gawain is truly the best of medieval romances, it has several qualities that are not typical of medieval romances. These anti-romantic concepts are part of the reason why Gawain surpasses and outshines other romances from the Middle Ages. The author, who is unknown, wrote a romance that is longer, more sophisticated, more entertaining, and ultimately more satisfying than other romances. There are basically four anti-romantic elements that the reader should notice: 1) Gawain has to prove himself not by fighting, which is the typical way a hero proves himself, but by passively submitting himself to accept a death-blow, a blow that will take off his head. 2) The lady is the wooer (the one who pursues the member of the opposite sex). In typical romances, the man pursues the lady; and the lady is coy or even refuses the man. In Gawain this is inverted (the opposite).

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The medieval romance, like the epic, developed out of an oral tradition. The stories originally began in oral form told by a story-teller and were passed down from one generation to the next over many years and even centuries. The romance is also like the epic in that it concerns a hero and his adventures and also that supernatural or magical monsters may fight the hero. But the romance, which is a later development in literature, is usually significantly shorter than the epic and includes the courtly element described above. Although the character of Gawain developed out of an oral tradition, the tale of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight bears the mark, the craftsmanship, of a single author. The story may have originally existed in a shorter form that the author heard. But he elaborated upon it: (1) he added details, (2) he extended the plot, (3) he provided more structure, and (4) he added humor to it. So, it is a far superior work of literature compared to any other surviving romance of the Middle Ages. The structure is one of the most notable features of Gawain. Not only is the entire romance structured by the idea of oath-making (and oath-breaking). But the third part (of the four parts) of the romance contains a clever interweaving of hunting and seduction scenes that parallel each other and are bound together by an

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agreement or oath made between Gawain and the lord of the castle. THE LANGUAGE AND DATE OF THE ROMANCE Sir Gawain and the Green Knight was written in approximately 1370, about the same time (or just a few years before the time, actually) that Geoffrey Chaucer began writing The Canterbury Tales. As mentioned previously, the second part of the 14th century marks the period of great literature in Middle English. Yet, if one compares the Middle English text of the Canterbury Tales to Sir Gawain, Chaucers work seems to be much closer to Modern English (which begins about 1500) while Gawain seems to be far closer to Old English in vocabulary and style. There is a very simple explanation for this difference. Chaucer wrote in London. London was where the court was located. If a change were to occur in England, it would occur in London first. This is especially true of changes in the English language. The English language grew and changed tremendously from the time the Anglo-Saxons first inhabited England (around 500 AD) to the time that the Renaissance began in England (around 1500). The language of Chaucer is clearly Middle English. However, it is a Middle English in its final stages of development: it has been affected and altered by the influence of Norman French and other internal changes as well. Nonetheless, it has survived as a language that has its own defining characteristics. The language of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, on the other hand, is in the West Midlands dialect. It is in a regional dialect, a form of Middle

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English that did not incorporate the changes in the language that had occurred or were occurring in London at the time that the author of Gawain was living and writing. Thus, the language of Gawain seems older than the language used by Chaucer because it had not yet developed and changed. The changes and developments in the language that occurred in London would take many years or even many decades before they would occur in the outer western and northern regions of England. Another quality of the Gawain poem that contributes to the feeling that the language is much older than Chaucers language is alliteration. This poetic feature, which was, of course, common to Old English poetry, was probably used throughout the Middle English period; but not enough poems from the early part of the Middle English period survive for us to be certain of this. In the later part of the 14th century though, several poems have survived to indicate that many poets still enjoyed using alliteration in the creation of their poems. The poetic technique of Gawain, though, is more sophisticated than many other alliterative poems of the time. The poet uses both alliteration and rhyme. The length (the number of lines) of each stanza varies, but the poet always ends each of his stanzas with five rhyming lines known as a bob and wheel. The first part of each stanza does not rhyme but does use alliteration, and it may be anywhere from 12 to 36 lines long (or possibly longer), but the second part of each stanza is always five lines long (the bob and wheel) and rhymes ababa. The bob, the first of the five lines, is only two syllables long; but the remaining four lines (the

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wheel or quatrain) would contain longer lines that not only rhymed but usually contain alliteration as well. THE PROLOGUE: ENGLAND AND TROY The opening of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the first stanza, might be puzzling to a reader unfamiliar with medieval literature and history. The first stanza serves as a kind of prologue or introduction to the tale, but it introduces places and characters that are not part of the main story at all. However, the poet has a very logical, and traditional, reason for beginning in this manner: The oral tradition in medieval literature was extremely important for the people living during the Middle Ages. Since most people could not read or write, the stories being told served not only the purpose of entertainment. They also preserved the history of the people so that the names of their ancestors and the glorious deeds of their real-life heroes could be remembered and passed on from one generation to the next. The beginning of Beowulf, you may recall, begins with a history of the early Danes; and the names and deeds of King Hrothgars father, grandfather, and greatgrandfather are given. The oral story-teller, then, is also the court historian. Medieval romances developed in the same way that the epics did, from an oral tradition. And, so, they too may contain historical elements. In Sir Gawain the poet begins by talking about the fall of Troy during the Trojan War, which occurred around 1200 BC and which is told in Homers The Iliad. The poet does this, though, because the people of England believed during the Middle Ages that their

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ancestors could be traced back to the ancient Trojans. The following chart simplifies this heritage: The Fall of Troy | Aeneas, a Trojan, and His Followers Sail To Southern Italy and Settle There | Various Descendants of the Trojans (Living in Italy) Later Travel to Settle Other Lands: (1) Romulus to Rome (2) Ticius to Tuscany (3) Langobard to Lombardy (4) Felix Brutus to Britain Of course, the most important of the four Trojan adventurers from the English perspective would be Brutus. Brutus traveled from Rome to become the legendary founder of Britain or England. And even several history books from the Middle Ages were called The Brut in honor of this legendary figure. The Gawain poet thus uses this historical opening to indicate the greatness and nobility of the line of British kings. Just as King Hrothgar was descended from the great Scyld Scefing (in Beowulf), King Arthur and his nobles are, the poet suggests, descended from a great Trojan, Aeneas, and a great Roman, Brutus. This is important thematically to the story as well. One of the most important themes in the story concerns pride, the pride of King Arthur, his court, and, of course, Sir Gawain.

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THE CHALLENGE OF THE GREEN KNIGHT The first part of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight has one of the most memorable scenes in English literature. During a Christmas celebration, a time of a great feast, the court of King Arthur is interrupted. A stranger enters. He is described as being the largest of men and half a giant. But what is even more remarkable about this stranger than his size is his color: he is completely green. His clothes are green, his hair is green, even his face is green. In addition to that, his horse is also completely green. Obviously, this is no ordinary human; and later the expression elf-man is used to describe this Green Knight. Elf, like fairy, indicates a creature of strange supernatural powers or magic. During the Middle Ages fairies were not thought of as diminutive (tiny) figures. Instead, they could be as big or bigger than humans are. But they would live separately from humans and could, like the ancient Greek gods, interfere in the lives of humans. Sometimes the fairies could be good, but at other times they could be mischievous or even deadly. They were creatures that humans could not understand. The Green Knights appearance alone startles and shocks the knights of King Arthurs court, who were known for their courage and great deeds (such as slaying dragons or giants). But the Green Knight presents a challenge to these knights that is even more startling and more shocking. The Green Knight, who is carrying a large and fearful-looking axe, tells the knights that he wants to play a Christmas game (Part I: line 283). The word game is used ironically here, for the challenge is not something that is fun and entertaining. Rather, it is quite deadly.

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The Green Knight challenges or dares any one of the knights to exchange blows with him. The knight who accepts will be able to give the first blow with the elf-mans own sharp axe. The Green Knight promises to stand still while his challenger swings the axe at his head and attempts to cut the elf-mans head off. But, the Green Knight adds, if he survives the blow, he gets to return the blow: he gets a chance to swing an axe at the challenger, who must remain still as well. The bravery of King Arthurs knights becomes questionable, and the Green Knight laughs at the court when no one speaks up to accept his challenge. Arthurs knights are too stunned. They are speechless that such a challenge could be made. Arthur becomes embarrassed that none of his knights accept, and so Arthur himself accepts the challenge. This is, after all, a matter of pride for Arthur. He cannot allow anyone, even if he is an elf or fairy, to question the courage of his knights and his court. Sir Gawain, who is a young knight and who still needs to commit brave deeds as befitting one in King Arthurs court, feels that such an act is beneath the dignity of his king. That is, his king should not accept such a foolish challenge. So, Gawain asks King Arthur if he can accept the challenge in Arthurs place. The king agrees. Gawain takes the elf-mans axe after promising to accept the terms of the challenge set by the Green Knight. Gawain then takes the large axe and swings at the neck of the elf-man. The blow is on target, and the Green Knights head is separated from his body. Blood and gore then flow from the shoulders of the Green Knights body as the head rolls across the floor.

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But then something even more amazing happens. The body of the Green Knight, instead of falling over, straightens up and walks over to his head. He lifts his own head by his hair and holds it straight up so that the eyes of the head look directly at Gawain. And then the mouth begins to speak and tells Gawain that he must seek the Knight of the Green Chapel (the Green Knight) in one years time, as Gawain had agreed, and receive a blow from his weapon. The elf-man then rides his horse out of the court, still carrying his head in his hand. The promise that Gawain makes to the Green Knight, the oath that he has sworn before all of the other knights in King Arthurs court, forms the central conflict for the entire romance. Gawain knows that he must keep his promise. He must seek the Green Knight and allow the strange man to swing a deadly weapon at his neck. But Gawain also knows that such a blow will kill him. He is not an elf. He has no magic against such a blow. But the idea of the oath is important to Gawain. The importance of oaths, as can be seen in Beowulf, was a central part of the heroic code by which the AngloSaxons lived. And the idea that a knights word, his promise, must be kept even if it meant his own death was still considered an essential aspect of courtly behavior in the 14th century. A knight who did not keep his word was without honor. Gawain, being a young knight, wants to live up to the ideal of knighthood. He wants to be a perfect knight. Therefore, he must, he feels, go the Green Chapel and allow the Green Knight to kill him. It is better to be a dead knight than to be a knight without honor. One might remember the words of Wiglaf to the retainers or warriors who abandoned Beowulf when that hero faced the dragon. Wiglaf said

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basically the same thing. Death is preferable to a life of shame. So, the plot of the story is propelled (moved) by Gawains promise to keep his oath. In one years time, he sets out to seek the Knight of the Green Chapel. Thats when his adventures begin. THE BEHEADING GAME MOTIF The opening scene of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, in which Gawain agrees to exchange blows with the Green Knight, is a story element that appears in other medieval tales. This element, which is called the beheading game motif, probably appeared first in an 8th century Irish Celtic story entitled The Feast of Bricriu. The hero of this tale is not Gawain or any of Arthurs other knights (even though the King Arthur tales also were originally of early Celtic origin). Rather, the hero is Cuchulain, a figure of great courage and strength and who is also the lord of many warriors. In the Irish story a rough and tough stranger appears to Cuculain and his men and challenges all of them to try chopping his head off. Each of Cuchulains men and even Cuchulain himself try to behead the stranger, but the stranger remains unharmed. The very next day Cuchulain and his men are required to seek the stranger and receive blows in return. However, only Cuchulain shows up. The rest of his men are too afraid. Cuchulain receives only a light, harmless blow by the stranger. The purpose of the story is to define the nature of bravery. Cuchulain is a great hero of the Irish not only because of his strength, but also because of his courage. Like Beowulf, Cuchulain represents the ideal hero. He

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possesses the ideal qualities that all other men should aspire to. The beheading game motif also appears in French romances. But the motif in these stories was probably copied from the Celts. BEHEADING IN ANOTHER GAWAIN ROMANCE There are several other stories or medieval romances with Gawain as the central hero. And one of these, The Turk and Gawain, also contains a beheading motif (but not the beheading game motif). In this tale Gawain encounters a castle in the underworld (the place of death) and discovers that giants inhabit the castle. Gawain is challenged to several tests of skill and bravery, and the hero is nearly killed when a Turk (someone from Turkey) saves his life. The Turk asks Gawain, in return, to cut off his (the Turks) head. Gawain is, at first, reluctant; but eventually he agrees to do this favor for the Turk. After he beheads the Turk, the Turk magically transforms into a handsome knight; and all the people of his castle are set free from a spell of enchantment. The tale is much shorter than Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, and not very sophisticated. But it does show (1) the importance of bravery that is prominent in medieval romances and (2) the medieval fascination for mystical places and magical spells.

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Two other medieval romances also feature Sir Gawain in a prominent role: The first of these is called The Awyntyrs [Adventures] of Arthur at Tarn Wadling. This romance is also short and unsophisticated. It contains two separate episodes: in the first part, King Arthur, Queen Guenivere, Sir Gawain, and others are out together hunting. Gawain and Guenivere become separated from the rest of the group, and they encounter a hideous ghost. The ghost turns out to be the spirit of Gueniveres own mother; and the spirit gives a warning, a prophecy, about the future of King Arthur. The second part of the romance occurs some time later. Gawain is in a tournament against another strong and noble knight. The fighting is fierce, and Gawain receives some terrible wounds. Eventually, he wins the tournament. Once again, the short romance basically presents a simple tale about the courage, strength, and perseverance of the hero. And once again, the romance reveals the medieval fascination with the supernatural. However, the two parts of the tale are tied together by a courtly love motif: there is a suggestion that some type of relationship exists between Sir Gawain and Queen Guenivere. The relationship is not adulterous, and the connection between the two is only suggested, not stated directly out right. However, the story hints at the idea that Gawain is a ladys man (a Casanova or Don Juan type of figure). ~ ~ ~ The second tale is called The Wedding of Sir Gawain. This tale is nearly identical to the tale told as

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The Wife of Baths Tale in Geoffrey Chaucers The Canterbury Tales. However, the central figure is not Sir Gawain. Actually, both Chaucers version and The Wedding are based on an older, but even shorter, Irish story. The tale begins with King Arthur being attacked and captured. The man who captures Arthur promises the King that he will be released if he agrees to solve a riddle. The King agrees to find the solution to the riddle and promises his captor (the man who captured him) that he will return with the answer in one year or give himself up so that the man can take his head (again, the beheading motif). The riddle that Arthur agrees to solve is this: What is it that women desire most? King Arthur tells his closest and most trusted knight, Sir Gawain, about the promise (or oath) that he had made to his captor. Gawain agrees to help his King, so both Arthur and Gawain travel for many months, going to many different lands, so that they can ask each woman they see what it is that women desire most. Gawain and Arthur travel separately, and both write down the various answers that they get in large books. Unfortunately, they get so many different answers that they cannot come up with a single solution to the riddle. The year is almost up, and King Arthur worries that he cannot find the answer. Then he encounters a hideous, loathsome old hag, the ugliest woman that he had ever seen. She promises to tell King Arthur the answer to his riddle if he, in return, will promise Sir Gawain to her in marriage. Sir Gawain agrees to this terrible bargain because he wants to save his king. The hag tells Arthur the answer is sovereignty (meaning power or control over men in marriage), and

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this is the correct solution. So, King Arthurs life is saved, but Gawain is then forced to marry the hag. After Gawain marries the hag, she transforms herself into a beautiful maiden (since she is actually a fairy). She then asks Gawain what would he prefer: for his wife (1) to be beautiful by day and ugly at night or (2) to be ugly by day and beautiful at night. Gawain is perplexed. If he had a beautiful wife, he would want everyone to see her during the day. However, the idea of sleeping with a loathsome hag at night does not appeal to him. In The Wife of Baths Tale the choice given to the knight is different: (1) to have a beautiful wife who is unfaithful or (2) to have an ugly wife who is faithful. Neither choice is appealing to the knight. If he had a beautiful wife who was always sleeping with some other man, he would be tormented with jealousy. He would not be able to stand it. But he also could not stand looking at the most hideous woman every day either. Gawain finally tells her that she can decide which of the two she wants to be. Since Gawain gives her sovereignty in this matter, she tells him that she will be beautiful both day and night for him forever after. Except for Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, this tale is the best of the Gawain stories. The story has a better structure with a unified theme. And, once again, we can see the elements of bravery (Arthur agreeing to forfeit his head if he cannot find the answer), oathmaking, and the supernatural.

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One of the ways in which the story-teller of ancient and medieval times could memorize long narrative stories, like the epic of Beowulf or the numerous tales about King Arthurs knights, is by including Oral Formulas. Although each tale told in the Oral Tradition would be unique and different, each one would contain lines, long passages, or even entire scenes that would be remarkably similar or even identical to passages or scenes in other tales. Rather than create entirely new passages for each tale, the story-teller would borrow or copy an Oral Formula (which could be any length) from one tale and insert that passage in another tale, making only minor changes if necessary. The Battle of the Champions is an example of one such Oral Formula. In many of the great stories about war in ancient literature, there often was a scene where the two greatest heroes, one from each side, would meet and do battle with one another. This would be the Battle of the Champions, and the outcome of that battle would usually reflect the outcome of the entire war. In The Iliad the battle between Achilles (the Greek) and Hector (the Trojan) represents the best example of this particular Oral Formula. Each story-teller would memorize dozens of Oral Formulas, some of which might be only a couple of lines long, others could be 20 or 30 lines long (or longer). The story-teller could then recite the lines or passages directly, changing the names and possibly a few other details to fit whatever story he would be telling on any given day.

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Another example of an Oral Formula is the Arming of the Hero. Before a great battle or challenge, the hero would carefully and thoughtfully put on his armor. The story-teller would take great care to describe this dressing procedure in fine detail, naming each piece of cloth and plate armor that the hero places upon himself. The poet in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight devotes one entire stanza in Part II (lines 566-89), a total of 24 lines in length, to the arming of the hero. In addition, the longer part of the following stanza (lines 597-618), another 22 lines in length, concerns the armor and appearance of Gringolet, Sir Gawains horse (8 of the 22 lines), and Gawains own helmet and headgear (the remaining 14 lines). The description of the armor even extends to a third stanza, where the poet discusses Gawains shield and its symbolism. The scene is important for several reasons: (1) it is a fine example of how an Oral Formula can be used creatively in a newer work of fiction; (2) it reflects the courtly ideal regarding manners and procedures; and (3) it reflects or symbolizes, perhaps, Sir Gawains pride. The imagery of the scene is worth noting. Gawain has a coat made of silk (line 571), a cloak or coat lined with fur (573), leg-fasteners made of gold (577), the best cloth covering his body (581), and gold, silk, diamonds, and gems covering his visor and helmet (608-10, 617). He is decorated more like an ornament or model than a warrior. The reader might try to imagine Sir Gawain flashing and shining as if he were a rich jewel himself. (In fact, some literary historians even connect the character of Sir Gawain to Gwalchmei, the sun-god of Welsh mythology.) Gawain surely has a good reason to feel proud about his appearance, but

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maybe he should not be too proud. The poet even tells us that Gawain wears sharp spurs to prick wit pride (587), that is, to get his horse moving. The still-life image of the decorated Gawain now comes to life as we might imagine Gawain atop his horse as the horse prances and struts proudly away from Camelot. The image (and the idea of pride) is in sharp contrast to the purpose of Gawains trip. Gawain is, after all, not off to seek bold adventures. Instead, he is going off to seek his own death that will be given to him by the mysterious Knight of the Green Chapel. And the reason that Gawain has to submit to this death-blow is due to his own foolish pride (and that of King Arthurs). Gawain cannot, or should not, be so proud. Thus, the poet in this scene brings to the readers attention his central theme: too much pride is a dangerous and foolish thing.

LECTURE 7
THE SECOND LECTURE ON SIR GAWAIN AND THE GREEN KNIGHT CHRISTIAN ELEMENTS IN THE ROMANCE Both pagan and Christian concepts are evident in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, but the Christian elements are integral and important to the plot of the story. Moreover, the Gawain poet reveals a fairly deep and extensive knowledge of Christian concepts. This is quite unlike what is evident in Beowulf, where the poet there did not display a vast knowledge of Christianity; and the Christian elements in that poem could be removed rather easily without such a change affecting the plot or themes of the epic. The romance begins with a Christmastime (or Yuletide) setting. The knights gather together this one time out of every year (since Christmas is the most important and most celebrated of Christian holidays) and dance to carols (Christmas songs) and shout Noel to one another. Chanting is heard in the chapel, and clerics (or priests) come to the court. To put it simply, the Gawain poet uses an extensive vocabulary to create the feel and mood of Christmas and to promote the sense of Christianity that underlies the tale. When the Green Knight interrupts the occasion and addresses King Arthurs court, he announces that he wishes to play a Christmas game with the knights. The announcement is all the more shocking because of the contrast between pagan and Christian elements. The Green Knight is, in the view of Arthur and his knights, obviously a pagan being. That such a fellow wants

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anything to do with Christmas, the holiest of Christian holidays, is, at the very least, ironic and perhaps even sacrilegious. During the Middle Ages the representatives of the Catholic Church would often connect pagan worship and pagan beliefs to Satan, the chief of the devils. In other words, pagan worship and pagan beliefs are evil to the Christians of that time. Therefore, the audience of the 14th century hearing the tale about Sir Gawain would naturally associate the Green Knight with evil. In a sense, then, the Green Knight is mocking (making fun of) the Christmas festivities and the concepts of Christianity. Gawains response to the Green Knight, then, reflects not only the old Anglo-Saxon code of bravery and respect to ones lord. It also symbolically represents Gawains desire to uphold and protect Christianity against evil forces. An even more important aspect of Christianity in the romance concerns Gawains devotion to Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ. Gawains courtly respect of ladies achieves its highest level in the respect that he gives to Mary. This also connects the idea of being faithful to ones lord (in this case, Gawains lord is King Arthur) to the idea of being faithful to God. Mary is a saint, a very special saint since she was chosen by God to give birth to His Son. Gawains respect to Mary is, then, also respect to God. The symbolism of Gawains shield indicates Gawains belief and faith in Christianity. In the second part of the romance, when Gawain is putting on his armor, the poet takes special care in two stanzas (lines 619-69) to explain the significance of the pentangle, the five-sided star that decorates Gawains shield. The pentangle, as the poet explains, has five points and fives sides; and it is called the endless knot because each

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side is linked with the next (one can trace over the design by beginning at any point and following the lines until returning to the original point). The word endless also suggests faithfulness or fidelity. Fidelity suggests timelessness: there is no end in a relationship where both sides are truly faithful. But the pentangle also represents the five fives: that is, each side of the pentangle symbolizes something else that also has five components or parts:

1) The Five Senses: the five senses are seeing, hearing, tasting, touching, and smelling. For Christians, the five senses are gifts from God that allow people to understand and enjoy life. 2) The Five Fingers: the hands represent, perhaps, strength or industry (work). Christians believe that idleness is sinful and that God desires man to work (even Adam and Eve in Eden had to take care of their garden). For Gawain, his strength never fails him; and he should be grateful to God for this. 3) The Five Wounds: Jesus Christ received five wounds when he was on the Cross: there were wounds on both his hands and feet and a fifth wound in his side where a Roman soldier cut him with a spear. The wounds represent Christs suffering for mankind in order to redeem the human race from sin.

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The Middle Ages 4) The Five Joys of Mary: a) The Annunciation: an angel comes and announces to Mary that she will give birth to Gods Son. b) The Nativity: the birth of Jesus Christ. c) The Resurrection: the re-birth of Christ after he died on the cross. d) The Ascension: the entrance of Christ into Heaven. e) The Assumption: the entrance of Mary into Heaven. 5) The Five Virtues: a) Boundless Beneficence (goodness without limits) b) Brotherly Love c) Pure Mind d) Pure Manners e) Compassion

All of these taken together symbolize the Christian teachings and the ideal Christian way of life that Gawain aspires to achieve. Gawain recognizes the suffering that Jesus Christ experienced for him as for all of mankind; and so Gawain devotes himself to Christ, to Mary, and to God. In the last of the five fives, the poet describes mind and manners with the word pure. Purity means having no blemish, no stain, no fault. And that is how Gawain tries to live. Gawain sees himself as a pure knight, as one who is good and without fault. Seeing himself in this way is directly connected to the plot and theme of the romance. Because Gawain does not wish to lose his purity, he feels he has no choice but to keep

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his faith (his bargain) to the Green Knight and submit to the death-blow. The theme, to be discussed later, concerns the loss of faith and the loss of purity. The reader should also notice that Gawain keeps the image (a small engraving or painting) of Mary with him as well:
On the inner part of his shield her image portrayed, That when his look on it lighted, he never lost heart.

(II: 649-50) This icon, this image of Mary, is symbolically located on the inner part of his shield. Just as the shield literally protects him against the blows of his enemies, the shield symbolically protects him from the blows of evil. One might even note that later Gawains courage and faith become weakened because he is without his shield when he is in bed in Lord Bercilaks castle. PAGAN ELEMENTS IN THE ROMANCE Despite the inclusion and the necessity of the Christian elements in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the poet also maintains a large number of pagan elements within the poem as well. The reader must keep in mind that the tales about King Arthur and his Knights began as pagan Celtic stories that developed and grew first in England and later in France (in Brittany) before returning to England during the Middle English period. But the pagan elements are also crucial to the plot and meaning of Sir Gawain. Part of the poets art, his skill, is that he was able to weave and interlace both Christian and pagan elements together to form the tapestry (the wonderful poetic creation) that is Sir Gawain and the

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Green Knight. For many years in medieval England, both pagan practices and Christian rituals existed side by side with one another; and the romance of Gawain seems to reflect that time. And even in the 14th century, when the romance was written, many Christian people still held on to the superstitions, to their beliefs in elves and demons and monsters. The use of magic, particularly, is part of what defines a romance; and such magic, such pagan magic, occurs or is suggested in at least four central parts of the romance:

(1) Of course, the most brilliant and exciting use of magic occurs at the beginning of the romance when the Green Knight is beheaded but then is still able to lift his head and speak to Arthur, Gawain, and the other knights. The poet uses several words or expressions to describe the supernatural aspect of the Green Knight: half a giant(part I, line 140), phantom and faerie (part I, line 240), and elf-man (part II, line 681). All of these expressions suggest that he is anything but human. But the fact that the poet does not use any one particular term for the Green Knight not only marks him out as a supernatural being but suggests that he is so wondrous and marvelous that there is no word to describe him. The Green Knight is a being or creature from the worst of nightmares.

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(2) The description of the Green Knights chapel also suggests otherworldliness and pagan ritual. Gawain finds this chapel toward the end of the romance and is frightened by its appearance: it is more like an old cave dug out from the rocks and the ground of the earth and is covered with grass. Of course, it looks like the dwelling of trolls, those hideous monsters of fairy tale literature that would be popular in later centuries. Gawain, though, describes the chapel in negative religious terms: a hideous prayer-house and a Chapel of mischaunce. And the Green Knight is described in negative religious terms as a Fiend who recites his orisons [prayers] in hells own style (part IV, lines 2190-95). The poet here masterfully mixes the pagan element with the Christian to reinforce the Christian belief that pagan ideas and concepts are evil and should be connected with Satan. This works well with the theme of the literature, where Gawains faith (in himself and in God) is tempted. (3) The inclusion of Morgan le Faye in the romance is also one of the magical pagan elements. In the third part of the romance, Gawain encounters an old woman, a withered old hag, who is the companion of Lady Bercilak. In the fourth part, the Green knight explains that this old woman is Morgan le Faye, an enchantress who is also the halfsister to King Arthur. In the Arthurian tales, Morgan le Faye was usually depicted as an

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The Middle Ages evil creature who was jealous of Arthur and constantly caused trouble for him. Through Morgans magic Lord Bercilak was able to transform himself into the Green Knight, and it was Morgan le Fayes idea in the first place to test (and to ridicule or humiliate) King Arthur and his knights. Morgans magic is sinister and often associated with evil. Even the word faye (or fay) is related to the word fairy and suggests a creature of the otherworld, a magical being who is not human. Obviously, the inclusion of Morgan le Faye is central to the plot of the story her magic is responsible for the Green Knights coming to Camelot and explains the reason why the Green Knight comes in the first place. (4) One other element associated with pagan magic must be added to the list of pagan concepts that are integral or crucial to the plot of the story. That element is the magic belt or girdle that Lady Bercilak gives to Gawain. In the third part of the romance Lady Bercilak wants to give Gawain a token (or small gift) of her affection, so she offers him the belt that she is wearing. At first Gawain refuses until she tells him that it has magical properties: weapons cannot harm the person who wears the belt. Gawain sees the belt as the solution to his problem, to avoid being killed by the death-blow of the Green Knight. So, he accepts it. As it turns out, though, the belt is powerless and cannot protect Gawain.

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All of the magical or pagan elements mentioned above are absolutely important and crucial to the plot and major themes of the romance. They could not be removed without harming the integrity and meaning of the tale. THE LACK OF DIGRESSIONS Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is the best of medieval romances for several reasons: (1) the characterization, (2) the humor, (3) the blending of Christian and pagan elements, (4) the poetic language, and (5) the structure. In regards to this last point, the structure, a reader should note that many medieval romances, like The Awyntyrs of Arthur at Tarn Wadling, are put together piecemeal and do not seem unified or carefully constructed. They are just not very good. All of the elements of Sir Gawain, on the other hand, are carefully selected and blended together to form an intricately unified tale of adventure with a definite theme that is maintained throughout the entire work. The Gawain poet does not include any digressions although he very easily could have done so. For example, digressions could have been inserted at the beginning when the knights gathered at Camelot and spoke of their adventures or in the scenes at Lord Bercilaks castle (in part III) when Gawain was being entertained as a guest. In the second part of the romance the Gawain poet himself even suggests a place where he could have inserted digressions: So many were the wonders he wandered among That to tell but the tenth part would tax my wits. (II: 718-19)

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The poet is saying that Gawain had many adventures and to tell even one-tenth (1/10) of them would take a great deal of time and effort. So, the poet then lists, but does not narrate or tell stories about, some of Gawains encounters with serpents, wolves, wild men, bulls, giants, and so on. The poet purposely avoids using digressions because he wanted to make every element, every line, in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, contribute to the action of the plot or to the central themes of the story. HUNTING AND SEDUCTION: THE STRUCTURE OF PART III The third section of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight deserves special attention because of its humor, its characterization, and its clever structure. Before Sir Gawain arrives at the Chapel of the Green Knight, he is the guest of Lord and Lady Bercilak, who take the weary knight out of the wilderness and out of the snow and allow him to rest comfortably in one of their splendid rooms. They feed him and provide him with fresh clothes and entertain him. Indeed, they are the very models of the perfect host and hostess. Each morning after Gawains arrival, Lord Bercilak goes out hunting. However, he realizes that his guest is quite exhausted from his travels, so he tells Gawain to rest in bed while he is out on his hunt. Gawain gratefully accepts. On the night prior to his first hunting trip, though, Lord Bercilak makes a bargain (a game) with Sir Gawain. Bercilak promises Gawain that he will give

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the knight whatever he succeeds in capturing or killing during his hunt if, in return, Gawain will give to him whatever Gawain might gain or receive while he is in the castle for that day. Gawain, of course, does not expect that he will receive anything while Bercilak is away hunting; but the knight agrees to Bercilaks proposal. Gawain thinks it is only for fun: it is just a game. However, the reader should remember that the Green Knights proposal to exchange death blows was also just a game, a Christmas game. This is the second time in the romance when Gawain makes a bargain, a promise, to exchange one thing for another. Gawain should have learned a lesson that first time in Camelot that sometimes making such rash promises can have deadly results. Gawain, however, is off his guard: he is tired and does not expect anything so terrible can happen by making such an innocent promise to his kind and friendly host, Lord Bercilak. The tale of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, though, concerns the making of promises and keeping ones word. It is concerned with the idea of fidelity, of being faithful to ones words and ones promises. When Lord Bercilak wakes up extremely early the next morning and goes off hunting, Lady Bercilak sneaks into Gawains bedroom to talk with the knight and, perhaps, to do something more. This action is repeated three times in Part III, and so the structure of the section is very tightly put together. This part of the romance, then, can easily be divided into three (or six) sections:

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The first of these sections is preceded by the bargain or game made by Lord Bercilak, and both of the second two sections are preceded by Gawain and Bercilak renewing their promises to make exchanges on the second and third days. After the deer hunt, Lord Bercilak keeps his side of the bargain and treats Gawain to a splendid meal of venison (deer meat). In exchange, Gawain kisses Lord Bercilak (line 1389); for Lady Bercilak kissed Sir Gawain when she stole into his room. After the second hunting trip, Lord Bercilak exchanges a meal of roasted pork for two kisses by Gawain (line 1640). After the third hunt, Lord Bercilak gives Sir Gawain a fox pelt (fur skin) and Gawain kisses him three times (line 1936). However, Gawain does not completely hold up his side of the bargain. Gawain does not fully keep his promise; for, in addition to the three kisses given to him by Lady Bercilak, Gawain also received the magic belt or girdle. According to the promise or pledge (the oath) that he had made, Gawain should have given the belt to Lord Bercilak. The tight structure provides interest and suspense to the romance. In addition, it leads directly into the action of the main plot since (1) it supplies a possible solution to Gawains dilemma with the Green Knight

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and (2) it directly concerns the theme of oath-making and fidelity. The six parts in this section (Part III) are also connected in another way (which is also an aspect of structure). A seduction is also a kind of hunt. Usually, it is the man hunting the woman. Here, the roles are reversed: the woman hunts the man. This also contributes to the humor of the piece. So, we have a metaphorical hunt following each literal hunt. Contributing even more to the structure of Part III, an attribute of the type of animal that Lord Bercilak is hunting on each day is also included in the seduction scene. On the first day, Lord Bercilak is hunting deer. A deer is usually a timid and easily frightened animal; and during the first seduction scene Gawain acts timid and somewhat frightened himself. When Lady Bercilak first enters his room, Gawain hides under his sheets and pretends to still be asleep (line 1190) for a long while (1195). On the second day, Lord Bercilak is hunting a boar. A boar is a fierce animal and charges his hunters rather than runs away from them. The second morning that Lady Bercilak enters his room, Gawain thought it good to greet her at once (line 1477). Gawain decides to be a little stronger in his defense against Lady Bercilaks flirtation and seduction. On the third day, Lord Bercilak hunts the fox. In medieval literature the fox (often named Reynard) is a wily, crafty, sly, and clever animal. On the third morning that Lady Bercilak comes to seduce Gawain, the lady is more forceful. Gawain has to be crafty and clever to avoid being trapped by Lady Bercilaks pleas and words:

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With a little fond laughter he lightly let pass All the words of special weight that were sped his way. (III: 1777-78)

Thus, Gawain relies on cleverness rather than timidity or force to resist the seduction of Lady Bercilak. The great care that the poet uses to structure the third part of the romance reflects the care that he uses in structuring the entire epic. Not only do (1) the hunting and seduction scenes contribute to the structure of the romance. But (2) the use of the pledge or oath and the idea of fidelity that mark the beginning of both Parts I and III also contribute to the structure. And (3) the winter-to-winter or Christmas-to-Christmas one-year sequence for the entire tale also serves to strengthen and unify the romance in a way that is quite unlike the structure of any other medieval romance. THE ROLE OF KING ARTHUR Although the character of Sir Gawain is depicted as a noble and virtuous knight, the portrayal of King Arthur is anything but favorable. Indeed, the King Arthur that the reader finds in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is both childish and foolish. Compared to other tales involving King Arthur, this portrayal of the king is not only unusual, but downright strange. In other tales King Arthur is a good king, a king of legend who unifies his people and the knights of his realm. He is a king who brings peace to his land and who is loved by his people. But this is not the King Arthur that we see in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. The Gawain poet makes King Arthur look both childish and foolish. He is a young king in this tale, and

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the poet even directly calls him a little boyish (Part I, line 86) with a wild temper (line 89). In addition, he also practices a foolish custom: And also a point of pride pricked him in heart, For he nobly had willed, he would never eat On so high a holiday, till he had heard first Of some fair feat or fray (I: 90-93) In other words, King Arthur is proud, childish, and foolish. He is so immature that he refuses to eat unless he is entertained first. Later, when the Green Knight makes his challenge and none of the knights respond, Arthur becomes upset: The blood for sheer shame shot to his face, And pride. With rage his face flushed red. (I: 317-19) The poets repetition of the word pride is not casual: it is very purposeful. Pride is also a quality that Gawain possesses, and the poet wants to suggest that too much of this quality is harmful (echoing a sentiment shared by the Anglo-Saxons in earlier centuries). Because of his pride, King Arthur risks his life by accepting the challenge of the Green Knight. The friendly tap that Gawain received at the end could have been replaced with a very deadly blow, and Arthur (in place of Gawain) could have been on the receiving end. At the end of the romance, Gawain comes home with Lady Bercilaks girdle or belt as a reminder of his shame and as a reminder of his impurity. Arthur, however, changes the significance of the belt. He turns

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it into a sash and makes copies for each of his lords and ladies so that it instead becomes a symbol or emblem of courage and bravery. Arthur does not learn the lesson that Gawain has learned, and the King just laughs away Gawains own feelings and beliefs as to what the belt symbolizes. In other words, King Arthur is still full of foolish pride at the end of the tale. There is a very good reason, perhaps, why the Gawain poet depicts King Arthur so negatively. At the time the romance was written, King Edward III was King of England. Not everybody in England thought that Edward III was a good king. Many people living in northern England especially disliked him. King Edward III, though, was a fan of King Arthur. Edward III wanted to be like Arthur so much that he even constructed a huge Round Table for his knights (the Round Table was a concept that originated in the Arthurian tales) and created a special group known as The Knights of the Garter in 1348. These were special knights selected specifically by Edward III to serve him and England. The Knights of the Garter would wear a garter (or small belt) as a symbol of their belonging to King Edward IIIs special organization. That garter is not unlike the belt or sash that is described at the end of Sir Gawain. The Gawain poet probably disliked King Edward III enough that he would risk making fun of him indirectly by making fun of King Arthur in his romance since Edward III thought of himself as the new King Arthur. The poet may have been saying, then, that Edward III was an immature king who suffered from foolish pride.

The Middle Ages A HANDBOOK FOR SEDUCTION

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One of the amusing aspects of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is the way, or actually ways, that Lady Bercilak attempts to seduce the knight. Lady Bercilak tries to use every trick in the book: she is a persistent lover who cannot take no for an answer. She tries flattery and begging and acting hurt or jealous. She tries every way she can to move Sir Gawain, to get him to love her. In the first seduction scene Lady Bercilak is playful. She claims to be a captor and that Gawain is her captive (line 1225). In a way, this is almost literally true too. Gawain is without his clothes underneath the blanket of the bed. His modesty prevents him from leaving. He is trapped. He is a captive. The lady also plays on Sir Gawains reputation of being a Casanova (an 18th century Italian who wrote an autobiography about his sexual adventures) or Don Juan (a character who seduces many women in a 17th century Spanish story). In other words, she flatters him (III: 1252). Finally, she doubts him. She tells him that he cannot be the great Gawain that she has heard so much about (line 1293). She wants him to say, I am so. She wants him to play the part of the great lover, but he refuses. On the second morning Lady Bercilak continues to pretend that she doubts that her guest is really the great Sir Gawain (line 1481). But she moves from flattery to accusation. She tells Gawain that he does not use the language of love (line 1524), the courtly language that every noble knight should use. She expects, of course, for Gawain to uphold the reputation of using the courtly language of love. Her accusations become sterner when she then asks Gawain are you

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artless or do you deem me so dull? The second question would mean that Gawain has behaved poorly and ignobly, that he has not been chivalrous, that he has allowed a lady to feel bad. In other words, Lady Bercilak wants Gawain to feel guilty. Finally, she plays the part of the eager pupil or student: she asks Gawain to teach her about love (line 1533). Once again, she is flattering and praising Gawain by suggesting that he has superior knowledge about love. On the third morning, Lady Bercilak uses jealousy by suggesting that Sir Gawain already has a lover (line 1782). When Gawain denies that he has a lover, the lady plays the part of the sad, rejected lover (line 1795). Again, she plays upon Gawains feelings of guilt. Finally, since all other methods have failed, she resorts to bribery. She offers Gawain a magical belt that will make him invulnerable, that will allow him to receive the death-blow without harm. This is one temptation that Gawain cannot resist. Gawain is seduced. He is not seduced literally. He does not have sex with Lady Bercilak. But he is seduced spiritually. He loses his faith in God and resorts to pagan magic to help him out of his problems. The scenes of seduction are integral, then, for both the purpose of plot and the purpose of theme. Moreover, the seduction scenes add humor to the work. The reverse seduction situation is humorous in itself, but the reader should also laugh at the number of times that Lady Bercilak comes and the different approaches that she uses. We see her shifting and plotting and conniving to make Gawain relent, and we see the poor hero struggling to prevent himself from committing adultery. The scenes are full of comic tension: will she

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succeed? Will Gawain give in? How will she succeed? What will make Gawain fall? But what perhaps makes the scenes so humorous is that the males in the audience would probably more readily identify with Lady Bercilak while the females in the audience would more likely see themselves in Gawain. THE THEME OF FIDELITY As mentioned already, the major theme of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight concerns promises and pledges, oath-making and oath-breaking, faith and fidelity. These concepts were important to the medieval Anglo-Saxons of pagan times and to the Christians in England in the later part of the Middle Ages. For the Anglo-Saxons fidelity to their lord was not only important as a social concept, it was necessary for survival. Fighting was a part of life. One small tribe or kingdom was frequently at risk from invaders from either inside or outside of England. Enemies could easily defeat a tribe that suffered from internal fighting. The fidelity one expressed to ones lord symbolized, as the Christians saw it, fidelity to God. People believed that their kings were chosen by God to be their leaders (the Divine Right of Kings). Being unfaithful to ones lord or king was nearly as serious as being unfaithful to God. Fidelity, then, is a concept appreciated by both pagans and Christians; and in a romance where both pagan and Christian ideas are interwoven, a theme concerning fidelity is highly appropriate and intriguing. Gawain, as mentioned previously, agrees to bargains twice in the romance. On the first occasion, he agrees with the Green Knight to exchange deadly blows.

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Gawain gets to give the first blow; and the Green Knight, if he survives, gets to give a return blow in one years time. The oral contract that Sir Gawain makes with the Green Knight is a binding one; and the reader may notice how the Green Knight ensures that Gawain recites the agreement before the elf-man receives the blow from Gawains hands. Gawain thus makes a promise to the Green Knight both as a Knight who would be making a promise as a retainer to King Arthur and as a Christian who would be making a promise as a servant of God. To break the promise, Gawain would be breaking his loyalty both to King Arthur and to God. Even though accepting the blow means losing his life, Gawain must do it. Otherwise, he could no longer be one of Arthurs knights and he could no longer be a Christian. The second bargain that Gawain makes is to Lord Bercilak, a seemingly harmless bargain that seems to be made in fun. And even the fun seems to continue during the seduction scenes, as Gawain flirts with Lady Bercilak but avoids temptation. But the situation is not really all that fun for the hero. To sleep with Lady Bercilak would be a crime against Lord Bercilak, who is Gawains host and is, for the time being then, Gawains lord as well. So, if Gawain were to sleep with the lady, even the pagan Anglo-Saxons would have found fault with him. Of course, sleeping with Lady Bercilak is also the sin of adultery, a mortal sin in the eyes of Christians. The bargain that Gawain makes in the castle with Lord Bercilak, though, should be every bit as binding as the bargain made with the Green Knight. Gawain, is, after all, a pure knight, spotless in word and deed. He had never told a lie before. He had always kept his

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word. When Gawain breaks his promise to Lord Bercilak on the third day, when he does not give Lord Bercilak the belt that he had won that day, Gawain is not only telling a lie. He is breaking his promise, his pledge, his oath. He is acting in a way harmful to his lord (King Arthur) and his God. The reason Gawain breaks his promise is fear. He is afraid to die. Even when Gawain accepts Lady Bercilaks belt, he is breaking his promise to God. By accepting the belt, Gawain is thus relying on magic and, hence, evil to save him. A good Christian would trust in God. A good Christian would not fear death because he would have the glory of Heaven to look forward to. Gawains acceptance of the belt, then, is an act of sacrilege, an act against God. Gawain, then, actually makes two mistakes: (1) accepting the belt and (2) breaking his promise to Lord Bercilak. Both are serious to Gawain. Either one alone means that Gawain is no longer pure. At the end of the romance, Gawain becomes mad at the Green Knight when he does not deliver the deathblow. Gawain, though, is actually mad at himself. He knows he has done wrong: he knows he has committed a sin. Gawain thus leaves the Chapel of the Green Knight and returns to Camelot feeling a deep sense of shame. The message of the poet, however, is not that one should feel a sense of shame when one commits a sin. There is another way of looking at this romance: one should see Gawain as a young man who has made the hard transition from innocence to experience. In Part II of the romance the poet criticizes Gawain for getting in this predicament (this problem) on account of his empty pride (line 681). Like King Arthur, Gawain behaves childishly, immaturely, and

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suffers from pride. Gawain, the poet seems to be suggesting, needs to grow up. He needs to learn that too much pride is dangerous and foolish. He also needs to learn that he cannot be perfect, cannot be pure. To be human means to have imperfections and, sometimes, to make mistakes. At the end of the romance, Gawain has more of a mature view. He understands that he is not perfect. He is in sharp contrast to King Arthur, who had no such experience and who does not understand Gawains sense of shame. Arthur, therefore, remains immature. The poet seems to be saying that foolish pride is an attribute of the young. With maturity comes the sense of ones own fallibility and ones imperfection. But if one learns these lessons, then one will not foolishly risk his life for a matter that could be handled more wisely.

LECTURE 8
THE FIRST LECTURE ON THE CANTERBURY TALES GEOFFREY CHAUCER The country that produced the greatest amount of vernacular literature (that is, literature in the native language of a country, not Latin) during the Middle Ages was France. However, the two greatest writers of that time period, the two writers who are most critically acclaimed, were an Italian and an Englishman. The Italian was Dante Alighieri, who is best known for his La Divina Comedia (The Divine Comedy) that symbolically depicts Dantes spiritual crisis with a journey through Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven. The Englishman was Geoffrey Chaucer. Chaucer lived from approximately 1340 to 1400. He is the author of eight longer literary works, of which The Canterbury Tales is one, and numerous shorter literary works (mostly poems). The Canterbury Tales is certainly his best known work, and it was written in the 1390s (although Chaucer most likely had written several of the tales at an earlier time). During the Middle Ages, a person could not make a living as a poet or writer. Although Chaucer would receive pensions or other rewards from his writing, the amount would not be enough to live on. So, like other writers of the period, Chaucer could only write in his free moments because he had a passion to do so. In order to earn a living, he needed other employment. In his youth Chaucer spent a brief period of time in the military, but later he became involved in politics. Because of his knowledge of

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foreign languages, especially French, Chaucer was useful to the court of England; and both King Edward III and King Richard II employed Chaucer as an ambassador and in other positions to serve England. Chaucer also would also, on occasion, use the court as his audience, reading his poetry and tales for their amusement. One point must be made definitely clear about Chaucer. He was a Roman Catholic, like all Englishmen at the time, and he took his religious beliefs and convictions seriously. In The Canterbury Tales Chaucer often criticizes and satirizes (makes fun of) various religious members of the Church. But Chaucer is not being flippant or disrespectful to the Church itself: he is merely criticizing those who pretended to be pious for their own personal gain. Like Dante, Chaucer was well aware that many members of the Catholic Church were hypocrites. Such members of the Church abused their positions in the Church to satisfy their own greed or lust or pride. Also like Dante, Chaucer decided to write about the injustices and sacrileges that occurred during his lifetime as a means of combating them. But quite unlike Dante, who was quite severe and serious in his approach, Chaucer uses humor. He laughs at the hypocrisy of his day. But that does not mean he accepted it or supported it. Rather, it is just the reverse. Humor, both in Chaucers day and today, can be an effective way of criticizing people or actions. And it can possibly even be an effective way of bringing about change. If people recognize and ridicule the injustices of their day, then perhaps some of those injustices will eventually come to an end. Chaucer is a humorist (in some of his tales), but his humor has a very serious purpose.

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During the later Middle Ages, the personal faults or character flaws that were considered sinful were referred to as the Seven Deadly Sins (pride, greed, lust, anger, sloth, gluttony, and envy). The sins were considered deadly because they could lead a person to commit one of the mortal sins (the breaking of the Ten Commandments). For example, the sin of lust could lead to an act of adultery, or the sin of hate could lead to an act of murder. Adultery and murder are, according to Catholics, mortal sins: they are acts against Gods commandments. A sinner who breaks Gods commandments will go to Hell. To the Catholics, this is, metaphorically speaking, the death of the soul. It is mortal. It is deadly. Chaucer likewise felt that the Seven Deadly Sins were serious problems that all good Christians should try to avoid. In The Canterbury Tales Chaucer uses the Deadly Sins as a thematic and structuring device (1) to unite the tales and (2) to present a message concerning proper and improper behavior according to Christian standards. The Millers Tale, for example, concerns the Deadly Sin of lust; The Pardoners Tale focuses on greed; and The Nuns Priests Tale warns the reader against pride. Chaucers tales thus present a moral warning despite the entertaining and often light-hearted approach that he uses.

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Chaucers masterpiece begins with the author telling how he encountered a group of Pilgrims who were intending to make their way from Southwark (a suburb of London) to Canterbury to visit the shrine of Saint Thomas a Becket in the Canterbury Cathedral. Becket was murdered in the 12th century because of his religious principles and his opposition to King Henry II. Thus, Becket is considered a martyr and an important saint to England since he was English himself. So, many people in England during the Middle Ages would make a pilgrimage to his shrine. The character of Chaucer in the literary work is not actually like the real Chaucer, for Chaucer also satirizes himself (at times) by making his own fictional self far less clever. He becomes an object of humor. The fictional Chaucer joins the Pilgrims (approximately thirty of them), and they proceed by horseback to Canterbury. Before they begin, though, the Host of the Tabard Inn (a place to eat, drink, and sleep) proposes a game, a contest, to make the journey more pleasant and more entertaining. The Host (Harry Bailey) suggests that each pilgrim should tell two stories on the way to Canterbury and two more on the way back to London. The Host would act as judge, and whoever tells the best story would win a free dinner at the expense of the other pilgrims. The other pilgrims agree to the contest. In this manner Chaucer (the real one, the author) sets the stage for his collection of tales. Chaucer gives each of his Pilgrims a unique personality, and the tale that each Pilgrim tells also somehow fits the personality of the teller. The story-tellers, the Pilgrims, are described in The General Prologue to The Canterbury

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Tales; but each separate tale also has its own prologue or introduction wherein the reader will encounter a dialogue among the various Pilgrims. Through these prologues the reader can learn something about the personality of the Pilgrims (and which, if any, of the Seven Deadly Sins they are associated with). The use of the pilgrimage, though, is not very realistic. As the Pilgrims make their way on horseback to Canterbury, they often have to travel single-file on the narrow dirt lanes that connected one location to another. Under such circumstances, the distance between one rider and the next would often increase as the journey proceeded. And the distance between the lead rider and the one at the end would be rather considerable. In fact, the distance would be too great for all of the riders to hear the tale of any one particular story-teller. Even if the story-teller were to shout, the other riders would probably have difficulty in hearing the tale. Chaucer most assuredly knew this, but his reason for using the pilgrimage as a device outweighed his concerns for plausibility (for being realistic). During the Middle Ages the distinctions between the classes were rigidly observed. Aristocrats had as little to do with the working class as possible, and the working class shunned the peasants. There were almost no occasions when folks from a wide variety of classes and occupations would all gather together at once. The pilgrimage was the exception to this. The pilgrimage was (supposedly) a holy occasion when class distinction did not matter. Pilgrims could join a pilgrimage regardless of their class or occupation. Chaucers tales represent the entertainment of all the people throughout England, and he wanted his storytellers to represent all of the people of England as well.

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Historians often look at and cite The Canterbury Tales as being one of the best historical sources for describing and distinguishing the people of English society during the Middle Ages. By using the pilgrimage as a literary device, Chaucer was thus able to paint a vast but accurate portrait of English society as it probably existed during the 14th century. THE GENERAL PROLOGUE AND THE KNIGHT As already mentioned, The General Prologue sets up the meeting between the fictional Chaucer and the other pilgrims. They meet at the Tabard Inn, where the Host of that inn, Harry Bailey, suggests that each of the pilgrims should tell two tales on the way to Canterbury and two more on the way home to London (lines 793-96) as a way to make the journey more entertaining. The pilgrims agree to the suggestion. Actually, if each of the thirty pilgrims told four stories, The Canterbury Tales would then have included 120 stories. Actually, Chaucer only wrote two dozen tales. On the surface, then, The Canterbury Tales is an incomplete work; and some critics speculate that Chaucers advancing age and subsequent death in 1400 was the reason for this. Thematically, though, The Canterbury Tales is a complete work. Through his stories and tales Chaucer was able to examine the nature and various forms of sinful behavior and present a lesson on Christian morality. Quite possibly Chaucer viewed his work as complete. He did not see a need to add more stories to the work. Even the two tales that are incomplete (that have no ending) may have been presented in that way purposely for thematic purposes,

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for even the incomplete tales contribute to the characterization of the pilgrims. (In addition, the prologues to the incomplete tales also indicate that Chaucer had no intention of completing them.) At the end of his tales, Chaucer wrote a Retraction, which is basically an apology for any offense that he may have made (in his writing) against God. However, the Retraction is a fitting conclusion for The Canterbury Tales, which is, after all, a work that criticizes sinful behavior. The Retraction thus presents a proper model of behavior for Chaucers readers: all sinners (which would mean everyone) should regret their sinful behavior and confess their sins so that they may be forgiven. And the Retraction fittingly completes what The General Prologue begins. The larger part of this prologue is devoted to describing each of the pilgrims. Thus, The General Prologue is a collection of character portraits, pictures in words, colorfully depicting the society of fourteenth-century England. Chaucers Pilgrims represent both good and bad, both vice and virtue, in his day. Of course, since his goal is to depict (and perhaps ridicule or make fun of) sinful behavior, more of Chaucers Pilgrims suggest vice, not virtue. In short, they are rascals or scoundrels. They are sinful creatures who often do not recognize their sinful behavior and who do not have any concern about where they will go in the afterlife. As readers proceed through each Pilgrims description, they should determine whether each Pilgrim is a saint or a scoundrel, whether he or she is full of vice or full of virtue. Of course, the most obvious clue to look for is any mention of the Seven Deadly Sins. Many of the Pilgrims can be associated with at least one

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of these sins; some of them can be associated with several sins. The first Pilgrim that Chaucer describes is the Knight (lines 43-78). The Knight is a good character, a virtuous character; and the fact that Chaucer begins with him is symbolically significant. Chaucer begins with virtue. Virtue leads the way. The Knight thus represents the ideal that all others should follow. Of course, most of the other pilgrims do not follow the Knights lead, just as most people do not live up to the ideal of Christian virtue that is represented by Jesus Christ. Chaucers Knight is a worthy man, worthy of the esteem and praise of all Christians. He represents the ideals of medieval courtly chivalry (not unlike Sir Gawain), and Chaucer emphasizes the attributes of his truth and honor. The positive portrait of the Knight continues with a description of his successes on the Crusades. During the Middle Ages fighting in the Crusades was not only a way for a warrior to display his bravery, it was also a way to display Christian zeal (a passion for ones beliefs). The Crusades were holy wars. Medieval Christians believed there were only two kinds of people in the world: Christians and pagans. Pagans were often abused and sometimes given one of two choices: become a Christian or die. To rid the world of pagans was considered a holy act. So, Chaucer does not criticize his Knight for fighting in the Crusades. In fact, he applauds his efforts for fighting in many such battles as the act of a good Christian man (line 55). Chaucers Knight also knows humility (the opposite of pride), for Chaucer describes his behavior as being as meek as a maid (line 69). The boasting that

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was acceptable to Beowulf and the Anglo-Saxons is not, according to Chaucer, a proper way of behavior for the good Christian knight of the 14th century. The Knight never even speaks rudely or crudely (line 70) to any person he encounters. His language is as civil as his behavior. Chaucer is in earnest when he describes the Knight as being true, perfect, and gentle (line 72). He lives his life according to the principles of Jesus Christ, who is the model of behavior for every Christian. The dress and appearance of the Knight might puzzle the modern reader. The shirt or tunic that he is wearing is filthy and full of rust stains that came from the chain-mail shirt that he wore while he was on a Crusade. He has just arrived in London from that Crusade (line 77). But the Knights act is one of piety, not disrespect. So earnest is the Knight to pay his respect to God and to his saint, that, rather then rushing home to bathe and to put on clean clothes, his first duty is to thank God. After months (or sometimes even years) of hard traveling and fighting, a knight would naturally be extremely dirty and tired. However, the Knight decides to give up his own personal comfort for several more days in order to fulfill his religious duties, to pay his respect and give his thanks to God. Like the Knight at the beginning of the tale, Chaucer, in his Retraction, also pays his respects and gives his thanks to God: Thanke I oure Lord Jesu Crist and his blisful Moder and alle the saintes of hevene. The Canterbury Tales thus ends as it begins. complete. It is

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Another description worth examining in The General Prologue is that of the Prioress (lines 118-62). The Prioress is a Nun who is the head of a priory (a convent or nunnery). A Prioress might also be called a Mother Superior: she holds the highest position that a woman can obtain in the Catholic Church. A Prioress should, therefore, be a pious and holy lady. Chaucers Prioress, although she is not a bad person (she is certainly not a scoundrel like many of Chaucers pilgrims), is suspicious. Some of her behaviors or actions may not be very Christian. The initial description of the Prioress is innocent enough. She is sincere and shy, and her language is almost spotless (her mild oath of St. Loy St. Louis, perhaps is not a curse). Moreover, she sings the divine service (that is, the mass or Church service) reverently and piously (lines 119-23). Chaucer then adds some details that do not, at first, seem readily important. First, he mentions that she speaks French as it would be taught in English schools (probably more like the Norman French than like the Parisian French, which was considered the more proper and elite dialect). Second, the Prioress has very refined manners while eating: she never allows crumbs to drop from her mouth and never allows her fingers to touch her sauce (during the Middle Ages people usually ate with their fingers). In addition, she seems to behave like a lady in court (line 139-40). With these two details Chaucer seems to be suggesting that the Prioress has an aristocratic background. Usually, only aristocratic women would receive an education, and usually only aristocrats had such fine table manners. If she were an

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aristocrat, the reader then should wonder why she became a nun. The Prioress is also an animal lover. She cries whenever she sees a mouse (dead or alive) that has been caught in a trap (lines 144-45), and she feeds her small little dogs with meat, milk, and fine white bread (line 147). This is suspicious. Even in Chaucers time there were poor people. Even then, meat and fine white bread would be a rare treat for many of the peasantry and even for some of the working classes. A Prioress, like all nuns, was supposed to take the Vow of Poverty. That she even has meat and fine bread is somewhat suspicious. That she can afford to give these items to her dogs (when they should be given to the poor) is highly suspicious. The physical description that Chaucer provides indicates that the Prioress is attractive. She has, for example, a large and beautiful forehead (lines 153-54), which was considered an especially desirable trait for women at that time. But the most unusual detail about the Prioress is the gold brooch (jewelry or ornament) that she is wearing. The brooch has a large A on it, which stands for Amor (or Love). Underneath the letter is the Latin inscription, Amor vincit omnia (love conquers all). Of course, the love that the brooch signifies could be Christian love; but that is highly unlikely. The expression love conquers all is never used in Christian literature. It always suggests romantic love, earthly love. The brooch, therefore, could be a token of the Prioresss early life, of events that occurred before she became a nun, of events that may have included a male lover.

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During the Middle Ages a woman could become a nun if she was extremely religious and devoted to God. But many women became nuns because they were forced to do so. That usually occurred because a woman became pregnant without being married. If a woman did that in the Middle Ages, her life was basically over. No man wanted to marry a woman that was not a virgin, and the communities were usually small enough that it would be nearly impossible for a woman to hide her pregnancy. In the Carmina Burana, a collection of medieval songs, there is one song that is highly unusual because the speaker of the song (or poem) is female. She tells how her life is ruined, how even her own parents are turned against her, since she has become pregnant but is not married. The poem is a lament, in a way, over the loss of any chances of happiness that she may have had in her life. If we piece together the clues that Chaucer has left us, we can reconstruct the Prioresss life. The Prioress grew up in an aristocratic household and was probably very spoiled. At an early age she took a lover and became pregnant by him. He deserted her; and her parents then sent her to the convent, where she remained for the rest of her life. Even many years later, after she became head of that convent, she still misses the man who made her pregnant. She still carries the token of love that he, in all likelihood, had given her when they were lovers. The Prioress is not a bad person, but she does represent a person whose life was ruined by one of the Seven Deadly Sins: lust.

The Middle Ages THE MONK

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There are many characters in The Canterbury Tales who are just plain scoundrels. One of these is the Monk (lines 165-207). A monk was usually a member of the Catholic Church who devoted his life to God by remaining in a monastery (a building or collection of buildings usually built some distance away from cities or towns). The monk was not supposed to leave the monastery but usually spent his entire day (beginning before sunrise) in either prayer or work (such as tending a garden but could also include copying religious books in the monasterys library). A monk obeyed the Vow of Poverty and often a Vow of Silence (since they usually avoided contacts with outsiders). Chaucers Monk, on the other hand, is quite different. The Monk holds the position of Outrider. He is allowed to ride a horse outside of the monastery in order to conduct business for the monastery. But this particular Monk also takes advantage of his position by going hunting (line 166) and by keeping fine horses (line 168) and fine hunting dogs (line 190). The cautious reader might wonder where the monk got the money to buy expensive horses and hounds. The suspicions about him are confirmed when Chaucer notes that the Monk does not follow the rules of St. Maurus or St. Benedict, who were basically the Churchs authorities on how a monk should live and on how a monastery should be run. Chaucer adds a clever simile in his description: a monk out of a monastery is like a fish out of water (lines 179-80). But Chaucers Monk does not care what anybody says. He will not waste his time reading books or working with his hands

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(lines 185-87) as St. Augustine, another authority in the Catholic Church, suggested for all monks. In addition to spending money on hunting, the Monk has a gold pin with a love-knot on it. Perhaps he too had a lover (and broke his Vow of Chastity). Moreover, he is fat. He eats a lot, especially his favorite dish, roasted swan. So, in addition to breaking the rules of his monastic order, in addition to utilizing Church money for his own personal and selfish needs, the Monk may be guilty of the Deadly Sin of lust and he is most assuredly guilty of the sin of gluttony. Perhaps the Monks worst sin, though, is pride. He thinks he knows more than the authorities of the Church. He thinks he can use Church money any way he wishes, and he does not care who knows it. He likes to have the finest horses and the finest hounds when it comes to his favorite pastime, hunting. Most importantly, he does not seem to care that by abusing and offending the Church, he is also abusing and offending God. THE FRIAR An even worse scoundrel than the Monk is the Friar. A friar is similar to a monk in that he is supposed to live by certain vows, such as the Vow of Poverty and the Vow of Chastity. But unlike the monk, who would live and work in his monastery all his life, the friar was a beggar. He would exist by begging for whatever scraps of food people might give him. Each friar would be assigned a certain area or district to which he was restricted or limited (which is why he is also called a Limitor line 209). The true friar wished to show his

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devotion to God by giving up all earthly possessions and pleasures. Chaucers Friar, of course, is not a true friar. The Friar is a clever and sociable individual (line 211) who apparently knows something about the language of love. When Chaucer states that the Friar performed many wedding ceremonies for free (at his own cost line 213), the author is not suggesting that the Friar is a generous individual. Rather, Chaucer is suggesting that this honey-tongued (sweet-talking) Friar got these young girls pregnant and then married them off to other unsuspecting men so that the girls would not complain and get him into trouble. So, thats lust. Actually, there was some argument during the Middle Ages as to whether friars had the same authority as priests to perform wedding ceremonies and hear confessions. Many authorities thought that friars should not do so, but Chaucers Friar does anyway. He also hears confessions. A confession is when a person of the Catholic faith goes to confess his sins to a priest in private. The priest will usually tell the person to say some prayers as his penance, as a symbol of his or her sincerity that he or she is truly sorry for the sins. The Friar hears confessions for his own personal gain. He gives an easy penance (a small amount of prayers) to the sinner if the sinner gives him money (lines 223-26). Apparently, a large number of friars during the Middle Ages profited off (made money from) the easily persuaded and uneducated classes. So, theres the sin of greed. The Friar is a merry person, who likes to sing and party all the time. The Friar knows all the bars (taverns) in all of the towns (line 240) in his district. He

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likes to drink. He likes to get drunk. During the Middle Ages drinking to excess was one aspect of gluttony. Thus, there is one more Deadly Sin to add to the list. The Friar is such a complete rascal or scoundrel that even if he met a widow who was so poor that she did not even have any shoes, he would still talk her into giving him her last coin (lines 255-57). Again, this is an indication of his greed. But it is also an action that is directly opposite of the Christian virtue of charity. Good Christians are supposed to help the poor. By cheating the poor, the Friar is clearly acting against all that Christianity stands for. Unlike the poor friar that should wear rags (because he is giving up material possessions), Chaucers Friar wears a fine handsome robe or garment that should be worn by the Pope or by a judge (lines 263-64). This also smacks of (indicates) pride. The Friar is a symbol of the several abuses that were made against the practices of the Catholic Church during the 14th century. Actually, such practices had been going on for centuries, for even Dante, writing nearly two hundred years earlier, would criticize the friars and the way that many of them abused their positions in the Church in order to satisfy their own personal goals. THE STUDENT Other scoundrels in Chaucers work would include the Miller and the Pardoner (to be discussed later), but there are several other characters besides the Knight who could be added to the list of positive characters in The Canterbury Tales. One character who

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is far more positive than the Monk or the Friar is the Student. Chaucer introduces his Student as a Clerk at Oxford University (line 287). All university education in the Middle Ages was religious education. The Middle English word clerk should actually be translated into the Modern English word cleric. A cleric is someone who works for the Catholic Church, and most students would enter Church service, usually as a priest, after they graduated. However, not all university students, or clerics, became priests. Some became teachers; others entered other professions. Chaucers Student is something of a stereotype the type of student who devotes all of his life and energy to his studies. The typical student is usually poor, and whatever money he gets he spends on books. The Student here is no exception. Chaucer describes him as skinny, with the simile as lean as a rake (line 289), and as having threadbare or ragged clothes. The Student has not yet bothered to find himself a benefice (line 293), that is, a position in a church or parish, because he is too busy reading his books. And Chaucer adds that he would rather have twenty books next to his bed than rich clothes or a fancy musical instrument. Of course, books were extremely expensive at that time. Printing was still not available in England, and books had to be copied by hand (which took an extremely long time). An individual who owned twenty-five books would have to be wealthy: twenty-five books would be a large library for that time. Only the monasteries and the king could hold truly large libraries. The personality of the student is also largely positive. He speaks little, and when he does speak, it is reverently, graciously. His speech is full of moral

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virtue and the only occupation he gladly undertakes is teaching. Chaucer clearly has a great deal of sympathy for the Student, and perhaps Chaucer is describing himself, to some extent, when he was a younger man. Chaucer would certainly, at any event, share the young Students preoccupation with books and study; for Chaucer was a scholar himself. In The Millers Tale Chaucer presents a much different kind of student, the handy (clever and opportunistic) Nicholas. The Student or Clerk in The General Prologue is thus a contrast for Nicholas, who represents the worst side of students. The Student here, though, represents the virtuous student and the positive side of scholarship. THE PARSON The Knight was an aristocrat, a lord, who was brought up, most likely, in wealthy and comfortable circumstances. He was brought up learning the courtly ideals (virtues and behavior) from a very early age. Of course, as a member of the court, Chaucer knew many nobles; and he knew that some could be quite good and virtuous while others were guilty of vice. However, Chaucer was not an elitist. He knew that virtue could be found in the poor as well as the rich. And so, he created the Parson as another example of the Christian ideal. And, actually, the Parson is even more virtuous than the Knight is since the Parson lives much closer to the Christian ideal: he tries to be much more like Christ. A parson usually ran a small parish in a town. If he were assigned to a parish in one of the poorer towns, the parson would usually have trouble maintaining his

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parish and supporting himself. Such seems to be the case with Chaucers Parson. However, this does not trouble the Parson or affect his virtue. Chaucer is full of positive adjectives to describe the Parson: devout, kind, diligent, patient. He is a man of holy thoughts and holy deeds. He is a man who practices what he preaches: But Cristes lore and his Apostles twelve He taughte, but first he folwed it himselve. (lines 529-30) This line can be roughly translated as follows: He (the Parson) taught the teachings or lessons of Christ and His twelve Apostles, but he first followed those lessons himself. The Parson is also a learned man, an educated man, but he doe not allow his knowledge to swell his head. He is not full of pride. The Parson is also significant to the overall work of The Canterbury Tales because he represents those members of the Catholic Church who were good and pious and lived their lives according to Christian principles. Chaucer is not criticizing the Catholic Church in his literary work: he is criticizing those members of the Church who abused their positions and engaged in sinful acts against the teachings and beliefs of the Church. Chaucer notes that many people become sinful because their religious leaders are also corrupt: For if a preest be foul, on whom we trust, No wonder is a lewed man to ruste. (lines 503-04) This can be translated as follows: If a priest, whom we trust, is actually sinful and corrupt, then it is not

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surprising that an uneducated man should also become corrupt. The vices and abuses in the Church were many and severe, and Chaucer knew that such actions were harmful to the Church itself and to all Christians. There is no question that Chaucer would have wanted such abuses to stop. He knew that they had to stop if the Catholic Church were to survive and accomplish its goals. Although the Parson reflects the ideal of Christian virtue, his attitude toward sin and sinners is not unjustly harsh: And though he holy were and vertuous, He was to sinful men nought despitous. (lines 517-18) Translation: Although the Parson is a holy and virtuous person, he never criticizes or ridicules (makes fun of) sinful men. The Parsons attitude reflects, perhaps, Chaucers own attitude. Everybody sins (although some people sin far more so than others). But perhaps helping sinners, instead of punishing them, is a better way to decrease sinful behavior. Christians believe, after all, that God will punish sinners in the afterlife. So, like the Parson, the good Christian should set out to help and teach sinners, to lead them to a path to virtue, to lead them to a path toward God. In a sense, this is one of the goals of The Canterbury Tales. By creating fictional characters who represent a variety of sins and by narrating stories that reveal the foolishness of sinful behavior, Chaucer, the author, is teaching his readers in a discreet and gentle way: in his teching discreet and benign (line 520). Chaucer presents a moral lesson in an occasionally

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humorous and always entertaining way throughout his tales. THREE OTHER PILGRIMS The reader should also note some of the major characteristics of three other pilgrims because they are the tellers of the tales included in the text. (1) The Miller: A miller was someone who would grind corn or other grains in his mill. During the Middle Ages many millers had the reputation of being crooked (they cheated their customers). Chaucers Miller is a big and burly fellow who can break a door down with his head. Like the stereotypical miller, the Miller can steal from his customers by charging them three times as much as they should pay (line 564). This particular Miller also likes stories full of sin and obscenities (line 563). The story that the Miller tells is, for medieval standards, quite obscene. (2) The Pardoner: A pardoner was someone who worked for the Catholic Church. A good pardoner would give pardons (a certificate that would declare a person free from his sins) in exchange for a contribution to the Church. During the Middle Ages, though, many corrupt pardoners sold their pardons and kept the money for themselves rather than giving it to the Church. Chaucers Pardoner is corrupt: in fact, he collected more money in one day than an average person could earn in two months

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The Middle Ages (lines 705-06). The reader should also note that the Pardoner makes money by selling religious relics (line 703). A relic was an item that had magical or miraculous properties because it was once touched or owned by a saint or by Jesus Christ. The relics that the Pardoner sells are fakes: for example, the bones of saints are actually pig bones (line 702). (3) The Wife of Bath: Bath is a fashionable resort town in England known for its hot springs. The character called the Wife of Bath is named this because she has had five husbands (line 462). Chaucer describes her as being partially deaf (line 448), and how she became that way is explained later in the work. The author also describes her as being gap-toothed (line 470). According to medieval superstition, this meant that she was promiscuous (she liked to have sex). A pun is probably suggested in the line where Chaucer states that she has passed many a strange stream (line 466). (1) Although the line literally means she has traveled much, crossing over foreign streams or rivers, (2) the line can also refer to her urine, which is strange because she has some kind of venereal disease.

LECTURE 9
THE SECOND LECTURE ON THE CANTERBURY TALES THE MILLERS TALE: PROLOGUE The first story-teller in The Canterbury Tales is the Knight. The good Knight, a gentleman with courtly manners and disposition, tells a story of medieval romance, of how two young courtiers are in love with the same lady and how they fight against one another in order to gain her affections. Following this tale is the Prologue to The Millers Tale. In this Prologue the Host (of the Tabard Inn), who is also the judge in the story-telling contest among the Pilgrims, asks the Monk to tell the next story. But the Miller, who is exceedingly drunk, so drunk that he can barely stay on top of his horse, interrupts and swears and shouts that he wants to tell the next story: I can a noble tale for the nones, With which I wol now quite the Knightes tale. (lines 18-19) The word quite here means to repay, or even to get revenge. Essentially, the Miller is saying that he can tell a story that will surpass (be better than) the one told by the Knight. The Miller is bragging that he can tell a great story. The Host tries to persuade the Miller to keep quiet, but the Miller stubbornly announces that he will leave the party of Pilgrims if he is not allowed to tell his

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story. So, the Host reluctantly allows him to speak, adding that the Miller is a fool. The Miller admits that he is drunk on good Southwark ale, but that does not stop him from proceeding with his story. He announces that he will tell a legende and a lif (line 33). These are two different story genres (or types). A legend is a folk tale often involving a regional hero of the past or a regional superstition. A life is the medieval term for a biography. Actually, the story that the Miller tells is neither a legend nor a life. He is so drunk that he does not even know what kind of story he is telling. The Miller then angers the Reeve, another of the Pilgrims, by stating that his story concerns a carpenter and his wife and how a clerk (cleric) made a fool of the carpenter by sleeping with his wife. The reason why the Reeve becomes angry at this point can be found in The General Prologue: Chaucer describes the Reeve, who is a manger of an estate or other large piece of property, as a choleric (hot-tempered) man (line 589) who also occasionally works as a carpenter (line 616). The reader must try to imagine the circumstances of the story involving the Pilgrims. The Pilgrims had been drinking at the Tabard Inn prior to starting their journey. There they would talk and get to know something about each other. The Miller probably struck up a conversation with the Reeve and discovered that he, the Reeve, also works as a carpenter. The Miller may also have found out that the Reeve has a young wife and is quite jealous about her. So, the Miller may be purposely making fun of the Reeve in telling his story about a jealous old carpenter whose young wife is pursued by a young student (clerk).

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The third story in the collection is told by the Reeve, who is able to quite (to repay or get revenge against) the Miller by telling a story about a thieving miller who is cheated by two young men who visit him. Thus, Chaucers stories are not only unified by the use of Pilgrims as story-tellers who are in a contest among themselves. They are also unified by the use of similar themes or motifs. The use of the Seven Deadly Sins, as noted earlier, also serves to bring unity to the tales. In the case of the stories told by the Miller and the Reeve, the motif of quiting or getting revenge unifies the stories as well. The structural devices that bring unity to the tales are the following: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) Pilgrims as Story-tellers in a Contest Similar Themes and Motifs Seven Deadly Sins Personal Conflicts Among Pilgrims (Quiting) Similar Plot Situation

The first group of tales, which includes the tales told by the Knight, the Miller, and the Reeve, also gain structure or unity in the fifth way (listed above). All of them present the same basic situation of two men who fight or struggle against each other because they are in love with the same girl. That situation, though, takes quite different directions depending on who is telling the story. The serious aspect of the Millers humorous tale becomes evident when the Reeve, in his anger against the Miller, shouts that to tell such a story is a sin (line 38). The Reeve is right on two accounts: lust is one of the Seven Deadly Sins, and adultery is a mortal sin.

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The sinful nature of the story is also evident when the poet adds his comments at the end of the Prologue. Chaucer almost seems to be apologizing for the story. He says that he does not have any evil intentions (line 65) but is merely repeating the story (line 62) as he had heard it. Of course, Chaucer is not totally honest here. This is the authors device to allow him to explore a serious topic in a humorous way. Although Chaucer is not promoting sinful behavior, he is able to laugh at a tale like this one. But such laughter does not suggest acceptance of sinful actions. Chaucer was also aware that some members of his audience would find the stories offensive. Some members would not have a sense of humor about this topic. Therefore, Chaucer warns such readers that other tales concerning gentility and morality can be found elsewhere in the collection and that they can skip these morally offensive ones if they wish. But Chaucer also knew that most of his readers in the 14th century (not unlike the readers of the 20th century) would definitely not skip over the Millers Tale. Most would read it and enjoy it. THE MILLERS TALE: GENRE AND PLOT The Millers Tale belongs to the genre (the kind of literature) known as fabliau (by the way, please note that fabliau is the singular form and the word fabliaux (with an x) is the plural form). The word fabliau is a French word that has the same root as the English word fable, but the fabliau is a far different type of literature. Most medieval fabliaux are in French, but there are several written in English by Chaucer and other writers. Both the English and French stories of this type are usually very short and may or may not be written in

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verse (poetry). The characters are usually lower-class or working-class individuals and are almost always stereotypes. A stereotype is a character that usually presents the negative and often untrue generalizations about a group or race of people. The Step-Mother, for example, is often stereotyped as being mean or even evil. A Miller is often stereotyped as being a scoundrel who cheats his customers. The characters in the fabliaux, then, are simplistic and unrealistic. The plots of these stories are also quite simplistic and are almost always quite obscene: they are dirty stories. A typical plot may involve infidelity and a love triangle, a situation where three people are in love with at least one other in the group. The Millers Tale is the finest example of the fabliau from the Middle Ages, and the reason for this is that Chaucer excels in terms of both plot and character. His story is longer, his plot is more complicated, and his characters are richer. Whereas most of these stories depend upon a single love triangle, Chaucer actually has two. At the beginning of his story the three characters are John (the Carpenter), Alison (his wife), and Nicholas (the student). But as the story progresses, John moves out of the picture and a new triangle emerges: Alison, Nicholas, and Absolon (an assistant to a priest in a parish). But these two triangles are connected in several ways. Before the conflict begins, we discover that Nicholas is living in the home of John and Alison. Nicholas is a border. He probably is paying a small amount of rent to the Carpenter since students at that time usually did not have much money. The description of the Student in The General Prologue suggests this.

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The Carpenter may also feel that having a student in his household is something of an honor. Most people could not read or write at that time, and a person who could read was looked upon respectfully. In any event, the old Carpenter certainly seems to be foolish to have a clever young man in his home. After all, his young wife could possibly find the young man attractive. The story begins with Nicholas finding a chance to be alone with Alison one day while the Carpenter is off on some task or another. Nicholas asks Alison to be his lover. She, at first, refuses; but then she agrees to make love to Nicholas if he can find a way for them to be together without Alisons husband finding out. Nicholas then immediately begins planning a way to trick the Carpenter. He decides to begin by acting crazy. Before he does this, he stores some food in his room. Then he stays in his room for several days. The Carpenter thinks that Nicholas has not been eating all of this time. So, he thinks Nicholas must be quite sick. John, the Carpenter, eventually discovers that Nicholas always seems to be ghastly still, motionless, staring at the sky. The Carpenter enters his room and shakes him and asks him what is wrong. Nicholas then pretends to recover from his madness and claims that he has read a terrible message in the stars. During the Middle Ages astrology was popular, and most people were superstitious and believed that their fates or destinies were written in the stars. The Carpenter asks Nicholas what he saw; and Nicholas tells him that another great flood, a flood as great as the one that had occurred during the time of Noah, is coming. The Carpenter becomes worried and asks Nicholas if there is no remedy, no solution. Nicholas tells John that the three of them can be saved if John will

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follow his directions: he tells the Carpenter to purchase three large tubs or containers and to hang them from the rafters (the ceiling) of his home. On the night when the flood is supposed to come, the three of them will climb into the tubs and sleep there. Nicholas tells the Carpenter that they can be saved in this way only if the Carpenter promises not to tell anyone else. Nicholas, of course, does not want anyone telling the Carpenter that he is acting foolishly. During the night, when the three of them are lying secure in the tubs, the Carpenter falls asleep and begins to snore. Nicholas and Alison then climb down and are able to sleep with each other that night. The first love triangle ends there. The second one now begins. A silly individual named Absolon works at the county parish near the home of John and Alison. Absolon is greatly attracted to Alison and wants to be her lover even though she has repeatedly told him that she is not interested. Anyway, Absolon hears that John has not been seen recently (because he was busy making arrangements with the tubs), so he thinks the Carpenter is away from town. During the night, when Nicholas and Alison are in bed together, Absolon goes to the window and asks Alison for a kiss. Because it is very dark and Absolon cannot see Alison at all, Alison decides to play a joke on Absolon. Instead of sticking her head out of the window, Alison sticks out her naked rear end. Absolon thus kisses her ass instead of her lips. Absolon then overhears Nicholas and Alison laughing at the joke, so he decides to get revenge. He goes to a blacksmith and asks to borrow a red-hot iron poker (an iron blade that is heated from the blacksmiths

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fire). Absolon then goes to Alisons window and asks for another kiss. Nicholas cannot resist playing a joke on Absolon, so this time Nicholas puts his own naked rear end outside the window. When Absolon comes close, Nicholas farts (in the Middle Ages there are many jokes about farting); but Absolon gets revenge by striking Nicholas with the hot iron. Since Nicholass rear end is burning, he starts crying Water! The Carpenter thinks the flood has come when he hears Nicholas crying out, so he cuts the ropes that are holding up his tub. The tub, of course, does not float on water. Instead, it comes crashing down to the floor. The people of the town hear all of the noise. They rush to Johns house and end up laughing at John for believing that a great flood was coming. Thats how the story ends. THE MILLERS TALE: CHARACTERS In addition to making the plot more complex by adding a second love triangle, Chaucers tale also surpasses others of the genre in the area of characterization. Most fabliaux use stereotypes and stock characters. A stock character is a simple, twodimensional (or flat) character like the stereotype. Such a character is not realistic but is usually dominated by a single character trait: foolishness, greed, generosity, naivete, or some other quality. The term stock character is actually taken from drama and the theater, especially melodrama, where stock characters are common. For example, the villain could always be expected to dress in black, have a long, dark curly mustache, and always chase after an innocent young maiden. The hero

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would always be strong and courageous but also honest. During the Middle Ages a typical stock character in literature would be the cuckold. The cuckold was always an older man who had married a very young wife. The dominant character trait of the cuckold is jealousy. He is afraid that a younger man will take away his wife, so he always keeps her locked up and away from other people. There is a cuckold in The Millers Tale, but he is not the typical stock character of medieval literature. Actually, to understand the complexity of Chaucers fabliau, one first has to consider the relation of the story to the other tales of the work. As already mentioned, the first story in the work is a medieval romance where two young men are in conflict with one another over the love of a fair maiden. In The Millers Tale we see the same situation: two young men, Nicholas and Absolon, are both in love with the same girl, Alison. However, Nicholas and Absolon are not knights or nobles, and their behavior is not courtly behavior at all. Moreover, Alison is not a fair maiden, she is not an aristocrat: she is a married woman and her husband is a carpenter, one of the working class. Thus, The Millers Tale is not a medieval romance, but it is a parody of medieval romance. The Miller, you should remember, is also trying to quite or repay the Knight. He is trying to outperform the Knight. He is trying to tell a better story. But the Miller is drunk. He is of a low-class mentality. And he is obscene. So, the story he tells is a lower-class and obscene version of the Knights tale.

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The character of Alison, for example, thus becomes a parody of the fair and virtuous maiden that we see in medieval romances. In many, almost all, medieval romances the poet will use similes to describe the beautiful maiden. Usually, in the simile, the poet will compare the beauty of the young maiden to the beauty of nature: her eyes are like blue pools of shining azure, her lips are red like a rose in full bloom, her skin is as white as the fresh fallen snow of winter. Such similes become commonplace and traditional in the romances. Chaucer parodies the use of these similes in his description of Alison. For example, her body is small and gentle like that of a weasel (line 126). A weasel is a nasty and vicious creature, and so Chaucers simile may have a positive denotation (the slender waist) but a negative connotation (nasty, vicious, dirty, smelly). No medieval woman would have wanted to be compared to a weasel. Another example of a suspicious metaphor is the comparison of Alison to a piggesnye (line 160), a pigs eye is a common flower; so that is to say that Alison was just a common girl. But, of course, there is also the connotation of the word pig: dirty, gluttonous, fat. Perhaps the oddest simile that Chaucer uses comes when he compares the softness of her skin to the wool of a wether (line 141). The word indicates a ram that has been castrated, and perhaps Chaucer is foreshadowing the near castration that Nicholas receives later in the story. (I was going to say later in the tale, but that would be a bad pun but one that would have been appreciated during the medieval period.) In any event,

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the dignified lady of romance would hardly wish to be compared to a gelded ram. Although the Miller is the supposed teller of this tale, we can see that the actual author is Chaucer, having fun in parodying the typical elements of medieval romance. Chaucer also comes out directly and informs his readers that Alison is anything but innocent: she has a lecherous eye (line 136), she is always looking out for young men in a sexual way. That seems more like the Miller speaking. Chaucers character of Alison is anything but innocent. She is a wanton girl who only puts Nicholas off at first because she is afraid of her husband: she thinks he would kill her (line 188). She is as responsible for the adultery as Nicholas is. JOHN, THE CARPENTER The character of John, the Carpenter, also is more complex than the traditional stock character of the cuckold. At first, the character of the Carpenter does seem to be flat or two-dimensional: Jalous he was, and heeld hir narwe in cage. (line 116) That is, the Carpenter was jealous and held Alison tightly as if she were trapped in a cage. This is the typical description of the cuckold. Moreover, Chaucer tells us that he is rude of wit (line 119); he is just not very smart. Again, this is a typical trait of the cuckold. But John also has some noble traits that we do not find in traditional cuckolds. First, Chaucer states

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that John loved Alison more than he loved his own life (line 114). That is to say, John loves Alison more than he loves himself. The traditional cuckold is a selfish fellow, but John seems to be more than that. When Nicholas first tells John that a great flood is coming, Johns first concern is for his wife: Allas, my wif! (line 414). The carpenter is upset, but he is also obviously putting the safety of his wife above his own. He truly cares about her. Moreover, the Carpenter also seems to truly care about Nicholas. When he hears that Nicholas has been locked in his room for days without eating, John worries about him: I am adrad, by Saint Thomas, It stondeth nat aright with Nicholas. God shilde that he deide sodeinly! (lines 317-19) In other words, John is saying that he is afraid that things are not right with Nicholas; God forbid that Nicholas should die suddenly. The Carpenter is fond of Nicholas and wants to help him. He rushes to Nicholass room to see if he can help the poor student with whatever is bothering him. Another set of lines that adds depth to the portrait of the Carpenter comes when the Carpenter expresses his belief that man should place limits on his knowledge: Men sholde nought know of Goddes privetee. Ye, blessed be always a lewed man That nought but only his bileve can. (lines 346-48)

The Middle Ages These lines can be roughly translated as follows: Men should not know anything about the private knowledge of God. Yes, the only truly blessed person is the ignorant man Who knows nothing but his Bible and Christian beliefs.

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The Carpenter is a homespun (rural) philosopher who believes that ignorance is bliss. He believes that too much knowledge is dangerous. There are secrets in the world that should be kept secret. To try and uncover those secrets is like trying to be God. This is the sin of Eve (in a way) who ate the forbidden fruit from the Tree of Knowledge. She wanted to know more than was allowed for her to know. During the Middle Ages some people felt that alchemists, individuals who tried to turn lesser metals (like lead) into gold, were like sorcerers in league with the devil. It is evil to try to know too much. Man should learn to accept his place in life. Man should learn to accept his fate. To try and learn too much or to try and to change fate was to go against God. The Carpenter is superstitious. He may like Nicholas, but he is also afraid of his knowledge. That is why he thinks, at first, that Nicholas is mad when he is staring at the sky: God has punished him for trying to know too much. Readers of The Millers Tale can thus gather a fairly complete understanding of the Carpenter. We understand his motivation. We can appreciate his concern for Nicholas and his love for Alison. He is not a truly bad person; and in some ways he is likable. But he is foolish, and he is gullible.

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The character of Nicholas is intriguing not so much because he is a parody of a medieval courtier but because he is a contrast to the Student of The General Prologue. Whereas the Student is good, Nicholas is not. Although the modern reader may be reluctant to label Nicholas as truly evil, from the medieval Christian viewpoint he is a sinner. He has lust for Alison, and he commits adultery (a mortal sin) with her. Yet the character of Nicholas is also appealing to many readers. He is, after all, a clever individual. His use of the flood story is truly remarkable and creative. By using the story of the flood, Nicholas thus considers, evaluates, and makes use of the following: (1) The Carpenters knowledge of Christian stories (2) His fear of Divine Retribution (the vengeance of God) (3) His concern for Nicholas (4) His love of Alison (5) His superstitious nature (6) His belief that a Clerk can foresee the future by studying the stars Further, a reader may appreciate Nicholass persistence and patience. Nicholas takes some time to figure out a plan to be with Alison, and then he takes several days to prepare for it (by being in his room for several days as he waits for the Carpenters concern to grow). Then, he has to wait an additional period of time while the Carpenter gets the provisions (food) and the tubs (or

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containers) ready. And he does all of this so that he can be with Alison for one night. On the other hand, the reader may also see Nicholas as being opportunistic and cynical. He takes advantage of John. Not only is he guilty of adultery, but he is also guilty of breaking the accepted standards of polite and decent behavior. He is a guest in Johns home, and John is his host. Although John certainly seems to do his part according to the customs of hospitality, Nicholas hardly acts accordingly as a guest should act. He is ungrateful. He is rude. Moreover, for Nicholas, his attempt to seduce Alison is a game: A clerk had litherly biset his while, But if he coude a carpenter bigile. (lines 191-92) Roughly translated, Nicholas is declaring that a student has wasted his time in study if he does not even know enough to beguile (cheat) a carpenter. In other words, the seduction of Alison becomes a challenge for Nicholas, a way for him to reveal how clever he is. Thus, we see Nicholas not only as a character consumed by lust. Even more so, he is a character consumed by pride. Theres an old expression in English: pride goeth before a fall. If someone is proud, it will only be a short matter of time before that person experiences some sort of humiliation. That certainly is true in Nicholass case. Nicholass attempt to go one better than (to outdo) Alison with her trick on Absolon is another example of his pride. He, of course, thinks that he is much more clever than Absolon. He thinks that Absolon can never beat him when it comes to jests or

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tricks of that sort. So, Nicholas does fall. His burning bottom is also the fall of his pride. ABSOLON, THE PARISH ATTENDANT The character of Absolon is used for comic relief. He is meant to be funny. Of course, he is also used for the purpose of parody. The tale told by the Knight had two young lovers pursuing the maiden, so The Millers Tale needed a second lover as well. Chaucer tells us that Absolon is a parish clerk (line 204). Although the word clerk here actually should be translated as cleric, Absolon is not a student. He is a clerk in the sense of desk clerk (office worker), but it is a clerical position since he works in a parish (church) for a priest. But that does not mean he has received a university education. Rather, he does office work (which could include secretarial work). But such work would also include straightening things up, keeping the parish tidy and clean, or even running errands for the priest. Chaucer does tell us that he could write legal documents (line 219), so he can read and write. He does have some education. But he also works as a barber (line 218): he cuts hair. A student with a university education would usually not engage in such an activity. But the word clerk does connect Absolon with Nicholas. Chaucer wants us to compare, and contrast, them. Probably the best word to describe Absolon is effeminate. He is quite particular or fastidious about his dress and appearance: he obviously spends a great deal of time caring for his hair, which is gold and curly and parted neatly and evenly (line 208). A reader must

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remember that bathing was not a daily habit back then, and keeping every lock of hair in place was not considered a priority for most men. Absolon is an elegant dresser (line 211) who wears the latest fashions. The initial description of Absolon also contains some foreshadowing. Chaucer informs the readers that Absolon is squeamish of farting (lines 229-30), that is, he does not like or is easily bothered by farting. The reader is meant to remember this when Nicholas farts in Absolons face toward the end of the story and imagine the disgust and anger that Absolon feels. Absolon is not a likable character, and the poet intends for us to laugh at him when he receives the foul blast of air from Nicholas. The initial description of Absolon is further developed by his actions later in the story. As he prepares for his meeting with Alison, he wants his breath to be sweet. Since there was no toothpaste or mouthwash in those days, the use of spices or other natural substances was common. But Absolon overdoes it. First he puts some spice in his mouth, then he takes some licorice, and finally he adds some clover (lines 582-84). He goes overboard. He is too fastidious. Absolons use of language is also a parody of that spoken by a lover in a medieval romance. As noted earlier, in medieval romance the description of a lady should include the use of metaphors and similes: the lady should be compared to the beauties of nature. Absolon compares Alison to food: he calls her honeycomb and cinnamon. Although the word honey would be acceptable in the 20th century for addressing a love, that was not the case in the age of Chaucer. Absolons uses the language of the kitchen, not the language of love. He is not a very clever lover.

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The language and imagery of the foolish lover is even further enhanced by Absolons insistence that he is working so hard for her sake: he tells her that he is sweating wherever he goes because of his love for her, that he is melting because of her (lines 594-95). Although Absolon is trying to say that he has become weak because of his love for Alison, the image of the sweaty lover, whose bodily smells are probably mixed with the perfume he is wearing, is not an image that will make a woman fall in love. Basically, he sweats and stinks; and he is making a point of bringing this to Alisons attention. Of course, the most important aspect of the character of Absolon is that he is a figure of humor. Chaucers careful and detailed imagery helps us to imagine the effeminate and squeamish lover hungrily awaiting the kiss at Alisons window. But Absolon is also a rich character because he provides a contrast to Nicholas. NICHOLAS VERSUS ABSOLON As suggested, the character of Absolon is a contrast to the character of Nicholas. In this sense, we could say that Absolon is a foil for Nicholas. A foil is a minor character that is used as a contrast to the protagonist in order to show the positive qualities of the protagonist in an even stronger way. A chart of the similarities and differences between Nicholas and Absolon could prove useful:

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Absolon Clerk (204) Suitor to Alison Maid (599) Fetisly (211) Spice (582) Licorice (582) Collects Clothes (210) Cutting Hair and Letting Blood (218) Fiddle, Guitar (226) High Singing Voice (224) Dances in Oxford Manner (221) Unsuccessful Lover

Both Nicholas and Absolon are suitors to Alison, and Chaucer uses many words or related ideas (signs) to connect them in other ways. The most significant word that connects the two of them is clerk (or cleric). Although both of them can be called clerks in the Middle Ages, the meaning is different. Nicholas is a clerk in the primary sense of the word: he is a university student whose studies included clerical (or Church) subjects. Absolon, on the other hand, is an assistant or secretary to a priest. Absolon has a lower position in society than that of a student. Chaucer also uses the word maid (suggesting maiden) to connect the two suitors. Nicholas is an attractive person: his face is described like that of a maid. This was considered a positive quality, a compliment, in the way that Chaucer uses it. The poet is suggesting that Nicholas is naturally attractive. But with Absolon this key word, maid, is used in dialogue.

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Absolon tells Alison that he can eat no more than a maid can. This suggests Absolons effeminate quality: he is a weak, languishing lover. Other words also connect Absolon and Nicholas, but Absolon is just a pale reflection of Nicholas. Both Nicholas and Absolon like music, for example. They both play musical instruments and like to sing. However, Nicholas sings in a sweet, natural voice. But Absolon sings in a high, unnatural voice (a falsetto). Perhaps the most distinguishing contrast is the mention of Oxford University. Absolon may dance in an Oxford manner, but he has never attended Oxford University. Nicholas, on the other hand, did receive a university education, probably at Oxford (since that University did exist in the Middle Ages). To sum up, Nicholas is a natural person and a successful lover. Absolon, in contrast, is too artificial. He is too concerned about appearance: clothes, hair, and mannerisms. He is a dandy. He is unnatural. Nicholas is educated and clever. His positive qualities are internal, natural. Medieval audiences would naturally approve of Nicholas, the protagonist, but laugh at Absolon, the antagonist. MORAL LITERATURE During the Middle Ages and for many centuries thereafter, scholars and critics equated good literature with moral literature. Good literature should not only entertain, but it should also promote a positive moral lesson. The basic outcome for such literature would be that good characters would be rewarded and bad (or evil) characters should be punished. We can also refer to this idea as the reward and punishment theme.

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Another term that is sometimes used to suggest this idea is Poetic Justice. Poetic Justice suggests or implies that there is some force in the universe (God or Fate, usually) that will punish the bad or reward the good when man cannot do so himself. In The Millers Tale, however, the sense of morality, the notion of poetic justice, seems only partially in effect: (1) John, the Carpenter, is punished at the end of the story: he becomes a cuckold and the laughingstock of the community. But he is not a bad or evil person. He is just foolish or stupid. In his situation, then, stupidity (not evil) is punished. (2) Alison, on the other hand, is from the medieval Christians point of view, guilty of the sins of lust and adultery. Yet she receives no punishment. She does, however, receive a reward: she is able to satisfy her lust and sleep with Nicholas. (3) Absolon is guilty of lust and attempted adultery. However, he is punished in several ways: (a) he does not get to sleep with Alison, (b) he kisses Alisons rear end, and (c) he suffers the indignity of receiving a fart in his face. (4) Nicholas, who is guilty of lust and adultery, is additionally guilty of pride. However, he is both rewarded and punished. His reward is that he gets to sleep with Alison, but his punishment is the red-hot iron that is slapped against his backside. Theres a joke that has been told about Nicholas for many years now: Nicholas is the one who suffers in the end.

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A reader should not be surprised, though, that the tale is not a moral one. The teller, after all, is the Miller, a scoundrel full of sin and harlotry.

LECTURE 10
THE THIRD LECTURE ON THE CANTERBURY TALES AN INTRODUCTION TO THE NUNS PRIESTS TALE Traveling along with the Prioress (or Nun) are three priests, but only one of them tells a story in Chaucers collection. Absolutely nothing about the personality of the Nuns Priest is provided in The General Prologue. But we can figure out from the kind of story that he tells that the Priest is basically a good and friendly individual. His story contains many literary references, so that would suggest that the Priest has done much reading. And the story also contains some comic touches, which would indicate that the Priest also has a fine sense of humor. In the complete work of The Canterbury Tales, the tale told by the Priest follows one told by the Monk. The Monks Tale is actually a collection of very short tragedies; and the tone of these tales is dark and gloomy and leaves the Pilgrims feeling sad or low in spirits. The Host finds the tragedies unbearable, so he asks the Priest to brighten their spirits by telling a light or joyous tale. The good-natured Priest is quite happy to comply, and so he tells a story about a rooster (a male chicken) and a fox. The story belongs to the genre (literary type) known as the beast fable. Fables, stories in which animals speak and assume other human characteristics, have existed in Western Civilization for many hundreds of years. The ancient Greeks told fables, and the stories

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usually attributed to the Greek writer Aesop (who may or may not have really existed) were written around 600 BC. The old fables usually have a moral, a lesson about life, which usually appears at the very end of the story. In The Tortoise and the Hare, for example, a tortoise (or turtle) beats a rabbit (or hare) in a race. The rabbit becomes too confident and thinks he can take a nap because he is so far ahead of the tortoise. While the rabbit is sleeping, the tortoise passes him and wins the race. The moral of the story is this: slow and steady wins the race. In other words, one does not need to hurry; one does not need to be the fastest; as long as someone perseveres in his course, he will be successful. Beast fables were extremely popular in the Middle Ages, and many were written down. Chaucers fable, however, is much richer, much more elaborate and sophisticated, than other medieval fables. Of course, Chaucer is a master craftsman, a literary artist, who wants to present fascinating and rich stories to his readers. So, he actually incorporates (or includes) aspects of other literary genres popular in the Middle Ages, especially the Dream Vision and the Bird Debate. THE FAIRY TALE OPENING Chaucer begins The Nuns Priests Tale with the kind of opening that would later be typical in fairy tales. The story begins with a description of an old widow (lines 1-28) who is rather poor and lives with her two daughters in a small cottage. They own just a handful of animals: three pigs, three cows, a sheep, and some chickens. They barely make a living.

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The light-hearted Priest describes her, though, in a positive and somewhat humorous way. She never becomes ill from over-eating [because she never has enough food to eat too much of] and never gets the gout, a disease that generally comes from eating too much rich food [because she cannot afford rich food]. Instead, she lives simply on milk and brown bread with, occasionally, some bacon or an egg. The tone of the opening lines prepares the reader for a story that will be unreal, a fantasy, and that will be humorous. The opening message also seems to suggest that one should not look for the negative aspects in a situation. One should look for the positive. However, as the story that follows suggests, on occasion one does need to see the negative in order to be aware of the trouble that may follow. The main character of the story is not the widow, though. The main character is her rooster, Chauntecleer. CHAUNTECLEER, THE ROOSTER As mentioned, the animal characters in fables take on human characteristics. They talk like humans. They act like humans. Part of the humor in The Nuns Priests Tale derives from the fact that the animal characters sometimes act very much like animals and sometimes act very much like humans. The initial description of Chauntecleer, the rooster (lines 29-47), mark him as a good, reliable cock (rooster). Chantecleer sings with a merry voice, and he always crows exactly on the hour. Thus, he becomes like a clock or timepiece for the widow and her daughters.

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Chaucer also describes Chauntecleer physically as having fine colorful feathers and other splendid features. However, there is something about Chauntecleers description here that should remind the reader of character descriptions in previous tales: Chaucer uses similes. As mentioned on previous occasions, similes were often used in medieval romances, especially for the purpose of describing a beautiful medieval maiden. As also mentioned before, a parody of using similes appears in The Millers Tale in the description of Alison. Perhaps the Priest uses similes here to describe his animal characters also as a form of parody. The Priest, of course, would remember the tales told by the Knight and the Miller. And the Priest would naturally want to surpass them, to tell a better story. After all, this is a story-telling contest. So, the Priest describes the roosters comb (the natural ridge or crest atop his head) as being redder than fine coral and shaped like a castle wall. His nails are whiter than a lily flower and his feathers are like polished gold. The humor occurs here, in part, not only because the Priest is describing a bird. He is also describing the male, the hero of his story, instead of the female, with similes that compare him to the beauty of nature. Actually, though, there is some logic to this choice. In the animal kingdom (especially in the case of birds), the male is usually far more beautiful than the female. Chauntecleer is a lucky rooster. He has seven wives, seven chickens for his own pleasure. His favorite is Dame Pertelote.

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The humor in the descriptions continues with the portrayal of Dame Pertelote, the chicken. The Priest describes her as courteous, discreet, and debonair. She is described with the qualities of highborn ladies, the qualities of fair maidens in courtly romances. The reader may recall the description of the Prioress in The General Prologue. The Prioress, too, was something of an aristocrat. She, too, displayed the qualities and mannerisms of a courtly maiden. The Priest could, perhaps, be having some gentle fun here by modeling his chicken-heroine on a real-life model, the Prioress. The Priest, after all, is travelling as one of the Prioresss party. He would know her quite well and would readily see her mannerisms and, of course, the questionable gold brooch that she wears. The humor continues even more in the Priests way of describing the relationship between Chauntecleer and Pertelote. She represents the ideal of fidelity. She has loved Chauntecleer since she was seven days old (line 53) and has remained faithful to him ever since. Other stories in Chaucers collection deal with marriage and fidelity, and the Priest could also be making some humorous comments about those stories. Fidelity in a chicken is humorous enough. But what can we say about the rooster? Is Chauntecleer faithful? Hardly! He has, after all, six other wives. THE DREAM VISION The story of The Nuns Priests Tale is actually quite simple. A rooster has a dream that a ferocious animal will attack him. So, the rooster

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becomes afraid. The roosters wife, though, argues that dreams are nonsense and not to be believed. Later, the rooster encounters a fox that grabs the rooster by his neck and runs off with him. The rooster, by his cunning, is able to escape from the fox. Further, he has learned a lesson about trusting dreams, but not trusting foxes. The dream, the vision of the future, is, therefore, what initiates (begins) the plot. The dream is also important to the message of the story. The use of the Dream Vision in literature was quite popular in the later Middle Ages, especially in England and France. In fact, Chaucer wrote three other long works of literature that are also dream visions: (1) The Romance of the Rose, (2) The Book of the Duchess, and (3) The House of Fame. Of course, the dream is an intriguing way for authors to explore flights of fancy (fantastic ideas); and many writers throughout the centuries would use the dream idea to begin or to form the basis for their stories. Although the Dream Vision was not a popular device in Old English literature, The Dream of the Rood does provide evidence that even the early Anglo-Saxons were fascinated and captivated by their dreams. Of course, mans fascination with dreams goes back to ancient times. The stories of the Old Testament, for example, contain many examples where dreams play an important role. For both ancient and medieval man there was a shared belief that dreams could provide clues about the future, that dreams were actually visions of events that were yet to happen. Toward the end of the Middle Ages in England a new type of literature became common: the stories of the mystics. The mystics believed that their dreams, their visions, came directly from God. God was

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instructing them, telling them what to do, through their dreams. Such mystics included Julian of Norwich, Margery Kempe, and Walter Hilton. In short, medieval people believed that dreams were somehow connected to another world, a spiritual level of existence that could provide insight and meaning to the everyday world when they were awake. THE BIRD DEBATE Another form or genre of literature popular in the Middle Ages was the Bird Debate. Important or serious topics would form the basis of a debate wherein two characters, both birds, would take opposing viewpoints. One of the earliest examples of the bird debate during the Middle Ages was written in the late 12th century and is entitled The Owl and the Nightingale. Although the animals, the birds, might squabble or fight like two wild creatures, their topics were usually serious subjects of debate. In The Owl and the Nightingale, the Owl is a serious character but the Nightingale is rather carefree and merry. Their debate concerns poetry. The Owl argues that religious poetry is superior to love poetry, but the Nightingale argues for love poetry. During the course of their debate, they raise several important philosophical and religious issues. The best example of a Bird Debate is in Chaucers Nuns Priests Tale. During his dream about a wild animal that attacks him, Chauntecleer makes loud noises that disturb his wife, Dame Pertelote. The chicken asks the rooster why he made such a loud noise, and Chauntecleer tells her about his nightmare. Chauntecleer even describes the colors of his attacker: a yellowish-red color with

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black tails and ears (just like a fox). The rooster then adds that he is greatly frightened because he believes that his dream will come true. Dame Pertelote, however, does not believe that dreams are visions of the future. Therefore, she argues with Chauntecleer that he should not be so silly as to be frightened by his dream. Thus, the Bird Debate begins. The topic of the debate, then, is whether dreams are really visions of the future. Such a topic was actually debated during the Middle Ages, and Chaucers tale provides the modern readers with a good idea of how debates proceeded at that time. One quality about this bird debate that the modern reader should immediately notice is that the woman (Dame Pertelote) takes the practical or more realistic viewpoint and argument whereas the man (Chauntecleer) takes the more imaginary or unrealistic viewpoint. In the 20th century the two sides might have been switched around, but during the Middle Ages women were often noted as being more practical, more sensible, and more realistic than men were. During the Middle Ages the way to win a debate depended on citing authorities, by quoting learned philosophers and writers who had written on the topic before. A good debater would not only cite many authorities, but he would try to cite the best authorities. Of course, during the Middle Ages the most important authority, the most important book, was The Book, The Bible. The Bible, Christians believe, was written by (or at least inspired by) God. And, of course, for Christians God is the absolute Authority. Dame Pertelote begins her side of the debate by explaining the cause of dreams. Again, she takes a practical, almost scientific, stance. She explains that

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dreams occur when a person eats too much (line 103). That is actually true. A person who suffers from indigestion will usually suffer from many dreams or nightmares. Pertelote also explains that a persons psychological state (which she describes as the humours of the body liner 105) also affect ones dreams. This also can be true. Pertelote then cites an authority, Dionysius Cato (line 120). However, her quote is short: she tells her husband that Cato instructed that people should not believe in dreams. Although Cato was a popular writer during the Middle Ages, he is not the best of authorities. Thus, Pertelotes argument is not very strong. Pertelote ends her side of the debate by instructing Chauntecleer to take some laxatives to help him with his indigestion. In fact, she is also knowledgeable about herbal medicine and can instruct her husband which herbs to take in order to purge (to clean out) his system. Chauntecleer now begins his side of the debate. He begins by telling his wife that there are many other authorities who have stated that dreams are signs of the future (significaciounes line 159). And these authorities have told true stories to prove this idea: (1) Chauntecleers first authority is not directly named (although the footnote in the text suggests that the authority was the Classical Roman writer Cicero). The rooster then retells the story (from his authority) of two travellers who got separated and how one of the travellers dreamed of his fellows death. The dream turned out to be true, and the traveller was able to discover the murderer

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By providing so many authorities, including some that come from The Bible, Chauntecleer is able to win the debate. Chuantecleer then declares to his wife that he will not take any laxatives. Since he has successfully debated that dreams are visions of the future, he, in a sense, has proven his wife wrong. Therefore, he will not take any herbs. However, it is at this point that Chauntecleer makes his biggest mistake. Since Chauntecleer wins the debate, he becomes so happy and so proud that he

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forgets all about his dream. He forgets that there is a fox that will attack him. This is a good example of dramatic irony. Chauntecleer argues well that dreams do come true, but his delight in winning the argument causes him to forget that his own dream will come true. The fox will attack him. But Chauntecleer, who is now strutting like a proud cock of the walk, will not be on his guard. He will not be ready. HUMOROUS DIALOGUE The humor of the characters and situation is enhanced by the addition of humorous dialogue. There are two fine examples of humorous dialogue that are particularly worth noting: (1) The first humorous line occurs when Chauntecleer first tells Dame Pertelote that he is afraid because of his dream about the fox attacking him. Dame Pertelote scolds Chauntecleer for being so cowardly and asks him, Have you no mans heart? (line 100). Of course Chauntecleer does not have a mans heart. Hes a rooster. He has a roosters heart. The humor of the line plays upon the notion that the characters in this tale have both human and animal characteristics. (2) Another example of dialogue humor occurs after the bird debate is over. Chauntecleer notices that Dame Pertelotes eyes are red (suggesting that she is angry). The rooster then becomes attracted to the chicken and states the following:

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The Middle Ages For also siker as In principio, Mulier est hominis confusio. Madame, the sentence of this Latin is, Womman is mannes joye and al his blis. (lines 343-46)

The rooster quotes a Latin phrase and then incorrectly translates it. In his translation he says that woman is the joy and bliss of man, but the Latin actually means that woman is the ruin (or confusion) of man. Although Chauntecleer intends to say something positive about Pertelote, the actual meaning of the Latin is more appropriate and true in this particular story. Pertelote is the ruin of Chauntecleer. Because she argues with him about the dream, he gets so involved in debating with her that he forgets to pay attention to the warning that he receives in this dream. So, the fox catches the rooster. And, in a way, Pertelote is responsible. The quote then is funny in two ways. (1) It is immediately funny. When the rooster misquotes it, it becomes an example of gender humor (relating to the conflict between men and women). (2) It becomes funny and more meaningful later in the story. It is an example of verbal irony. Chauntecleer, of course, had no idea that his argument with Pertelote would be his ruin. Both of these are examples of comic irony. Both contribute to the richness of the work and the humor of the characters and situation. THE FOX: CUNNING AND TREACHERY The Fox, usually named Reynard in other tales (but called Don Russell in this tale line 514), is a

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traditional character in many medieval stories; and almost always he becomes a symbol of treachery and cunning. The Priest makes fun of this symbolism and exaggerates it for comic effect. After he introduces the fox (line 395), he then digresses for a short while on other great traitors of history and literature: (1) Judas Iscariot, the betrayer of Christ (line 406) (2) Ganelon, the betrayer of Roland in the French epic The Song of Roland (also line 406) (3) Sinon, who betrayed the Trojans in the war against the Greeks (line 407) The Priest contributes to his exaggeration by his emotional declarations: O false murderer! and False liar! The Priest here is having fun. He knows that his story is just a fable, a kind of fairy tale for children. But he also knows that his listeners are adults: the other Pilgrims. They would immediately recognize that the Priest is elaborating upon a simple story as part of his comic process. The Priest is purposely going overboard. By taking a simple story, a fable, and adding his Dream Vision, the Bird Debate, and the passage on traitors, the Priest is perhaps parodying the entire story-telling process. He is having fun in the process of creating his story. Yet, oddly enough, it works. All of these diverse and unconnected elements blend together to form a unified and satisfying tale.

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As mentioned on a previous occasion, all of the tales in Chaucers collection are connected with the Seven Deadly Sins. The Nuns Priests Tale is no exception, for it is concerned with the sin of pride. Chauntecleer suffers from this fault; and, as it is popularly said, Pride goeth before the fall. And Chauntecleer does fall. When the fox first approaches Chauntecleer, the rooster jumps out of harms way. But then the fox flatters him. The fox tells the rooster not to be afraid. He says that he only came into the widows yard to hear Chauntecleer sing (line 470). The fox then goes on to tell the rooster how he had heard Chauntecleers father sing and how wonderful the sound was. He then asks Chauntecleer to sing so that the fox can find out whether the rooster can sing as well as his own father. Chauntecleers pride is at stake: he wants to prove that he can sing as well as any other rooster. Chauntecleer is also flattered (line 504). He is flattered that a fox would come a long distance just to hear him sing. So, Chauntecleer stretches his neck, closes his eyes, and begins to sing. At that moment Don Russell, the fox, grabs him by the neck. The fox then runs off into the woods with Chauntecleer in his mouth. However, the widow and her two daughters are chasing after him. As he is running, Chauntecleer persuades the fox to speak. The rooster suggests to the fox that he should shout at his pursuers and boldly claim that he will eat the cock despite their efforts. The fox thinks this is a good idea. So, when he opens his mouth to speak, Chauntecleer breaks free and escapes. The fox then tries

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to persuade Chauntecleer to come down from a tree, but Chauntecleer has learned his lesson. In a sense, Chauntecleer uses his own fault as a means of escape; for, when Chauntecleer tells the fox to shout at his pursuers, he is using the foxs own sense of pride against himself. He is telling the fox to brag (to boast) to his pursuers that they cannot catch him. In other words, the fox thinks that he is better and cleverer than his pursuers. The fox, also, is too proud. And, so the fox loses his dinner because of his pride. He, too, falls because of his pride. The lesson about pride, though, is a gentle one, not a violent one. Chauntecleer is safe, and the fox misses a meal. They are punished for their misdeeds, for their sin of pride; but with their punishment comes the knowledge to avoid their proud ways, to show a little more humility in the future. THE ALLUSION TO JOSEPH As already mentioned, during the Bird Debate Chauntecleer cites several authorities in order to present a winning argument. The Bible was the most important authority of the day since England was a Christian land. And the best story regarding dreams in the Bible concerns the prophet named Joseph (in Genesis, chapters 37-41). In the Biblical story Josephs brothers are envious of Joseph because Joseph receives all of his fathers attention. So, the brothers sell Joseph into Egypt as a slave. Although Joseph serves his master in Egypt faithfully, his masters wife falsely accuses Joseph of trying to seduce her. So, Joseph is sent to

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prison for many years. Later, though, Joseph is released from prison and serves Pharoah, the ruler of Egypt. Joseph receives a blessing by God, and he receives dreams that correctly warn him about future events on several occasions. He dreams about his brothers treachery. He dreams about the fates of the butler and the baker, whom he meets in prison (mentioned in the debate, line 314). And he dreams about a drought (a long dry spell) that affects all of Egypt and the surrounding lands. Because of his last dream, Joseph is able to counsel Pharoah about how to prepare for the seven years of drought; and, because of Josephs help, Pharoah promotes Joseph to a position of high power and authority in Egypt. For Christians, Catholics, living in England during the 14th century, the story of Joseph is beyond dispute. It is, for them, a true story. If the Bible states that dreams are, or can be, visions sent by God, then most medieval Christians would accept that view unquestioningly. Of course, we should not forget the humor of the situation in Chaucers tale. God may send visions of the future to his chosen prophets, but does he send visions to chickens? THE ALLUSION TO ADAM AND EVE Biblical allusions (or references) occur throughout the tale, not just in the bird debate. Perhaps the most important of these allusions is the one made to Adam and Eve. Actually, the Priest alludes to the Biblical figure of Adam twice in his tale. The first time is extremely brief. After the Bird Debate is over, the Priest decides to

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establish the date of his tale by stating that the events occurred 32 days after the end of March. He then adds that March is the month that God first made man (line 368), meaning Adam and Eve. This first reference to the story of Adam and Creation may, at first, just seem like a poetic way of saying that the action occurred on a late spring day, around May 2. And in this way the story-teller gently presents an image of a rooster and a hen in a garden paradise, like Eden. Of course, all Christians know that the story of Adam and Eve involves a third figure, the serpent. After describing the fox, the Priest returns to his allusion far more directly: Wommenes conseils been ful ofte colde, Wommenes conseil broughte us first to wo, And made Adam fro Paradis to go, Ther as he was ful merye and wel at ese. (lines 436-39) Essentially, the Priest, referring to Eve and her advice to Adam regarding the forbidden fruit, is stating here that womens advice is harmful and brought mankind (us) to woe or great misery. Eves urging Adam to eat of the forbidden fruit caused him, and everyone of the human race, to leave their paradise of ease and merriment forever. So, basically, the characters of Chauntecleer, Pertelote, and Don Russell (the fox) then symbolically represent Adam, Eve, and the serpent. Once again, the issue of gender conflict, the battle between men and women, appears in the tale. The reader may, perhaps, want to consider the context of the tale. The Priest is the story-teller, and he is also the

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travelling companion of the Prioress. The reader should not find it difficult to imagine how the Prioress might react when she hears the Priest make such comments. The reader should keep in mind that this is the second example of gender humor: the earlier example came when Chauntecleer mistranslated the Latin quote. The reader should also recognize the absurdity of the Priests exaggeration at this point: once again he is raising a simple fable to a complex level of religious symbolism and gender conflict. PREDESTINATION VERSUS FREE WILL The Priests simple tale about a rooster and a fox is actually a comic exaggeration of story-telling art, mixing many literary genres (types or kinds of literature) and ideas: a Dream Vision, a Bird Debate, a religious allegory, and a tract (or short essay) on gender conflict. The Priest, however, does not stop there. He also decides to introduce a theological debate concerning one of the most argued issues over the centuries, the conflict between predestination and free will. In the Catholic Church two conflicting ideas were part of the religious dogma (belief system): (1) God can foresee the future and, thereby, can control the destiny of all mankind (predestination). And (2) each member of the human race has the freedom to choose his or her own destiny, the freedom to choose to do good or evil (free will). Of course, the problem is, if God can foresee our future even before He creates us, if He knows what we are going to do even before we think of it, then how can free will exist? God is the Creator, after all. Why would He create an individual if He knows that individual will fall, will choose evil? How can we

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freely choose if that choice is already determined or destined ahead of the time of our own births? The Priest introduces this conflict in a simple, almost innocent, way. Did God foresee the danger that would happen to Chauntecleer (line 414)? The Priest then digresses about how this conflict is a matter of great dispute for the great thinkers of the Church, such as St. Augustine (the theologian), Boethius (the philosopher), and Bradwardine (the Archbishop of Canterbury). It takes men such as these to sort out the details and answer such a complex and difficult question. The Priest, perhaps laughing at himself in going too far in his comic exaggeration, then admits that such a debate really has nothing to do with his story: I wol nat han to do of swich matere: My tale is of a cok, as ye mey heere. (lines 431-32) In other words, the Priest is saying, I will not speak of such philosophical matters because my story is only about a cock (rooster), as you will hear. So, even the Priest seems to be admitting that there should be some limits set to his comic exaggeration. MEDIEVAL SCIENCE AND MEDICINE During the Middle Ages medical science was not very advanced. When a person was sick, the doctors of that time believed that something was wrong with that persons blood that there was too much harmful fluid in that persons blood. So, the doctors usual procedure

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was to bleed their patients. They would actually cut the patient to make him or her bleed. Or they would apply leeches (blood-sucking insects) to the body of the patient. Unfortunately, as you might guess, often a patient would lose too much blood and die. Fortunately, medical science is a little more advanced today. In the Middle Ages doctors also believed that there was a relationship between the human body and the elements of nature. They believed that there were four elements (air, earth, fire, and water) and four humours (or fluids in the body: blood or sanguine, choler, melancholy, and phlegm). They further believed that there were four qualities (hot, cold, dry, and moist) that also affected the elements and the human body. The relationship among the four elements, the four qualities, and the four humours is shown below: ELEMENTS Air Fire Earth Water QUALITIES Hot and Moist Hot and Dry Cold and Dry Cold and Moist HUMOURS Blood/Sanguine Choler (yellow or red bile) Melancholy (black bile) Phlegm

Medieval doctors also believed that the planets and stars could influence the humours, the fluids of the body. If a persons stars were not in alignment, then that would affect the blood of that person the person would then have an overabundance of one of the humours. Then the person would either be ill or become moody. The following conditions would occur if a person had too much of one of the humours:

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1) Sanguinary Bloodthirsty or Violent (or Passionate) 2) Choleric Angry, Bad-Tempered 3) Melancholic Sad, Depressed, Gloomy 4) Phlegmatic Overly Calm, Sluggish, Unemotional During the Bird Debate Dame Pertelote argues that one of the reasons that Chauntecleer has bad dreams is that his humours are out of balance (line 105). She further explains that choler or red bile (line 108) causes men to dream of fire and red beasts and that melancholy or black bile (line 113) causes men to cry out in their sleep or dream of black bears, black bulls, or black devils. We can therefore deduce, since Chauntecleer dreams of a red animal (line 82) with black tail and ears (lines 83-84), that Pertelote believes that he has too much choler and too much melancholy. Pertelotes knowledge of medieval science, physiology, and herbal medicine contributes to the fun of the tale. She is, after all, a chicken, but a very wise chicken at that.

LECTURE 11
THE FOURTH LECTURE ON THE CANTERBURY TALES THE PARDONERS TALE As noted earlier, a pardoner was not a priest but was a member of the Catholic Church. He was a minor church official whose job was to give certificates of ecclesiastical pardon a paper that stated that the holder was forgiven for his or her sins in exchange for a small contribution to the Church. In The General Prologue Chaucers Pardoner is a rascal, a thief, who keeps most of the money that he collects for himself. In addition, he also sells items that he claims are holy relics. But they are not. In short, the Pardoner is consumed by greed, one of the Seven Deadly Sins. The tale told by the Pardoner is ironic because it is a tale about greed. The tale is also a good example of a medieval sermon. The Pardoner uses his sermon, his tale, in order to convince his listeners that greed is a terrible quality and a most serious sin. Thereby, the Pardoner hopes that his listeners will believe that money is evil and donate to the Church all of their extra coins, which, of course, the Pardoner will keep for himself. Although the tale itself is rather simple and, like a folk tale, fascinates the listener (or reader), the lesson is a serious one. However, Chaucer still manages to present this tale in a humorous way by the addition of its Prologue and Epilogue. The Pardoner is rather drunk, and he tries to cheat the other Pilgrims of their money after he warns them earlier that he is greedy and that his relics are fakes. But he is so drunk that he

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forgets that he has told the others about his cheating ways. THE PROLOGUE The Pardoners Tale actually has both an introduction and a prologue. In the introduction, which serves as a transition from the previous tale (told by the Physician) to the one by the Pardoner, the Pilgrims ask the Pardoner to tell them a moral story that will instruct them (line 37). The Pardoner agrees, but first he states that he wishes to eat and, especially, drink. The Pardoners prologue begins after the Pardoner is finished drinking, and, as we find out later, after the Pardoner has had quite a bit to drink. That the tale is a moral one is made clear at the very beginning: My theme is always oon, and evere was: Radix malorum est cupiditas. (Lines 45-46) The second line of this quote is in Latin and means the root of evil is greed. Medieval pardoners and other corrupt religious officials would often use Latin as a means of intimidating or even scaring the poor common folk that they were trying to cheat. The illiterate and superstitious people of the day would often believe that the words of Latin were like the magical and mystical words of a witch or sorcerer. They believed that such words were powerful chants with power of their own. In all likelihood, the Pardoner possibly did not know very much Latin. But he would have memorized a few Latin lines such as this one in order to impress and perhaps frighten his listeners.

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The Pardoner then explains to the Pilgrims how he conducts his business and how he cheats his listeners of their few spare coins. He begins by showing his certificates, his pardons, which are officially stamped by the Pope, the head of the Catholic Church (line 49). It is highly likely that even these stamps or seals are fake. The Pardoner then describes his relics, which he keeps in glass jars (line 59). These relics are actually old rags and stray animal bones (line 60), but the Pardoner claims that they came from saints or other holy people. He then describes two of his specific relics: 1) The Shoulder-Bone of a Sheep (line 62): the Pardoner claims the sheep belonged to a holy Jew (like Noah, perhaps). The Pardoner instructs the buyer to put the bone in a well. (a) If any of his animals are sick, they only have to drink the water of that well and they will be healed. (b) In addition, if the owner drinks from the well himself, his stock of animals will produce and multiply in vast numbers (making the owner rich). (c) Finally, the Pardoner adds that if the owner makes some soup with the water from that well, he will never suffer from jealousy even if he knows his wife is having sex with two or three priests. 2) The Mitten or Glove (line (84): wearing the mitten will allow a farmer to have a great crop of oats or wheat. He will then become wealthy. The Pardoner then adds that he has become wealthy by using such false methods on poor people (lines 101102). As a totally corrupt member of the Church, the

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Pardoner also admits that he does not care about the souls of his listeners (line 118). In other words, the Pardoner acts the way he does and says the things he says for one reason only: But shortly myn entente I wol devise: I preche of no thing but for coveitise. (lines 135-36) That is to say: But, in short, my intentions I will reveal, I preach for nothing except for greed. The Pardoner is a complete scoundrel, and he openly admits it to his listeners. He even admits that he is a sinner, that he is greedy: But though myself be gilty in that sinne (line 141). That the Pardoner is guilty of the sin of greed is, then quite obvious and directly stated. The reader should remember that The Seven Deadly Sins are, in themselves, temptations. They become truly sinful they become mortal sins when the person being tempted allows himself or herself to act to satisfy that temptation. The Pardoner surely falls into this category. He cheats his listeners for his own selfish gain. He breaks the Commandment (from the Ten Commandments given to Moses by God) that people should not steal. More importantly, he commits acts of fraud. During the Middle Ages, the sin of fraud was considered one of the worst sins that a person could commit. More than one hundred years before Chaucer wrote his work, Dante, an Italian, wrote The Divine Comedy. In this literary work Dante depicted Hell as a pit or large hole having nine levels. Each level represented a different kind of sin, and the deepest levels

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represented the more serious or more grievous sins. The sins of Fraud are placed on the eighth (8th) level. Only the sins of Treachery were lower, or worse. Sins of Fraud were even considered a worse offense than murder. The reason for this is not very complicated: Christians considered that sins against God were more serious (or worse) sins than sins committed against other men. From the Christian point of view, God created man to work (even Adam and Eve, when they were in the paradise of Eden, worked on their garden). To take money by fraud, instead of by working, is to go against Gods will, to go against the Divine Plan set by God. Therefore, an act of fraud is a direct insult to God and is an act of disobedience against God. Chaucer, although he is using humor to denounce or criticize the Pardoner, would not have found anything likeable about him. Chaucer, a thorough Christian, would surely feel that men such as the Pardoner would deserve an eternal punishment in the eighth level of hell. THE EPILOGUE At the end of the tale told by the Pardoner, Chaucer returns to the Pilgrims, the fictional listeners of the tale. The Pardoner, now that his tale is completed, offers to sell his pardons to the Pilgrims. He does this for two reasons: (1) He is so thoroughly drunk that he has forgotten that he has already told the Pilgrims that he is a cheat and a sinner. (2) He is so caught up in his routine (again because he is drunk) that he follows his story with the same spiel (the salesmans pitch) that he always uses whenever he tells his story about greed. So, he tries to make some money off of the Pilgrims. The

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Pilgrims, of course, know better than to give even the smallest of coins to the Pardoner. Chaucer, though, also uses this epilogue to add some humor to his work. The drunken Pardoner asks the Host of the Tabard Inn, Harry Bailly, to be the first of the Pilgrims to buy one of the relics. The Host, though, becomes angry and shouts at the Pardoner: Thou woldest make me kisse thyn old breech And swere it were a relik of a saint, Though it were with thy fundement depeint. (lines 660-62) The Host is saying, You would even ask me to kiss an old pair of pants by swearing that it once belonged to a saint, even if those pants were stained with your own excrement. The host, who is quite angry, then threatens to cut off the testicles of the Pardoner and feed them to a hog. That shuts up the Pardoner. And one can imagine that the other Pilgrims were rather pleased that they would no longer have to suffer the Pardoners drunken attempts to sell his fake relics. In a way, then, the Host speaks for Chaucer, who would have enjoyed seeing the Host carry out his threats. DIGRESSIONS IN THE TALE The Pardoner begins his tale simply enough. He states that once upon a time in Flanders (a region in Belgium) there was a group of young people who spent all of their time in a tavern eating, drinking, cursing, and gambling. Then, after only twenty lines, the Pardoner

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launches into three digressions about the sinful natures of these people. The first digression is on gluttony (lines 195300), the second on gambling (lines 301-40), and the third on swearing or cursing (lines 341-72). There are several possible reasons for the inclusion of these digressions. (1) They probably are an accurate indication of how medieval sermons would often begin. A priest would want to warn his listeners against all kinds of sin, not just one. (2) The inclusion of the digressions does contradict the Pardoners claim that he has only one theme, and that is greed. Obviously, he has three other themes here as well. This could also be an indication of the Pardoners drunkenness. (3) The faults mentioned in the digressions (gluttony, gambling, and swearing) fit in well to Chaucers overall theme to show how minor transgressions (The Seven Deadly Sins) can often lead to more serious sins and deadly consequences. Like the technique used in a medieval debate, the preacher of a sermon will rely on authorities (in history, in literature, and especially in the Bible) to make or to prove his point. One can imagine that Geoffrey Chaucer during his lifetime sat through many of these kinds of sermons. The first digression is on gluttony, and it is the longest of the three. The modern reader may at first be puzzled as to why a preacher would dwell so long on what, today, seems like the most innocent of The Seven Deadly Sins. There are two points the modern reader must keep in mind. (1) The sin of gluttony refers not only to overeating. It refers to drinking (alcohol) to excess as well. Excessive drinking can lead to a loss of self-control, and that would then pave the way for all other kinds of sin to follow. (2) The connotations of the

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word gluttony were often disgusting to many people in the Middle Ages: vomiting, diarrhea, belching, dirtiness, and smelling bad. The modern reader must remember that bathing was not a regular activity for many people at that time, and so a glutton was often associated with filth. In addition, a medieval Christian would view his or her body as a gift from God. To abuse that gift would be insulting to God. The Pardoner, in his digression, uses both religious and secular authorities: 1) Lot (line 197): the Biblical figure who slept with his own daughters when he was drunk. 2) Herod (line 200): the Biblical figure responsible for the death of Saint John the Baptist. 3) Seneca (line 204): the Roman philosopher who preached that drunkenness leads to mad actions. 4) Adam and Eve (line 216): their eating of the forbidden fruit is labeled as an act of gluttony. 5) St. Paul (line 232): one of the authors of the Bible who preached that drunkenness leads men to act against Gods will. 6) Attila (line 291): the great leader of the Huns who died in his sleep shamefully and dishonorably because he had a bloody nose due to his drunkenness. 7) Lamuel (line 296): another Biblical figure who was warned not to drink. The Pardoner uses the sheer weight of his authorities (that is, the large number of them) to convince his listeners about the seriousness of gluttony. The Pardoner uses a similar method to convince his listeners against gambling and swearing. The three

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young men who are the central figures of his tale are, of course, drinking, gambling, and swearing. They are guilty of these vices that will lead them to a much more serious and deadly sin. The sermon, then, has a two-part structure to warn the listeners against sins: (1) The use of digressions wherein the preacher uses authorities to convince his listeners against sinful behavior. (2) The tale itself whereby the listeners can learn to avoid the negative example set by the three young men. A TALE ABOUT GREED The tale itself, as already suggested, is quite simple. Three young men are drinking and gambling in a tavern when they hear a church bell ringing. The bell is ringing to indicate that someone has died. A boy tells the men that the person who died was an old friend of theirs and that this friend was slain by a thief named Death. The three young men, who are drunk with rage, swear that they will get revenge against the person responsible for slaying their friend. So, they go out looking for Death (personification). As they walk from the tavern, they encounter an old man. They ridicule the old man for living so long, and the old man responds that Death does not want him. Hearing him speak of Death, the three men threaten him to tell them where they can find Death. The old man

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directs them to an old oak tree outside of town. He tells them that there they will find Death. The three men go to the tree as directed, but instead of finding Death, they find a large treasure of golden coins. They get so excited that they forget all about their search for Death. One of the three suggests that they should wait until night before they bring the treasure back into town. Otherwise, someone might see them with the gold and think they were thieves. The other two agree that this is a good plan. While they are waiting for night to come, they become hungry and thirsty (gluttony, perhaps). So, they decide that the youngest one should go to town and get some food and drink while the other two wait and guard the treasure. While the youngest one is off getting the food, the smarter of the two at the oak tree tells his companion that they would have a lot more money if they did not have to share it with the youngest man. The other agrees, and the smarter one convinces him to wrestle with the youngest when he returns. He tells him to pretend to wrestle just for fun. Then, while they are wrestling, the smarter one will sneak up from behind the youngest one and stab him with his knife. Meanwhile, the youngest of the men, as he is walking to town to get the food, thinks that it would be really great if he did not have to share the money with his two friends. So, he decides to go to a druggist (an apothecary) and buy some poison. He puts the poison in two of the three wine bottles that he purchases and brings them back to his friends. Before they begin to eat, the man (the not-sosmart one) who waited at the oak tree begins to wrestle

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with the youngest one. As planned, the smarter one then kills the youngest with his knife. Afterwards, the two remaining fellows drink from the poisoned bottles of wine. And they, too, both die. Thus, all three men found what they were originally looking for. They found Death. In addition to being called a sermon, this story can also be classified as a religious allegory, with the three men representing three vices or sins (drinking, gambling, and swearing) and all three of them together representing greed. But the story can also be labeled as an exemplum, a type of story that teaches by example. In this case, the example is a negative one: the listener is warned not to follow the example of these three young men. AN HISTORICAL FOOTNOTE The tale that Chaucer includes in his collection, this tale told by the Pardoner, suggests an actual historical event. It suggests the time of the plague. In 1348 a terrible plague called the Black Death swept through Europe killing approximately one-third of the entire population. Many people in Europe, who were extremely superstitious, thought that this event marked the end of the world. Because they felt that everybody was going to die anyway, many people took different means of dealing with the situation. Some went to the church to pray; others huddled with their families and refused to go outside. And some thought they should go out with a bang. In other words, they thought they should just

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have one big party until the end came. Immorality and debauchery, sinful behavior, became commonplace in many cities (a description of this behavior can be found in Giovanni Boccaccios The Decameron Tales, circa 1351). The behavior of the three young men in The Pardoners Tale is representative of the immoral behavior that occurred during that time. And, of course, the figure of Death in the story could more specifically represent the Black Plague. The origins of Chaucers tale, then, could possibly go back to some time just after 1348. A CINEMATIC FOOTNOTE In 1948, more than 500 years after Chaucer wrote his story, a movie was made that was loosely based on this tale. In The Treasure of Sierra Madre Humphrey Bogart played a down-on-his-luck American who discovers a gold mine in Mexico with two companions. Although the ending is not death for all concerned, the same lesson about greed is made: radix malorum est cupiditas.

The Middle Ages THE WIFE OF BATHS PROLOGUE

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The Wife of Bath is one of Chaucers most interesting characters, and the modern reader may be surprised to find in her a prototype for the feminists and the feminist movement of the 20th century. The tale told by the Wife of Bath has already been summarized in a previous lecture: it is fairly similar to the medieval romance entitled The Wedding of Sir Gawain (although the character of Gawain does not appear in the version told by the Wife). However, the tale is important and relevant to the teller in Chaucers version because the Wife of Bath is a strong believer that a wife should hold sovereignty over her husband. The reader should also note that Chaucers version is superior to The Wedding. The prologue to The Wife of Baths Tale, however, is actually far more important than the tale itself. In fact, the difference in length between the prologue and tale indicates Chaucers emphasis: the tale is about 400 lines long, but the prologue is well over 800 lines. As already noted, in medieval debates (and sermons), whenever there is a point to be made or argued, the standard method is to cite authorities. Of course, there is another method that one can use or learn from. That method is experience. Chaucer himself was a person who had tremendous experiences himself as a courtier and as an ambassador for the kings of England. Chaucer was certainly not one to undervalue the role of experience. The emphasis on experience, though, in this tale is established at the very beginning of the prologue:

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The Middle Ages Experience, though noon auctoritee Were in this world, is right ynough for me To speke of wo that is in mariage. (lines 1-3)

The Wife is saying that even though experience is not considered as an authority in the world, it is good enough for her to know and to speak about the woe and grief that a woman can experience in marriage. And the Wife of Bath should know. She has had five marriages. Such a number was highly unusual in the Middle Ages, and certainly such an extensive amount of experience should make the Wife more qualified than anyone else to speak about the role of women in marriage. The Prologue spoken by the Wife presents an interesting contradiction. On the one hand, it is a reflection of the anti-feminist literature that was common during the Middle Ages. During that time a number of writers criticized women, saying they were not to be trusted and adding that they were lecherous and shrewish. From one point of view, the characterization of the Wife seems to support that antifeminist view. On the other hand, it is a satire of that anti-feminist literature. That all women were lecherous and shrewish was not, of course, true. That was a negative stereotype, and the humor of the Wife mocks that stereotype. Thus, the Prologue is actually profeminist. Since The Wife of Baths Prologue is rather long, an outline of the piece may make the work easier to understand: 1) Commentary on Bigamy (lines 1-64) 2) Commentary on Virginity (lines 65-168) 3) The Pardoners Interruption (lines 169-98)

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4) A General Account of Her Husbands (lines 199-457) 5) An Account of the Fourth Husband (lines 458-508) 6) An Account of the Fifth Husband (lines 509-834) 7) Another Interruption (lines 835-62) BIGAMY AND VIRGINITY The Wifes first comments on marriage concern bigamy. The word bigamy today has a different meaning from the way the Wife uses it. Today the word means having more than one husband or wife at the same time. During the Middle Ages it meant remarrying after ones first husband or wife has died. Although the issue is not as pertinent today, apparently the Wifes comments suggest that during the Middle Ages many people in society thought that taking a second (or a fifth) husband was immoral. The reader should note, however, that the Wife does use the Bible as an authority on this matter: she reminds the Pilgrims that King Solomon had 700 wives. The Wife has far more to say on her second topic, virginity. During the Middle Ages men would usually seek out maidens, virgins, as their wives. Thus, most men demanded that the women they were about to marry be chaste. Women who had sex before they were married would be looked down upon by society: they would be outcasts. Of course, the Wife, who was first married at the age of 12, feels it is necessary to argue that a man should consider marrying a woman who is not a virgin. The Wife does not argue that there is no virtue in chastity. Rather, she argues that a woman who

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is not a virgin can still be a good wife. The Wifes cup metaphor perhaps best sums up this idea: For wel ye knowe, a lord in his houshold Ne hath nat every vessel al of gold: Some been of tree, and doon their lord servise. (lines 105-07) The Wife is saying that not every cup or vessel in a lords household is made of gold. Some are made of wood (out of trees) and do service (work just as well) as the ones made out of gold. Here the golden cup symbolizes the virgin and the wooden cup symbolizes the experienced woman. Just as the lord may actually get more use out of his wooden cups, he may also, the metaphor suggests, get more use out of the unchaste woman. The Wife further argues that the human sexual organs were created for the purpose of having sex. Since God created humans in this manner, their engaging in sexual activity should not displease Him (line 134). Even today, the Wifes openness and frankness about sex would be startling in some places. One might imagine that many individuals during Chaucers day might have found it shocking. At the court where Chaucer may have read this piece out loud, though, many would have found it quite humorous as well. THE WIFE AND HER HUSBANDS After speaking about bigamy and virginity, the Wife continues with a discussion of her marriages. Her first three husbands, she tells us, were good and rich and

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old (line 202). However, she would only be kind to them, and have sex with them, if they made her life easy and presented her with gifts: What sholde I take keep hem for to plese, But it were for my profit and myn ese? (lines 219-20) Translation: Why should I care to please them unless it is for my own pleasure and profit? The Wife then launches into a discussion about complaints normally made against women. Such antifeminist complaints warn men that they should not marry beautiful women since other men will pursue her and that they should not marry ugly women since she will pursue other men (lines 268-72). They also say that men should not marry a poor woman because she will end up costing the man too much money and that they should not marry a rich woman because they will then have to suffer her pride and her bad moods (lines 25458). The Wife asserts that her husbands usually said these kinds of things to her, but they did so when they were drunk (line 252) and that any accusations they made against her fidelity were done so with evil proof (line 253), that is, false proof. The Wife continues repeating accusations made by her husbands. She makes comments about money and possessions, but then she tells her listeners that she repaid the pain and woe that her husbands gave her: she would complain even more than they and louder (lines 390-94) and accuse them of infidelity. So, her husbands would quickly stop. Moreover, she would refuse to have sex with them until they rewarded her in some way (lines 415-18).

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The Wife, in this way, is explaining how women can control their husbands. She is explaining how a woman can maintain sovereignty in her house. THE FOURTH AND FIFTH HUSBANDS The Wifes experiences with her fourth and fifth husbands indicate how a wife can control a bad husband. The Wifes fourth husband is a revelour (reveler: line 459). That is, he is someone who chases after and sleeps with other women. The Wife gets revenge by flirting with other men. She makes him think that she is having affairs with other men so that he becomes jealous. The Wife uses two metaphors to describe her plan: I made a cross for him out of the same wood (line 490) and I made him fry in his own grease (line 493). Both metaphors suggest that she used his own practice or fault against himself. He made her jealous, so she makes him jealous. Thus, she becomes a purgatory on earth for him (line 495), which means that she became a constant source of torment and anguish for him. The modern reader may be most surprised and perhaps astonished when the Wife states that she loved her fifth husband best even though he beat her (line 51920). She admits that she loves him best because he was so good at sex. Besides, he is only 20 years old when he marries her, and she is 40 years old. At first, the Wife relates, she was very happy with Janekin, her fifth husband. But then she regretted her decision later. She then recounts a story about how Janekin once struck her on the ear and caused her to go

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partially deaf because she had torn some pages out of his book. The book that the Wife objected so much to was an anthology of anti-feminist literature, stories about bad wives and bad women, all collected together and put in one volume (line 687). Such books actually existed in Chaucers time, and this is all the more remarkable if one remembers that such books had to be copied by hand back then. Anyway, Janekin would read this book all the time and laugh (line 678), which would anger the Wife. Eventually she becomes so angry that she rips three pages out of his book while he is reading it and then punches him in the face (lines 796-98). Janekin falls down from the blow, but then gets up in anger and punches the Wife. However, then Janekin becomes worried when he sees that his wife is unconscious and thinks she is dying. So, he promises never to hit her again. They then reach an agreement: Janekin gives control of the house and land to the Wife, and he burns his book of anti-feminist literature (lines 820-22). Thus, the Wife gets sovereignty (line 824) in her fifth marriage, and remains happy with Janekin until his death. The Wife of Baths Prologue provides the modern reader with many insights about married life during the Middle Ages. One can easily deduce, however, that many women, perhaps most women, did not have sovereignty in their marriages. In this Prologue and in several of the tales, though, Chaucer does seem to side with the Wife. Many women were treated quite poorly in his day, and Chaucer clearly felt that this was a serious problem in his society.

LECTURE 12
MIDDLE ENGLISH LYRICS AND BALLADS LYRICS During the first two centuries (1100-1300) of the Middle English period, the Anglo-Norman French language dominated the court and the land. Yet most of the people continued to speak English. Stories in English continued to be passed down in the Oral Tradition, and some writers would continue to write poems in English. Such poems include the lyrics. A lyric is a brief subjective and imaginative poem that creates a single dominant impression. The pattern of the lyric is like music, containing a simple rhythm or melody. The medieval lyrics that have survived are important in an historic and linguistic sense since they provide evidence of the English language as it changed and developed during the Middle English period. Some of these lyrics date back to the 12th century; and many reveal the changing language during the 13th and 14th centuries. Unfortunately, the dates for many of these poems are unknown or uncertain since most were not written down until the 15th century or later. Poems that might have originated back in the 12th or 13th century would most likely have been edited or revised to bring the language up to contemporary standards. These lyrics, though, are also important as poetry or songs, revealing the literary spirit of the native English speakers during the reign of the Anglo-Norman kings. These poems or lyrics can be divided into two categories: religious and secular. The latter category,

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secular lyrics, usually concerns nature, especially springtime, or love (or sometimes a combination of both spring and love). Although most of these poems are quite short, many of them contain complex symbolism or imagery. FOWLS IN THE FRITH The extremely short poem called Fowls in the Frith (or Birds in the Woods) can be categorized as a lovers complaint. The first two lines contain nature images: birds in the trees and fish in the water. The third line presents a contrast: a young man who feels like he is going crazy. One might easily imagine the young man taking a springtime walk through the woods and seeing the creatures of nature pairing up, finding their mates. But for the young man, there is no mate. He is walking alone and feels great sorrow (line 4). The last two lines of the poem can be translated in two ways: 1) I walk with great sorrow because of the best lady made of bone and blood. 2) I walk with great sorrow among the beasts of bone and blood. The medieval word beste can mean either best or beast. Or, even more likely, it means both in this poem. Thus, this is a simple poem of unrequited love, of a young man who feels like he will go mad because he cannot be with the maiden he loves.

The Middle Ages ALISON

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Alison is a conventional lyric about love: a young man has fallen in love with a maiden and is expressing his desire to be with her above everything else. The poem contains four stanzas, and each stanza ends with the same four lines, functioning like a chorus of a song that is repeated after each verse. The first stanza begins with the traditional springtime imagery, with a bird singing joyously. The bird symbolizes, in a sense, the young man, who is also singing joyously about his love for the maiden named Alison. The speaker tells us that Alison is the fairest, the most beautiful, of all maidens (line 6) this is a convention of love poetry. Also quite conventional are his assertions that she may bring him bliss and that he is in her power (lines 7-8). Unlike the young man in the first poem, whose love is unrequited, the young man in Alison has a good chance of winning the maiden he adores. The first two lines of the chorus (lines 9-10) might be translated this way: I have been given a good chance (or opportunity) that, I know, is sent from heaven. In other words, the young man has a good chance of being with Alison. The last two lines of the chorus are also conventional: the young man promises to love only Alison, no one else. Throughout most of the second stanza, the young man describes Alisons beauty in plain and simple terms (not with the numerous similes that will be common later with the medieval romances). Her hair is somewhat fair (partially blond, perhaps), her eyebrows are brown, her eyes are black, and her waist is small. Although during the Renaissance an emphasis on blond

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hair and blue eyes for the standard of beauty was common, such was not necessarily the case during the early Middle English period. The speaker utters another love convention at the end of the second stanza: he wishes to die unless Alison will choose him for her mate. At the beginning of the third stanza, the reader finds that the young mans chance of winning Alison is not so certain. Actually, his chances may actually be quite good; but like any young man who has not yet received a promise from his fair lady, even a slight possibility that he may not succeed can drive him mad. The speaker states that he is spending so many sleepless nights in worry that his cheeks have grown pale. This condition of the unrequited lover is also quite conventional in love poetry. Despite his desperate feelings, however, the young man still comments on Alisons fine qualities: there is no man in the world so wise that he can count all of Alisons virtues (lines 2627). The reader should also note that the poet does use one simile to describe Alison: her neck is whiter than the swan. In the last stanza the speaker again announces that he is worrying about winning Alison as his mate, but he admits that it is better to suffer for a short while than to mourn forever more. So, he finishes by asking Alison to listen to his song. He still has hope. He still believes that he can win her.

The Middle Ages I HAVE A YOUNG SISTER

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The poem I Have a Young Sister is a riddle poem. The English fascination for riddles goes back to the Old English period, and this poem mixes that fascination with the topic of love. The speaker of the poem states that his sister sent him three mysterious gifts: 1) a cherry without a stone (pit) 2) a dove without bones 3) a briar plant without any rind (bark) The sister then makes a request of him: that he should love his sweetheart without any love-longing (desire). The listener or reader is then asked to guess how it is possible for the three gifts to exist and how it is possible to love without desire. The second part of the poem answers these questions: 1) The cherry was a cherry blossom (or flower), so it does not have a pit. 2) The dove is a dove egg, so it has no bones. 3) The briar is a sapling (a young plant), so it has no bark. Finally, if the young man fulfills all of his sweethearts desires, if he is with her, then she will not have any longings (desires). The poem might also be sexually suggestive. The young man should fulfill all of the sexual desires of his sweetheart. Freudians might even go so far as to say

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the flower and the briar are symbols of sexuality. The egg is certainly a symbol of fertility. In any event, the poem does suggest that togetherness is the way for a couple to achieve satisfaction and happiness in their relationship. A version of this poem exists today in a folk song made popular during the 20th century. I SING OF A MAIDEN A fine example of a simple religious lyric is I Sing of a Maiden. The Maiden being referred to in the poem is Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ. The poem celebrates Mary for choosing to be the mother of Jesus rather than being a wife. Of the five stanzas, the middle three represent the Immaculate Conception, the Christian belief that Mary did not sleep with any man but rather became pregnant through Gods mystical power. In the lyric, the conception of Jesus Christ is compared (in a simile) to the gentle dew or mist of April, as a fine gentle rain that lightly falls on the flowers and grass. The imagery suggests both new life and gentility. For Christians, the salvation that Jesus Christ brought for mankind, is, in a sense, a new life, a new beginning, for all people. The idea of gentility, or perhaps even the medieval word gentilesse would be more appropriate here, suggests both gentleness and courtesy. That such words are appropriate for Mary is made clear in the last stanza, where the poet refers to Mary as a lady, suggesting both dignity and graciousness.

The Middle Ages ADAM LAY BOUND

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Another religious lyric, Adam Lay Bound, contains an idea that would not be popular until many, many years later. That idea can be referred to as the Fortunate Fall. Usually Christians perceive the fall of Adam and Eve as an unfortunate incident. Because Adam and Eve disobeyed God, they and all of their descendants (meaning all of mankind) were punished. They were kicked out of paradise, Eden, and were made mortal they would die. However, there is a bright side to this. If Adam and Eve had not sinned and if mankind had been allowed to remain in Eden, then God would not have needed to send His Son, Jesus Christ, to earth. Jesus Christ represents, for Christians, the opportunity for all men and women to be saved and to be able to enter Heaven and be with God. For Christians, being in Heaven is better than being in the earthly paradise of Eden because then they are closer to God. Therefore, the fall of Adam and Eve is fortunate because it provides the chance for all people to be closer to God. The poem depicts that Adam would have lived forever he would not have thought that 4000 winters (years) would have been a long period of time (line 2) if he had not eaten the apple, the forbidden fruit. The poet thus acknowledges that the earthly paradise of Eden had its advantages. However, as the poet puts it, if Adam had not fallen, then Mary would never have been Queen of Heaven. Thus, the poem praises both Mary and (indirectly) the idea that Christs suffering for mankind allows everybody the chance to enter the kingdom of Heaven.

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The reader should also note that the word clerkes (in line 4) means priests; and, of course, the book being referred to is the Bible. THE CORPUS CHRISTI CAROL A more complicated religious lyric is The Corpus Christi Carol. Corpus Christi, which means Body of Christ, is a Catholic holiday (holy day) that celebrates the idea that Catholics can symbolically become linked to Christ by eating a wafer or piece of bread that represents the body of Christ. This holiday is celebrated approximately eight weeks after Easter. For Christians, the idea of Communion (the eating of the bread) is an important sacrament or religious practice that symbolizes Gods forgiveness of their sins and their readiness to be near God. In the lyric the speaker, who could be female, is upset and moaning that a large bird, a falcon, has snatched up (taken) her mate and carried him far away. The falcon sets him down in an orchard. The speaker, apparently, follows the falcon to the orchard and sees a large and splendid hall there decorated in purple (symbolizing royalty) and black (symbolizing death) velvet. Inside, on a golden bed, lies a knight, who is bleeding. The knight, as the last line suggests, is Jesus Christ. And he is bleeding from the five wounds that he received when he was crucified (killed on the cross). The maid who is kneeling beside the body, then, must be Mary. A connection is made, somehow, between the falcon carrying off the mate of the speaker (a personal tragedy) and the death of Christ (a tragedy for all of mankind). The editors comment that this relationship

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suggests the myth of the Fisher King. The Fisher King myth is an ancient tale that connects the problems (illness, plague, famine, and death) of a land with the illness and weakness of a king. Only with the restoration of the king, only when the king is healthy and strong, can the land be relieved of its problems. Elements from this myth appear in the epics Gilgamesh and Beowulf and in the play Oedipus the King. Thus, the personal problem affecting the speaker in the lyric is due to the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ. In the last stanza the speaker notices that there is a stone next to the bed with the words Corpus Christi engraved on it. The stone not only identifies the unnamed knight (in line 9), but it contributes a legendary quality to the entire poem: it provides a mythic quality wherein a character searches for a mystery and discovers the significance of Christianity. CHAUCERS MERCILESS BEAUTY The lyric continued to be a popular form throughout the Middle English period, and even some of the better known writers of the 14th century wrote lyrics. However, for some writers the ideas and conventions of the lyrics were becoming overused and old-fashioned. One such well-known writer who felt that the lyrics time had passed is Geoffrey Chaucer. In his Merciless Beauty Chaucer begins innocently enough, repeating themes and images common to the lyric form; but he ends the poem with a parody (a humorous rebuttal) of the traditional lyric theme. Chaucer divides his lyric into three parts, each part containing three stanzas. The first two parts are fairly traditional or conventional, but the third part

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moves in a direction completely opposite to the previous two. In the Part 1 the speaker is, as expected, an unrequited lover, who complains that the eyes of the maiden he loves has slain him he will die because her eyes have pierced him right through his heart. In the second stanza he declares that only her kind words to him can heal the wound to his heart, and in the third stanza she will see the truth of what he says because he will soon die. In the Part 2 the speaker complains that the maidens Beauty has chased Pity out of her heart. In other words, she has not said any kind words to him. She has not told him that she loves him. Also in the first stanza (line 16) he personifies her haughty or proud behavior as Danger, which keeps back her Mercy in chains. In other words, if she were not so proud, she would love him and say kind and loving words to him. In the third stanza the speaker declares that many men will die because Nature has given the maiden such great beauty. She is so beautiful that she does not feel the need to show mercy. In Part 3 the speaker reverses his direction, his thoughts. Instead of dying because of love, he is thankful that he has escaped falling in love: Sin I fro Love escaped am so fat, I nevere thenke to been in his prison lene: Sin I am free, I counte him nat a bene. (lines 27-29) The first of these lines involves a pun on the word fat, which can mean overweight or rich in fortune

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(fortunate). Thus, we could translate the line in either one of these ways: (1) I am very fortunate since I have escaped from Love. (2) I have escaped from Love since I am so fat. Chaucer probably intends both meanings. His lady turned him down because he was fat, but he feels fortunate not to be a slave to Love (personified as the god Love). So, the stanza ends with the speaker stating that he considers Love not worth a bean. In other words, he considers love to be a worthless commodity. The speaker metaphorically connects love to being in a lean prison the word lean being used here as a contrast to fat and suggesting that lovers languish (or grow thin) when they fall in love. The speaker, therefore, is happy not to suffer from unrequited love. Part 3, then, is a parody of the lyrical convention that shows the young man suffering because a fair maiden does not return his love. BALLADS A ballad is a simple narrative poem that was either sung or recited (spoken out loud in the oral tradition) and that usually contains one dramatic or eventful scene. The ballads were not actually written down until the 17th and 18th centuries; and, although a couple of them do date back to the Middle English period, most of them were probably created during the English Renaissance or even after the Restoration. Most of them were written in a Scottish dialect the oral tradition lasted longer in Scotland because it was so far

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removed from London and from the areas of Cambridge and Oxford. The stories are rather simple and usually presented in the form of dialogue. Ballads usually have all of the following characteristics: 1) Regular, steady meter or rhythm Ballads have a simple melodic line and many were set to simple tunes and sung. 2) Oral formulas Since the balladeer (the singer) would have to memorize many ballads, phrases and ideas of one might appear in an identical form in another, different ballad. 3) Repetition Repeated words or phrases frequently occur in any individual ballad. This makes it easier for the balladeer to memorize. 4) Rhyming stanzas Rhyme also makes the memorization of ballads easier. The typical stanza contains four lines (a quatrain) and rhymes abcb. Death is a common topic for many ballads, but some contain adventurous stories, like the Robin Hood ballads. A few are religious in nature, like Judas.

The Middle Ages A GEST OF ROBYN HODE

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One ballad that certainly belongs to the Middle English era is A Gest of Robin Hode. The word gest means a tale or story of adventure, and A Gest of Robyn Hode is not just one ballad but actually many ballads that have been combined to form a longer narrative about the many adventures of Robin Hood. The character of Robin Hood is a legendary figure, and some historians believe there may have been a real-life outlaw on whom he was based. However, attempts to pin down a real Robin Hood have not provided satisfactory results. Even the date of the story is uncertain. Literary evidence indicates that the Robin Hood stories were well known by the end of the 14th century, but some critics argue that they may have begun as early as the 12th century. The 14th century seems a more likely time, however, since the growing dislike of the Kings laws and taxation policies reached a climax (in the Peasants Revolt of 1381) in that century. Certainly, the English people during the 14th century would have welcomed the idea of an outlaw who fought the injustices of that time and supported the poor common folk but an earlier time period for the origins of these ballads may have been possible. The text presents the first 16 stanzas of the ballad, but the complete Gest is 456 stanzas. However, the basic characters and ideas appear in the introduction. In addition to Robin himself, the introduction also depicts Robins trusty companions. Little John is actually a giant of a man and who serves as Robins lieutenant. Will Scarlet is Robins minstrel or balladeer. And Much, the millers son, represents all those good,

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hard-working commoners who were cheated out of their livelihood and so joined Robins band. The narrative in this selection is rather simple. Robin does not feel like eating until he robs a bold baron or knight in order to pay for his meal (lines 24-27). Robins enemies actually seem to fall into two categories: (1) the aristocrats, as mentioned, and (2) those members of the Church (especially the bishops and archbishops line 57) who are wealthy, especially since they made their wealth by cheating or by depriving the poor folk. Robin makes it a point, though, that he would not rob a farmer (line 51) or any other honest, hard-working person. He will not even rob knights (aristocrats) who are good fellows (line 56) one might think of the knight in Chaucers General Prologue. Another aspect of Robins character is also defined at the outset: he is a good Christian (lines 3140). Before he eats, he always hears three masses. Further, he worships Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ; and, because of his devotion to Mary, he will never harm a group of people if a woman is travelling with them. Robin is a character of good breeding and courtly manners he is full of courtesy (line 7). His gentlemanly manner, as well as his devotion to Mary, may remind the reader of Sir Gawain in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. And quite possibly the two stories were written around the same time period. The popularity of the Robin Hood ballads reflects the attitude of the English population at large, who were often taxed unfairly and judged unfairly by the rich by the aristocrats. The unscrupulous rascals like the Pardoner or the Friar in Chaucers Canterbury

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Tales also strengthen the notion in these ballads that the Church, too, was often responsible for cheating and taking advantage of the poor. The figure of Robin Hood has long remained a favorite character throughout the centuries. Several movie versions of the Robin Hood stories have been made, the best being the silent film version of the 1920s with Douglas Fairbanks and the marvelous Technicolor version of the late 1930s with Errol Flynn. In addition, the idea of a hero-outlaw has inspired many writers of later centuries, the most notable creation being Zorro, a Mexican (or early Californian) masked man who also fought for justice on behalf of the common folk. JUDAS The only other ballad that definitely belongs to the Middle English period is Judas. Like many typical ballads, this one (1) relies on dialogue to present the story and (2) suggests rather than directly states a theme. Since the central figure of the ballad is Judas, the topic of the piece is betrayal. As already noted in previous lectures, the idea of fidelity to ones lord has long been a dominant characteristic of English society, and the idea has long been a prominent feature of both pagan and Christian literature. Judas is unlike most other ballads not only because it is Christian in topic, but also because the title character is actually less important than the theme. The ballad draws a very close connection between the betrayal of Judas to Jesus Christ and the betrayal of Peter to Jesus. Since the ballad ends with Christs words to Peter, the reader (or listener) is then

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forced to figure out the relationship and meaning of that ending in comparison to the actions of Judas. The ballad begins with Jesus Christ asking Judas to travel to Jerusalem to buy food for himself and the other Apostles. Jesus gives Judas thirty silver coins for this task, and Judas begins his journey. Along the way, Judas encounters his sister, who accuses her brother of believing and following a false prophet (meaning Jesus Christ). The sister even adds that Judas deserves to be stoned to death. Judas, however, defends himself and, in turn, accuses his sister. He tells her that her heart should break into pieces (she should die) for uttering such words. In addition, if Jesus Christ heard her speak, he would seek vengeance against her. Later, as Judas is sleeping, his sister takes the thirty silver coins from him. When Judas awakes, he goes crazy because the coins are missing. At that point, Pilate goes to Judas and asks him to betray Jesus. Judas says that he would not accept gold: he only wants the thirty silver coins that had been stolen from him. The implication here is that Judas is not out to make personal profit. He has lost money belonging to his lord he has acted irresponsibly. For any retainer or servant to act in such a manner is a crime, and Judas feels that it is necessary to remedy that situation, to find a solution for his problem. So, he accepts the money from Pilate. When Judas is back with Jesus and the Apostles, Judas asks Jesus if he (Judas) is the man who sold Christ for the price of their meal (line 29). Judas adds that no one made any bad or evil remarks about Jesus (line 30). Judas is suggesting here that his actions in Jerusalem were not made for the reason of harming Jesus. He is saying that he did not intend to betray Jesus.

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In the last three stanzas (or couplets, beginning with line 31), the dialogue shifts to Peter and Jesus. Peter, in criticism of Judass actions, claims that even if Pilate came to him with 1000 soldiers, he would fight for Jesus (for the love of his lord). Jesus Christ tells Peter, in the last stanza, to be quiet. He knows that in the future Peter will deny that he even knows Christ; and he will do this not once, but three times (see the Bible: Luke 22). In other words, Peter will betray Christ as well. Although the ballad does not directly state its message, it seems to be more about intention than betrayal. Judas, in this version of the story, did not intend to harm Jesus: Judas did not intend to do evil. Peter, as the last couplet foreshadows, will also betray Jesus. The reason, as most Christians would know, is because of his fear. The proud words that Peter speaks to Jesus will not be reflected in his actions. Perhaps the ballad is actually about compassion and forgiveness. Christ understands why Judas acted the way he did; and he does not become angry with Judas. Similarly, Jesus seems to be telling Peter not to be so judgmental in regards to Judas. Judge not lest you be judged. In other words, Peter should not be so quick to judge Judas, for Peter will soon be in a position where he will be the one who is judged. LORD RANDALL The first of the Scottish ballads that probably was originally composed after the Middle English period probably in the 16th or 17th century is Lord Randall. The reader should once again note the use of dialogue and repetition as prominent ballad features.

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One should also try reciting the poem aloud to get a feel for the rhythm or melody of the piece. It could easily be set to music. In this short ballad of five stanzas (or 20 lines) Lord Randall comes to his mothers place. He is obviously weary and sick, and his mother questions him about what happened. The first two lines of each stanza are the questions spoken by the mother, and the second two lines are Lord Randalls responses. Thus, the ballad has a simple structure. The repetition also contributes to the simplicity. The mother repeats her question in each stanza (lines 1 and 2, for example, or lines 5 and 6), and the second half of each line is repeated in all of the stanzas (for example, Lord Randall, my son is repeated in lines 1, 5, 9, 13, and 17). But despite the repetition, the ballad does contain a story. Lord Randall went hunting in the wild woods and ate dinner with his true love, who served Lord Randall a soup made of eels. Randalls dogs apparently ate some of the eels as well, for they became poisoned and died. And the ballad ends with Randall lying down to die because he is poisoned as well. The identity of the true love is never revealed. But she lives, apparently, in the wild woods; and she serves a meal that seems very much like a witchs brew. The reader should suspect, then, that the true love is a fairy, a witch, an enchantress, or some sort of supernatural creature who has lured (or tempted) Randall to his death. Ballads and folk tales often contain many of the same story elements, and the idea that a woman with supernatural powers would lure unsuspecting men to their death goes back to ancient times. In The Odyssey, for example, Odysseus and his men encounter the

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enchantress Circe, who turns her victims into swine or other kinds of wild animals. The true love in this ballad is, most likely, a 17th century version of Circe. BONNY BARBARA ALLAN A ballad that suggests superstitious beliefs is Bonny Barbara Allan. This ballad has, as its subject, a story of unrequited love. Sir John Graeme is in love with Barbara Allan, but she apparently does not return that love. She finally goes to visit him suggesting that she finally decides to accept him but it is too late. He dies that night. The following day she dies for him. The most curious of the stanzas in this ballad is the fifth one. While Barbara Allan is visiting Graeme, who is lying on his death bed, she tells him the following: Dont you remember on a certain occasion, when you were drinking, how you raised your cup to drink to the health of everybody you knew? But you did not drink to my health you slighted Barbara Allan (line 20). The line suggests that in some way Graeme had ignored or hurt Barbara Allan, and that was the reason why she had refused his advances toward her on earlier occasions. But it may also suggest that Graemes oversight his not drinking to Barbaras health is somehow responsible for his own illness and death and her subsequent death. The poignancy (or the emotional appeal) of the ballad, though, comes from the fact that both John Graeme and Barbara Allan lose their chance at love and happiness. They waited too long. Perhaps the ballad is thereby suggesting that one should grab on to love when one has the chance.

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A ballad with an obvious supernatural element is The Wife of Ushers Well. The story concerns a woman who has three sons. They sail across the sea and become lost. The woman curses her fate and declares that she wishes the storms and floods will never cease until her three sons return to her (lines 13-16). Then, one night, they do return to her. But they are ghosts; and they must leave before the sunrise. The ballad reveals the belief in the supernatural, but it also suggests that one should not make rash wishes. The irony is that such wishes do not always turn out as a person may hope. The woman wanted to see her sons in earthly flesh and blood (line 16), not as ghosts. SIR PATRICK SPENS Another ballad that commemorates a death is Sir Patrick Spens. The story here is also rather simple: a Scottish king orders the best sailor in the land, Sir Patrick Spens, to take a journey during a bad time of the year when there are many storms. Spens and his men obey their orders, the ship sinks, and all are killed. The poem thus honors the heroism of the brave sailor that died doing his duty for king and country. The modern reader may wonder whether Sir Patrick Spens, Sir John Graeme and Barbara Allan, and Lord Randall were actual historical figures or merely fictional characters. The editors of the text note that these ballads have counterparts in other parts of Europe (and written in other languages). That implies that these other stories from elsewhere in Europe made their way to the British Isles in some form or another and were

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rewritten or revised to fit in with the Scottish setting and style. Therefore, the characters do not necessarily have any real basis in Scottish history. Sir Patrick Spens, though, may be an exception. Our editors note that some scholars have connected the ballad to a real-life event that occurred during the 13th century. However, such scholars are only making a guess here. The connection is not definite. THE BONNY EARL OF MURRAY One ballad that does, however, have a definite historical incident as its origin is The Bonny Earl of Murray. The dialogue, though, is fictional. The historical incident took place in 1592. In that year a Scot by the name of Huntley killed the Earl of Murray. In the ballad, the speaker of the second stanza is King James VI of Scotland, who criticizes Huntley for killing Murray. The King had wanted Huntley to bring Murray to him, not to kill him. The King even adds that he ordered Huntley not to kill Murray. The ballad does not, however, explain the reasons for Huntleys killing of Murray. That is not important here. The purpose of the poem is to praise Murray, who, the ballad relates, was brave and gallant and courteous and who might have even become the next king of Scotland (line 12). Like other ballads, this one presents a tragic and untimely death. However, one feature that is different from the other ballads is that very little dialogue is used. Of the six stanzas, only the second one contains dialogue. Such a difference, though, does not necessarily imply a difference between historical and fictional ballads.

LECTURE 13
THE FIRST LECTURE ON MEDIEVAL DRAMA EVERYMAN: AN INTRODUCTION There are three great ages in the drama of Western Civilization: (1) There is the Classical Age, the time of the great Greek and Roman empires, beginning around 500 BC and continuing to approximately 500 AD. The first great dramatic works of the Western world appeared in Greece (by such notable writers as Sophocles and Aeschylus) and later (after 100 BC) in Rome (the Romans wrote both comedies and tragedies in Latin). (2) The second great period of drama is the Renaissance, which, of course, is the time of Shakespeare and other notable English playwrights (such as Christopher Marlowe). And (3) the Modern Age, beginning around 1880 and continuing into the first half of the 20th century, also boasts of being an age of great drama with writers such as Henrik Ibsen in Denmark and Eugene ONeill in the United States. The period in-between the Classical Age and the Renaissance, that era known as the Middle Ages that lasted for nearly 1000 years (from 500 to 1500 AD), did not contribute significantly to the dramatic literary form. There are various reasons for this: political disruption, war, the absence of unification in many countries, the absence of a single powerful political source, the living conditions. England, especially, was not a unified land in the early part of the Middle Ages. So for these and, perhaps, other reasons, drama was not very well developed. During the Old English period we do not see

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any examples of dramatic literature. Even translations of the Greek and Roman plays of the Classical Age did not appear in England. With so many struggles, there was little opportunity for translation. Not until the Middle English period does drama as a literary form first appear, beginning in the 12th century but not really becoming prevalent until the 13th century. During the Middle Ages drama was not a dominant literary form. In fact, compared to other literary forms, there were very few dramatic works even written. The dominant literary compositions of the time would include the epic (even though they have not survived) during the Old English period and the medieval romance during the Middle English period. During the Middle English period fabliaux, like The Millers Tale in Chaucers Canterbury Tales, were also quite popular however many of the fabliaux were written in prose, not poetry. Medieval plays in England, which did not exist in the Old English period but did appear around the 12th century, were originally written in Latin; and they were performed inside a church. Of course, that would mean it would be the parishioners, the local people who attended any given church, who would prepare the plays and be the actors. In all likelihood, most of these people did not even understand the Latin dialogue. But the stories would be old stories, stories from the Bible. And so the people of the Church would be familiar with the stories even if they did not understand the Latin. The stories or narratives, then, are Biblical in form and meaning. They would be stories either taken directly from the Bible or derived from the written records of the Catholic Church (such as the stories concerning the lives of the saints). The story of Noah and the flood, for

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example, would be very well known and popular to all of the members of the church. Also popular would be the story about the Nativity the story about the birth of Jesus Christ. They might also have a play about the revolt of Satan. Satan was, according to Catholic stories that are not included in the Bible, once an angel up in Heaven. According to some versions of the story, he is the brightest, the fairest, the most wonderful of angels. But Satan (or Lucifer) because of his pride, rebels against God. So, God casts him out of Heaven and hurtles (or throws) Satan and all of his followers down into the pits of Hell. The Biblical stories would come from both the Old Testament and the New Testament. During the 13th and 14th centuries in England, medieval Biblical drama started to develop, to become more sophisticated. But the plays were still Church productions. They were still plays performed for religious reasons. But the priests in the churches decided that they wanted their parishioners to understand the plays more fully. So, they decided to write the plays in the vernacular, in the native spoken language of the country (so, in England the plays were written in English, in France they were in French, not in Latin any longer). Now more people could understand them. A second change during this time is now the plays would be performed outside, not inside the church. This would allow greater numbers of people to come and see the performances as well as allowing a greater number of actors to be involved. So, they probably also became much more popular. More people would want to see these plays now that they could understand the language. By the 14th century the entire notion of drama and performance was quite popular with the commoners

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and local townsfolk. Of course, during the Middle Ages people did not necessarily have a great amount of time to spend on their amusement. So, the performances of these plays would often be done on Holy Days (or holidays). But even in the 14th century the plays would still be associated, then, with the Church and religion religious ceremonies or celebrations. One of the most popular days for dramatic performances was the Feast Day (or Holy Day) of Corpus Christi. The words Corpus Christi are Latin for the body of Christ. And this holiday was established to celebrate the idea of Communion, of the eating of bread that symbolically represents the body of Christ. This signifies that a person has been forgiven for his or her sins and becomes one with God. The holiday is celebrated in late spring or early summer; and, so, it would be a good time for outdoor performances. In certain places in England, such as the city of York, Play Cycles would be performed. A cycle means a series of plays. Again, they would all be religious plays, plays depicting the stories from the Bible. But now they would be performing many stories on a single occasion. So, people could spend an entire day, or possibly even more than one day, going out and watching dramatic performances from sun up to sun down. Some of these towns would actually have competitions, and various groups of people in the town would get together with other members of the same guild. A guild is similar to a labor or union group, a collection of people who are all engaged in the same line of work. All the carpenters, for example, would form one guild; all the bakers would form another. Each guild would be responsible for staging one play, one story, in the cycle; and each guild would want to present

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a better play, to outperform the other guilds. Such contests actually contributed greatly to English drama. Each guild would want to have the best actors, the finest sets, and the best-written play. On some occasions, a guild might even be assigned to perform a play that was somehow connected to their line of work. The carpenters, for example, might be responsible for the story of Noah since the Ark had to be built out of wood. The bakers could be responsible for performing the Last Supper story from the New Testament. In the city of York, in northern England, they even developed the idea of the Pageant Wagon. Instead of having a stage or theater, the plays would be performed on these large wagons. The wagons would roll up the street, stop in front of a large group of people, and present the play. After the performance, the wagon could then roll further up the street in front of another group of people and begin the performance all over again. Long lines of these wagons, as many as 48 in a cycle (although often less), could then move through the town. A crowd of people could stay in one location all day long and watch all of the performances in a cycle. Instead of the audience going to the theater, the theater came to the audience. More importantly, everybody had a chance to see all of the plays. There are largely two types of plays that were popular in the Middle Ages. However, modern critics actually distinguish three types. So, it may be useful to list all three:

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The Middle Ages 1. Mystery Play This is the term used to designate the first group of plays, those that developed out of stories from the Bible. They are called Mystery Plays because they depict the mysteries from the Bible. The Mystery Plays would be used in the cycles. 2. Miracle Play These plays are religious plays, but the stories do not come from the Bible. The most common type of Miracle Play is the one that depicts a scene or scenes out of the life of a saint. There are not many plays of this type from medieval England. [The reader should note that some critics refer to the Mystery Plays as Miracle Plays since the stories from the Bible are also stories about miracles.] 3. Morality Play These are religious plays that are purely fictional and are based on sermons or homilies. They are stories that represent some moral lesson that a preacher would present to his listeners in a church.

The Morality Play is a later development in England, occurring at the end of the Middle English period (during the 14th and 15th centuries). These plays are much more original and much more creative than the earlier plays. As noted above, they are usually based on sermons. The reader might recall Chaucers The

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Pardoners Tale, the story of three greedy rogues or rascals who went out searching for death and found it. Such a story comes from a medieval sermon, and such a story could also be dramatized, could be made into a Morality Play. The Morality Plays became extremely popular during the Middle Ages; and the best of these plays is Everyman, written in the 15th century. Since Everyman comes at the end of the Middle English period, it is a longer work with a more complicated structure than most other morality plays. Everyman is possibly based on a Dutch play (from Holland or, as we say today, the Netherlands) that even had the same title. Again the reader should note that such plays were not just popular in England but were also popular in many other parts of Europe as well. The appeal of the play, then, is not just an English one but a more universal one. By the 15th century professional acting companies also become known in England. No longer are the amateur performers from the local church starring in such presentations. The competition spurred by the guilds allowed individuals with acting talent to ask for, or maybe even demand, money for their services. Such individuals would then become well known by a town for their acting ability; and, so, they would become famous as actors. Such actors would perform, of course, Morality Plays. But only a century later William Shakespeare and other great playwrights would be writing great tragedies and comedies for the theater, and such a development in drama could only follow this earlier stage when the supply and demand of actors and theaters increased significantly. In the 16th century drama flourishes in England it grows,

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develops, and blooms into a great art form. But if it were not for the earlier developments during the three or four centuries that preceded it, the great re-birth in drama during the Renaissance might not have been possible. THE STORY OF EVERYMAN The story of Everyman is actually quite simple. The central character or protagonist is actually called Everyman because he symbolizes all people everywhere or, to be more specific and precise, all Christians. He actually represents the common or average Christian. Everyman is approached by this figure called Death. This is just like the personification of Death that appears in The Pardoners Tale. Death is a person (played by an actor). Death approaches Everyman and tells him that his time is almost up, he is about to die. So, Death then tells Everyman to make himself ready for his journey (the journey symbolizing the transition from life to death). Of course, Everyman, like anybody else, does not want to die. He also realizes that he is not ready. Everyman becomes worried, and he thinks he needs help. He wants to find someone who might join him on his journey or help him find some way out of this situation. So, Everyman approaches a number of other characters in the story. Each character in the story represents a larger group of people, objects, or abstract ideas. Everyman asks all of these characters for help, but he learns a valuable lesson. He learns that many of the people and ideas that he believed were so important and necessary to his life are not really that important at all. What Everyman thought was important turns out to

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be just superficial and trivial. The people and things that he thought were important will not help him on his journey, will not help him face death. They will not help him meet the afterlife. They will not help him make it into Heaven. So, Everyman learns a lesson about what is and what is not important in life. The story is an allegory. Every character in the play represents an abstract idea or quality or a certain group of people. None of the characters is intended to be realistic. They do not represent real people. Each character, then, is a personification of an idea. Because the characters are allegorical, because they are personifications of ideas, the characters in morality plays are unrealistic and, therefore, stiff and even unemotional. They do not speak like humans: they do not speak naturally. They speak as if their lines came directly out of a sermon or religious essay. But one feature that does make Everyman a great play is that it does contain realistic speech. The speech sounds like common, everyday ordinary speech, the speech of real people. FELLOWSHIP The first character that Everyman approaches is called Fellowship. Fellowship, whom we might even call Good Fellowship, represents the idea of friends. He symbolizes all of the closest friends anyone might have. Like anyone else, Everyman, when he has a problem, might go to his friends to ask for help. So, he goes to Fellowship. Fellowship, like a true friend, notices that Everyman looks sad and asks Everyman if there is anything he can do to help (line 209). Fellowship even

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makes two additional comments about the nature of his help: I will not forsake thee to my lifes end. (line 213) [I will help] though I on the ground be slain for thee. (line 219) Fellowship is thus saying that he is willing to do whatever it takes to help Everyman out, to even die for Everymans sake. Of course, this offer of help makes Everyman extremely happy because that is exactly what he needs: for someone to die with him (to go on his journey to the afterlife). Everyman is ecstatic; he is overjoyed. He comments that Fellowship speaks lovingly (line 215), with the love of a good and true friend. Repeatedly, Fellowship convinces Everyman that he will be ready to help him in any way that Everyman needs. Fellowship, speaking ironically, states that even if Everyman were to go to Hell (line 232), he would go with him. What Fellowship does not realize, of course, is that Everyman may indeed be going literally to Hell. Everyman believes the words of his friend, as just about anyone would tend to believe in the words of their friends. So, finally Everyman tells Fellowship his problem. He tells Fellowship that he is commanded to go on a journey to God. Fellowship then lets the truth out. He essentially says, I was not really serious when I told you I would go to Hell with you. Fellowship even admits that promise is duty (line 248). As we had seen in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the idea

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of keeping ones word, of keeping an oath, is an extremely important concept or virtue in the Middle Ages. But not all friends are like Sir Gawain. Fellowship realizes that such a journey would bring him harm, and no oath will force him to undertake any task that will cause him harm or death. Fellowship, like a realistic human, regrets the words he had spoken earlier. He wishes he had never told Everyman that he would die for him. But it does not matter, for Fellowship goes back on his promise. He will not take the journey to the afterlife with Everyman. Everyman tries to convince Fellowship to reconsider. He reminds Fellowship about the importance of his promise. But no words have any effect on Fellowship. He will not go. He will break his promise. Fellowship lets Everyman down. So, Fellowship here is the good buddy, the friend, the one who always promises to help. But when the situation is serious, he is the friend who is nowhere to be found. Everyman, like most people, always felt that friends are the most important part of life; and he is shocked to find that these people whom he has always relied on will not be there for him when he has the most need. FAMILY AND POSSESSIONS Since Everymans friends turned him down, he turns to his family. The characters of Kindred and Cousin in the play represent the idea of family; they represent all family members. Most people think that even if their friends are not there for them, at least their family will be. But as Everyman learns, this is not

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necessarily true either. Everyman makes the same request to Kindred and Cousin to accompany him on his journey; but they, too, refuse. They, too, will not help Everyman in his time of need. After being turned down by friends and family, Everyman turns to a character called Goods. Goods represents material objects (material possessions) and even money. Just like many people in the 20th century, many people in the 15th century also believed that objects or things material goods were important. We could, in a sense, also use the name Riches as a substitute for Goods, since the character represents money and whatever money can buy. Everyman believes that he can rely on his goods, his material possessions, just as many people today believe that they can rely on their money to help them out of any problem that they might have. Of course, no matter how much money one might have, he cannot buy his way out of death. Like the modern materialist (like someone who loves things), Everyman is consumed by his passion for objects. He even tells Goods, All my life I have had joy and pleasure in thee (line 408). The opposite of materialism is spirituality. By declaring his love for material objects, Everyman is essentially place his material desires over his spiritual needs he is placing goods above God. There is a touch of irony in Everymans words when he says to Goods, I pray thee go with me (line 409). Of course, the expression (I pray) was a common substitution for I ask or I request. However, the expression does also quite definitely express ones way of communicating to God. Everyman should not be praying to Goods; he should be

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praying to God. The line, then, suggests that Everyman worships Goods. Like family and friends, Goods also refuses to accompany Everyman on his journey. This, of course, symbolizes the idea that a person cannot take material objects or money with him or her into the afterlife. Money and possessions cannot be taken into Heaven. From the Christian viewpoint, then, they have no value not in any spiritual sense. Material goods are not helpful in the spiritual sense; they do not contribute to the well being of the soul. But in addition to that, they can be harmful to ones soul. The play reflects this Christian idea. Goods tells Everyman that he would actually suffer if Goods were to accompany him on his journey (line 417). The love of goods detracts from the love of God, and Christians consider such actions as sinful. More importantly, Catholics in the Middle Ages considered charity as an important part of being a Christian. Goods also tells Everyman that he should have given at least a small amount of his goods or money to the poor (line 432) instead of being so greedy throughout his lifetime. As he was with his family and friends, Everyman is surprised that Goods will not help him. After all, he thinks his goods belong to him. There is a touch of irony here. Goods tells Everyman that he never really owned his goods: they were only leant to him for a small period of time (line 440). Goods is telling Everyman that when people die, they cannot take their possessions with them. Their money, their houses, their furniture, and all of their other possessions will stay on earth and end up in the hands of somebody else. Goods are temporary. They are momentary fleeting objects that

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people may hold for the short time they are on earth; but for the rest of their existence, for the time of all eternity in the afterlife, people will not have their possessions with them. The Christian viewpoint is that one should not place so much value on objects since they play such a short role, a fleeting role, in ones existence. Money or greed can corrupt the soul. Goods admits to Everyman that for every person who receives some benefit from money or possessions, there are 1000 people who are ruined, spiritually (line 443), because of their greed, because of their love for material things. Such a line suggests that materialism was as rampant, as common, in the 15th century as it is today. The reader should also note one other word in this scene between Everyman and Goods. That word is reckoning (line 419). The word suggests adding things up, as in accounting. But more specifically, in this instance, the word refers to an account of oneself, how one will measure up before the eyes of God. It refers, then, to how one has lived his or her life in terms of acts of goodness and acts of evil. Goods tells Everyman that he has blotted, ruined, Everymans account or record because Everyman loved his material objects too much. When Everyman goes before God, he cannot tell God about how much money he has or how many possessions he owns. God will not care about that. That is why Everymans record is blotted: it contains debits (acts of evil), not credits (acts of goodness). Through his conversation with Goods, Everyman learns the same lesson that is presented in The Pardoners Tale: radix malorum est cupiditas. The root of evil is greed. If a person is greedy, he or she will not be able to give a positive account of himself or herself in Heaven.

The Middle Ages THE STRUCTURE OF EVERYMAN

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Although the play Everyman has only one long act, a reader may find it helpful to see the play has having two distinct parts. In the first part, or half, of the play, Everyman approaches four characters that represent people or objects that are separate from him. But in the second half, he approaches characters that represent internal qualities or aspects of himself. The two parts are represented in the following chart: I. EXTERNAL IDEAS QUALITIES 1. Fellowship (Friends) 2. Cousin and Kindred (Family) 3. Goods (Money & Material Objects) II.INTERNAL 1. Good Deeds 2. Knowledge 3. Discretion 4. Strength 5. Beauty 6. Five-Wits In other words, once Everyman is through looking outside of himself for help, for someone to come with him on his journey, he then turns to himself, to qualities that he possesses. Everyman looks at himself. However, for the Christian, there may still be a problem with this. Christians should look not upon themselves, but toward God.

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The character of Good Deeds is actually a transitional character. She represents the idea of Charity, which is actually both an outward action and an inner quality. The action of being charitable stems from the internal quality of being generous. The idea of Charity is one of the most important attributes of a medieval Christian. In this play, though, the character of Good Deeds does not represent the idea of charity in general. Rather, she specifically represents the good deeds that Everyman himself has performed in his life. But since Everyman had spent the greater part of his life being concerned about Fellowship, Kindred, and Goods, he has not, therefore, performed very many good deeds in his lifetime. After being turned down by Fellowship, Kindred, and Goods, though, Everyman is desperate. He does not know where else to turn, so he decides to approach Good Deeds. Of course, Everyman realizes that he has not performed many good deeds in his life, and this idea is represented in the play when Everyman states, She is so weak (line 482). Since Everyman has not been very charitable in his life, the character portraying Good Deeds would act tired and weak. She can barely lift her arms. She cannot even stand up. She thus represents the weakness of Everymans not-so-generous spirit. The reader should note the stage directions (line 486) as Everyman approaches Good Deeds. She is lying on the ground. She is weighed down with the sins accumulated during Everymans life.

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However, despite the fact that Good Deeds is so weak, she tells Everyman that, yes, she will go with him on his journey to the afterlife. She will face Death with him. The suggestion here is that Everyman has done some good deeds in his life. There may not have been very many of them, but whatever few he has done can be taken with him to God. When he has to give an account of himself to God (when he has to give a reckoning of himself), he can point to his good deeds, his acts of kindness, his acts of charity. The idea of Everymans reckoning, his account of himself, is symbolized by a book that Good Deeds carries (line 503). An account of ones good deeds is important and valuable to a person. This is the only kind of account that God wants to see. As Everyman will soon learn, there will only be one character that will accompany him on his journey. And that character is Good Deeds. However, as Good deeds tells Everyman, his soul is heavy (line 505). He has not done enough good deeds in his life to allow him entry into Heaven. His account book is unbalanced. INTERNAL ATTRIBUTES: KNOWLEDGE The main idea of the second part of the play is to prepare Everymans soul for his entrance into Heaven. However, Everyman still has to learn a lesson or continue to learn the lesson about what is and what is not important. He needs to learn what has value in a spiritual sense. And he needs to learn that what is important on earth may not be of any importance at all in Heaven. In the second part of the play Everyman

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now looks inside himself, rather than outside of himself, to find companions to accompany him on his journey. Good Deeds first introduces Everyman to her sister (line 519) Knowledge in order for Everyman to clean the blots from his account book, to help Everyman seek forgiveness for his sins and to remove these sins from his book. Knowledge convinces Everyman to seek another character called Confession, who will be essential to helping Everyman remove his sins. The point here is that all Christians have knowledge. All Christians have the intelligence to realize their faults and know where to seek help. The mind is a gift from God, and God wants people to use their minds to bring them to the path toward Heaven and toward God. In a sense, the word knowledge here implies the idea of Free Will. Everyone has the ability to choose a path toward God. Everyone has reason enough to control his or her selfish desires and avoid a sinful life. Everyman, therefore, goes to Confession to ask for forgiveness of his sins. This represents the idea of a Christian going to a priest at a confessional (a small darkened room where a Christian can speak privately to a priest) and confessing or admitting his or her sins so that the priest, as Gods representative, can help that Christian be forgiven. In this way, Everyman has taken the first step to forgiveness, to removing the blots or stains that have piled up in his account book. This will prepare Everyman to enter the kingdom of Heaven. INTERNAL ATTRIBUTES: BODY Even after seeking Confession, though, Everyman still is not quite ready for his journey into the

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afterlife. Good Deeds and Knowledge introduce Everyman to four other characters: Discretion, Strength, Beauty, and Five-Wits. Collectively, these four characters represent the human body. They represent characteristics common to all people. Discretion suggests physical behavior (in speech and action), and Five-Wits indicates the five senses (seeing, hearing, tasting, touching, and smelling). For Christians, the human body is also a gift from God. The human body allows you to learn and understand the world. It also allows you to act physically so that you can prepare your soul, so that you can prepare yourself for a journey to the afterlife. The suggestion in the play at this point is that the human body is important. The human body can help you far more than friends or riches for the ultimate journey that all people must take the journey to the afterlife. In other words, an individual can rely on his body, a person can rely on himself, to help himself to achieve his spiritual goals. The four characters representing the body, then, help Everyman take the next step in preparing for his spiritual salvation. Five-Wits tells Everyman to seek a priest so that he can receive Extreme Unction (Last Rites), a special blessing spoken by a priest to a Christian who is about to die. Everyman agrees and leaves the other characters to seek a priest. Five-Wits and the other three characters symbolize, then, not only the human body, but also the proper way for a Christian to use his body. A person should use his or her senses (seeing and hearing), discretion, and strength to take physical action to move closer to God. More specifically, a person should use his or her body to confess his or her sins and to pray. A

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person should use the body for undertaking acts of charity and for doing other acts of goodness. There are, however, limits to the usefulness of the human body. When Everyman returns from the priest, he asks Discretion, Strength, Beauty, Five-Wits, and also Knowledge to join him on his journey. He tells them, now that he is prepared for his journey, that he must enter a cave (his grave) and sleep there (lines 79293). But all five of these characters refuse Everyman. All five of them forsake Everyman. The symbolism is, of course, appropriate here. The human body only serves a person only while he or she is alive. The body does not serve a person in the afterlife. The body decays, the body dies. Only the spirit or soul remains. The characters leaving Everyman at this point, just before he dies, might even symbolically signify the loss of bodily functions as one approaches old age the strength fades, beauty disappears, the senses (such as sight) become weaker. The body serves a purpose, but then it dies. Even Knowledge abandons Everyman. For Christians, knowledge, too, is only useful for ones earthly existence. Knowledge helps a person learn about God and prepare his or her soul to be closer to God. Once a person has achieved that goal, the knowledge itself is no longer important. Only one character accompanies Everyman on his journey to the afterlife. Only one character goes with Everyman before God. And that character is Good Deeds. God does not care about how many friends a person had or how much money that person accumulated. God does not care about how strong or how beautiful or how knowledgeable a person was

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during his or her lifetime. God only cares about ones good deeds. God only cares about the goodness of ones soul. The play ends with an Angel welcoming Everyman into Heaven. The play ends with Everyman learning his lesson about what is important in life and in the afterlife.

LECTURE 14
THE SECOND LECTURE ON MEDIEVAL DRAMA THE DEPICTION OF GOD IN EVERYMAN In Everyman an actor plays the role of God. This would not have been a concern (or a seeming act of sacrilege) to medieval audiences. Every character in the play, after all, represents an abstract idea or concept. The audience would not view any actor literally or realistically. Still, England during the Middle Ages was a Christian land, and a depiction of God had to be consistent with the image of God that is portrayed in the Bible. Thus, the dialogue for the character of God is quite similar to that which appears in the Bible. However, such dialogue comes from the Old Testament: so, it represents more of the ancient Hebraic concept of God rather than so much a Christian one. The reason for this is that the first five books of the Bible, also known as the Pentateuch, are originally Hebraic (Hebrew or Jewish) literature and also form the core of the great Jewish religious document called the Torah. In Everyman God speaks to Death (personified) at the beginning of the play. The reader should note a distinction between the tone and purpose of the speech. The tone is clearly one of anger. God is angry because mankind has become so sinful and selfish. People do not seem concerned about their souls and what will happen to them in the afterlife. However, the purpose of the speech is quite different. By asking Death to approach Everyman, God is giving him (and all of

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mankind) another chance. God is allowing Everyman, despite his sins, a chance to be saved. The purpose of the speech, then, is to reveal that all of mankind is capable of salvation. Everybody can be saved. Everyone, no matter how many sins he or she may have, can still enter Heaven in the afterlife. Gods anger, however, dominates the speech. He states that all creatures are unkind to God (line 23) and that all of the people in the world are materialistic, greedy, and selfish. They have no concern for their spiritual nature. They are not good. The reader should notice the metaphors to depict the sinful nature of mankind, as in the following example: Of ghostly sight the people be so blind. (line 25) The line suggests that people are not aware of (they are blind to) their souls. They do not think or pay attention to their spiritual (ghostly) selves or their spiritual needs. Or, to say it another way, people are only concerned with their earthly selves and their earthly needs. They only think about collecting possessions and making themselves happy. The modern reader may wonder if these lines accurately depict the majority of people living in England during the fifteenth century. The answer is probably not. Although religious corruption and sin were certainly a part of life then as much as it is now, many people in medieval England did worship God, did attend church, and did worry about their soul. The speech reflects the fire and brimstone technique of many preachers (both then and now). The idea is to scare the parishioners (the members of a church) about the dangers of Gods wrath, about the dangers that await the sinner in Hell.

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So, the idea of punishment also becomes a dominant concept of the speech. Another metaphor used in this speech is the sharp rod (line 28), which represents the punishment of sinners in the afterlife. A rod is a switch or stick traditionally used for beating misbehaved children. In the speech, God states that people are no longer afraid of spiritual punishment. And the reason for this is that they have completely forgotten God. Thus, people compound their sins (make their sins worse) by neglecting God, by forgetting their Lord. Concepts from the New Testament also appear in the speech. God tells Death that the people of earth have forgotten how He (in the form of Jesus Christ) came to down to earth and suffered for the sake of mankind. He was crucified for man. He bled for man. He died for man (lines 30-33). Catholics believe in the idea of the Trinity (the idea that God is three beings or has three forms: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost). Thus, whatever Jesus Christ experienced or suffered was also experienced or suffered by God the Father since the Son (Jesus Christ) and the Father are one and the same. The people of earth, then, are also ungrateful to God for what He has done for them. Their sins are compounded by their ingratitude. One of the important words not only in this speech but also throughout the entire play is the word forsake. God complains that the people forsake or abandon him (line 35), and so he is disappointed with mankind. A theme of disappointment runs throughout the entire play. However, Gods disappointment is justified; but the disappointments of Everyman are his own doing (as will be discussed later), his own fault.

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The reader should also make note of a few other important ideas of the speech that reflect much of the action that follows later in the play. The reader should note, for example, the mention of the Seven Deadly Sins (lines 36-37) as well as the use of the word reckoning (line 46). But the reader should also note the simile where God compares humans to animals (beasts line 49). For the Christian, the one major distinction between mankind and all other animals is that humans have souls. To say that people act like beasts is to say that they behave as if they have no souls. But actually people are worse than beasts because an animal does not have a soul and therefore has no obligation to God. But humans have souls (and free will), and that implies that they should know better. The lines discussed thus far reflect the tone of the speech. But the purpose of the speech becomes clear in the last dozen lines (lines 52-63). That purpose is perhaps best summed up in a single word: Mercy (line 58). Despite Gods great anger for mankind, He still will be merciful. He will still give Everyman he will still give everyone a chance for eternal salvation. In the last part of this speech another word that the reader should note is elect. God tells Death, I had them all elect (line 54). By this God means that everybody, all humans are Elect, they are all chosen to be with God. The idea of the Elect would be one of the distinguishing characteristics between the Catholics and certain Protestant groups. The Puritans of the early 17th century, including those who sailed from England and settled in the New World in 1620 and afterwards, believed that the number of people who were Elect, those people who were predestined or chosen to be with God, was very small. In fact, they believed that only

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144,000 out of all the millions of people who ever lived or will live would go to Heaven. Everybody else would go to Hell. Of course, every Puritan believed that he or she was one of that 144,000. For the Catholics of the 15th century, though, the idea of the Elect is not so restrictive. They believed that everybody was part of the Elect and that God will allow everybody with no restriction on the number an opportunity to go to Heaven. In other words, the Catholics of the 15th century believed in Free Will (as opposed to the idea of Predestination believed in by the Puritans). The Catholics of that time believed that everybody could choose to go to Heaven by living his or her life according to Gods commandments. Thus, the Catholics of the Middle Ages believed in a truly merciful God, a God who would welcome all sinners into Heaven if they repent their sins and ask God for His Mercy. As mentioned, the speech presented by the actor portraying God contains largely a tone of anger, a tone that is reflected in several stories from the Old Testament. In the story of Noah and the Flood, for example, God delivers a similar speech of anger just prior to his sending the great flood to destroy practically all of mankind. A similar speech revealing the anger of God appears in the story of Job. In that story, like this play, God is disappointed in man and his sinful nature. But in the play, disappointment becomes a major theme in the story. In this speech, God not only reveals His anger, but he also reveals His disappointment. God is sad because of mans sinful and selfish actions.

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The play Everyman is concerned with serious topics regarding virtue and vice, morality and salvation. However, the play is not so deeply and darkly serious to prevent it from being entertaining. Everyman was a popular play not only in the 15th century, but also for many centuries thereafter. The play certainly lacks the characteristics of the great dramatic works that dominate the Renaissance period. Plot, characterization, and style would all vastly improve in the 16th century. Yet, despite all that, Everyman is still enjoyable. Even today modern audiences often find it amusing. One of the reasons why it amuses audiences is its use of humor. The characters do not speak like the abstract ideas that they represent. Rather, they speak like real people. And like real people, they may speak or act in silly or foolish ways. One of the first instances of humor in the play occurs during Everymans conversation with Fellowship. After Fellowship turns down Everymans request that he should accompany him on his journey, Everyman reminds Fellowship of the promise that he made. Everyman reminds Fellowship that he promised he would even face death with Everyman. Fellowship responds with the following: I wot well I said so, truly. And yet, if thou will eat and drink and make good cheer, Or haunt to women the lusty company, I would not forsake you while the day is clear, Trust me verily! (lines 271-75)

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Here Fellowship admits to making that rash promise to Everyman, but now he qualifies that promise. He states that he will only accompany Everyman under certain conditions. If Everyman wants to go to a party, Fellowship will go with him. If Everyman wants to go out and have fun, Fellowship will be there with him. If Everyman wants to go visit a brothel (a house of prostitution), Fellowship will be right by his side. In other words, Fellowship will only be Everymans good friend as long as the circumstances are fun or entertaining. He is, as the old saying goes, a fair-weather friend. He will only be a friend when everything is well (metaphorically, when the weather is nice). But he will not be there when the circumstances are difficult or dangerous (when the weather is bad). The humor of these lines derives from both the situation and the dialogue. Fellowship acts realistically, the way a fair-weather friend would act. But he also speaks like such a friend. He is the good buddy who makes all kinds of great promises but never really means anything that he says. An audience member might laugh at Fellowship here because he or she will recognize, perhaps, an experience out of his or her own life. A second example of humor in the play occurs when Everyman approaches Kindred and Cousin. When Everyman asks Cousin if she (or he) will take the journey to the afterlife with him, she responds, No, by Our Lady! I have the cramp in my toe (line 355). Cousin responds with the typical poor excuse that many friends or family members might offer when trying to get out of a meeting that they do not want to attend or a task that they do not want to do. I have to help my sick mother. I have another appointment. I have to get my hair cut. I have a sore toe. Excuses such as these

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are as natural and as common as flies. Perhaps we laugh at Cousins statement because we have heard such excuses ourselves. Or maybe we have even made such excuses ourselves. An example of physical comedy occurs when Everyman asks Beauty, in the second part of the play, to accompany him on his journey. The character of Beauty is a female, and when she refuses to join Everyman, she tells him, I take my tape in my lap and am gone (line 801). As the footnote reveals, this line translates as follows: I tuck my skirts in my belt and am off. The reader should then imagine Beauty grabbing the folds of her skirt and literally running off the stage as quickly as possible in order to escape the possibility of taking such a journey with Everyman. The physical humor is mixed with verbal humor. Everyman shouts after Beauty, but she says, Peace, I am deaf I look not behind me (line 803). In other words, she tells Everyman, Be quiet! I cant hear you. She pretends to be deaf to his pleas. She tries to ignore him. Once again, a character that symbolizes an abstract idea speaks in a very realistic and a very human manner. THE THEME OF DISAPPOINTMENT As already mentioned, disappointment is a central theme to the play. At the beginning of the play God expresses his disappointment in mankind because people engage in a life of sin and selfish pleasure. Similarly, Everyman also experiences disappointment. But his disappointment is due to his own foolishness and thoughtlessness. The first occasion when Everyman experiences disappointment occurs when Death approaches him.

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Everyman is shocked that his own death is coming so early. He is not ready. He feels it is too soon. He cries out that Death had given him no warning (line 132). He feels sick, psychologically upset, that his death has come so soon; and he even asks Death if he can have twelve more years of life so that he can get ready. Like most people, Everyman has lived only for the moment. He gave no thought about the future. He did not plan ahead. Everyman is disappointed that his life is going to end so soon. Like most people, he has refused to acknowledge his own mortality; he has refused to think about the fact that one day he would die. For people like Everyman, which means for just about all people, only life, only earthly existence, is important. No one thinks about the future, about the afterlife, about eternity. Life on earth is the only life to Everyman. Of course, for a Christian, this is not the case. A Christian believes (or should believe) that the afterlife is far more important than life on earth. After all, life on earth only lasts about seventy years, more or less. The afterlife is for all time for millions of years and more. Everyman, then, has been shortsighted. He has not looked ahead. But the message in this scene is that life is short. It will end sooner than we think. So, we better get ready now. The idea of disappointment is also suggested in several other scenes in the play. When Everyman approaches Fellowship, for example, Fellowship at first makes great promises to Everyman. But then Fellowship goes back on his word. He refuses to help Everyman. He disappoints Everyman. One of the important words for the reader to note in this scene is the word forsake. The word first appears in the speech by God (in line 35), and the word reappears several times elsewhere in the play. To forsake means to abandon, to

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leave completely, or to forget. The word accurately conveys how the race of man has responded to God. In this scene, Everyman asks Fellowship, Will thou forsake me? (line 297). Obviously, the answer is yes. The message here is plain. Friends will not contribute to someones spiritual goals. They will not help someone attain salvation. They cannot go with someone on that persons journey to the afterlife. Such a journey one will have to make alone. The word is used almost ironically here. There is someone who has not forsaken Everyman, and that person is God. But, actually, Everyman is the one who has already done the forsaking. He has forsaken God. The Christian lesson here is that God does not forsake man because God continues to offer forgiveness and mercy to man even if a man may sin and forsake God for a time. When Everyman encounters Cousin and Kindred, again he experiences disappointment. And again Everyman comments that his family has forsaken him (line 371). Everyman adds, I am deceived. The word deceived is also important. To deceive means to mislead, to cause a person to believe something that is not true. Everyman feels cheated by his family, for he has always believed that they would help him in his time of need. But, actually, Everyman has deceived himself. He has allowed his selfish interests to cloud his judgment. The idea of being deceived is also repeated when Everyman encounters Goods. Everyman accuses Goods by saying, Thou hast deceived me (line 452). But Goods, like Fellowship, has not really deceived Everyman. Deep down inside himself Everyman realizes that his friends and possessions cannot

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accompany him on his journey. He knows that he cannot bring his friends and his family with him to death. He has deceived himself. He has overestimated the value of his friends and possessions and what they mean to his life and to his soul. The scene with Goods also contains irony. Everyman curses Goods (line 451). To curse someone is to wish that person to be damned, to wish that person in Hell. The irony here is that ones goods, ones things, cannot be damned to Hell. But Everyman can go to Hell. Since Everyman had chosen a love of goods over a love of God, he is in danger of being eternally damned. The theme of disappointment continues into the second part of the play. Everyman becomes likewise disappointed when the four characters representing the human body Strength, Beauty, Discretion, and FiveWits also refuse to go with him to the afterlife. Once again, the reader should note the use of the word forsake (line 808). Another character that Everyman is deceived in is Good Deeds. Here again, Everyman deceives himself when he believes that Good Deeds is so weak (line 452). Once again, there is irony in the scene. Good Deeds, as it turns out, is not the weakest, but actually the strongest of the characters that Everyman approaches. Only Good Deeds can accompany Everyman to the afterlife. In a spiritual sense, then, Good Deeds is the strongest of those whom Everyman asks for help. Throughout his life, then, Everyman has deceived himself. He has become so consumed by sin that he has forgotten God. By forgetting God, by forsaking God, Everyman is no longer able to assess, to understand, what is truly valuable in life (and in the afterlife). By disappointing God he has allowed himself

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to become disappointed in life, to be disappointed in his earthly existence. THE SACRAMENTS Two other Christian ideas play an important role in Everyman. The first of these ideas concerns the Sacraments. For Catholics there are seven Sacraments: 1) Baptism a symbolic use of water to cleanse a Christian from sin. 2) Communion the eating of consecrated (holy or blessed) bread and the drinking of consecrated wine (like in the Apostles Last Supper with Jesus Christ) to symbolize the spiritual union between God and mankind. 3) Penance a ritual of praying to indicate ones desire to be forgiven for the sins he or she has committed. The practice of Confession is also part of this Sacrament. 4) Confirmation a coming of age ritual that allows a baptized person full acceptance into the Church. 5) Ordination the ceremony which allows a person to enter the Church or to become a priest. 6) Marriage as a ceremony where the bride and groom receive the blessing of God.

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7) Extreme Unction (or Last Rites) the blessing by a priest for someone who is about to die. As suggested in the play, the Sacraments are rituals or blessings that allow Christians to remain spiritually strong. They are the keys to mans redemption. They allow people to attain salvation. They allow people to experience the Grace of God. In the play Knowledge tells Everyman to seek a priest (line 707) so that Everyman can receive Extreme Unction, a ritual blessing by a priest that includes a symbolic use of oil (ointment line 709). By receiving this Sacrament, Everyman will be preparing himself for his journey. He will be ready for his death. After FiveWits explains the importance of this action how it will help bring Everyman to salvation (line 731) Everyman goes off to seek the priest. This point in the drama serves as the climax of the play; now that Everyman has prepared his soul for the afterlife, he is no longer in conflict about taking the journey. PRIESTHOOD One other Christian idea that appears almost as a digression in the play concerns the priesthood. As can be seen in Chaucers The Canterbury Tales and other literary works of the time, the Catholic Church during the Middle Ages experienced extensive corruption. Corrupt pardoners, corrupt friars, and corrupt priests were not unusual at that time. The religious corruption of the 14th century and the time of Chaucer continued throughout the 15th century. This seems evident by the

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passage in Everyman that explains the role of the priesthood. The character of Five-Wits praises priests and the priesthood to Everyman when Everyman is thinking about seeking a priest for the Sacrament of Extreme Unction (lines 732-49). This praise of priesthood should not surprise the modern reader since a priest, in all likelihood, wrote the play. However, for Catholics, both today and in the 15th century, to become a priest is to devote ones life, completely and fully, to God. A priest is a special officer of God. Five-Wits comments that such devotion is especially noteworthy, for the priest helps all other men. The priest teaches men and converts men to the true path toward God. The priest leads man away from sin and to God. Five-Wits even adds that priests are more powerful than angels (lines 735-36) since the priest can remove sin (through Confession) from mankind. Once Everyman has left the stage, though, the digression begins. Knowledge and Five-Wits discuss corrupt priests (beginning with line 750). Knowledge comments that Jesus Christ, while he lived, did not sell the Sacraments; and any priest who sells the Sacraments receives Christs curse. Thus, the writer of the play acknowledges that although there are priests who sell the Sacraments, who make personal profit in this way, these priests are cursed by God. They will go to hell. Such sinful priests set a bad example for Christians. The priests who sleep with women and even have children (lines 760-62) similarly set a bad example. Priests who are guilty of the sin of lust will suffer the same curse as those priests who are guilty of greed. They, too, will go to Hell.

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Five-Wits admits that there are such priests, but he adds that Christians should trust God to avoid them (line 764). In other words, just because bad or sinful priests do exist, that does not mean that the office (the idea) of priesthood is bad or evil. Five-Wits ends his comments on priesthood by using a metaphor. A good priest is like a shepherd and his followers are like sheep (line 767). A good shepherd watches over and protects his flock. He helps the sheep when they have trouble. Likewise, the protection and the security (surety line 768) of Christians depends upon their priest. In short, bad priests do not mean that the priesthood itself is bad. But good priests are absolutely essential or necessary to help Christians seek the path toward God. CINEMATIC FOOTNOTE The ideas present in Everyman continued into the following centuries and even into the present day. A motion picture from the early part of this century contains two ideas that are parallel or similar to ones found in Everyman. That film is You Cant Take It with You, a comedy from 1938 that was directed by Frank Capra and stars Jimmy Stewart. Although the situation and tone of the movie is much different from that of the medieval play, two themes are quite similar: (1) Withdrawal and Readjustment: The usual pattern of life is illogical or even immoral. The movie suggests a withdrawal from such a pattern. Just because everybody else seems to be living in a certain way does not mean that it is right. It also does not mean that one

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One of the better examples of a Mystery Play (a play based on a story from the Bible) is Noahs Flood. As mentioned previously, the Mystery Plays were often performed as a Play Cycle. The English town of Chester would present such a cycle, where the townspeople would perform numerous plays (the highest recorded number being 48). They would begin with the stories of the Old Testament, including the stories of Creation and Noahs Flood, and end with stories from the New Testament, including the Nativity (the birth of Jesus Christ), the Crucifixion, and the Last Judgment. The authors of the Mystery Plays were usually priests. As noted earlier, during the first part of the Middle English period, the plays were in Latin. But in the second part of the period, the plays were in English. These later plays may have been based on the earlier Latin ones. However, they reflect more independent creativity, probably as a result of the keen competition between the various guilds to see who could present the best play.

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In the town of Chester, the guild responsible for the performance of Noahs Flood was the Waterleaders. This is the guild of workers who would cart and sell water. Since the story of the Flood involves a lot of water, the choice of the Waterleaders is appropriate. The earliest known Mystery Play dates back to the 12th century. This play is the Play of Adam, depicting, obviously, the story of Adam and Eve. Not surprisingly, this play was written in Norman French since the Normans ruled England at that time. The Play Cycles, however, do not begin until the 14th century and, perhaps, reached their height of popularity during the 15th century. Modern knowledge about the performance of these plays is sketchy and incomplete. Most of what we know about them is based on records kept by the guilds. In a few towns, the Mystery Plays were preformed on wagons, but the majority of towns probably used a traditional outdoor stage platform. Performances of the plays, especially the cycles, would occur sometime in the early summer, usually on the eighth week (Whitsuntide) or ninth week (Corpus Christi) after Easter. The purpose of the plays was both entertainment and religious education. THE CHESTER MANUSCRIPT Mystery Plays continued to be performed beyond the Middle English period right into the early part of the Renaissance (the 16th century). Records indicate that in the town of Chester, the Play Cycles were performed until 1575. However, the manuscripts that have survived were written after 1575. So, they may not be completely accurate in regards to the performance during the 15th century the writer could have added or

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changed some of the lines of dialogue. In Noahs Flood two scenes were obviously added to the original manuscript. These scenes, which depict a conflict between Noah and his wife, could have first been added during the 15th century. But we cannot be certain. However, similar scenes have been added to other plays where the manuscripts do definitely date back to the 15th century. So, in all likelihood, the version in the text does accurately reflect a script from the 15th century. THE STRUCTURE OF THE PLAY The play of Noahs Flood is, for the most part, a dialogue version of the Old Testament story. The play does not have a significant amount of additional development, outside of the additional scenes between Noah and his wife. An outline of the play may be useful here to see the plot of the play: Scene Lines 1. 1-40 Description Gods speech His anger over man and mans sinful ways. The speech is similar to the one in Everyman. God orders Noah to build the Ark. Noah and his family show their obedience and build the Ark. First Noah vs. Wife conflict. God commands Noah to collect the animals. Noah and his family put the animals on the Ark.

2. 3. 4. 5.

41-96 97-112 113-44 145-92

The Middle Ages Scene 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. Lines 193-252 ---253-60 261-91 292-99 300-15 316-75

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Description Second Noah vs. wife conflict. Song. The song is unknown. Noah closes the Ark and prepares for the flood. Forty days later Noah finds land. God tells Noah to leave the Ark. Noah thanks God. Gods speech: He presents His covenant (or promise) to Noah and to all of Noahs descendants.

Largely, the play depicts Gods orders and Noahs obedience. The play in itself is not very dramatic, given our modern perspective. Even in comparison to Everyman, the play lacks energy. It lacks a central conflict. NOAHS CONFLICT WITH HIS WIFE The added scenes where Noah argues with his wife provide the only real conflict in the play. However, these scenes were obviously added later because they disagree with the portrayal of Noahs wife as presented at the beginning of the play. Perhaps the presenters of the play were well aware of the lack of energy in the play. So, they added these two scenes to provide both conflict and humor in the play. The Quarrelsome Wife is a stock character in medieval stories. As mentioned in The Wife of Baths Prologue, numerous stories of anti-feminist literature were quite popular during the Middle English period. Other plays from the time also present the quarrelsome

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or disobedient wife as a common or typical character as a stereotype that audiences would immediately recognize. Initially in the play, the character of Noahs wife is obedient to Noah. The first scene where the wife argues with Noah comes abruptly. The reader (or member of the audience) is not ready for it. The earlier passage where the wife is obedient should have been rewritten. It should have been changed so that the character of the wife would be consistent throughout the play. The added scene was, most likely, written as a last minute decision. The writer of the wife scenes was not the writer of the original play. And, so, the writer probably did not wish to change or alter any of the original dialogue. In the first quarrelsome wife scene, the lines given to Noah especially reveal the anti-feminist view so common at the time: Lord, that women been crabbed ay, And none are meek, I dare well say. (lines 105-06) Noah is saying that women are always crabby and complaining. They are never meek; they are never quiet. They never accept anything that a man says. Noah even becomes embarrassed by his wifes behavior. He tells her to stop shouting and complaining because other people will think that she is the master in his family (line 111). During the Middle Ages most women, traditionally, were subservient to their husbands they had to do what their husbands told them. However, the Wife of Bath in Chaucers work and

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Noahs wife in this play reveal that not all women accepted their traditional roles. In the second quarrelsome wife scene, Noahs wife again disobeys her husband. Instead of getting into the boat, the Ark, right away, the wife decides to spend some time drinking wine with her friends, the Good Gossips. One reason why this scene may have been added is that it does allow more characters (more actors) and more opportunity to perform. Maybe some of the wives of the guild members (who built the Ark and set) wanted to be involved, so the scene was added. In any event, the characters of the Gossips do not really add to the meaning or theme of the play. The humor of the scene involves physical comedy. The wife complains that she will not get on board the Ark unless her friends can go with her (disobedience). And she is enjoying herself so much (drinking) that Noahs sons have to drag her physically into the Ark. To make matters worse for poor Noah, she slaps him once the sons have put her on the Ark (line 246). The character here is a stereotype of the quarrelsome wife, a woman who makes her husbands life miserable. THE SONG The highlight, the best moment, of Noahs Flood, as it was originally written, seems to be the song. Actually, the stage directions indicate two places in the play where the song should be performed (after line 224 and after line 252), both before and after the second quarrelsome wife scene. In all likelihood, the scene with the Gossips replaced the song as the central feature of the play.

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If the play had been performed without the quarrelsome wife scenes, then the song would probably have been the central moment of the play since, as mentioned, the play itself lacks any real conflict. Unfortunately, the manuscript of the play does not indicate what song was performed. However, the use of a song as a central feature of a play foreshadows a development that will occur during the Renaissance. During the 16th century the masque would become a popular dramatic art form. The masque was usually an extremely short play that included singing and dancing. Often, both children and adults would perform a masque on a special occasion, such as a birthday, for aristocrats. The children of the lords and ladies were often the performers. The masque depended on spectacle fancy costumes, elaborate sets, and music. The plays themselves were usually not very well written, and the characters were not very well developed. Perhaps like a Renaissance masque, the mystery play of Noahs Flood relied on its song (and the spectacle of the Ark set) to amuse and entertain the crowd. STAGE DIRECTIONS The modern reader should also note the stage directions of Noahs Flood to see how the artisans or craftsmen of a guild would handle such difficult tasks like getting hundreds of animals to climb on board the Ark. The following stage directions are particularly worth noting:

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(1) The Ark, completely built, is already on stage when the play begins. (2) Noah and his sons pretend to build the ship (following line 80). (3) The animals are painted on boards (following line 161). (4) Noah closes a window of the Ark and the characters remain silent for a few moments to symbolize the 40 days when the rains pour down (following line 260). (5) The dove, also painted on a board, is attached to a rope and managed from above by a stagehand (following line 276). Thus, the technical difficulties of the play were handled simply and efficiently. Such details would have to be kept simple since Mystery Plays were performed either on a wagon (with limited space) or on a platform (where the actors would have to remove their sets quickly so that the next play could begin).

PART II

THE RENAISSANCE

LECTURE 15
AN INTRODUCTION TO THE LITERATURE AND HISTORY OF THE RENAISSANCE THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY The word Renaissance means rebirth, and the question you should ask yourself is a rebirth of what? In Italy and other portions of Europe, the Renaissance marks the rebirth of the literature, learning, and the arts of the Classical Age. The Classical Age lasted from 500 BC to 500 AD and, as you should know, was a remarkable era for literature, philosophy, and learning first in Greece (circa 500 BC to 100 AD) and then in the Roman Empire (circa 100 AD to 500 AD). Nearly a thousand years later (beginning about 1350) scholars and scientists and artists tried once again, and succeeded, in restoring an atmosphere of intellectual enlightenment to Europe. Since England is separated from the rest of Europe, the spirit and energy of the Renaissance movement did not arrive in London until a much later period (beginning about 1500). But once it did arrive, the cultural and intellectual environment in England flourished; and during the Renaissance many of the greatest writers of England lived and produced some of the finest works of literature known throughout the world. This was the era of Edmund Spenser, John Milton, and, most notably, William Shakespeare. The Renaissance in England lasted for nearly 150 years. However, before proceeding further with some details about the history and literature of England

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at this time, the student might first find it helpful to keep some important dates in mind: 1476 1485 1492 1509 1517 1534 1558 1588
William Caxton Brings the Printing Press to England Henry VII is King of England (Tudors) Christopher Columbus Discovers America Henry VIII is King of England Martin Luther Protestant Reformation Henry VIII Head of English (Anglican) Church Elizabeth I is Queen of England The Defeat of the Spanish Armada

One should note that at the beginning of this time period in England (around 1500), a number of remarkable events have occurred in the areas of (1) invention, (2) discovery, (3) religion, and (4) politics. Such events would forever change the way the English viewed themselves and the world. In the area of invention, the greatest achievement of the time was the development of the printing press. In 1476 William Caxton brought the printing press from Germany to England. No device, either before or since, has had such an incredible impact on learning and education. The student must remember that before this time, books had to be written by hand. Each copy of that book also had to be written by hand. For this reason, books were expensive. A private individual who owned 25 books during the Middle Ages had a large library for that time. Since books were so rare, most people were illiterate. They could not read or write. Even if the common person did learn to read, he or she most likely would not be able to afford even one book. The printing press changed all of that. Hundreds

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or even thousands of copies of books could now be printed quickly and cheaply. With more books available, there was more opportunity and more of a reason for people to learn how to read. As a result, education also grew and became widespread. Common people, even people without a significant amount of money, could now go to school. In the area of discovery, the most notable event was the discovery of the New World by Christopher Columbus in 1492. Before that discovery, many people in Europe (the Old World) thought that they were at the center of the world. They could no longer think that way. The world turned out to be a much larger place than they had imagined. For many people in Europe, the news that they were no longer at the center of the world came suddenly and unexpectedly. Such news would undoubtedly change their philosophy. If they are not at the center of the world, then they have to ask themselves what exactly is their place in the world. For Christian people, this idea takes on a religious significance. People not only may be asking about their place in the world, but also about their place with God. In the area of religion, the Old World also changed drastically when Martin Luther protested against the practices of the Catholic Church in 1517. Suddenly, there was no longer one kind of Christian, but two: (1) the Catholics and (2) the Protestants. Martin Luthers religious reforms in Germany affected many other parts of Europe within a relatively short period of time. Less than two decades later, in 1534, the Protestant Reformation came to England. King Henry VIIIs personal conflict with the Catholic Church prompted him to declare England a Protestant land. Thus, the churches of England switched from being

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Catholic to Protestant (Anglican) at that time. Such religious changes brought by Martin Luther and Henry VIII also had a significant philosophical and psychological impact on many people (such as John Donne and John Milton). During the Middle Ages people believed in the authority and supremacy of the Catholic Church and of the leader of the Church, the Pope. A challenge to the Pope and the Catholic Church was also a challenge to the very foundations of religion. People in England might then ask, If the Popes authority on religious matters is questionable, is not then the religious authority of the King of England or the Archbishop of England also questionable? In other words, many people would wonder which religious authority was right. Whom should they follow? By the middle of the 16th century, England had changed remarkably in the areas of education, philosophy, and religion. By the end of that century, the nation would also change significantly in the area of world politics. In 1588 England defeated the Spanish Armada. Spain for a long time had boasted of having the greatest navy in the world. And Englands defeat of that navy suddenly made England the strongest force in Europe. Thus, now many people in England would consider their land as Gods favored nation. One might expect that at that time a positive feeling of patriotism and good will would have swept throughout England. Queen Elizabeth I certainly expected such a patriotic response. However, the response was not completely positive. Now that the people of England were not in such deadly fear of their enemies from across the channel, they felt that they could freely voice their complaints about their own society. Government officials (in Parliament) would disagree with the Queen.

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Parsons would disagree with the Bishops. And the Commoners would complain about their lack of freedom. Such problems would continue well into the 17th century. HUMANISM The philosophy that dominated intellectual thinking and the literary history of England at this time is Humanism. During the Middle Ages, people viewed themselves and the world around them in a theocentric way God is at the center of the world (God is the center of all things). The purpose of life on earth is for people to prepare themselves for the afterlife, for their spiritual existence in Heaven. Personal pleasure and personal glory should not, the Church taught, be the goals of the good Christian. During the Renaissance, however, the view became anthropocentric man is at the center of things. Most people in England still believed themselves to be good Christians, but they also believed that life was to be enjoyed. A good Christian did not need to suffer during his or her earthly existence. Humanism promotes living and culture. It celebrates mans intellectual capabilities. It celebrates the arts and literature. It celebrates the use of the five senses (seeing, hearing, tasting, touching, and smelling). Life is to be enjoyed. Life is to be experienced. The Humanists also expressed confidence in the human mind. Man can reason. Man can solve his difficulties. During the Middle Ages, the idea of Fortune or Fate dominates the philosophy and literature of that time. Man must bend and man must fall to the overwhelming force of Fate (or Destiny). This is not the case during the Renaissance. According to the Humanists, man can

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affect and shape his own destiny. Each person has the ability to shape his or her own life. The Humanists believed, then, in the dignity of the human mind and the human spirit. They believed in the value of human existence. However, such a belief could have its negative side. Such a belief includes having pride in ones own mind and abilities. However, too much pride can lead to vanity. Too much pride can lead to sinfulness. Both the positive and negative sides to Humanism can be seen in certain literary works, especially in Christopher Marlowes The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus. The character of Faustus shows man achieving the height of intellectual attainment and squandering that gift in a meaningless and sinful manner. The beginning of Humanism in England and the beginning of the Renaissance coincide with one another. In a sense, the terms Renaissance and Humanism are practically interchangeable. Humanism began in England during the late 15th century when a group of English clerics and government officials traveled to Italy and noticed the cultural and intellectual trends that had developed there and throughout much of Europe. In Italy the literature and the arts of Classical Greece and Rome had been reborn. The rebirth of these older ideas led to the creation of new ideas and new changes to literature and the arts. So impressed were the English visitors that, shortly after their trip, such intellectual and cultural changes were finding their way into England. Education was one of the prime concerns of the English Humanists. During the Middle Ages students would apply themselves to the study of the Trivium (grammar, logic, and rhetoric) and the Quadrivium (arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, and music). Such

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studies continued into the Renaissance. However, the Humanists would place greater emphasis on rhetoric; and they would place a significant emphasis on the reading of Classical Greek and Roman literature and philosophy. Latin continued to be, for many years, the language of the educated individual. So, students would learn to read Roman literature in its original Latin. However, translating foreign literature, especially Greek and Latin literature, soon became a popular activity in the 16th century. Soon all of the greatest works of Classical Greece and Rome were available in English. During the Renaissance there was actually a great deal of debate concerning the use of Latin over English. Many English people were proud of their nation, intellectually and politically; and so they also quite naturally would be proud of their language. Many argued that English was superior to Latin as a language of learning. One other literary development that accompanied the growth of Humanism and the appreciation of literature was the practice of patronage. Queen Elizabeth I wrote a few poems herself, and an appreciation of poetry was fostered in the court of England. To help support a poet, to be come a patron of the arts, was, therefore, considered a noble activity. Thus, patronage became a social institution in England. Nevertheless, writing was still not considered a full-time position. Poets still had to find other occupations in order to support themselves.

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The social conflicts and social protests that began during the end of the reign of Queen Elizabeth I continued throughout the reign of King James I (160325). As it would turn out, the first part of the 17th century would be one of the worst periods of civil unrest and civil conflict that England would ever experience. Once again, the student should take note of some of the key dates for this period:
1603 1605 1620 1625 1642 1649 James I is King of England (Stuarts) The Gunpowder Plot Pilgrims (Puritans) Sail on Mayflower and Settle in Massachusetts Charles I is King of England Civil War in England (Theaters are Closed) Execution of Charles I Period of the Commonwealth Oliver Cromwell Restoration: Charles II is King of England

1660

In addition to the problems in (1) government (the King versus Parliament), (2) the Anglican Church (the Parsons versus the Bishops), and (3) the social structure (the Commoners claim for more freedom), another problem arose. A group of Protestants known as the Puritans felt that the Church of England was too much like the Roman Catholic Church. The Puritans felt that Christianity should be purified and simplified. So, a conflict arose between the Puritans and Anglicans. Many of these religious dissenters, the Puritans, left England in 1608 and moved to Amsterdam in order to gain religious freedom. A little more than a decade later (in 1620) the Puritans traveled even further to the New

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World to gain their religious freedom. Arriving in Plymouth, Massachusetts, these Puritans would become known as the Pilgrims to Americans. The Church of England also experienced conflict with the many Catholics in England who refused to convert to Protestantism. In 1605 a group of Catholic extremists attempted to blow up Parliament and King James I. This act, known as the Gunpowder Plot, failed. But for centuries to come many Protestants would hate the Catholics, and many acts of prejudice against the Catholics would occur. Catholics would not be allowed to hold government office or other positions of importance. When a new king came into power in 1625, the problems not only continued. They grew worse. King Charles I was a much stricter king than King James was. Many people in England viewed Charles as a tyrant. A minor war between England and Scotland in 1637 only increased the political tensions in the country. Eventually vast numbers of Englishmen would no longer accept the commands or authority of King Charles. Civil War broke out in 1642. Many members of Parliament joined forces with Puritan dissenters to fight the Loyalists (those who remained loyal to the King). Eventually Charles I was defeated. The King was executed in 1649, and for the first time England decided not to have a king at all. England became a Commonwealth. And Oliver Cromwell became the political leader, using the title of Lord Protector of England. However, Cromwell turned out to be an even worse tyrant than Charles I. And the government of England became politically unstable. Nine years later (in 1658) Cromwell died. And two years after that (in 1660) Charles II came out of exile (from France) and

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became the new king of England. But beginning with Charles II, the kings of England would never have the supreme royal power that the previous kings had in England. The kingdom became a Constitutional Monarchy. No king would ever be allowed to hold tyrannical authority over England again. POETRY DURING THE ELIZABETHAN ERA During the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, the court was the center of authority. It was also a center for intellectualism, promoting and fostering the growth of culture and the arts. Thus, literature and art not only flourished at this time, but the arts were also influenced by the ways and practices of the court. Literature became courtly in tone and thought. Since literature was able to grow and develop in many new creative and intellectual directions, the types of poetry written at that time took on many new forms. A few of these forms are listed below: 1) Sonnet Sequence Such poetry originates with the Italian poet Petrarch. The sonnets usually tell a loose story about a man and his love for a lady who does not return the love. The poems usually praise the ladys beauty and reveal the turmoil felt by the man. In England the sequences include Sidneys Astrophil and Stella as well as Shakespeares Sonnets to the Young Man and Dark Lady. 2) Pastoral Romance Sidneys Arcadia is mostly in prose (but with some poetry) and contains a mixture of styles: pastoral, heroic, and romance.

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3) Chivalric Allegory Using the chivalric conventions of the Middle Ages, Spensers Faerie Queen allegorizes various virtues, each of which serves their queen (who symbolizes Queen Elizabeth I). 4) Erotic Idyll Following the model set by the Classical Roman poet Ovid, the writers of these idylls focused on physical beauty and erotic pleasures (an enjoyment of the senses). Such works include Marlowes Hero and Leander and Shakespeares Venus and Adonis. 5) Masque Masques were dramatic entertainment that focused on song and spectacle (elaborate sets and fancy costumes). They were usually performed by amateurs at court or at a private residence of one of the nobility. 6) Modern Epic The Modern Epic, rather than developing out of an Oral Tradition, is the work of a single author. Spensers Faerie Queen is often called a Romantic Epic and is the only epic from the 16th century. (At the end of the Renaissance Miltons Paradise Lost appears, and that too can be labeled as a Modern Epic.) Elizabethan poetry can be described as (1) artificial, (2) ornamental or decorative, and (3) inventive. Unlike later poets, the Elizabethans felt that poetry should attempt to improve upon nature. After all, this was an age of Humanism. The Elizabethan poets gloried in intellectualism and enjoyment of the senses. So does their poetry. A metaphor found in Sidneys The

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Defence of Poesy best sums up the poets goal at this time: the world of nature is made of brass. The poets job is to transform it into gold. We might confidently say, then, that the Elizabethan era was the Golden Age of Poetry. Although poetry flourished during the 16th century, such literature usually was passed around in manuscript (handwritten) form. It did not appear in print. So, the audience for the poetry of the time was almost always quite small. DRAMA DURING THE ELIZABETHAN ERA At the end of the Middle Ages the area of drama was just beginning to grow and develop. The Mystery Plays and the Miracle Plays were becoming increasingly more popular and recognized as a major form of entertainment. During the 15th century many advances occurred in the scriptwriting and acting and performance of the religious plays. Such advances would establish a ready environment for the development of the secular (non-religious) play. In fact, a short secular play actually was written at the end of the Middle Ages. Henry Medwall, a priest in the Catholic Church who served a Cardinal in England, wrote a play called Fulgens and Lucrece sometime around the year 1486. As far as we know, this was the first secular play written in England. But despite the advancements made by the religious plays (which would continue to be performed well into the 16th century), English drama needed another influence, another source, before the secular play could become a dominant literary form. That influence would be the dramas from the Classical Age

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of Greece and Rome. By the middle of the 16th century numerous plays in Latin (from the Classical Age of the Roman Empire) were available in England. And at that same time Englishmen began writing original plays based on these Latin models. The first secular comedy in England appeared around 1550 and was based on a Roman comedy. Nicholas Udall, a schoolmaster and the author of this play, called his comedy Ralph Roister Doister. Soon dozens of comedies were being written in England. The inventive Elizabethans explored different styles and approaches to comedy. A number of different kinds of Comedy soon became common: 1) Romantic Comedy Shakespeares As You Like It and Twelfth Night 2) Domestic Comedy Thomas Dekkers Shoemakers Holiday 3) City Comedy Thomas Middletons A Chaste Maid in Cheapside 4) Humor Comedy Ben Jonsons Every Man in His Humor 5) Intrigue Comedy Ben Jonsons The Alchemist and Volpone 6) Tragicomedy Shakespeares Measure for Measure and The Winters Tale Of course, during the Classical Age Tragedy was an even more important form of drama; and such was also true for the Elizabethans. Two lawyers, Thomas Sackville and Thomas Norton, wrote the first English tragedy in 1561. This tragedy, entitled Gorboduc, follows many of the dramatic elements and conventions of the Roman writer Seneca. Although this

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play may not appeal to many modern audiences (because of its lack of action), the play is historically significant for two reasons. (1) It is the first tragedy. (2) It is the first play to be written in blank verse (unrhymed iambic pentameter). Two of Englands greatest playwrights, Christopher Marlowe and William Shakespeare, would also write their tragedies in blank verse. The Elizabethans also used their creativity in developing a variety of tragic dramas: (1) Revenge Tragedy Thomas Kyds Spanish Tragedy (2) Villain Tragedy Shakespeares Richard III and Macbeth (3) Heroic Tragedy Christopher Marlowes Doctor Faustus and Shakespeares Antony and Cleopatra Besides comedy and tragedy, other forms of drama also appeared in England at this time. Some plays are best described as Romance plays. Shakespeares The Winters Tale and The Tempest would belong to this category. The most popular form, apart from the comedy and tragedy, would be the History play. Shakespeares two plays on Henry IV and his play on Richard III belong to this category. Actually, the student should note an important distinction here. A play like Julius Caesar or Richard III can be classified as either a tragedy or history. However, in the discussion of Shakespeares plays, critics traditionally label a play as a history if it concerns English history. But they label a play as a tragedy if it concerns the history of Rome or some other land. Thus,

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Richard III is usually labeled a history play. And Julius Caesar is usually labeled as a tragedy. Labeling plays is just a convenience for the modern reader. The Elizabethans would often mix elements from more than one genre and were not concerned with categorizing their works.

LITERATURE IN THE EARLY SEVENTEENTH CENTURY As mentioned previously, the reigns of King James I and King Charles I were times full of conflict and unrest. The editors of our text even suggest that we could call this era an Age of Anxiety. Despite such conflict, or maybe because of such conflict, some great works of poetry were produced at this time. The most significant literary works would definitely include the metaphysical poetry by John Donne and Paradise Lost by John Milton. Often great art is produced in times of trouble or conflict, and such certainly seems to be the case with the works by Donne and Milton. The philosophy, the atmosphere, and the political and social climate of England were undergoing vast changes at this time. Literature also felt the effect of these changes. One way of defining the change at this time can be determined by looking at the change in the Sonnet Sequence. Poets continued to write sonnets in the 17th century, but they were much different in content and style. The change, to put it simply, was one from love poetry to metaphysical and religious poetry. The sonnet sequences by both Sidney and Shakespeare focus on the topics of love and beauty. Both also reveal the courtly style noticeable in Elizabethan poetry. The

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sonnet sequence by John Donne (The Holy Sonnets) focuses on the issue of death and the condition of mans soul. Donnes sonnets also are concerned with the relationship between God and mankind. The style too is different. It is more analytical and complex, but not so ornate. The court was no longer the center for poets and intellectuals. So, the literature of the age moved from being courtly to being social (from aristocratic to commoner). Thus, some of the purely courtly forms of the Elizabethan Age, such as the masque, disappeared entirely. Because of the Puritan influence, the literature moved from being ornate to being simple, plain, and direct. And the literature was also moving from poetry to prose. The writing of sermons, essays, and pamphlets was quite popular at this time. The golden coating that the Elizabethans had used to decorate the world of nature was now being stripped down to reveal the dull and brassy surface of reality. The critical attitude common of the time is also reflected in the literature. Verse Satire was beginning to develop as the new popular literary art form. Verse Satire would not really reach its height until much later in the century (beginning with Drydens Mac Flecknoe, circa 1678). But the beginnings of this art form can be seen in the metaphysical poetry of John Donne (such as The Flea) and others. The Elizabethan forms of drama that began in the middle of the 16th century continued into the first decade or so of this century. Ben Jonson wrote Volpone in 1606 and The Alchemist in 1610. Shakespeare wrote his last two plays, The Winters Tale and The Tempest, around 1610 or 1611. Dramatic literature begins to decline shortly after 1611. And it would not be until

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well after the civil conflicts in England (during the 1640s) and after the restoration of the King (in 1660) that English drama would begin to revive. But the English drama would never again experience such an incredible development as it during the 16th century.

LECTURE 16
THE FIRST LECTURE ON ASTROPHIL AND STELLA SIR PHILIP SIDNEY Sir Philip Sidney lived from 1554 to 1586. He was only 32 years old when he died. And, as the editors of our text inform us, when he died, all of England mourned. However, the people of England, in 1586, were not mourning the death of a poet. Rather, they were mourning the death of a hero, of a popular figure and a noble lord in the court of Queen Elizabeth I. Like many writers of times long past, Sidney's poetry and other literary works were not published until after his death. England's mourning would surely have been increased if the majority of the people at that time had realized that they had lost not only a great lord, but also a great poet. In all likelihood, the members of Queen Elizabeth's court, though, were quite familiar with Sidney's poetic gifts. Reading poetry was a common practice in the court at that time. And Sidney's poetry would have been passed around in manuscript form as would the poetry of other individuals connected with the court, including the Queen herself. Thus, in only a few short years after his death, and still during the reign of Queen Elizabeth, Sidney's poetry was published and made available to all of the people in England. Sidney, like other Renaissance poets, did not make a career of writing. Writing poetry was an avocation, a labor of love. It was not a job. Sidney was a courtier and a soldier. He served as a diplomat for

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Queen Elizabeth. Like most aristocrats, Sidney had certain advantages not available to the commoners. He attended Oxford University, but he never graduated. Because he was financially established, he could also support other writers. Sidney was a patron of other poets. And the student should note that Sidney was even the patron of Edmund Spenser, one of the greatest Renaissance poets. Sidney died the death of a hero. Queen Elizabeth criticized Sidney because he would often fight for Protestant causes. During the 16th century the growth of the Protestant Reformation led to serious and deadly political conflicts between Catholic countries and Protestant ones. In 1586 Sidney went to the Netherlands to help that Protestant country fight against their enemy, Spain (a Catholic country). During the conflict a musket ball (an early form of bullet) struck Sidney. The wound that he received became infected, and soon after Sidney died from that infection. Sidney is known for writing three great works of literature, all of which, as mentioned, were published after his death: (1) His Arcadia, published in 1590, is a pastoral romance. This long work is actually, for the most part, written in prose. However, many poetic passages are intermixed with the rest of the text. (2) Sidney's Defence of Poesy (Poetry) was published in 1595. This book is a major work of literary criticism, and many authorities still consider it as one of the most essential works of criticism of all time. In it, Sidney emphasizes moral poetry. Poetry should present moral lessons and moral attitudes.

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(3) Astrophil and Stella was published in 1591, but it was written circa 1582. This is the first great sonnet cycle or sonnet sequence in Elizabethan literature. For this work, Sidney found inspiration in the Italian poet Francis Petrarch. More than 200 years before Sidney wrote his sonnets, Petrarch wrote a series of sonnets chronicling his emotional ups and downs because of his unrequited love for a woman named Laura. Sidney revived this approach in his own sonnet sequence that also depicts a man's unrequited love for a woman. THE REAL-LIFE MODELS FOR ASTROPHIL AND STELLA Astrophil and Stella contains 108 sonnets. In addition, it also includes 11 songs (longer poems that are lighter and more lyrical than the sonnets). The sequence is based on a real-life relationship between Sidney and a woman named Penelope Devereux. Sidney's relationship with Devereux never did develop into anything permanent. In fact, Devereux married a man named Lord Robert Rich in 1581. And in 1583 Sidney himself married a woman named Frances Walsingham. However, the student should be aware that the loose events noted in the poems are more fictional than factual. Sidney purposely creates names for his fictional characters. Astrophil is the male lover, the speaker in the poems, who suffers from unrequited love. Stella is the woman that Astrophil adores. The names are symbolic. Stella means star, and Astrophil means a lover of a star. Of course, there is an obvious problem for an earth-bound human who is in love with a star. The star is too distant. The star is unreachable. Thus,

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even from Sidney's title, we can deduce that Astrophil will never achieve his goal. He will never win the love of Stella. On the other hand, students should note that the name Astrophil does contain part of Sidney's own name: Phil is short for Philip. So, the emotions that Astrophil experiences may, in all probability, reflect some of Sidney's own emotions for Penelope Devereux. According to historical sources, though, the real Penelope Devereux was a much warmer and kinder woman than Stella seems to be. In many of the poems, Stella is icy cold to Astrophil. However, the sonnets also do reflect occasions when Stella does show care and some affection for Astrophil. So, there could be more truth to the sonnets than historians have discovered. RHYME AND METER The Petrarchan or Italian sonnet contains 14 lines with a fixed rhyme scheme and meter. The sonnet can be divided into two parts: the octave (the first 8 lines) and the sestet (the remaining 6 lines). The rhyme scheme is usually the following: OCTAVE SESTET abba cde abba cde

(or cdcdcd)

Sidney's rhyme scheme is similar to the Italian model. However, he usually breaks up the Sestet into a Quatrain (4 lines) and a Couplet (2 lines) to produce the following scheme:

The Renaissance OCTAVE abba QUATRAIN cdcd COUPLET ee abba

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Often, the Octave will pose a problem, and the Sestet will suggest a solution. However, the sonnet may be divided in other ways. The Octave could present a generalization, and the Sestet could apply that generalization to a specific occurrence. Or the Octave might make a statement, and the Sestet could contradict that statement. In Sidney's sonnets, the point where the poem moves in a new direction is not always after the eighth line (after the Octet). Sometimes, the shift will occur at the beginning of the Couplet (in line 13). But the shift could just as easily occur in line 6 or line 11 or anywhere else in the poem. For most of his sonnets, Sidney uses iambic pentameter for his meter. A line of poetry in iambic pentameter is 10 syllables long. It contains 5 iambs. An iamb is a foot of poetry that is two syllables long. The first syllable is unaccented, and the second syllable is accented. The syllables of an iamb are traditionally labeled in the following way: IAMB u / Iambic pentameter, which contains 5 iambs, would thus have the following metrical pattern: IAMBIC PENTAMETER u/u/u/u/u/

In English, words that are nouns, verbs, adjectives, and some adverbs usually receive an accent. If the word is

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more than one syllable long, the accent belongs on the root syllable. Prepositions, conjunctions, articles, and helping verbs usually do not receive an accent. Pronouns (including possessive pronouns) often do not receive an accent as well. The first two lines of Sonnet 7 are fairly typical in showing the iambic pentameter pattern: u / u / u / u / u / When Nature made her chief work, Stella's eyes u / u / u / u / u / In colour black, why wrapped she beams so bright? The student should note that nouns (Nature, eyes, colour, and beams) and verbs (made and wrapped) and adjectives (chief, black, and bright) receive accents. The observant student may notice that there is one exception in the example. The noun work should receive an accent as well. Although Renaissance poets did wish to create a steady meter or rhythm in their poetry, they would not sacrifice the meaning of the poem in order to adhere slavishly to the metrical pattern. Breaking a rule in poetry is called poetic license. A poet may also break traditional rules of grammar, spelling, or pronunciation in his or her poetry if he or she feels that, by breaking the rule, the poem will be improved. Good poets will never sacrifice meaning or sense in their poetry. However, when they break the rules that they are following elsewhere, they usually do so purposely as a means to improve their artistic creation. Meter is important for poetry. It turns ordinary language (prose) into an artistic language, into musical language. Poetry should not be read silently. It should

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be read aloud. Reading poetry silently is like reading the lyrics to a song. The reader is only experiencing part of the artistic creation. Sidney uses iambic pentameter in all but six of his sonnets. In those six sonnets, he uses iambic hexameter. Hex, here means six. Thus, a line of iambic hexameter has six iambs: IAMBIC HEXAMETER u / u / u / u / u / u / Sonnets 1 and 6 of Astrophil and Stella have iambic hexameter lines. STRUCTURE Although Sidney's sonnet cycle does not have a plot like a short story or novel would have, the sequence does present a loose story when all of the pieces are put together. Largely, the "plot" or story of the cycle presents the stages of a love relationship. More precisely, the sonnets present the complexity of emotions and feelings that the speaker of the poem, Astrophil, experiences throughout the many years that he is longing for Stella. Most of the sonnets can fit into one of the following categories: (1) Praise of Beauty and Virtue: Astrophil declares his attraction to Stella and praises her beauty and/or her virtue. (2) Trials and Suffering: Astrophil suffers because his love is unrequited. Stella does not seem to care for him.

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(3) Moments of Encouragement: Occasionally, Stella smiles or expresses some emotion to Astrophil. Astrophil feels encouraged or hopeful. (4) Mixture of Positive and Negative Feelings: Astrophil experiences opposite emotions simultaneously in loving a lady who does not return his love. In a sense, Astrophil's emotions are on a seesaw. They go up and down. As noted above, sometimes the positive and negative feelings occur at the same time. Some of these opposite emotions appear in the following chart: POSITIVE Hope or Joy Tenderness Exultation NEGATIVE Despair Bitterness/Regret Modesty

Sometimes Astrophil will be excited to be so much in love. Love is the magic that keeps him alive. At other times (or possibly at the same time) Astrophil will feel that he can never obtain "the lady on the pedestal." She is too far up for him. He is too lowly for her. She is a star, and he is hopelessly earth-bound. Worse, Astrophil often regrets the time he has wasted in loving a woman that will never love him back. SIMILES, SYMBOLISM, AND CHARACTERIZATION Like many Renaissance poets who wrote about love, Sidney often uses similes to describe Astrophil or Stella. However, even in 1582, many of the similes that appear in the sonnets were already conventional. They

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were used over and over again by many poets of the past. They were already common. They were already cliches. Two of the most typical conventional similes are the burning fire and the stormy wind. With the first, the male lover compares his love to a burning fire. His heart is on fire. The flames of passion have consumed him. With the second simile, the male lover compares his sighs to the winds tossing a ship on a stormy sea. The stormy sea suggests the lover's own inward turmoil. Despite Sidney's use of these conventional similes, however, he is still recognized as producing an original poetic creation. One aspect of Astrophil and Stella that sets it apart from Petrarch's sonnets for Laura is the overall symbolism of the work. In Sidney's sonnet sequence the lover's service to his high lady, that is, Astrophil's service to Stella, symbolizes Sir Philip Sidney's own service to Queen Elizabeth I. Sidney had a particularly strong friendship with the Queen. As mentioned, he even served as a court diplomat. The relationship was such that Queen Elizabeth became angry (and concerned) that Sidney often risked his life in supporting Protestant causes in other lands. As it turned out, she was right to be angry with him over such a matter. After all, it was exactly in this way that Sidney met his own untimely death. Critics also point out that Sidney's characterization also distinguishes Astrophil and Stella from earlier love sonnets and poetry. Although Petrarch's sonnets do reflect the conflicting moods of the unrequited lover, Sidney's portrayal of Astrophil has a stronger psychological dimension. Astrophil analyzes his problem more thoroughly and more straightforwardly. Sidney takes us into the mind of

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Astrophil. Sidney provides us with a probing psychological analysis of Astrophil's complex emotions. The language of Sidney's sonnets also contributes to the originality of the work. One unusual feature in the sequence is the inclusion of dialogue. In some of the poems, we hear Stella's voice. Another distinguishing feature is the use of colloquial speech. Astrophil does not speak in the flowery and ornate language of the Elizabethan court. Rather, his speech is often informal, ordinary, and conversational. SONNET 1 In Sidney's first sonnet, which is written in iambic hexameter, we find the poet searching for artistic inspiration. We find the artist searching for his Muse. The Muses were nine Greek goddesses of ancient times who presided over the arts. In later time periods, artists, especially poets, use the term muse to suggest a spiritual or perhaps even supernatural source of inspiration. Actually, there is a gray area where fiction and fact blend in this poem. The speaker of the sonnets is Astrophil, a fictional character. However, the poet is Sir Philip Sidney. Is it Astrophil or Sidney who is asking for inspiration in this poem? Actually, it seems to be both. The reader should note that the first sentence of the poem is 8 lines long. These lines, which form the octave, present Astrophil's desire to present his emotions in the form of poetry in order to win Stella's love. In the first line, Astrophil begins with "loving in truth." From the very beginning the reader should realize that Astrophil's love is true love, a love that is

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both physical and spiritual. Astrophil is consumed by his love, his passion, for Stella. However, as we soon learn, his love is unrequited. Stella does not return his love. Also in the first line, the word fain means gladly. Astrophil would gladly like to show his love to Stella in poetry. However, he is having difficulty. He is having trouble finding the right words. He lacks inspiration. Astrophil (in lines 2-4) also provides us with another reason why he wants to express his love in poetic form. He hopes, by stages, to win Stella's love. Astrophil often describes his love in words that denote his negative feelings, such as pain (line 2), woe (line 5), or sorrow. Although Astrophil experiences positive emotions (joy, happiness, and exultation) because of his love for Stella, her rejection of his love causes him great pain and sadness. The reader should note that the mixture of these positive and negative emotions occurs in many of the sonnets. So, Astrophil wants to win Stella's love. He hopes that this will come gradually, in stages, when she reads his poetry: (1) First, Astrophil hopes that Stella will find pleasure in his situation, his pain (line 2). He hopes to produce something positive out of a negative situation. (2) Second, Astrophil hopes that the pleasure Stella gets from his situation will encourage her to read all of his sonnets. (3) Third, by reading his sonnets, she may come to know, to understand, his feelings. (4) Fourth, by knowing about his feelings, she may then feel pity for him.

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In the first quatrain (the first four lines), then, Astrophil presents his purpose for writing these poems. I have to say Astrophil here, and not Sidney, even though Sidney is the real-life poet. In 1582, when Sidney wrote these poems, Penelope Devereux was already married. Thus, Sidney's chances for winning the love of Devereux are over. However, the fictional creation of Stella is unmarried. Astrophil still has a chance to win her love. The poem thus creates a fictional situation that blends the real (Sidney, the poet, searching for inspiration) and the imagined (Astrophil, the lover, hoping to win Stella's love). In the second quatrain, Astrophil (or Sidney) explains how he read the works of other poets in order to find inspiration. The words fine inventions (line 6) mean great works of poetry, and leaves (line 7) is another word for pages. Thus, Astrophil is saying that he read the pages of many great poets in order to find inspiration. Sidney uses the metaphor of the rain and desert (line 8) to explain what he hopes to accomplish. Just as a shower of rain can turn a dry piece of land into a fertile area where fruit and plants can grow, Astrophil hopes that the words of the poets (the rain or showers) will inspire him to produce new ideas (fruit) in his empty mind (the desert). The third quatrain marks the shift in the poem. The reader should note the first word of this section. Often (but not always) a poet will use a word like but or

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yet to indicate the shift in direction. Sidney does so here to inform us that, by reading the great works of other poets, Astrophil was unable to find inspiration for his sonnets. Sidney uses both personification and metaphor to describe this situation. Invention (creativity or inspiration) is the child of Nature but only the step-child of Study. In other words, creativity is much more likely to come from nature than from studying (from reading works of other poets). Sidney describes Invention as running away from Study. His studying the great poets did not help him invent any great poetry of his own. The reader should also note the pun with the word feet (line 11). Feet could literally mean the feet of other poets (strangers), but it can also refer to feet of poetry. An iamb is one foot of poetry. Five iambs can also be referred to as five feet. At the end of the third quatrain (line 12), Sidney uses a conventional metaphor. Being "great with child" literally means being pregnant and just about ready to give birth. The poet uses the metaphor to describe how Astrophil is ready to give birth to his ideas. However, he still has not found a muse, his inspiration. He is still "helpless" in writing his poems. In the last line, though, Astrophil finds his inspiration. His Muse tells him to look into his own heart. In other words, Astrophil should write what he feels. He should let his own emotions inspire him. This is the natural way to write. Nature is the mother of Invention (line 10).

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In the second sonnet, Sidney argues against a typical convention of love poetry. Often, poets will write about how they fell in love "at first sight." In other words, the man took one look at his lady and immediately fell completely in love with her. Astrophil explains how his love for Stella came slowly, gradually. He uses an allusion to Cupid, the Greek God of Love, to explain that he was not hit randomly by one of Cupid's arrows. Rather, the poet creates a new metaphor, the mine of time (line 3), to explain how his love grew. Like a gold miner who must dig patiently and diligently over a long period of time before he can discover a vein of gold, Astrophil (the miner) took a long time before he discovered Stella's "worth" or value or virtue (the gold). In this sonnet Astrophil also depicts how his unrequited love for Stella causes him to suffer. Astrophil only has a small piece of the gold mine, "a partial lot" (line 8), because Stella does not return his love. Thus, Astrophil feels like a prisoner (lost liberty) or slave (a simile) who must suffer the tyranny, the cruel demands, of a ruthless tyrant, Unrequited Love (personification). In the last two lines, the couplet, Astrophil uses an even stronger metaphor to describe his situation. He is like one of the damned in hell. But he writes his poetry (he paints) and describes his emotions while, at the same time, he tries to convince himself of a lie. He tries to believe that all is well. He tries to believe that he is in bliss. The unrequited lover cannot help himself. He knows that his love causes him to suffer, but he is unable to stop loving the lady he adores.

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In "Sonnet 5" Sidney raises two important thematic topics: (1) the conflict between reason and emotion, and (2) the contrast between spiritual beauty and physical beauty. The first quatrain of the poem introduces an important Christian concept. Many Christians during the Renaissance believed that Reason is a gift from God. Although we have emotions, passions, and desires that cause us to seek physical pleasures and that cause us to sin, all of us have an even stronger force within us. That force is Reason. Our Reason can control our emotions. Our Reason can cool our passions. Our Reason can stop our desires. At least, that is what Christianity teaches. The sonnet begins with the expression "it is most true." The expression is repeated later (line 5) and the poet uses a repetition of the word true several times (in lines 9, 12, and 14) throughout the poem. The poet uses this expression and the use of repetition to let us know that Astrophil agrees with and believes in the statements that he makes. Astrophil believes that Reason is a gift from God and can control the passions. In the first quatrain (line 2) the poet uses the expressions "inward light" and "heavenly part" as synonyms for Reason. Reason is a light that can brighten our darker emotions and our shady passions. Reason is heavenly because it comes from God. Therefore, Reason ought to be (or should be) King over our Emotions (line 3). Our Emotions should be the subjects or servants of this king. The speaker tells us, metaphorically, that when our Emotions swerve

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from (line 3) or break the rules made by Reason, they are only hurting themselves (line 4). They are only striving to produce their own pain (the word smart here means pain). In other words, when we allow our emotions to take control over our bodies, when we act unreasonably, we end up hurting ourselves. A simple example of this is a glutton (a person who loves to eat too much) who eats so much that he later experiences indigestion and stomach cramps. If the glutton had used his reason, he would have realized that he was eating too much. So, his own emotion, his desire for food, brought him pain. The poet also suggests that when emotions break the rules of reason, such emotions are "rebels to nature" (line 4). Here Sidney is suggesting that our natural inclination or tendency is to follow our reason. Reason is a natural quality within all of us. It is part of human nature. We should not rebel against our reason. In the second quatrain, Sidney uses a complex metaphor and an allusion to Cupid, the God of Love. The basic idea of these lines is to suggest that physical love, or earthly love, is simply one of those passions that we can control with the use of our reason. Physical love is something we create in our heads or "we carve for ourselves" (line 6). The poet compares the lovers (or "fools") to worshippers and the heart to a temple or church. The "good god," Cupid, causes both the church (the heart) and the churchman (the lover) to starve (line 8). In other words, for the unrequited lover, his heart is empty because he receives no love in return. Therefore, the lover himself starves: he languishes, he becomes thin and weak. He cannot eat because of the great sorrow and sadness that he feels.

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In the third quatrain the poet contrasts "true beauty" (which is "virtue" or spiritual beauty) to "this beauty" (which is physical beauty or earthly beauty). Physical beauty is just a shadow ("a shade") of Spiritual beauty. In other words, physical beauty is not substantial. It is not solid. It is practically nothing. Physical beauty is "mortal": it will die. Spiritual beauty, on the other hand, lasts forever. Physical beauty is made of earthly "elements" (earth, air, water, and fire). It is superficial. Spiritual beauty is made of finer stuff. At the end of the poem (in the last 3 lines), Sidney uses the traditional (and medieval) Christian metaphor that all people are pilgrims on a journey whose ultimate destination is Heaven (our country). Thus far in this sonnet Astrophil has argued the following: (1) Reason should dominate the emotions. (2) Physical Love is goal of fools that only brings them harm. (3) And Physical Beauty is nothing. The only True Beauty is Virtue. Yet, despite firmly believing in all three of these ideas, Astrophil states, in the last line of the sonnet, that he must love Stella. Thus, Astrophil is (1) allowing his emotions to dominate his reason, (2) pursuing physical love to his own harm, and (3) choosing physical beauty over virtue. Astrophil is still very much the slave to love.

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"Sonnet 6" is a companion poem to "Sonnet 1". In both poems Sidney discusses the art of writing poetry. Both sonnets are also written in iambic hexameter. Sonnet 6 differs from the first sonnet, though, because in "Sonnet 6" Sidney discusses the approaches used by other poets who write about love and contrasts their approaches to his own. Sidney begins the poem with the expression "some lovers." To be more precise, we should instead use "some poets who write about love." This first group of poets uses the oxymoron (describing a word with its opposite) to describe the state or condition of the lover: Hopeful Fear Reasonable Desire Hellish Pain Living Death Dear (or Precious) Wound Fair (or Gentle) Storm Freezing Fire

Al of these terms can become metaphors for the Happy Woe or the Sorrowful Joy that Astrophil feels because of his love for Stella. However, Astrophil (or Sidney) does not use the oxymoron. Nor does he use the method of the second group of poets (lines 5-6). These poets use mythological allusions. In ancient mythology Jove (another name for the Roman god Jupiter or the Greek god Zeus) came down to earth in many strange forms (as a bull, a swan, and even a gentle rain) in order to seduce mortal women. Often in their verses poets will compare the power of their love or desire to that of Jupiter or Zeus.

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A third group of poets (lines 7-8) uses pastoral allegory to express their love. In these poems the lover is usually a humble shepherd who, while he watches over his sheep, complains or sings about the woman who will not return his love. In such poems the shepherd usually symbolizes a nobleman (of "royal blood"); and often the speech of the shepherd is more urban than rural and more educated than colloquial. Finally, a fourth group of poets (lines 9-11) uses the dolce stil nuovo or the "sweet new style" of early 14th century Italy. Such poetry is usually musical, straightforward, and highly emotional. The metaphors can be quite direct: the lover's tears are the ink that he uses to write his poems. Or the movement of his pen as he writes down his poems is his pain. In the last three lines (the shift coming at line 11) Astrophil contrasts his approach to the four approaches used by these other poets. Although Astrophil feels his love as deeply as any one of these other poets, he speaks simply and directly. He does not need a more complicated approach to declare his love. He feels that he only has to say, "I love Stella" (line 14), and all of his emotions are expressed simply by the tremble of his voice. In this sonnet, then, Sidney advocates the use of simple, direct, colloquial speech for the lover who is expressing his feelings. SONNET 7 During the Renaissance in England many poets and artists declared that the most beautiful women were "fair." In fact, the word fair meant both (1) beautiful and (2) having fair features. Fair features are physical

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features that are light in color: blond hair, blue eyes, and white skin. Thus, when a poet uses the word fair, he often means that his lady has fair features and that she is also quite beautiful. Stella, on the other hand, does not have fair eyes. Her eyes are black. Yet, despite the contradiction to the Renaissance standard of beauty, Astrophil declares that Stella's eyes is her most beautiful feature. In "Sonnet 7" Astrophil asks this question: why are Stella's eyes black? Astrophil poses several possible answers, but the reader should notice that all of his first three answers end in question marks (lines 4, 8, and 11). Astrophil is not sure whether these answers are correct or not. However, Astrophil's fourth answer ends with a period. For Astrophil his fourth answer seems, in his opinion, to be the most likely one to be correct. In the first two lines Astrophil asks his question. Why are Stella's eyes black? However, he personifies Nature as a goddess whose chief work, whose best creation, is Stella's eyes. So the question really is this: why did Nature make Stella's eyes black? Astrophil also adds an oxymoron to the question. He describes her eyes (or beams) as bright (line 2). In other words, he describes her eyes as bright black. Since bright suggests emitting a large amount of light and since black suggests the absence of light, bright black is, then an oxymoron. The use of an oxymoron is appropriate here. Since fair also means blond or white as well as beautiful, the idea of calling a black object beautiful is something of a contradiction. Stella's eyes are fair (if one means beautiful), but they are not fair (if one means blue or some other light color). Astrophil's first answer to the question comes at the end of the first quatrain (in lines 3-4). The pronoun

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she refers to Nature, still personified. The poet uses the simile of comparing Nature to a clever painter who wishes to create a special artistic masterpiece by mixing the opposites of black and white, of dark and light. In other words, perhaps Nature made Stella's eyes black because she (Nature) wanted to show her artistic skill. As an artist, Nature wanted to show that she can even make black beautiful. The second quatrain poses Astrophil's second possible answer. Once again, the pronoun she (in line 5) refers to Nature. Astrophil suggests that perhaps Nature wanted to protect the sight of those people who gazed directly into Stella's eyes (line 6). If Nature had made Stella's eyes a light color, then Stella's eyes would be "sun-like" (line 8). They would be so bright that they would dazzle and blind anybody who looked directly at them. If Stella's eyes were so intensely bright, she would have to wear a "veil" (line 7) over eyes all of the time so that no one would be harmed. In other words, if Stella's eyes were any color other than black, her eyes would be too beautiful for mortal sight. The third possible answer comes in the next three lines (9-11). Once again, the pronoun she refers to Nature. In these lines Astrophil suggests that Nature wants to reveal to people that black actually is the most beautiful color of all. This is, of course, quite contrary to what many people in Renaissance England believed. Black is the combination of everything beautiful (line 11). As noted, Astrophil is uncertain about these first three answers. He seems far more confident in his fourth answer (lines 12-14). Again the reader should note that the shift comes in line 12.

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Black is also traditionally, in Western culture, the color of mourning, the color of death. In Astrophil's fourth answer the lover poses that Nature wanted to give Love (also personified) a mourning garment (or outfit). The beauty of the eyes is the central feature of love. When a man is in love, he will gaze into the eyes of his lady. Thus, Nature gave Stella black eyes to symbolize both love and death. Astrophil explains this idea in the last line. Whenever men stare into Stella's eyes, they bleed (feel pain) and symbolically die because of the love that they feel, a love that is unrequited. This answer, certainly, is true in Astrophil's case. He is suffering, he is dying, because Stella does not return his love. Thus, the blackness of her eyes symbolizes both love and death.

LECTURE 17
THE SECOND LECTURE ON ASTROPHIL AND STELLA SONNET 10 As we saw in "Sonnet 5," the conflict of Reason versus Emotion was an important topic to many Renaissance poets. Sidney returns to this conflict in "Sonnet 10." This time Reason is personified and is in direct physical conflict with Love (the most powerful of emotions) and Sense (which signifies the five senses, the means by which we are able to experience the emotions). Essentially, Astrophil in this sonnet is asking or making a plea to Reason to leave, to go away, from matters that deal with emotions. He is asking Reason not to interfere with his love. The poem can easily be divided into two parts: the octave and the sestet. In the octave, Astrophil makes his request to Reason. In the first line, Astrophil tells Reason that he is well served. Astrophil means that he, Astrophil, is still allowing his own reason to control his passions and emotions. But the second line adds that Astrophil's reason is in conflict (brabling means to quarrel or to fight) with his emotions (sense and love). In other words, Astrophil knows that he would be acting reasonably if he were to forget all about Stella; but his love for her is so great that he does not wish to be reasonable. In the third and fourth lines of the poem Astrophil names some other locations, some other places, which, he feels, would be more suitable for

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Reason (still personified). He tells reason to go to the Mount Helicon, the hill where the Muses reside. The Muses, as you may remember, are the nine minor Greek goddesses who bring inspiration to artists. Artists, writers, historians, and musicians need to be guided by reason in order to produce fine works of art. Therefore, Reason is fit (or appropriate) company for the nine Muses. Astrophil also suggests that Reason should find a shady spot next to the Tree of Knowledge, "Nature's choicest tree." This is a Biblical allusion to the story of Adam and Eve. Eve ate some fruit from the Tree of Knowledge (the knowledge of good and evil) and, by so doing, disobeyed God's only commandment. If Eve had used her reason, instead of her emotions or desires, she would not have eaten the fruit. And God would not have punished her. Thus, Reason should stay by this tree. In the second quatrain, Astrophil also suggests that Heaven is also an appropriate place for Reason to dwell. Of course, this makes sense. Reason comes from God. So, Astrophil asks why does Reason till (like a farmer) or work on "our thorny soil." The word soil here has two meanings. It could refer to the ground beneath our feet, and so it is a metonymy (a kind of metaphor) for this planet Earth. But by "soil" Astrophil could also be referring to the human body. Poetically speaking, the human body is made of soil or dirt or clay. So, Astrophil is really asking why Reason interferes with his body, which feels and loves. Reason should, according to Astrophil, only concern itself with the mind ("powers of thought") and not the body. The word will (in line 8) means desire or emotions. Astrophil is thus stating that matters of love should be ruled by Emotions, not Reason.

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In the third quatrain the poet produces an image of Reason having a sword-fight with Love and Sense. Reason appears to be winning, initially. However, Reason's fighting soon comes to an end. Stella's "rays" (her presence, her beauty, and her virtue) stop or prevent ("foil") the clever sword-fighting ("cunning fence") of Reason. Like a knight bowing before a queen, Reason kneels (gets down on his knees) before Stella. Astrophil ends the sonnet by saying, in essence, that reason is a weaker force than his love. If love is a superior force to reason, then it must be reasonable to love Stella. The imagery may also suggest, though, Astrophil's experience over a period of time. Initially, when he first met Stella, he acted reasonably. He could control his emotions. But eventually Astrophil could not stop his will (his desire, his emotions) from taking over his reason. Astrophil has become irrational. He is in love. In a way, Astrophil is trying to believe a lie. He wants to believe that his love for Stella makes sense. He wants to believe that his love is reasonable. But deep down inside his soul, he knows that is not true. SONNET 16 In "Sonnet 16" Astrophil explains that a person cannot really understand a lover unless that person has experienced true and genuine love. Astrophil uses himself as an example. The two parts of this poem are divided by time: in the first part (lines 1-9) Astrophil describes his attitude about love before he met Stella. In the second part (lines 10-14) he tells how his attitude changed after meeting Stella.

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In the first quatrain Astrophil explains that, in the past, whenever he saw extremely beautiful women, his spirits (his youthful energy or we might even say his hormones) boiled or became excited. At that time Astrophil felt that this emotion that he was experiencing was love. In the second quatrain, though, Astrophil realizes that he does not act like other lovers. He states that the emotion (the "flames") he felt did not make him "restless." In other words, he was able to sleep peacefully at night; and he did not spend his days moaning and crying about the woman he had seen. Thus, Astrophil could not understand why other men in love (line 6) -- and here we should specify that these men have an unrequited love -- would whine or cry about their feelings. At the time, Astrophil considered such men to be like babies, crying because a little pin or needle pricked (barely cut) their skin. Astrophil did not understand their feelings. He could only judge "love's pain" (line 8), the emotional hurt, by his own experience ("by my love"), which was not an experience of true love. Astrophil uses the metaphor of the "young lion" (line 9) to describe his experience with love. A very young lion cub will not harm a human. It is gentle. But when that lion grows up, it will be quite dangerous. Love is the same way. Young love, or untrue love, is not dangerous. It does not cause the hurt or pain that mature love, or true love, can cause. Thus, Astrophil is explaining that his earlier experiences with love did not cause him any pain because, he finally realized, those experiences were not ones of true love. In the last part of the poem, Astrophil states that now that he has met Stella, he understands the condition

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of the unrequited lover quite well. He uses another metaphor to describe his experience. Being in love is like taking poison. A person cannot really understand how dangerous poison is (and how much harm and pain that poison can cause) unless that person takes poison himself or herself. Similarly, a person cannot understand the pain given by unrequited love unless that person has experienced such an emotion personally. SONNET 18 "Sonnet 18" is a poem of regret. Astrophil regrets spending so much time, and wasting so much time, on Stella. He feels that he has wasted his life. The reader should note that this is only the 18th sonnet. Astrophil will continue to love Stella for 90 additional sonnets. So, despite his regret, Astrophil will obviously continue to love Stella. The sonnet cycle, as mentioned previously, records the highs and the lows, the positive emotions and the negative ones, that the unrequited lover experiences over a period of years. "Sonnet 18" thus represents one of those low moments when Astrophil is feeling bad about himself and his situation. In the first two quatrains Astrophil uses an accounting metaphor to explain his situation and his thoughts about it. However, instead of referring to money, Astrophil is referring to reason. Just like someone who has had a great sum of money and spent it all foolishly, Astrophil had a great gift, reason, but he has wasted it foolishly. Reason is personified (line 2) as an accountant who is checking Astrophil's financial records (or bank book) to see how Astrophil has been spending his money (his reason). Astrophil is ashamed ("shent") or

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embarrassed as the accountant accuses or criticizes ("checks") each of his foolish spending habits. Astrophil even admits that he is a bankrupt (a person who has lost all of his money). He means, of course, that he has wasted all of his reason. Astrophil regrets his actions even more so than a bankrupt would because his "goods" (line 4) or money are not material goods, but spiritual. They come from Heaven. Reason is a gift from God. Astrophil has not only hurt himself by his actions. He has also offended God. The use of the metaphor of money (for reason) continues into the second quatrain. Here Nature is personified as a landlord who is collecting rent money. Just as a person who is renting an apartment or house owes a specified sum of money to his landlord on a regular basis (usually monthly), a person owes Nature (or actually God) the regular and proper use of his or her reason. Astrophil expands the metaphor by calling his reason a "birthright" (line 6). In some families (usually wealthy ones) a child, usually the first one born, may receive the property or money belonging to his or her family as an inheritance. This is a birthright. Reason is also a birthright. All of us receive this special gift or privilege when we are born. Yet, just like a person who squanders or wastes all of the money that he inherits, a person can likewise throw away his reason. This is Astrophil. And he adds that he has no excuse for his actions. In other words, his love for Stella does not justify his actions. An emotion cannot excuse a lack or loss of reason. In the third quatrain Astrophil explains more specifically what he has been doing with his time. He has been writing poems, which he calls "toys" (line 9).

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The word toys indicates that Astrophil feels his poems are trivial and unimportant. They are not worth anything. He knows that he should have been producing something worthwhile. His reason tells him that he could have spent his time more wisely. But Astrophil admits that he has wasted his youth, his best years, trying to "defend" or justify his love ("passions") for Stella. And the only "reward" that he has received, the only result that he gets from all of his passions, is trouble or conflict or pain ("annoys" -for annoyances). And his conflict or pain is his own fault. He has been selfish ("vain"). "Vain annoys" can also describe Stella's response. Stella has let Astrophil know that he bothers ("annoys") her; and he sees her as too proud ("vain") to give him anything more. Thus, Astrophil's only reward is criticism from Stella. Astrophil decides that he must make a change. He must "bend" his course. If he continues going straight in the same direction -- if he continues to love Stella and to waste his time pursuing her -- he will only obtain "greater sorrow." So, he must bend his course. He must change his course. In other words, he must stop loving Stella. He does not want to lose any more time, or reason, "for Stella's sake" (because of his love for Stella). Despite his resolve, despite his determination to stop loving Stella, Astrophil will nevertheless continue to love her for many more years.

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Sidney's most famous poem is "Sonnet 31." Traditionally in poetry, the moon can be both positive and negative in its symbolism. Of course, a full moon is often a positive symbol of romance. Young lovers walking together at night under a full moon is certainly a romantic image. Yet, the moon is also a symbol of inconstancy: fickleness or infidelity. The reason for this is that the moon itself is inconstant. That is, it is constantly changing. Sometimes, it is a thin crescent moon or quarter moon; sometimes it is a half moon; sometimes it is a full moon; and sometimes it is not even there. It is always changing, like an unfaithful Don Juan (a great lover, the fictional character from a Spanish story during the 17th century) who moves quickly and readily from one lover to the next. In Sidney's poem, the symbolism of the moon is different from either of the above. Here the Moon is personified and symbolizes the sad or dejected lover whose feelings are unrequited. The poem begins with Astrophil directly addressing the Moon (the literary term for this is apostrophe). Astrophil compares the slow progress of the moon as it travels across the sky to a sad lover slowly climbing up some steps. Both the sad lover and the Moon have a "wan" (a pale or white) face. The lover has lost all of the color from his face because he is suffering so greatly. He is listless. He has no energy or strength. He cannot sleep at night. Since the Moon looks like an unrequited lover, Astrophil asks -- in the first quatrain -- if Cupid, the God of Love ("that busy archer") also causes trouble up in the heavens (the sky). The Cupid allusion is a

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traditional one for poets. Cupid carries golden arrows; and if he shoots someone with one of these arrows, that person will fall hopelessly in love. However, the other person will not love the first unless that person is also shot by one of Cupid's arrows. Often, so it seems, Cupid shoots only one of his arrows. Thus, he is to blame for unrequited love. The Moon is not only an unrequited lover in this poem, but he is also an expert on love. He is long acquainted with love -- he knows all about love -because he has been in the sky for centuries looking down upon the earth and witnessing the progress of lovers over the years. Astrophil thus looks to the Moon for help since the Moon (1) knows all about love (line 6: "can judge of Love") and (2) can sympathize with the situation or "case" of an unrequited lover. So, Astrophil asks the Moon if love up in the heavens or sky is the same as it is on earth. The question is actually broken into five related questions: (1) Line 10: Is constant or faithful love there considered an act of foolishness? (2) Line 11: Are beautiful women in the heavens as proud as the ones on the earth? (3) Line 12: Do the beautiful women in the heavens enjoy receiving love? (4) Line 13: But do these same beautiful women ridicule or make fun of the men who proclaim their love to them? (5) Line 14: Is the woman's ingratitude considered a virtue in the heavens?

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The first question that Astrophil asks is a criticism of his own actions. But the other four questions are actually critical of Stella. She is (1) proud, (2) opportunistic or manipulative, (3) scornful, and (4) ungrateful. Yet Astrophil's only fault is his fidelity, which should be considered a virtue. Astrophil thus complains that the virtuous are the ones who suffer on earth, but the unvirtuous (namely, women) get the name of virtue (that is, they are considered virtuous) but do not really deserve it. In a sense, then, this poem is actually a work of antifeminist literature. Astrophil is complaining to his fellow companion (the Moon) about women and how they treat men. SONNET 39 In many poems the traditional image of the unrequited lover is of one who is languishing, suffering, and growing weak because the lady he adores does not return his love. One of the biggest problems facing the traditional unrequited lover is insomnia (the inability to sleep). Such lovers, of course, are always thinking about their fair ladies; and this causes them to toss and turn all night long. In "Sonnet 39" Sidney addresses the issue of insomnia. Just as he addressed the Moon in "Sonnet 31," Sidney also begins this poem with an apostrophe. In this case, the speaker, Astrophil, is addressing Sleep. However, it might be more appropriate to say that Astrophil is addressing Morpheus, the Roman God of Sleep (who appears in Ovid's Metamorphoses). Astrophil is languishing. He is weak and tired, but he

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cannot get Stella out of his mind. So, he prays to Sleep, or Morpheus, to help him get the rest he needs so much. The first quatrain shares a quality found in Old English poetry: synonyms. In the first four lines Astrophil list six alternative ways to refer to Sleep: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) a secure ("knot") peace a resting place for the mind the remedy or cure of sorrow wealth to a poor man release or escape for a prisoner a fair or impartial judge to both peasants and aristocrats

In his sleep, in his dreams, a poor man is equal to a rich man. In his dreams he can be just as wealthy or just as successful. A prisoner who is locked in a cold, dark dungeon or jail can find release in his dreams. He can dream of being free. He can dream of being out in the open. Thus, Astrophil suggests the benefits of sleep. In a way, he is also paying his respect to Sleep just as a nobleman might pay respect to a king by addressing him with his other titles. Astrophil is, after all, speaking to a god and asking that god for help. In the second quatrain, Astrophil raises a frightening image. Despair is personified as a fierce warrior throwing darts or arrows of despair or gloom at Astrophil. In a way, Despair is a sort of counterpart to Cupid. Just as Cupid shoots his arrows to induce love, Despair throws his darts to induce gloom or depression. Ironically, for Astrophil the cause of his love and the cause of his despair are the same: Stella. So, Astrophil asks Sleep for a shield to protect him from the large

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number (the "prease" or press) of darts being thrown at him. Also in the second quatrain, Astrophil describes his emotional conflict as a "civil war." A civil war is an internal struggle in a single nation -- the people of that nation fight against each other. For example, in the American Civil War, the people of the northern states fought against the people of the southern states. In Astrophil's case, he is fighting against himself. He wants to sleep, but he cannot. We might also see the civil war as the war between Astrophil's reason and his emotion. In either case, it is an internal conflict, taking place within his own troubled mind. After a war, a custom of long ago was for the loser to pay tribute (money and possibly other items as well) to the victor. In the poem Astrophil already sees himself as the loser in his personal civil war and offers to pay tribute to the God of Sleep. Astrophil offers not money, but objects associated with sleeping: (1) (2) (3) (4) pillows a bed a dark and quiet room a garland (a decoration made with flowers or plants and tied in the shape of a circle) made of roses -- probably because the perfume from the roses might be relaxing (5) Astrophil's own tired head

Instead of being viewed as a tribute, these items could also be viewed as sacrifices. During ancient times, and continuing into the Classical Age and the Middle Ages, people would often sacrifice (kill and burn) animals to their gods in order to please them. They believed that

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the gods up in the heavens could smell the smoke and would then repay the people by giving them good fortune or luck. Astrophil also hopes to please the god Sleep by symbolically sacrificing the above mentioned items. Astrophil ends his sonnet by saying that if Sleep is not pleased with his gifts and if, therefore, Sleep does not extend his "grace" (his kindness and help) to Astrophil, then Sleep will see the image or appearance of Stella in Astrophil himself. To say this another way, if Astrophil cannot get any sleep, he will be thinking about Stella so much that it will almost be like he is turning into Stella himself. He is so obsessed with Stella that his own identity is disappearing. SONNET 45 The most dramatic of Sidney's poems is "Sonnet 45." In this work Astrophil tells us about Stella's actions and behavior. However, Stella does not speak herself. In the poem Astrophil relates a specific event wherein both he and Stella are listening to a story about tragic lovers. In the first quatrain Astrophil explains, in general terms, his situation with Stella. Although Stella often sees Astrophil looking sad and miserable, she is unable to feel any "pity" for him. Stella even knows that she is the cause of his sorrow (line 4), but that still does not make her feel concerned or worried about Astrophil. The specific situation, the event of the poem, begins in the second quatrain. The word late means recently, and the word fable is simply used for story. "Lovers never known" indicates that the characters are

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fictional, and the word grievous indicates that the lovers in the story encountered a tragedy. So, in the first two lines of this quatrain, we find that recently Stella heard a tragic story about fictional lovers. We might imagine that the story is probably something very similar to Romeo and Juliet, a tale of two tragic lovers who both die because their families will not allow them to be together. In the second part of the quatrain (lines 7-8), Astrophil describes Stella's reaction to the tragic story. Stella is so emotionally moved by the story and she feels so much pity for the two young lovers that she cries a "sea" of tears. Astrophil wonders, in the sestet, why Stella can feel pity for fictional characters but not for himself -- a real, living human being. The word fancy here means imagination, and the word imaged would be replaced by the modern word imagined. Also, the word false here is used for fictional. The word grace suggests pity and affection; breed means to cause; the word servant refers to Astrophil; and the word wrack indicates his sorrowful situation. So, we might rewrite the first three lines of the sestet as follows: If Stella's imagination, inspired by imagined and fictional events, does cause her to feel more pity and affection than Astrophil's own sad and sorrowful situation The last three lines of the poem finish the sentence. Astrophil then asks Stella to think of himself as a sad book, a tragedy. If Stella will think of Astrophil as a sad story, then perhaps she will -- Astrophil hopes -feel pity for him.

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The clause at the end of the first three lines in the sestet (line 11) is open to interpretation. The most plausible explanation is that it modifies (or describes) Astrophil and his sorrowful situation. Astrophil has "new doubts" about Stella. In the past he did not believe that she was capable of feeling pity. Now he believes that she is capable of that emotion. She is capable of feeling pity. And that emotion brings her, in Astrophil's opinion, "honor." Why does Astrophil want Stella to feel pity for him? The answer can be found in "Sonnet 1" (line 4). The student might remember that Astrophil's purpose in writing these poems is to gradually get her to love him. He feels that if she can come to pity him, to feel some kind of emotion for him, then eventually she will come to love him. SONNET 71 In "Sonnet 52" Sidney describes a conflict between Virtue and Love that is quite similar to the conflict between Reason and Emotion (Love and Sense) that occurs in "Sonnet 10." In "Sonnet 71" Sidney returns to the conflict between Virtue and Love. But this sonnet is, perhaps, more positive than "52." In "Sonnet 71" Astrophil recognizes and appreciates the importance of Stella's virtue. In the first quatrain of the sonnet, Astrophil suggests that virtue (internal beauty) can found within something, or someone, who is physically beautiful (external beauty). In other words, internal beauty and external beauty can exist within the same person. The first three lines of the quatrain could be rewritten as follows:

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Whoever wishes to study nature to see how virtue can be found in an object of physical beauty, that person only has to experience the "love" of Stella. The word love here suggests both earthly love (or physical love) and love of virtue (or spiritual love). The last line of the quatrain (line 4) explains this idea more directly. The expression "fair lines" suggests Stella's beautiful shape (her external beauty), and "true goodness" suggests her virtue (her internal beauty). In the second quatrain, Sidney draws a comparison between virtue and reason. As mentioned previously, many Christians during the Renaissance believed that Reason is a gift from God that allows people to control their emotions and stay away from sin. Astrophil explains that this is exactly what one can find in Stella. Her Reason (personified) is a gentle ("sweetest") sovereign or king that rules and controls all of her passions (or "vices"). Sidney describes Reason as an internal "light" or "inward sun" that causes the owls, the birds of night (which symbolize various kinds of vices), to fly away. In other words, people who know Stella will find only virtue in her. She has no terrible vices, no negative passions, and no sins. In the third quatrain, Astrophil explains the effect that Stella's virtue has on other people. He metaphorically describes Stella as the heir or child of Perfection. The word perfection suggests both her internal goodness and her external beauty. But Stella is not happy ("not content") in just being virtuous herself. She wants others to be virtuous as well. Astrophil explains that some people will discover in Stella what is most beautiful ("most fair"), which is her Virtue. These people will then also try or "strive" to be "that way" themselves. They will then try to be virtuous.

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Astrophil adds (in line 12) that Stella's physical beauty may be what initially causes people to love Stella, but her virtue will change that love (meaning physical or earthly love) to goodness, to spiritual beauty (line 13). In the very last line, Astrophil contradicts everything he has said in the first thirteen lines of the sonnet. "Desire" still craves food. Astrophil still cannot help wanting Stella physically. He desires physical affection and physical love from her. The word desire suggests the passions or emotions. No matter how much virtue Astrophil finds in Stella, and no matter how much of that virtue comes to him, Astrophil's night-birds will not fly away. His lust remains. A NOTE ON THE SONGS As mentioned previously, Sidney includes some lighter verse, some songs, with his sonnets. The student should try reading these songs out loud in order to feel the rhythmical quality. Moreover, the student should recognize that these poems are simpler. They are much easier to understand. They also have the added feature of including Stella's voice. The dialogue between Astrophil and Stella gives these poems a dramatic touch. In the "Fourth Song" Astrophil comes to Stella's house at night and pleads with her to come away with him. Stella has only one line, and she repeats it at the end of each verse: "No, no, no, no, my dear, let be." Astrophil is a passionate suitor, and he does his best to get Stella to run away with him. But she keeps rejecting every suggestion he makes. The words let be means stop. Forget it. Go away. She will never give in. She will never go away with Astrophil.

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In the "Eleventh Song" Astrophil and Stella have a debate about Astrophil's constancy. Stella claims that Astrophil's love will eventually fade. She claims that his love for her will not last. Astrophil does his best to prove otherwise. He tries to convince Stella that his love is for all of eternity. If it is any consolation to Astrophil, he is right and she is wrong. His love does never fade. However, that does not do Astrophil much good since she never returns his love. SONNET 87 Astrophil reaches a high point, a moment of exultation, in his relationship with Stella. This moment is described in "Sonnet 87." In this poem Astrophil discovers that Stella does have some emotions, some feelings, for him. Astrophil describes the situation in the first quatrain. He is "forced" to leave or "to depart" from England and from Stella because he has some duty to fulfill. The poem never describes what that duty is. Maybe it is to fight in some war; maybe it is some other reason. The reason does not matter. What does matter is that Astrophil must leave Stella. The effect that leaving Stella will have on Astrophil is also suggested in this quatrain. Since she is always in his "thoughts" and always in his "heart" and since she is the one who can always "clear" up his confusion ("tempests"), his leaving her is obviously going to hurt him immensely. In the second quatrain, however, we find that Stella also feels pain or sorrow that Astrophil is leaving. The word smart here (line 5) means hurt. Stella is sighing and crying because she does not want Astrophil to leave.

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Astrophil feels two opposite emotions at once. He describes these mixed feelings in the third quatrain. On the one hand, he is full of sadness because Stella is sad. He sympathizes or even empathizes with Stella's sorrow. He feels her pain. He weeps when he sees her cry. The word pearls (line 9) is a metaphor for Stella's tears. On the other hand, Astrophil is full of joy. In fact, he feels so much joy that he is (metaphorically) swimming in it, as if joy were an ocean. He feels joy because he suddenly has discovered that Stella does have emotions for him. Stella does care for him. Such care or such emotions are, for Astrophil, a sign of her love for him. Astrophil sums up his feelings in the last three lines of the poem. The "effect" of his leaving Stella is "bitter" to him (causes him sadness) because the effect is Stella's own sadness. But the cause is "sweet" to him (causes him joy) because the cause of his joy is that Stella has feelings for him or that she loves him. The reader should note how Astrophil uses the qualities of taste as metaphors for his emotions. The last line of the poem ends with a kind of puzzle or paradox (a statement that seems contradictory but actually makes sense on a deeper level). Astrophil states that he would have been vexed if he had not been vexed. We could use troubled or bothered as a substitute for vexed. In other words, Astrophil would have been troubled if he had not been troubled. What Astrophil means is that although Stella's sadness troubles him, he would have been even more troubled if she had not been sad -- because if she had not been sad, that would have meant that she does not love him.

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The last poem in Sidney's sonnet cycle is "Sonnet 108." The story of Astrophil and Stella never reaches a resolution. It does not have a satisfying ending. Astrophil never does win Stella. She never becomes his wife or lover. And poor Astrophil can never get Stella out of his mind. His internal conflict continues for all time. The most important words in this particular sonnet are despair and joy. Once again, we see opposite emotions occurring in Astrophil at the same time. Astrophil still feels the joy of love. And Astrophil still feels the despair of never being able to attain the woman that he loves. The poem begins with a personification of Sorrow as a blacksmith. A blacksmith is someone who works over a hot furnace to melt down and re-shape metal. In the poem, Sorrow melts down some lead to enclose Astrophil's heart. The heat of Sorrow's furnace ironically comes from the strength or "might" of Astrophil's "own fire," that is, from the heat of his own passion (line 1). In other words, Astrophil's own passion is the cause of his sorrow. The lead covering his heart symbolizes the trapped love of Astrophil. He feels such great love for Stella, but he is unable to express his love directly to her -- because his love is unrequited, because she still does not love him. Yet Astrophil's oppressed or trapped heart does experience "joy" (line 4) because he does have that love for Stella. His feelings for her also bring him joy even though she does not return those feelings. In the second quatrain, though, Astrophil's joy is darkened or cut down by his despair. Astrophil uses

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the metaphor of a bird to describe his soul. The metaphor is extended to include Stella. Stella is the bird's nest. In other words, just as a bird will always fly to its nest, Astrophil's soul always flies to Stella. However, Despair, personified as a rude and unwelcome guest, visits Astrophil every day. This rude guest then clips the wings (that is, he cuts the wing feathers) of the bird so that the bird cannot fly. Thus, Astrophil's soul cannot reach Stella because Astrophil feels too much dark despair. Astrophil then feels he is completely wrapped in darkness (the "night" of despair). The light of joy within his lead-encased heart has been extinguished. In the third quatrain Astrophil compares his situation to a prisoner trapped inside a dark room. Phoebus here (in line 10) refers to Phoebus Apollo, the Greek god of the sun. Astrophil asks, "What good are the rays of the sun ("Phoebus' gold") to a poor wretched individual who is trapped inside a dark prison (which has doors of iron) where no sunlight can enter?" Of course, the rays of the sun or light symbolize love. So, what Astrophil is really asking here is this: "What good is love if one is not able to express that love?" Thus, Astrophil feels his love is useless. His love is a waste. He gives in to his despair. However, in the last couplet of the sonnet, in the last couplet of the entire sonnet sequence, Astrophil explains that his joy has not completely faded away. It returns to mix with his despair. He still continues to feel both at once. He ends the poem by saying that Stella is his only joy -- because he loves only her. But she is also his only sorrow ("annoy") and, hence, despair -- because she does not return his love.

LECTURE 18
THE SHEPHEARDES CALENDAR EDMUND SPENSER Edmund Spenser was the greatest poet of the Renaissance (excluding Shakespeare). He lived from 1552 to 1599 and is known primarily for three great works of literature: 1) 1579 2) 1590 3) 1596 The Shepheardes Calendar Amoretti (a sonnet cycle) The Faerie Queen

Spenser attended Cambridge University as a "poor scholar," but he was still able to earn his AB degree in 1573 and his AM degree in 1576. Like other poets of the age, Spenser had to support himself in some way other than by writing. So, he served as a secretary (or clerk) for a number of prominent men and also held some minor positions in the government. As our editors suggest, Spenser was a complex individual. He can be described as any of the following: Neo-Platonist Pragmatist Lover Puritan Iconoclast Idealist Connoisseur of Physical Beauty Analyst of Good and Evil Antiquarian Epic Poet Poet-Prophet

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But perhaps his epitaph (the inscription on his tomb) describes him better than any of the above: "THE PRINCE OF POETS IN HIS TYME." Undoubtedly, Spenser's greatest contribution to English literature is The Faerie Queen. This long and complex poem is usually described, simply, as an allegory. However, it may also be labeled as any of the following: 1) An Allegory on Virtues (Each of the six books represents a different virtue: Holiness, Temperance, Chastity, Friendship, Justice, and Courtesy.) 2) A Romantic Epic (It contains heroic adventures, dragons, and other supernatural creatures) 3) A National Epic (The Faerie Queen symbolizes Queen Elizabeth, and the setting symbolizes the English nation.) Although this allegory is Spenser's most magnificent creation, the student can also find the greatness of his craft in the shorter works, such as The Shepheardes Calendar. AN INTRODUCTION TO THE SHEPHEARDES CALENDAR Although The Shepheardes Calendar was written when Spenser was still a relatively young poet, stylistically it reveals the poetic skills and creativity that Spenser would use in his later works. One feature of this work that may cause some confusion to the student is the inclusion of archaic language. Throughout the work a number of words are actually from late Middle English, the language of Chaucer. Such words were no

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longer spoken in the 16th century (or later). A number of people criticized Spenser at the time for using archaic language. They said it made the work too difficult to understand. But today the archaic language is one of the features that, many critics suggest, contribute significantly to the artistic quality of the work. Spenser hoped to create a mood or atmosphere of a time long ago, of a simpler and gentler time that no longer survives. The archaic language contributes to establishing such a mood. The Shepheardes Calendar also reveals Spenser's love of experimenting with poetic meter. Within the work Spenser uses 13 different metrical forms. The collection of poems was dedicated to Sir Philip Sidney, Spenser's patron. Part of Spenser's purpose for writing these poems was to inspire and promote the re-birth of English poetry. In that sense, he was successful. Moreover, Spenser's style and approach to poetry would later influence many great poets, especially three of the Romantic poets of the early 19th century: Byron, Shelley, and Keats. The Shepheardes Calendar contains 12 parts, one for each month of the year. Each part is an eclogue. The eclogue is a poetic form that first appeared in Classical Roman times. The main characters are shepherds (simple or rustic individuals who live in the country and take care of sheep), and the form of the eclogue is usually a dialogue between two shepherds. On a literal level, the eclogue reveals the moods, feelings, and attitudes of a simple rural people living a simple rural life. However, on a symbolic level, these eclogues (which can also be labeled as pastoral allegories) often represent urban figures in an urban setting (London). The characters criticize the urban

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world, which is usually described as inferior to the rural or pastoral world of the shepherds. The world of the shepherds is an ideal one, a Golden Age. Thus, through such works, the poet is actually criticizing the problems of his modern world. The actual purpose of many of these poems, then, is didactic (to teach a lesson about urban society) or satiric (to criticize cleverly some aspect of society). The Eclogues are divided into three types: (1) Plaintive (expressing sorrow or melancholy) (2) Recreative (expressing play or amusement) (3) Moral (expressing truth or some principle) The Norton text contains two of Spenser's 12 eclogues. "Aprill" (or the Fourth Eclogue) is critically considered as the best of the recreative eclogues, and "October" (or the Tenth Eclogue" is the finest of the moral eclogues. A reader should note that the original version of The Shepheardes Calendar appeared with glosses (or editorial comments) written by E.K. These glosses are preserved in the footnotes of the text. E.K. stands for Edward Kirke, who was Spenser's friend. THE BEGINNING OF "APRILL" The first item that a reader will immediately notice in the eclogue on April is the illustration. This illustration is actually a woodcut (an illustration or design made from a piece of wood with the design engraved on it so that it can be reprinted). These woodcuts also appeared in the original edition of the Calendar in 1579. The woodcut for April shows a shepherd playing a pipe (on the left) for Queen Elisa

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(center) and other ladies of her court. The piper is Colin Clout, and the two shepherds standing behind him are Hobbinol and Thenot. The reader should also note the image of the bull (top) in the clouds. Taurus the Bull is the astrological sign for most of April. Before the dialogue begins, there first appears the Argument. This is actually a summary of the dialogue that follows. In the argument we learn that Hobbinol, a shepherd, is quite upset because his dear friend, a shepherd by the name of Colin Clout, is experiencing unrequited love. Colin Clout has become moody and sad because Rosalinda, the woman he loves, does not love him in return. Therefore, Colin has given up singing and dancing and all of the other delights that he usually takes up. Hobbinol explains the reason for his being upset to Thenot, another shepherd. Thenot begins the dialogue. The reader should note that Spenser uses quatrains (rhyming abab) for the dialogue. Thenot asks why Hobbinol looks so sad and suggests several possibilities: (1) A wolf has killed his lambs or sheep (line 2) (2) His sweet-sounding bagpipe is broken (line 3) (3) His girlfriend has left him (line 4) The problems of the rustic in the countryside are simple ones. In the second quatrain Thenot suggests a fourth possibility. He asks Hobbinol if his eyes are tempered to the year (line 5). In other words, since it rains frequently in April, Thenot is asking if Hobbinol's eyes are crying to match the seasonal wetness. The metaphor of comparing tears to rain is cleverly done here. Not only do we get a vivid image of Hobbinol's tears streaming down his face, but the metaphor also

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draws a connection, a kind of sympathy, between man and nature. Man is part of nature and his feelings are connected to nature. This is the kind of image that the 19th century Romantics would later develop. Hobbinol explains that none of the four reasons are right. Rather, he explains that a lad (a boy), his dear friend Colin Clout, loves a lass (a girl). But she does not return his love. Therefore, Colin is plunged in pain ("plonged in payne") and is tearing his curly locks of hair (line 12). The reader should note that many of Spenser's archaic words, such as "plonged in payne" above, are actually modern (16th century) words that have different spellings. The words would also have been pronounced differently in Chaucer's time (in the 14th century). However, for native speakers of English, reading Spenser's poetry is not difficult. Once the reader becomes accustomed to the unusual spellings, the lines present even less of a problem than many other poems from the same time period. Only a very few words would not have modern equivalents, and the glosses by E.K. usually explain those. In Hobbinol's second quatrain (lines 13-16) the shepherd explains that Colin has stopped playing his pipe and has even broken it. Moreover, Colin will no longer sing his customary songs, which were better than the songs of anyone else. Thenot responds by asking what kind of person is this that Hobbinol would cry so much for. The second line of the quatrain (line 18) might be translated this way: "Can you really believe ("prove") that love is such pinching pain to them (those who experience unrequited love)?" Thenot is like Astrophil before he met Stella (in Sonnet 16). Thenot does not really believe that

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unrequited love can cause so much pain to a person. Thenot then asks how is it possible that someone who can make such great music cannot control ("brydle," for the modern bridle) his own feeling, his own love. Thenot does not understand that great artists are individuals of great feeling. Hobbinol, on the other hand, is envious. Apparently, his relationship with Colin is a very close one. And he resents Rosalinda for stealing Colin's affections away from him. Hobbinol explains that Colin has been shot by Cupid's arrow (line 22). Previously, Hobbinol had given all his care and attention to Colin and had even bought gifts for Colin. As the shepherd explains, now Colin no longer thinks about Hobbinol (line 25), but only about Rosalinda. The word smart (in line 27) means pain, just as we had seen it used in Sidney's poetry. Colin feels pain because his love is unrequited, but he also neglects his friend Hobbinol. Thus, Hobbinol complains that Colin is treating him like a stranger. Thenot asks Hobbinol to sing one of Colin's songs since they are considered the best songs of all (line 30). Hobbinol agrees to sing, and he selects a song written for Elisa, the Queen of the Shepherds. Elisa obviously represents Queen Elizabeth. The reader should also note that Hobbinol says that Colin composed the song beside the running water of a spring (a small river), and so the song has the rhythm of the running water (line 36). This is a poetic way of stating that poetry should be smooth and flowing and natural.

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The total length of "Aprill" is 161 lines. The song that Hobbinol learned from Colin and then sings to Thenot begins on line 36 and ends on line 153. The song is 118 lines long. Most of the Eclogue, then, is devoted to the song. The dialogue between the two shepherds is just a pretext (a kind of excuse) for the song. Depicting Hobbinol's jealousy is not the main purpose of the poem. Rather, the main purpose is praise Queen Elizabeth. The dialogue, then, serves to set up the song and to establish the rural setting. The song is 13 stanzas long. The reader should note that Spenser is no longer using quatrains. Each stanza is 9 lines long (and rhymes ababccddc). In the first stanza the speaker clearly and directly states his purpose: to present "worthy praise" (line 44) to the woman who excels (is better than) all others of her sex (that is, all females). Of course, that woman is Queen Elizabeth. The speaker calls on the Nymphs (the minor Greek goddesses of the lakes and fountains) and the Muses (referred to as the Virgins of Parnassus), the nine Greek goddesses of the arts, to help him sing his praise to Elisa. In the second stanza (lines 46-54) the singer/speaker identifies Elisa as a goddess herself. She is the daughter of Pan, the Greek nature god, and Syrinx, a nymph (a goddess) that Pan chased. These lines are the most problematical in the poem. In one sense, they serve to praise Elizabeth. They refer to her as a divine being, as a goddess. Yet, they also suggest the negative aspect of Queen Elizabeth's heritage. In Greek mythology, Syrinx ran away from Pan. Another god, to prevent Syrinx from being seduced by Pan, turned her

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into a clump (a bunch) of reeds. Since Pan could not satisfy his lust, he cut the reeds and made his pipes from them. In real life, Anne Boleyn, Queen Elizabeth's mother, was the second wife to King Henry VIII. Boleyn reputedly had a number of sexual affairs, and she was beheaded in 1536 (Queen Elizabeth was born in 1533). The idea of linking Henry VIII to Pan makes sense. Pan was a nature god (depicted as half man and half goat) and was noted for his keen lust. Henry VIII, who had six wives, was also known for his appetites, sexual and otherwise. However, the link between Anne Boleyn and Syrinx is, perhaps, not so accurate. Syrinx is a virgin. She is pure. She is spotless. Spenser even describes Syrinx as "without spotte" (line 50). Boleyn was anything but spotless. Spenser seems to be praising both Queen Elizabeth and Anne Boleyn while, at the same time, satirizing Henry VIII. In a way, Spenser is even defending Anne Boleyn from the scandals that were attributed to her during her lifetime. Another historical allusion is evident in the third stanza of the song (lines 55-63). Spenser begins the stanza using prominent color imagery. Elisa is dressed in scarlet (red) clothes and white ermine (furs) upon the green grass. The reference to red and white is also made in the following stanza (in line 68). The colors are significant. During the 15th century two aristocratic families, known as the House of York and the House of Lancaster, fought over the throne of England. Both families were related to King Edward III (the King of England for most of the 14th century). Since an agreement could not be reached between the two families, fighting and bloodshed occurred in a conflict known as The War of the Roses. The conflict

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was called this because the red rose was a symbol for the House of Lancaster, and the white rose was a symbol for the House of York. The conflict was finally resolved when King Henry VII (of the House of Lancaster) married Elizabeth of York (the daughter of King Edward IV). Thus, the red rose united with the white rose. Henry VIII was the son of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York. Thus, Henry VIII represents the union of the red rose and the white rose, as does Queen Elizabeth, the daughter of Henry VIII. In Spenser's poem Elisa wears red and white to symbolize the unification of the Houses of York and Lancaster and to symbolize the peace brought to England because of that unification. Flower imagery mixes with the color imagery in the third stanza. Elisa is a nature goddess, after all. So, using flowers to suggest her natural beauty is appropriate. Elisa wears a crimson (red) crown decorated with daffodils (white flowers) and damask roses. Damask roses are pink (a mixture of red and white). Elisa, though, is described as a sweet violet. The violet is a flower that is a light purple in color. Purple is symbolic of royalty, and the violet itself is sometimes associated with gentility and peace. Spenser uses a simile to praise Elisa in the fourth stanza. He compares Elisa to Phoebe, the moon goddess (as a poetic and female counterpart to Phoebus Apollo, the sun god). Actually, in Roman mythology the moon goddess would be called Diana; and the Greeks called her Artemis. But Spenser wants to make the connection between Elisa and the sun stronger. He is stating in his poetic fashion that Elisa is radiant. The mythological allusion is mixed with a Christian one, for Spenser also refers to Elisa's face as angelic (line 64). In either case,

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Spenser is trying to stress that Elisa's beauty is beyond earthly comparison. The sun god and moon goddess imagery continues in the following stanza (lines 73-81). The speaker or singer states that Phoebus, the sun, looks from the sky down on earth and sees Elisa glowing so brightly. The sun becomes embarrassed that an object from the earth glows more brilliantly and more beautifully than he does himself. So, the sun goes off into hiding (behind a cloud, perhaps). The speaker corrects himself in the sixth stanza (lines 82-90). In the fourth stanza he had compared Elisa to the Moon. But in the sixth he asserts that Elisa is even more beautiful than the moon (or Cynthia, another name for the moon goddess). When Cynthia sees the radiant beams of beauty shining from Queen Elisa, the moon goddess is "dasht" (or, in Modern English, dashed). In other words, Cynthia is defeated or feels ashamed because her beauty is inferior to that of Queen Elisa. In the second part of the same stanza, the speaker realizes that he should not make the gods of the sun and moon angry. He uses another mythological allusion to express this idea. Niobe, a mortal woman, proudly boasted that she was superior to the goddess Latona because Niobe had 14 children (7 sons and 7 daughters), but Latona only had 2 children (Apollo and Diana). The goddess Latona becomes angry and tells her children, Apollo and Diana (poetically described as "Latonaes seede" in line 86), to slay (kill) all of Niobe's children. Niobe becomes so sad and sorrowful that she turns into stone. So, even though the speaker describes the sun and the moon gods (Apollo and Diana) as being

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embarrassed or ashamed when they compare themselves to Elisa, the poet does not want to directly assert that Elisa is more beautiful or superior to Apollo and Diana. One must fear the gods. However, indirectly, the speaker has done just that. The speaker has, in this indirect fashion, claimed that Elisa is superior to the gods. The praise is more direct in the seventh stanza (lines 91-99). In the first part of the stanza the poet claims that Pan and Syrinx, Elisa's parents, should be proud for producing such a beautiful child. In the second part of the stanza, the speaker, who is a shepherd, promises to sacrifice a young lamb to Elisa since she is his goddess. In the next four stanzas the speaker describes the goddesses and maidens who come to attend to Elisa, who also come to praise her. First, the nine Muses arrive (in stanza eight). The reader might note that the first of the Muses to arrive is Calliope. She is the muse of epic poetry. Some 16 years after the appearance of the Calendar, Spenser would be praised for writing one the best epic poems in English literature (namely, The Faerie Queen, which would also be dedicated to Queen Elizabeth). However, at this point in time, Spenser probably chooses Calliope because of the epic greatness or epic stature of his topic, Queen Elizabeth. The reader should also note that the Muses carry branches from the bay or laurel tree (line 104). As the gloss from E. K. informs us, the laurel symbolically represents (1) honor and victory and (2) great poets. Both references are appropriate to Queen Elizabeth, who was not only a political leader of England but also a patron of poets and even a poet herself.

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The Graces appear in the ninth stanza (lines 109-117). The Graces, three goddesses and daughters of Jupiter or Zeus, represent charm, genteel (polite or elegant) behavior, and comeliness (proper but also attractive appearance). The speaker claims that Elisa is like a fourth Grace. In other words, Elisa has all of the qualities of these goddesses. The Nymphs of the Water appear in the tenth stanza. They carry olive branches (line 123) to symbolize the peace that Elizabeth brought to England. Last, in the eleventh stanza, are the Daughters of the Shepherds (lines 127-35), but only if they are virgins (line 129). Because they are mortals, not goddesses, the speaker warns them to control their "rudeness" (line 132). The word rudeness here refers to their simplistic, country manners. The speaker is warning them to be on their best behavior. After all, they will be in the company of goddesses. The imagery of flowers comes once again in the twelfth stanza (lines 136-44). The virgins (the shepherds' daughters) and the goddesses bring a variety of beautiful and colorful flowers to honor and to decorate Queen Elisa. Queen Elisa, the nature goddess now richly decorated in flowers, departs in the last stanza (lines 145-53). All of the goddesses and virgins also leave. The speaker ends his song with the promise that he will bring plums ("Damsines" in line 152) for all of the goddesses and virgins if they should ever return again. Not much action occurs in the song. Rather, it is more like a coronation ceremony. A coronation ceremony is the ritual practice of placing a crown on a king or queen's head when that king or queen becomes the new monarch or ruler of a land. The careful reader

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might have noted that the goddesses and virgins also bring "coronations" (line 138). This word probably has two meanings. (1) The word could stand for carnations, a popular flower with red, white, or pink petals -- again note the appropriate color imagery. But the word could also suggest (2) crowns made from flowers. Both carnations and crowns made from flowers would be suitable for honoring Queen Elisa. THE ENDING OF "APRILL" After the song, Spenser returns to the dialogue between Hobbinol and Thenot. The beginning dialogue (lines 1-36) and the ending dialogue (lines 154-61) function or serve as a frame for the song. The song is actually the heart of the poem. And the purpose of that song (to praise Queen Elizabeth) is thus the purpose of the entire poem. Thenot has enjoyed the song and comments that it is a pity (line 156) that a person who can write such a great song could become so horribly changed (the poet uses "lewdly bent" in line 157) so that now he cares for nothing. He calls Colin Clout a "foolish boy" for allowing love to blind him in such a way. Hobbinol agrees that a man who loves a woman that he can never have ("cannot purchase") is surely a great fool (lines 158-59). He then announces that they should go home since night is approaching. The dialogue in "Aprill" serves three functions. (1) It is used to introduce and to frame the song to Queen Elisa. (2) It contributes to the atmosphere and charm of the overall poem. And (3) it presents the conventional topic of unrequited love and suggests that

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those who have never experienced such love cannot understand it. Spenser concludes the poem though not with the dialogue, but with the emblems or mottoes of Thenot and Hobbinol. A motto is a brief statement used to express an idea or principle that a speaker strongly believes in. Although both mottoes appear in Latin, our editors provide us with a translation: THENOT'S MOTTO "By what name should I call thee, O maiden?" HOBBINOL'S MOTTO "O goddess, surely." Both lines come from Virgil's Aeneid and indicate Aeneas's response when he first sees the goddess Venus (the Roman goddess of love and beauty -- the counterpart to the Greek goddess Aphrodite) in disguise as a mortal woman. Aeneas does not realize that he is speaking to a goddess, but the beauty of Venus is so magnificent that he cannot help calling her a goddess. Similarly, Thenot and Hobbinol are in awe of the beauty of Queen Elizabeth. The shepherds' mottoes thus compare Queen Elizabeth to the goddess Venus. With the mottoes at the end of "Aprill," Spenser thus concludes his poem by returning to his primary purpose or reason for writing it: to praise Queen Elizabeth.

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The Tenth Eclogue is much different in content and atmosphere from "Aprill." In "October" Spenser presents a moral eclogue, which is designed to instruct or comment upon a serious topic. In one sense, it is more like an essay than a poem. However, like the Fourth Eclogue, this one is presented in the form of a dialogue between two shepherds. The two shepherds here are Cuddie and Piers (or Pierce). Cuddie is a poet. Perhaps, then, he symbolically represents Spenser himself (just as Colin Clout in "Aprill" might also represent Spenser). In the woodcut Cuddie (on the left) is holding pan-pipes (the kind of pipes played by Pan, the Greek nature god) and is wearing a laurel wreath. The pipes indicate his passion for rustic or natural music, and the laurel is the symbol of poets. The shepherd Piers is on the right. The reader should also note the scorpion in the cloud. Scorpio is the astrological sign for October. In the argument or summary we find that Cuddie is upset because society does not support poets. This, obviously, is actually a criticism on urban London, not the rural countryside. Cuddie complains that he cannot maintain (financially support) his art and studies. He does not understand why poetry holds such a low position in society when the art of poetry is not only an honorable art. It is also a "divine gift." In other words, the poet receives inspiration from God, and the people in society should respect that. So, through the argument, we find the theme or thesis of this eclogue: poetry is an honorable and even holy art form that should be respected and supported by society.

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The dialogue in this eclogue begins similarly to that in "Aprill." One shepherd approaches another and sees that his fellow looks sad. However, in "October" Piers tells Cuddie to cheer up right away. Cuddie, after all, leads the other shepherds in entertainment (poems and riddles and games). But since Cuddie is sad, all of the other shepherds have similarly become moody and sad (as if they "in sleepe art dead" -- line 6). The comment by Piers here is important because it stresses the value on entertainment (specifically poetry). Without entertainment, without poetry, the other members of society (symbolized by the shepherds) would be lifeless and bored. Poetry thus provides a valuable and useful function in society. Cuddie, though, responds that despite the great effort or "payne" (line 7: literally meaning pain) that he has spent on his art, he has nothing to show for it (line 10). Cuddie compares himself (a metaphor) to the grasshopper in the fable "The Grasshopper and the Ant." In that tale, the industrious and hard-working ant struggled all year long in order to have enough food and supplies for winter. But the grasshopper just played all year long. When winter came, the grasshopper could not survive. Thus, Cuddie feels like he should give up poetry and other such entertainment or else he will not be able to survive. In the second stanza that Cuddie speaks (lines 13-18) the shepherd admits that his poetry has given much delight (line 15) to others, but he is not any better for it. He has not been rewarded. In fact, he even suggests that what he gets is a slender prize (line 16), meaning, in this case, nothing. Cuddie uses another metaphor to describe himself. He describes himself as an assistant to a hunter. He is a bush-beater. He is

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someone who beats the bushes to scare the birds out so that the hunter can shoot them. The hunter gets all of the birds. The bush-beater gets nothing. Metaphorically, the people who listen to Cuddie's poems are the hunters. They get everything. The poet, or the bush-beater, gets nothing. THE VALUE OF POETRY Piers responds to Cuddie's complaint and informs Cuddie that he gains something more valuable than money or material wealth. He claims that Cuddie earns praise, glory, and honor. In the dialogue here Piers notes the two functions of poetry: (1) to teach and (2) to delight (or entertain). This idea comes from Horace, the Roman poet, in the 1st century BC. Piers claims that Cuddie's poetry does both well. His poetry (1) controls "the lust of lawlesse youth with good advice" (line 22). In other words, it teaches reckless young men to control their passions. And Cuddie's poetry also (2) "pricke them forth with pleasuance" (line 23). That is, Cuddie's poetry moves them emotionally with pleasure. In the following stanza Piers suggests an idea that would be adopted by the Romantics. He claims that Cuddie's notes (which could refer to his poetry or his songs) uplift the souls of his listeners as if they were hypnotized, as if they were bereft of their senses (line 27). In other words, the soul soars above the body into a higher plane of existence or into a spiritual realm. For the Romantics (especially the American Romantic Ralph Waldo Emerson), this idea would be referred to as transcendentalism. However, as our editors note, the idea that music has the power to move one's soul has its

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roots in the literary works of the Classical Greeks, notably Plato and Pythagoras. In any event, Piers is arguing that poetry and music are magical. Cuddie should be proud to produce such magic. By this point the reader should realize the approach that Spenser is using in this eclogue. The lines spoken by Piers form the defense of poetry. Piers is arguing that poetry is valuable and necessary. Thus, in a way, "October" is a shorter poetic version of Sir Philip Sidney's The Defence of Poesy in the sense that both have the same function: to defend poetry. Both works of literature stress the value of poetry. Piers also uses a mythological allusion to suggest the value of Cuddie's poetry. Piers refers to the Greek story of Orpheus and Eurydice. When Orpheus's wife, Eurydice, dies suddenly at a very young age, Orpheus descends into Hades, the underworld or place of death, to get her back. His skill at singing and playing the lyre (a musical instrument that is like a harp) puts Cerberus, the monstruous three-headed dog which guards Hades, to sleep. Cerberus is called the "hellish hound" (line 30) by Piers. The music by Orpheus also pleased Pluto, the god of the underworld, so much that Pluto allowed Orpheus to take his wife out of Hades. In other words, Piers has found a highly poetic way of stating that Cuddie's music is so wonderful that even the gods would enjoy it. Cuddie, however, is not convinced. He uses a metaphor to dismiss the words by Piers. He claims that praise is like smoke (line 35). It disappears as it floats up into the wind. It becomes nothing. It is worth nothing.

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In the stanzas that follow (lines 37-54) Piers argues that Cuddie should give up rustic poetry and sing epic songs instead. This line also prefigures or predicts what Spenser himself would later do. Spenser would give up writing more of his rustic poems (like The Shepheardes Calendar) to write a great epic poem (namely, The Faerie Queen). In a sense, Spenser is criticizing himself when he calls Cuddie a "base and viler clowne" (line 37). By the word clown Spenser means a rustic poet. So, he is calling Cuddie a rustic poet of simple and lowly poetry. Rather, Piers suggests that Cuddie should start singing (or writing poems) about Mars (line 39), the Roman god of war, and about great battles and great heroes and knights. In other words, he should try to write a great epic like Homer's The Iliad, which tells the story of the Trojan War, a 10-year long conflict between Greece and Troy. Piers becomes even more specific in the following stanza (lines 43-48). He tells Cuddie that he should write an epic about Elisa, meaning Queen Elizabeth, or "the worthy" one, meaning Robert Dudley, the Earl of Leicester, whom Queen Elizabeth "loved best" (as the poem suggests in line 47). Once again, this line prefigures Spenser's own Faerie Queen, which is, symbolically, about Queen Elizabeth. One gets the impression that Spenser was already planning for his great epic when he was still 27 although he would be 38 by the time the first half of his epic appeared in print (and 44 by the time he had completed it). Such an impression would be correct. Spenser was an ambitious poet.

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An historical footnote should be added here. Spenser actually worked for the Earl of Leicester, and through him was able to meet Sir Philip Sidney. By writing epic poetry, Cuddie would more likely be able to find a patron. He would find someone who would appreciate his work and even offer him rewards (meaning money) for his work. Piers even adds that once Cuddie has established himself as a great writer, once he has found a patron, then he can return to writing the kinds of poems that he enjoys best. Then he can return to writing about "love and lustihead" (meaning pleasure, line 51). He can return to writing simple songs and dance tunes for the simple rustic population. Cuddie agrees with Piers, but only in part. Cuddie notes (in lines 55-60) that the Roman poet Virgil (referred to as "Tityrus" in line 55) wrote pastoral poetry before he wrote his great epic, The Aeneid, through the help of his patron, Maecenas, the Roman statesman. And, of course, Virgil became the most popular poet of his time. THE DECLINE OF SOCIETY Although Cuddie agrees at first with Piers about writing epic poetry, he then explains that the times are different now. Patrons, like Maecenas, are all dead (line 61). There are no more patrons. Actually, this line is intended, perhaps, for the purpose of humor. Spenser, after all, did have a patron for The Shepheardes Calendar: Sir Philip Sidney. Cuddie also argues that all of the worthy subjects for epics are also dead (line 63). Cuddie explains this problem in greater detail in the following stanza (lines

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67-72). Life became too easy for mankind. Society has become lazy (metaphorically described in line 68 as man lying in a bed of ease). And Virtue, personified, began to stoop over in its old age (line 67). And, therefore, people became less virtuous and believed that poets were not worth a pea (line 69). In other words, the poets of the current age (the Renaissance) are not worthy enough or good enough to belong to "the learned troupe," meaning the great poets of the Classical Age (line 70). Cuddie adds that the crowds of great thinkers, "the streames of flowing wittes" (line 71) have ceased. There are no more great wits or great thinkers anymore. Once again, the reader should note here how this rustic poem is actually presenting a criticism of the modern urban society of London in which Spenser lived. Cuddie adds one more sharp point of criticism against modern society's treatment of poets. He tells Piers that if a young or budding poet shows any promise of intellectual brilliance, society will force that poet either to write ribald ("rybaudrye" in line 76) or indecent rhymes or verses. If the poet does not do this, he will "wither." His poetry will not be accepted by society. He will, metaphorically, die as a poet. The reader should also note that Cuddie sarcastically refers to a poet who writes indecent verse as Tom Piper. This suggests that such poetry is immature, for childish minds. THE CONCLUSION OF "OCTOBER" The remaining stanzas discuss (1) the place of poetry and (2) the effect of love on the poet. After hearing Cuddie's criticisms of society, Piers suggests that maybe Cuddie's poetry (personified as "Poesye" in

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line 79) should leave the earth and fly up to the heavens (line 84). Cuddie responds that his own poetry is too weak to fly up into the heavens (line 85), but that the poetry of his fellow shepherd, Colin Clout, is fit for the heavens if only Colin were not so overcome by unrequited love (line 89). Cuddie's remark then moves the discussion to the effect of love on the poet. Piers remarks that it is Love that inspires Colin to reach for the heavens (line 91), but Cuddie answers that Love is a tyrant that causes the poet to have an empty mind (or "vacant head" in line 100). Further, the Muses abandon the poet who is in love (line 101). In other words, the lovesick poet cannot find any inspiration. Cuddie then argues that wine is a much better source of inspiration than love (lines 103-08). Bacchus, the god of wine, is a friend to Phoebus Apollo, who is here the god of poetry. In other words, wine inspires poetry. Cuddie claims that if he had some wine, he would then be able to produce some great poetry. Suddenly, though, Cuddie realizes he is tired. He and Piers sit in the shade of a tree, and Cuddie cools off. That is, he becomes calm; he relaxes. He begins to play his pipe. He returns to doing what he loves best even though he does not get any reward for it. However, Piers promises a young goat as soon as the next one is born. Thus, Cuddie gets a reward for his poetry after all. The eclogue ends with Cuddie's motto: "There is a god within us; it is from his stirring that we feel warm."

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The motto suggests that there is a spiritual or supernatural quality within each of us, and it is that quality that inspires each of us to create poetry or to undertake acts of greatness. To put it another way, poets will continue to write their poetry even if they do not get rewarded for it because they feel the need deep within themselves to create, to write.

LECTURE 19
THE FIRST LECTURE ON DOCTOR FAUSTUS CHRISTOPHER MARLOWE Christopher Marlowe lived a short and wild life. He was criticized for his religious views. He was known to have a violent temper. And he even worked as a spy for Queen Elizabeth. In addition, Thomas Kyd, another playwright of the Renaissance, also accused Marlowe of atheism and treason. Marlowe died in 1593 at the age of 29. There are several versions about how he died. But sources place his death at the Widow Bull, an inn or tavern where Marlowe apparently had been drinking. During a fight about paying the bill, someone stabbed Marlowe with a knife. A short but promising career thus came to an unfortunate end. Marlowe was born in Canterbury in 1564, the same year that William Shakespeare was born. Marlowe attended Cambridge University. He received his Bachelor of Arts in 1584 and his Master of Arts in 1587. By the time he had graduated, he had already written a couple of plays and some poems. Marlowe wrote several plays, but four of them are considered especially noteworthy: Tamburlaine the Great The Jew of Malta Edward II Doctor Faustus c. 1587 c. 1592 c. 1592 c. 1593

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Our editors note that Tamburlaine introduced blank verse (unrhymed iambic pentameter) to the stage. This is an error. As mentioned in a previous lecture, Gorboduc, one of the earliest English tragedies, has that honor: Gorboduc was first performed in 1561. Although Tamburlaine was not the first play to introduce blank verse to the English stage, it was the first play to produce great blank verse on stage. More importantly, the play is important because the central character, Tamburlaine, who was a warrior chieftain in Mongolia during the 14th century, represents two negative aspects of the Renaissance man: ambition and a quest for power. In this respect, he is quite similar to the central character in Marlowe's greatest play, Doctor Faustus. BACKGROUND ON THE PLAY The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus is undoubtedly Marlowe's most famous play. The story is an old one that has been told and retold throughout the centuries. The oldest known source is a medieval version from Germany. During the Romantic age, another German, Johann Goethe, wrote a poetic version that he completed in 1832. And during the Modern age, yet another German, Thomas Mann, wrote a novel of the Faust story in 1947. Moreover, there have been a number of variations based on the story, such as the American short story "The Devil and Daniel Webster" (1937) by Stephen Vincent Benet or the novel The Year the Yankees Lost the Pennant by Douglas Wallop. This novel became even more popular when it was adapted into an American musical entitled Damn Yankees (with a stage version produced in 1955 and a movie version in

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1958). However, the best known version of the Faust story is the one by Christopher Marlowe. The story itself concerns a man who desires knowledge and power. He wants more than he is capable of achieving on his own. So, he makes a deal with the devil. He promises to give the devil his soul in exchange for 24 years of power. For 24 years the devil will serve Faustus and grant Faustus any wish that he makes. But at the end of 24 years, Faustus must die, and his soul will belong to the devil. During the Middle Ages and even during the Renaissance, people believed in devils and evil magic. Many people back then would believe this story literally. They would believe that such events could actually happen. Today, most people might see this story more figuratively. They would see Faustus's choice of making a deal with the devil as being symbolic of someone choosing evil actions over good. Regardless of which way a person views it, the story is a fascinating one. Marlowe's version presents an interesting mixture of Medieval and Renaissance ideas. During the Middle Ages, most people believed that they should be content with their circumstances. They should not be too concerned with the earthly world since earthly or bodily existence was merely a temporary situation. All earthly existence was merely a preparation for a life in heaven, a life with God. To want too much, to try to obtain too much, or to believe that one deserved more was linked with the sin of pride. Pride, of course, is one of the Seven Deadly Sins. It is usually considered the worst or most serious of the sins because it is the sin that Lucifer, the chief of the devils, is associated with.

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The student might remember the comment made by John, the carpenter, in Geoffrey Chaucer's "The Miller's Tale." John is worried that Nicholas has become crazy by studying too much and by trying to learn the private secrets of God (by studying astrology). The carpenter's comment that such action is wrong reflects the medieval view. Man should place limits on his learning. There are some things that man should not know. Of course, that notion changed significantly in England during the Renaissance. The intellectuals of that time viewed their world with man at the center. Man was capable of achieving great deeds through the power of his own mind and abilities. Man could control his own destiny. As noted earlier, such a view had both positive and negative results. On the positive side, the Renaissance was an age of intellectual brilliance where, indeed, great accomplishments occurred in the humanities and other areas. Man learned to enjoy himself and did not feel trapped by the limits of earthly existence. But on the negative side, man could become too proud of his accomplishments and too sinful in his enjoyment of life. Man could become too vain, too proud. Man could become a creature full of sin. The character of Faustus in Marlowe's play reflects both these positive and negative qualities. In this sense, then, he really is a genuine Renaissance man.

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The student should also note that Marlowe's Faustus exists in two different versions. The older version, known as the A text, is shorter than the other. The longer version is the B text. Both versions were printed after Marlowe's death. The student should note that plays were not originally written for publication. Acting companies would often add or delete scenes and make other significant changes to suit their own purposes. However, for some of the plays from the Renaissance, edited or "changed" copies may be the only versions that exist. The Norton editors have selected the shorter A text printed 1604 for the anthology. However, many serious scholars of Marlowes work indicate that the longer B text of Faustus printed in 1616 appears to reflect Marlowe's original more closely. Nevertheless, the lesser A text stil contains all of the pertinent themes and concepts of the play. THE PROLOGUE At the beginning of the play a single actor walks out on stage and speaks directly to the audience. This actor is the Chorus. During the Classical Age of Greece, the chorus was actually a group of actors who would sing or chant lines that often summarized the story of the play or perhaps even offer comments upon the action. By the Renaissance the chorus has become a single actor, but he serves a similar purpose to the chorus of the Classical Age. William Shakespeare, Thomas Kyd, and Christopher Marlowe, among other playwrights, included a chorus in several of their plays.

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The Prologue to Faustus contains two parts. The first six lines inform us what the play is not about. This may seem strange to the modern reader. But there is a reason for it. The subject ("our Muse") and the verb ("intends") of the first six lines can be found in the sixth line. We might loosely revise this as follows: Marlowe's Muse inspired him to write proudly ("to vaunt") in poetry about The first five lines then complete the rest of this sentence. The reader should note the negatives, though ("not" and "nor"): 1) not war (lines 1-2) 2) nor the love of kings or princes (lines 3-4) 3) nor heroic deeds (line 5) So, Marlowe will not be writing about any of these three topics. Marlowe's topic will be much different. The reason why Marlowe begins this way concerns the definition of tragedy, the form of drama that he is writing. Simply defined, a tragedy is a play where (1) the protagonist is a figure of high estate (usually a king or prince) and (2) the protagonist experiences a fall from power and prestige. Often, tragedies would include the topics of war, love, and heroic action. Playwrights considered these as fit or proper subject matter for a tragedy. Marlowe is, therefore, telling us that his play is going to be different. It may be a tragedy, but it will not be about a king and his fall from power.

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Marlowe's central figure is a scholar. Given the traditional definition of this type of work, Marlowe's play would not even be considered a tragedy. Faustus is not in a high enough position and is not politically powerful enough to fall. Marlowe is experimenting with the definition of tragedy here. Even Shakespeare's protagonists in his tragedies (Lear, Macbeth, Hamlet, Othello, and Julius Caesar) are kings or other figures of national importance. The fall of the king or a prince affects the entire nation. But what happens when a scholar falls? Such a loss is not a matter that concerns an entire nation. However, during the Renaissance, scholarship was important. Attaining intellectual brilliance defined the great men of the age. On the one hand, it may seem that Marlowe is praising the scholar by linking him with the kings and princes of the past. Of course, Marlowe was a scholar himself. On the other hand, Marlowe may be criticizing the scholar whose quest for knowledge and desire for greatness brings him ruin and shame. The rest of the Prologue, though, clearly reveals Marlowe's view (or theme). The remainder of the Prologue (1) summarizes the events prior to when the action of the play itself begins. It also (2) describes the personality of Faustus. The play begins with Faustus, still a young man, having received his doctoral degree from the University of Wittenburg (in Germany) and deciding what career to pursue. The Prologue notes that Faustus excelled over all others (line 18) during his exams to earn his doctorate. Faustus is, then, the greatest of scholars; and because of this, he has become proud. The Prologue describes Faustus in several negative terms: "swollen with cunning" (line 20), full of "self conceit" (line 20),

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and "glutted" (line 24). Faustus is just too full of pride, and the Prologue uses the mythological allusion to Icarus to describe what will happen to him. In Greek mythology Icarus is a young man who is in prison with his father. In order to escape, Icarus and his father make giant wings out of wax and bird feathers. Icarus flies out of the prison, but he becomes so excited and proud of himself that he flies too close to the sun. The wings melt, and Icarus falls to his death. The story serves as a warning to anyone who becomes too proud and thinks he can ignore the advice of others. It is a warning to anyone who feels he is above (superior to) all others. Faustus is a Renaissance version of Icarus. He soars too high (intellectually), and so he falls. The importance of choice is also suggested in the Prologue. Faustus is an individual who can choose from a wide variety of occupations and pursuits. He is educated enough and brilliant enough to be successful in any field. However, he chooses magic (line 26) as his chief pursuit. Magic, here, means black magic. It is the magic associated with the devil. Thus, Faustus is actually choosing evil as his pursuit. He is choosing the devil over God. THE OPENING SOLILOQUY A soliloquy is a speech in a play that is not intended to represent realistic speech. Instead, such a speech reveals the innermost thoughts of a character. The speech tells us what a character is thinking. The use of soliloquies is a common convention in Renaissance drama. Some of the most noted dramatic speeches are soliloquies. Another term that is sometimes used for such speeches is monologue. The prefix mono means

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one, and the root logo means speech. It is in contrast to a dialogue, where two or more actors are speaking to one another. The monologue, however, is slightly different from the soliloquy. A monologue could represent actual speech. The soliloquy never does. Faustus begins with a soliloquy. Doctor Faustus is alone in his den (or study) trying to decide what occupation he should pursue. The speech is unrealistic in two ways: (1) it reveals his thoughts, and (2) the decision that Faustus makes is not actually decided so quickly. Rather, his decision would actually come after a long period of thought or deliberation. The student must remember that the actions and dialogue in drama are largely symbolic. A play must accept the limitations of time and space. In this play a period of 24 years is compressed into approximately two hours. In addition, numerous locales throughout Europe are performed on a stage of relatively small dimensions. A play, then, is representational. It represents or symbolizes realistic people and situations. But it cannot be realistic itself. Plays are far more representational than movies are. Although a movie also has the restriction of time, it does not have the restriction of place. In the live theater, the audience must accept the conventions of drama (like the soliloquy) to enjoy the play. They must accept that a stage with a few props on it can be either a kitchen or a kingdom. The audience member is required to use more of his or her imagination. In the soliloquy Faustus examines each possible pursuit of occupation and then explains his reason for rejecting each pursuit. The following outline indicates the choices that the protagonist examines:

396 1) 2) 3) 4) 5)

The Renaissance Philosophy (lines 4-11) Medicine (lines 12-27) Law (lines 27-36) Divinity or Religion (lines 37-48) Magic (lines 49-63)

The first choice made by Faustus is philosophy. He is thinking that now he has graduated ("commenced") from the university, he should be a "divine in show" (line 3). That is, in his outer appearance (what he shows to others) he should appear as a priest (a divine). During the Middle Ages, the student may remember, a university education was a Church education. All students were clerics: all students were trained to be priests. However, many graduates did not become priests. Faustus, also, does not wish to become a priest. So, Faustus thinks that being a philosopher is more suitable because philosophy is "the end of every art" (line 4). In other words, philosophy is the goal (end) of every occupation or field of study (art). The goal in studying philosophy is to examine the causes or laws of reality. To put it another way, philosophy is the study of why we are here and why life is the way it is. For Faustus, the pursuit of philosophy might possibly represent the ultimate goal of every kind of study. But, then, Faustus remembers a quote from Aristotle (the Classical Greek scholar who was also one of the greatest philosophers of all time). The quote suggests that the final or ultimate goal of philosophy is to argue well (lines 7-8). Faustus is unhappy with that. He already knows how to argue well. He has already achieved that "end" or goal (line 10). So, he decides, why should he study philosophy any further when he has already

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achieved the end, the final goal, of that study? Faustus is a great scholar and a great debater. But he is also overly proud in thinking that he has learned everything that philosophy can teach. Faustus rejects the other occupations for similar reasons. He rejects the field of medicine because he has already discovered great prescriptions or medicines (line 20) that have cured plagues and other diseases. He feels that he has nothing left to accomplish in that area. The reader should note, though, three lines in particular: Couldst thou make men to live eternally, Or, being dead, raise them to life again, Then this profession were to be esteemed. (lines 24-26) Faustus is suggesting that to be able to make man live forever or to be able to make the dead come alive again would be a worthy pursuit. If the field of medicine could do this, then the occupation would be worthwhile. This idea would become widely popular a little more than 200 years later in the English novel Frankenstein (1818) by Mary Shelley. For audiences during the Middle Ages and Renaissance, though, the sentence is ironic and perhaps also blasphemous (insulting to God). Christians believed, after all, that a person's soul could live eternally in Heaven after the body has died. In this sense, then, Faustus is declaring that he desires god-like powers. He wants to be a god. That indicates both pride and blasphemy. Faustus rejects law because it is work for a "mercenary drudge" (line 34). A drudge is someone who does boring, tedious work. The word mercenary here suggests that he is doing such work only for

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money. Faustus does not have money as his ultimate goal. At least he is not greedy. Faustus also rejects divinity because the Church preaches that "the reward of sin is death" (line 40). Death here means damnation, eternal punishment in hell. Faustus reasons that all of us are sinners. Therefore, according to that quote from the Bible, all of us will end up in hell. Faustus thinks that such a belief is too stern or too strict. He just does not believe it. He cannot accept it. "What doctrine call you this?" (line 47). Therefore, he will not bother with the field of divinity. Once again, Faustus ignores (or chooses not to think about) another important and fundamental Christian doctrine -- the idea that God can forgive mankind and show mercy. All souls will not be eternally damned in hell. Faustus is using rhetoric to convince himself of his choice. He is using the tricks of the clever debater to prove his point, to argue his case. He is good at arguing. He is good at logic. However, reason or logic has really very little to do with the choice made by Faustus. He chooses magic because it is his desire (note the word desires in line 52). Desire also means the passions or emotions. As mentioned in previous lectures, Christian philosophers believed that reason is superior to the emotions and capable of keeping the emotions under control. Emotions can only take control because the individual allows them to do so. Faustus chooses magic because it appeals to the passions. Magic, Faustus believes, could bring him "profit" (greed), "delight" (gluttony and lust, maybe), "power" and "honor" (pride and, possibly, envy), and "omnipotence" (blasphemy). It is not knowledge that Faustus wants. It is power. He wants to

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control the wind and rain (line 59). He wants to be "a mighty god" or "a deity" (lines 62-63). This will form one of the central themes in the play. THE DEPICTION OF THE DEVILS Actually, there is more than one devil in Marlowe's play. The devil that serves Faustus is Mephastophilis. The chief of the devils, Lucifer, also appears in the play, but only briefly. Mephastophilis first appears in Scene 3. After deciding to apply himself to magic instead of any other occupation, Faustus conjures up (that is, he says some magic words, also known as an incantation) a devil. He specifically asks for the devil Mephastophilis to appear. Mephastophilis is a minor devil. Probably Marlowe deliberately decided that the chief of the devils, Lucifer, is too important a devil to bother with the likes of a scholar. Faustus is not, after all, a figure of great importance. He is not a king. He is not even a nobleman. In this sense, then, Marlowe is saying that Faustus is not very significant. He has no reason to be so "swollen with cunning," so proud. The incantation (the magic words) that Faustus recites to call Mephastophilis are worth noting. The words are in Latin, but the editors have provided a translation in a footnote. Latin was the language of the Church; and, as mentioned in a previous lecture, the illiterate and superstitious people of the Middle Ages believed that Latin words were magical. Chaucer's Pardoner, you may recall, used Latin phrases to intimidate or scare the poor folk so that he could then get their money.

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Toward the beginning of the incantation, Faustus says "farewell to the Trinity!" The Trinity refers to the three divine manifestations or beings of God: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. In essence, then, Faustus is actually saying good-bye to God. He is consciously and knowingly choosing the devil. He is choosing to reject God. He is choosing evil. Another point worth noting is that when Faustus first asks Mephastophilis to appear, nothing happens. Faustus had called Mephastophilis to come through the power of two more important devils, Beelzebub and Demogorgon. But Mephastophilis did not respond. The powers of hell are not very strong. When nothing happens, Faustus asks, "What are you waiting for?" Then Faustus summons the devil to come through the power of Jehovah (God), holy water (water blessed by a priest and used for rituals), and the sign of the cross (a gesture symbolizing the cross on which Jesus Christ died). Then Mephastophilis does appear. Thus, it is actually the power of God that Mephastophilis obeys. Although Faustus has just said the words, he does not realize the significance of them. When Mephastophilis first appears before Faustus, he comes in some hideous or monstrous shape. Faustus thinks he is too ugly to look at and tells him to leave and then come back in the shape of "an old Franciscan friar" (line 25). There is a touch of humor in the next line spoken by Faustus: "That holy shape becomes a devil best" (line 26). Marlowe is here criticizing friars, commenting that although they may appear religious, they are actually quite sinful and even evil. The reader might recall the Friar in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. That character represented several of the Seven Deadly Sins (gluttony, lust, greed, and pride).

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And even before Chaucer, the Italian writer Dante placed a large number of friars in hell in his Divine Comedy. Thus, we can determine from the works by Dante in 1320, Chaucer in 1390-1400, and Marlowe in 1592 that for nearly 300 years (and probably much longer) the friars of the Catholic Church had been corrupt and sinful. Of course, one notable difference between Marlowe and the two medieval writers is that Marlowe is writing in Protestant England. Chaucer and Dante were Catholics. Thus, Marlowe's criticism of friars may also be a criticism of the Catholic Church as well. One point (or theme) that is brought up in this scene and continues throughout the play is the idea of seeming power. Faustus may think that he has great power -- it may seem like he is powerful -- but his power is only an illusion. It does not really exist. Faustus even learns this right from the very start, but he is so vain, so proud, that he refuses to believe the obvious. The idea of pride and seeming power appears in the words by Faustus right after Mephastophilis makes his first appearance (lines 28-33). Faustus comments that Mephastophilis is very humble and obedient, and that must be due to the great power of magic that Faustus has. Faustus even calls himself "conjurer laureate" (line 32), meaning the greatest of magicians. Even after one spell, Faustus has become far too proud. And, of course, his own power did not cause Mephastophilis to appear. Mephastophilis came because he feared the power of God. Thus, the lines spoken by Faustus are ironic. He does not see where the real power lies.

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What makes this scene even more ironic is that Mephastophilis directly tells Faustus that he does not have any power. Faustus commands Mephastophilis to be his servant (lines 36-37). But Mephastophilis responds that he can only obey the orders of Lucifer (lines 40-41). So, throughout the rest of the play, even though Mephastophilis follows the orders given by Faustus, the devil is actually doing so because Lucifer has commanded him to do what Faustus asks. And, of course, the only reason why Mephastophilis serves Faustus is that Lucifer wants his soul. Mephastophilis explains this situation very carefully to Faustus. For a devil, he is quite honest. He explains that the incantation said by Faustus was the immediate or indirect cause for his appearance (line 46). But the words themselves carried no power. The words are not really magical. The devil explains that whenever a human speaks blasphemy, whenever a human curses God or speaks against God, then a devil will appear to that person in the hopes of capturing his or her soul (lines 47-49). This dialogue explains why Mephastophilis did not appear to Faustus when Faustus first called him (line 19). Only when Faustus uses the name of God to summon Mephastophilis (also in line 19), then the devil appears. Thus, it only seems like Faustus has any power to summon the devil. But, actually, he has no real power himself. From the same scene, Mephastophilis also alludes to the story of Lucifer (in lines 62-68). Although the story of Lucifer is only briefly referred to in the Bible, other stories exist from both the Jewish and Christian traditions wherein the story of Lucifer is told in greater detail. According to some versions of the story, Lucifer was once the brightest and most beautiful

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of all of the angels up in Heaven. In fact, he was God's favorite angel (which is suggested in line 65 of this scene). However, Lucifer became too proud. He thought he was just as powerful as God is, and he wanted to be the ruler over all of Heaven. So, Lucifer convinced one-third (1/3) of all of the angels up in Heaven to join him in a rebellion against God. A terrible war then occurred in Heaven. Obviously, though, God was more powerful than Lucifer, and God threw Lucifer and all of the angels who joined him out of Heaven and down into the pits of Hell. Lucifer and his followers were then hideously transformed (perhaps by the flames of Hell) into devils. The story of Lucifer is one about pride and disobedience to God (suggested in line 67). Perhaps not coincidentally, Faustus also is guilty of these same two sins. Perhaps the most important point to note about Mephastophilis is that he and all of the other devils are "unhappy" (line 70). Often, in many modern depictions of Satan (or Lucifer) and other devils, the devil usually appears satisfied and even thrilled in his role of tempting humans in order to capture their souls. But the image of the unhappy devil coincides far more closely with the Christian notion. To be in hell, to be damned by God, is a punishment that no one can enjoy. For Mephastophilis (and all of the other devils, including Lucifer) the torment of hell is even greater because he knows the "joys of heaven" (line 78). He knows the happiness and beauty and joy that exist up in Heaven. But he also knows that he will never be able to experience such joy and beauty ever again, for all of eternity. Thus, the devils are the unhappiest creatures in all of Hell. They are far unhappier there than any of the humans are

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because the devils know about the remarkable glory and bliss of Heaven. And they know they can never have that again. Mephastophilis, therefore, is a sad and weak figure. He is even an easily frightened figure (line 82) whenever he hears any talk or even thinks about God. Faustus should learn from Mephastophilis. Faustus should realize that an eternal life in Hell can be only one of misery and torment. However, like most sinners, Faustus only thinks about his present earthly condition and proudly believes that the afterlife or Hell can hold no terror for him. THE THREE HELLS What is Hell exactly? Of course, no one can actually say. But throughout the ages in various stories, both in and out of the Bible, the idea of Hell is suggested or described. In Doctor Faustus the playwright actually suggests three different kinds of Hell. Perhaps Hell is all of these, or none of these. Even today Christians and Jews argue about what Hell may or may not be. (1) The oldest, traditional vision of Hell, or type of hell, that is suggested in the play is the dark pit of "fire and brimstone." That is, Hell is an actual, physical place, perhaps located somewhere beneath the surface of the earth, full of hot flames and sulfuric smoke. It is a place where the inhabitants, the souls of the sinners on earth, are burned and tortured. The most graphic description of this version of Hell appears in Dante's Divine

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Comedy. For Dante, there are many kinds of physical torment in Hell: burning flames, freezing ice, being whipped by devils, and so on. Different types of sinners would receive different types of punishment. But the idea is basically the same: the soul will receive some kind of spiritual punishment that is somehow equivalent to the worst physical punishments we can imagine. In Marlowe's play, when he alludes to the story of Lucifer (in Scene 3, line 68), he is also suggesting this type of Hell. The devils were thrown down into Hell, a physical place, from Heaven; and there they received God's punishment. This kind of Hell is also depicted in John Milton's Paradise Lost. However, Milton also makes some variations on the exact nature and idea of Hell. (2) The second type of Hell suggested in the play is a notion that comes from Greek mythology. Faustus claims that "he confounds hell in Elysium" (Scene 3, line 59). What Faustus means by this is that he believes that Hell is exactly like Elysium. The classical Roman writer, Virgil, describes Elysium in his epic The Aeneid. By the Classical Age, the Greeks and Romans had changed or altered their perception of the afterlife. In ancient Greece the epic writer Homer in The Odyssey describes Hades, the underworld which all departed souls inhabit, as a dark and dreary place where no one is happy. But in The Aeneid, Virgil describes

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The Renaissance Hades as a vast underworld that contains five separate regions. One of these regions is Elysium. If you have to go to Hades, Elysium is the region of choice. It is a region for those who are blessed or honored. It is like the Christian notion of Heaven. It is a kind of paradise. Faustus believes that in the afterlife, in Elysium, he will meet "the old philosophers" (line 60) of the Classical Age, such as Plato, Socrates, and Aristotle, since they possibly believed in the idea of Elysium as well. Of course, from Marlowe's point of view, Faustus is being foolish. No one in medieval Germany believed that Hell and Elysium were the same thing. Once again, Faustus is deceiving himself through his own pride. He believes that he is so great that he cannot possibly receive any kind of eternal punishment. Marlowe, and other Christians, would probably also say that Faustus is being short-sighted (not thinking about the future) in thinking that souls are "trifles" (line 61), that souls are not very important or significant. Faustus will not be thinking this at the end of the play. (3) The third type of Hell suggested in the play is not a place at all. We might call this the modern concept of Hell. It is a view of Hell that many Christians believe in today. In the third scene Faustus asks Mephastophilis, "Where are you damned?" And Mephastophilis replies, "In hell" (lines 7374). Faustus is puzzled and asks the devil

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why he is not in Hell now. Mephastophilis explains that he is in Hell now because Hell is anyplace where God is not. Therefore, even earth can be Hell if a person (or a devil) rejects God. For Mephastophilis, then, Hell means being without God's grace or God's blessing. It means being deprived of God. Since Faustus has rejected God, by calling for a devil, he, too, is in Hell. However, unlike Mephastophilis, he does not have to be there permanently. He still has a chance to get out of Hell. During the Renaissance the majority of Christians believed in the traditional notion of Hell. Marlowe is ahead of his time in promoting this modern view instead. Even throughout the 20th century many Christians believed in the traditional Hell. However, like the other great Renaissance writer, John Milton, who described Hell in Paradise Lost, Christopher Marlowe thought of Hell as more of an idea rather than a place. And that idea is that Hell is anyplace where God is not. To be without God's blessing and grace throughout all of eternity is the greatest punishment one can face. The idea of an eternal afterlife is one that dominates the literature of Western civilization. The ancient pyramids of Egypt, some of which date back to 3000 BC, indicate a belief in an afterlife. Throughout the greater history of Western literature, the view of the afterlife appears to be predominantly a fearful one. In Gilgamesh, an ancient epic that probably originated around 2000 BC, we find

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that the ancient Babylonians believed of the afterworld as a dark and gloomy place. They did not look forward to dying. The ancient Greeks believed in a similar idea. As mentioned above, Homer, writing around 800 BC, describes Hades in a way that is quite similar to the Babylonian afterlife. The ancient Jews, who describe Heaven in their literature, also describe Hell in the traditional manner that Christians also would believe in. The Classical Greek myth of Elysium as a place of paradise and Tartarus as a place of punishment parallels the notion of Heaven and Hell. But with both the Classical Greek and Christian beliefs, there is the possibility that the afterlife is to be feared. Of course, our fear of what will come in the afterlife is connected (psychologically or emotionally) to our own very real fear of dying. We do not know what may come next, but we do know what we are leaving behind. Known fears are always less frightening than the unknown fears of an unpredictable future. We are capable of imagining the worst, and often we do. Perhaps our visions of Hell are a product of our own vivid and frightening imaginations.

LECTURE 20
THE SECOND LECTURE ON DOCTOR FAUSTUS THE THEME OF MAGIC Magic has long fascinated mankind. Most people have to work long, hard hours and find that they get very little in return for it. How nice it would be to get whatever you want without having to work for it. How much nicer still to get whatever you can imagine -and to be able to get those objects as if they appear out of nowhere. Magic has been part of the literature of Western civilization since ancient times. The myths of the ancient Greeks, for example, contain stories about a Golden Fleece (in the story of Jason) that can miraculously heal the sick, a monster (the Medusa) whose looks can turn people into stone, and the food of the gods (ambrosia) that can give immortality to humans. The stories of miracles in the Old Testament of the Bible, such as Moses parting the Red Sea, are also ancient stories of magic. During the Middle Ages the Persians created numerous tales about flying carpets, lamps containing genies, rings that could make the wearer invisible, and other magical objects. Such tales soon became popular throughout Western Europe as well. Of course, the idea of having one's wish granted -whether a Greek god or a Persian genie grants the wish - also appeals to all of us. We all have dreams and desires -- many of which are beyond the realm of possibility.

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In Marlowe's play magic, of course, plays an important role. We might even say that there is a theme regarding magic and what it promises. The important question to ask here is this: what exactly does Faustus wish for? What is that he wants and, more importantly, is the price he has to pay worth it? The price he pays is his soul. Are the 24 years of having Mephastophilis serve him and grant all of his wishes worth the price of his soul? One of the ways to determine Marlowe's view about magic is to examine what Faustus wishes for and compare (or contrast) that to what he actually gets. The entire play seems to be one extended example of dramatic irony. At the beginning of the play, on more than one occasion, Faustus lists what he hopes to accomplish through the use of magic. But how many items on that list does he actually get? And how many of those items are even worth the price of his soul? If he were to get all of them, would that then be worth the price of his soul. The first list of wishes or desires appears in the first scene: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Obtaining gold from India (line 82) Obtaining pearls from the Orient (83) Eating exotic fruit and delicacies (85) Learning philosophy of foreign lands (86) Learning the secrets of foreign kings (87) Building a defensive wall around Germany (88) 7. Moving a defensive river around Wittenburg (89) 8. Clothing all scholars in silk (90-91)

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9. Getting rid of the Spanish governor in Germany (93) 10. Becoming king of Germany (94) 11. Inventing new weapons (95-96) A second list appears at the end of the third scene: 1. Becoming emperor of the world (line 104) 2. Building a bridge across the Mediterranean from Spain to Africa so that his army can march across easily (105-08) 3. Having power over the Holy Roman Emperor (110) 4. Having power over the kings and lords of Germany (111) Not all of these wishes are completely selfish. The desire to protect Germany and the city of Wittenburg from the enemies of Germany would be helpful to everyone in that nation. But Faustus wants to protect Germany only because he wants to rule it. He wants power. He thinks he should be king of that land. This obviously is an example of his ambition and pride. The Deadly Sins of greed and gluttony are also suggested by the list. The idea of learning foreign philosophy is not necessarily evil, but Faustus also wants to learn the secrets of foreign kings. If he knows their secrets, then he can defeat them. The reader should notice that the second list of wishes is even greater and more ambitious than the first. Faustus is no longer content with being just the king of Germany. He now wants to be emperor over the entire world. The reason Faustus revises his goal is that he has

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now accomplished one act of magic. He has conjured the devil Mephastophilis to appear before him. However, as mentioned previously, even that act was not really evidence of any real magic or power by Faustus. But Faustus is so glutted with the idea of power that he ignores the warnings by the devil. Faustus believes that he can make Mephastophilis do whatever he wants. This has caused his imagination to run wild. Faustus sees no end to his power. In fact, the second list is all about power and ambition. The smaller wishes or desires from the first list become less important to Faustus. Power is what he really wants. Of course, the irony of the situation, as noted previously, is that Faustus himself has no real power. Faustus begins to learn about magic (in Scene 1) from two minor magicians named Cornelius and Valdes. They basically promise Faustus that, through the power of magic, he will obtain beautiful women (lines 127-29) and great treasures (lines 130-32). In other words, they promise that Faustus will be able to satisfy his desires of lust and greed. The power of magic, then, is closely associated with the Seven Deadly Sins. Pride, and possibly Envy, Greed, Lust, and Gluttony are definitely associated with the wishes that Faustus makes. And since Faustus does not actually work to achieve these goals, we might even say that Sloth is indirectly suggested as well. In a sense, then, Marlowe appears to be suggesting that the desire for magic is the desire to engage in acts of sinfulness.

The Renaissance MAGIC AND LUST

413

One of the first requests that Faustus makes after signing a contract with the devil is to have a wife. Faustus desires "the fairest maid in Germany" because he is "wanton and lascivious" (Scene 5, lines 139-40). The words wanton and lascivious indicate lust, not love. Faustus wants to satisfy his lust. He only cares about the appearance of the woman, not her personality and certainly not her virtue. Mephastophilis refuses to give a wife to Faustus. His reason is that marriage is "a ceremonial toy" (line 147). What Mephastophilis actually means by this is that marriage is a sacrament. It is a ritual or ceremony that is performed inside a church, a house of God. Christians believe that God gives his blessing to the bride and groom in such a ceremony. Obviously, Mephastophilis cannot grant any wish that is connected with God in any way. Instead, Mephastophilis offers Faustus "the fairest courtesans" (line 149), meaning the most attractive of prostitutes. Faustus wants a wife, but he can only get a whore. Already at the beginning of his 24-year period Faustus is finding out that his magic, his power, may actually give him less than he wants. Without making a deal with Mephastophilis, he could have had a wife. In fact, he certainly does not need a devil to help him find a prostitute. On the other hand, God's blessing will be denied to him as long as he continues to live up to his contract with the devil. Being a powerful magician does have its limitations. Toward the end of the end of the play, when the 24 years is nearly over, Faustus still feels the need to satisfy his lust. He asks Mephastophilis to bring him Helen of Troy (in Scene 12). Helen had the reputation

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of being the most beautiful woman in the world. She was married to a Greek king named Menelaos, but she ran away with a Trojan prince named Paris. The Greek king became angry, and he convinced all the armies of Greece to attack Troy. This conflict, called the Trojan War, forms the story of The Iliad by Homer (c. 800 BC). As a side-note, the reader should be aware that the most famous passage from this play occurs when Faustus first sees Helen (lines 80-99). The passage is a poem in praise of Helen's beauty. The importance of this scene to the overall play is to show that Faustus is still a creature steeped in sin. He is still a creature moved by desire, not reason. Another question that a reader might ask is this: what is Helen anyway? The real Helen lived around 1200 BC. Faustus is living around 1600 AD. Helen has been dead, then, for nearly 3000 years. Is she a ghost? Actually, she may be worse than that. Back in the first scene, when Cornelius and Valdes informs Faustus about the wonders that magic will bring to him, Valdes states that the spirits (meaning devils) will be their servants and will sometimes appear in the form of beautiful women (lines 122-28). Thus, the Helen that Faustus meets is actually a devil. The satisfaction of his desires, then, is only an illusion. Faustus cannot have the real Helen. He satisfies his lust with a devil. And that was probably the best act he accomplished with his magic during the entire 24-year period. For that, he gave up his soul.

The Renaissance MAGIC AND KNOWLEDGE

415

Faustus is a great scholar, and so he also desires knowledge. He wants to know about matters that are not covered in the university. So, the second request that he makes of Mephastophilis is to satisfy his thirst for knowledge. The devil gives him three books (in Scene 5): 1. A book of spells and incantations (lines 16263) 2. A book of astronomy (lines 166-68) 3. A book of botany (lines 170-71) All three of these books are associated with magic. The study of the stars also includes the study of astrology, and plants were used for magical potions. Faustus appears to have a genuine thirst for knowledge, but what he learns from Mephastophilis is actually nothing more than what he could have learned on his own, without the devil's help, without magic. Later in the same scene (Scene 5), Faustus has a discussion with Mephastophilis about astronomy. Faustus asks Mephastophilis a number of questions, but the responses are merely the basic knowledge about stars and planets that were available to any scholar during the Elizabethan era. The student should remember that the Italian astronomer Galileo was born in the same year in which Marlowe and Shakespeare were born, in 1564. Many advances in the sciences were made beside those advances in literature during the Renaissance. Faustus then asks one question that Mephastophilis refuses to answer. He asks, "Tell me

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who made the world?" (line 237). Of course, Mephastophilis cannot name God. In fact, just thinking about God frightens him. Here again we see that another wish made by Faustus cannot be granted. Again, there is some irony here as well. Faustus wants more knowledge about creation, but he is trying to find that knowledge from a source that cannot discuss or even name the Creator. Once again, then, we find that magic cannot actually grant our wishes. Magic cannot accomplish what we hope it will accomplish. THE PAGEANT OF THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS Toward the middle of the play (in Scene 5) Lucifer appears. He comes to Faustus because the scholar is having second thoughts. That is, Faustus is thinking he made a mistake in signing the contract with the devil. Faustus cries out, "Ah Christ my Savior! Seek to save distressed Faustus' soul" (lines 253-54). The devils know that if Faustus repents, if he seeks forgiveness from God, then they will lose his soul. So, Mephastophilis calls on the big chief of the devils, Lucifer, for help. In order to change his mind, Lucifer shows Faustus the Seven Deadly Sins. Actually, what he shows Faustus are the personifications of the Seven Deadly Sins. The use of personification in this manner in drama is a medieval quality. The student may recall the personification of Good Deeds or Knowledge in the medieval morality play Everyman. On stage the spectacle of the scene is probably more important than the actual dialogue. Wrath would appear, perhaps, in

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battle gear. He is carrying swords and is quite fierce. Envy would be a skinny, starving fellow dressed in old, tattered clothes. On stage he might he be envying the fine clothes worn by Faustus and might even try to take them for himself. Lechery (or Lust) is a sexy, seductive female who would enchant Faustus. The costumes and props would be necessary for creating the proper effect. The characters would appear in a procession or parade. They could even be dancing as they approach Faustus. Quite likely, during the Renaissance there would be musicians near the stage playing some form of appropriate music for the scene. The symbolism of the scene is rather obvious. Faustus is about to repent, but sin lures him back. Faustus chooses a life of sin over a life of goodness. He chooses evil over God. After the Seven Deadly Sins leave the stage, Lucifer asks Faustus how he liked the performance. Faustus responds, "O this feeds my soul" (line 324). Faustus means, literally, that he is quite satisfied with the performance. Symbolically, though, it means that sin satisfies him. The line, of course, is also an example of irony. Sin cannot feed or nourish the soul. Sin can only destroy the soul. The scene is also important in terms of plot. Faustus was in the midst of an internal conflict -- trying to choose between good and evil -- and the pageant of the Seven Deadly Sins helped him to resolve that conflict (resolution). By choosing sin and evil, Faustus put an end to his conflict (at least for the moment).

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As mentioned earlier, Faustus had grand plans when he first made his deal with the devil. He wanted to be king of Germany. He wanted to be emperor of the world. As it turns out, Faustus never does become emperor. Nor does he ever become a king. Instead, Faustus becomes something much less as he gets older. One of the ways Faustus uses his magic and his seeming power over Mephastophilis is by traveling. Of course, traveling to see the great sights and marvels of the world is a fine ambition. There is nothing wrong with that. But the only travel scene depicted in the play shows Faustus going to Rome. Germany is not very far from Rome. Faustus hardly needed to resort to magic in order to go there. Worse yet, once Faustus arrives in Rome, he uses his magic to play practical jokes. A practical joke is a trick that one person plays on another in order to embarrass that other person. For example, one person will pull a chair away when another person is about to sit down so that the other person falls to the floor. Another example is the "whoopee cushion." The "whoopee cushion" is a plastic bag full of air. A person will place the "whoopee cushion" on a chair as another person is about to sit down. As the air leaves the plastic bag, it makes a noise that sounds like farting. People will then think that the person who has just sat down has farted. Most practical jokes are childish, and usually it is one child who plays such a trick on another child. One would hardly expect the greatest scholar of Germany to play practical jokes. Yet that is exactly what Faustus does do.

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When Faustus arrives in Rome (in Scene 7), Mephastophilis uses a charm (uses magic) to make himself and Faustus invisible (line 54). Faustus and Mephastophilis then go and see the Pope, the head of the Roman Catholic Church. The Pope is entertaining a Cardinal, another high official of the Church, at a banquet. While the Pope is sitting down, Faustus (still invisible) takes away ("snatches") the dishes of food and the cup of wine before the Pope can eat or drink. The Pope thinks there is a ghost in the room, and he makes the Sign of the Cross (the gesture representing the cross on which Jesus Christ died). But Faust is not affected by the gesture. Instead, he just punches the Pope in the ear (after line 78). Some friars enter to sing a dirge, a song that should scare away the ghost. But Faustus just hits the friars and throws firecrackers at them to scare them away. This scene is important for three reasons. (1) First, it reveals the disrespect and utter disregard that Faustus has for God and those who serve God. It shows that Faustus has become more evil. (2) The scene also represents the anti-Catholic sentiment that was popular in Elizabethan England during the 1590's. The reader should note that there was a great deal of conflict between the Protestants and Catholics in England around this time, and such conflict was often bloody and violent. A scene where the Pope is ridiculed and embarrassed would have greatly pleased the Protestants in England at that time. (3) Finally, the scene also reflects the degeneration or, we might even say, the fall of Faustus. From being the greatest scholar in Germany, Faustus has become nothing more but a simple practical jokester.

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There are two other scenes where Faustus plays practical jokes. Shortly after his visit with the Pope, Faustus (no longer invisible) has an audience with Charles V, the Holy Roman Emperor (in Scene 9). As Faustus is speaking to the Emperor, a Knight nearby makes some rude comments about Faustus. The Knight does not really believe that Faustus is capable of any magic. At one point the Knight even says that Faustus cannot perform any magic. Such magic is impossible, just as it is impossible for Diana (the Greek goddess) to turn him, the Knight, into a stag (a male deer -- line 51). Faustus becomes angry with this Knight -- and the reader should remember that Anger or Wrath is one of the Seven Deadly Sins. So, Faustus gets revenge by magically placing stag horns on the head of the Knight. Thus, Faustus embarrasses the Knight before the Emperor. The third practical joke occurs in the next scene (in Scene 10). Faustus meets a horse-courser (someone who buys and sells horses) and sells him his horse. The horse-courser cheats Faustus by giving him far less money than the horse is worth. But, as it turns out, Faustus will actually end up cheating the horse-courser. Faustus tells the man not to ride the horse into a river or any other water. But Faustus knows very well that the horse-courser will do exactly the opposite. When the horse-courser rides the horse into a pond, the horse magically turns into hay. The horse-courser ends up getting all wet. The horse-courser is angry that he has spent forty dollars for hay, and so he approaches Faustus while Faustus is pretending to be asleep. The horse-courser grabs Faustus by his leg, and Faustus magically allows the horse-courser to pull his leg off. Faustus cries out

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that he has been hurt. And Mephastophilis comes along and tells the horse-courser that he will take him to the constable (the police of that region). The horse-courser promises to pay forty dollars more to them if they will let him go. Thus, Faustus plays two practical jokes on the horse-courser to cheat him out of a small amount of money. The reader should remember that at the beginning of the play Faustus wished for gold from India and pearls from the Orient. And now, many years later, he is using his magic to get an amount that would hardly make him rich. The student should also pay attention to the estate or social class of the victims. The first victim is the Pope, one of the highest and most powerful leaders in the Western world. The second victim is a minor knight in the emperor's court, but at least the knight is still a member of the nobility or aristocracy. But the third and final victim is the horse-courser. He is one of the common folk. He is practically a peasant. Not only has Faustus become a simple player of practical jokes, but also the people he plays his tricks on become lower and lower on the social scale. Faustus is degenerating even further. He is falling all the way to the bottom. The desire to become emperor of the world is also replaced by a desire to serve the rulers and nobility of the world. When Faustus visits Charles V, the Holy Roman Emperor (in Scene 9), he uses his magic to conjure up Alexander the Great and his Paramour (lover or mistress). Faustus does this to please the Emperor. Faustus wants to show off his talent. He wants to earn praise. This satisfies his ego and his pride. Later, back in Germany (in Scene 11), Faustus uses his magic to

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produce grapes in January (a cold month in Germany when grapes do not grow there) for a Duke and Duchess. Faustus does not become emperor. He does not become a king. He even does not become a duke or lord. Instead, he just becomes their servant, in a sense. He becomes a court entertainer. What does Faustus settle for so little? The play symbolizes the corruptive nature of sin. Faustus has become so corrupt, so degenerate, that he does not even realize how far he has fallen. He does not realize what he has become. THE THEME OF FREE WILL One extremely important point about this play concerns the notion of free will. Faustus is not tricked into signing the contract with the devil. He does so of his own free will. He is not forced by the devils. In fact, he calls them. They do not appear until he summons them. Even then, the reader may recall, Mephastophilis only appeared after Faustus had spoken blasphemy. Mephastophilis did not come when Faustus first called him. Marlowe's play is in complete agreement with the medieval German version of the Faust story in this regard. Faustus chooses evil. But he did have a choice. The play does not so much concern itself with motivation. We do know that Faustus is full of pride at the very beginning of the play. He is a great scholar, and he is ambitious. He wants to prove to the world that he is great. He is a man full of desire. Everybody has desires, but not everybody acts on those desires. For the medieval Christian and for Christopher Marlowe, acting on one's desires is a choice that everybody has. Faustus

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has reason just like everybody else, but he chooses to put his reason aside and give in to his desires. Once he allows his pride to overcome his reason, others of the Deadly Sins, such as lust, also overcome him. One desire leads to another. One sin leads to another. But motivation and characterization play a lesser role to the theme of Marlowe's play. Rather, Doctor Faustus is quite similar to a medieval morality play thematically. In fact, it is similar to Everyman. In that medieval play, the character Everyman is also someone who has sinned throughout but has not accomplished many good deeds, many acts of charities. However, he learns that it is never too late. He can still repent his sins and seek God's forgiveness and mercy. He still can enter Heaven. Doctor Faustus is an Everyman who never does repent. Yet, like the medieval play, Marlowe shows that it is never too late. Even the worst of sinners -- even those who have engaged in a life of sin for many, many years -- can still seek forgiveness. From the time Faustus first signs his contract up to the very moment, 24 years later, when Lucifer is just about to claim his soul, Marlowe clearly reveals that Faustus still can change his mind. Faustus can choose to become good at any time. When Faustus first begins to sign the contract with Mephastophilis (in Scene 5), the scholar is warned in two ways not to sign the paper. (1) Mephastophilis asks Faustus to sign the contract in his own blood. Faustus agrees and cuts his own arm, but then, for some reason, his blood "congeals" (line 62), it dries up before he can finish signing his name. Of course, the reason is God. God is warning Faustus. He is giving Faustus a second chance to think about making a deal with the

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devil. However, this warning does not stop Faustus. Mephastophilis brings him some hot coals to melt his blood, and then Faustus signs the contract. (2) After Faustus signs the contract, some words magically appear on his arm. The words, in Latin, are "Homo fuge" (line 77). They mean, "Man, fly away." Once again God is warning Faustus. He is telling Faustus to stay away from the devils. But God is also telling Faustus that it is not too late. Signing the contract does not really mean anything. Faustus still has a chance. Faustus can still choose God over the devil. At the end of the play, Lucifer claims the soul of Faustus not because Faustus had signed the contract. The devil is able to claim his soul because Faustus had chosen to live a life of sin. When Faustus sees the Latin words appear on his arm, he asks himself where he should fly. He then adds, "If unto God, he'll throw me down to hell" (line 78). Faustus believes that his sin is so great that God will never show any mercy to him. Despite his great knowledge and scholarly achievements, Faustus does not believe a basic concept of Christianity: that God's mercy is infinite. In a way, the pride of Faustus is evident here. Faustus is so proud that he even feels his sin is so great that it is beyond God's power to forgive. Faustus believes that he has committed the unpardonable sin. Yet, if Faustus did not think himself beyond or superior to the basic teachings of Christianity, he would know that there is no such thing as an unpardonable sin. God will pardon or forgive any sin if one confesses that sin and is truly repentant or sorry about it. Another method that Marlowe uses to symbolize the idea of free will in the play is the presence of the Good Angel and the Evil Angel. After his

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conversation with Mephastophilis regarding creation, Faustus begins to have second thoughts (in Scene 5). He feels that if God created the world for man, then he should enjoy God's creation and give up magic (lines 184-85). As soon as Faustus begins to think about God and God's work, the Good Angel appears. We can view the presence of the Good and Evil Angels in two ways. (1) Literally, the Good Angel is a messenger from God. He is there to tell Faustus that it is not too late (line 250). God will still forgive him. The Evil Angel, then, is a minor devil who tries to tempt Faustus away from any act of goodness. (2) Symbolically, the Angels represent the mind of Faustus and the decision he has to make. Marlowe is revealing that Faustus does have a choice. He can choose to be good. Or he can choose to be evil. The choice is his. He has free will. At this point in the play, Lucifer appears with the Seven Deadly Sins. Then Faustus decides. He chooses sin. He chooses evil. Even after enjoying 24 years of life and sin with Mephastophilis, Faustus can still make a choice. He can still choose God. Marlowe symbolically reveals this through the presence of the Old Man (in Scene 12). The Old Man functions in much the same way that the Good Angel does. He is there to tell Faustus that he can still be saved and still receive God's mercy (line 46). The reader should note that Scene 12 reflects, or is parallel to, Scene 5. The following chart reveals the similarities:

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The Renaissance SCENE 12 Faustus is middle-aged. The terms of the contract are nearly over. The Old Man tells Faustus that he can still receive Gods mercy. The Old Man and Mephastophilis symbolize free will or choice. Mephastophilis tempts Faustus by showing him Helen of Troy. Faustus chooses evil.

SCENE 5 Faustus is a young man. The terms of the contract have just begun. The Good Angel tells Faustus that he can still receive Gods mercy. The Good Angel and Evil Angel symbolize free will or choice. Lucifer tempts Faustus by showing him the Seven Deadly Sins, including Lechery. Faustus chooses evil.

Throughout his lifetime, then, Faustus has had the free will to choose goodness or evil, God or the Devil. Repeatedly, Faustus chose evil. THE THEME OF BEING A GOD Although less developed than the theme on free will, another significant idea or theme at the beginning of the play concerns the desire to be like a god. There are several lines that suggests this theme, but the one from the opening soliloquy (in Scene 1) states it directly: "A sound magician is a mighty god" (line 62). The desire to be a god is connected to the Deadly Sin of pride. As mentioned earlier, this was the sin of Lucifer when he waged war against God in Heaven. The same theme is also reflected in the Biblical story of Adam

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and Eve in the book of Genesis. The serpent tempts Eve to eat the forbidden fruit by telling her, "Ye shall be as gods" (Genesis 3). Another story from the Bible, also in Genesis, that also suggests this theme is the tale about the Tower of Babel. In that story a group of men want to be physically as high up as God is in Heaven. This symbolizes that they want to be equal to God. So, they begin building a huge tower that reaches up into the heavens. But God stops them from completing their task. In both of the Old Testament stories, the sinners are punished for their pride and insolence. Christians during the Middle Ages strongly believed that mankind should express humility. Many Christians during the Renaissance did not agree, however. Marlowe's tale is, perhaps, a warning to those Christians. Although Faustus later forgets or gives up the idea of wanting to be a god, he continues to be proud and continues to sin. At the end of the play, he is punished. He is damned in hell. THE SCHOLARS AND THE CHORUS In the Greek tragedies from the Classical Age, a common dramatic convention was the use of a Chorus. The Chorus served several functions. (1) They could introduce the play or each act of the play. (2) They could symbolize the citizens or the community. Thus, they would be the voice of the people. (3) They could represent the "middle ground" -- the conservative or safe way to think or behave in a situation. In this sense, they might also represent prudence -- the smartest or wisest way to behave. (4) They could offer commentary or opinion on a situation. They might, then, be representing the opinion of the playwright.

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In Doctor Faustus, as mentioned earlier, the Chorus is a single actor who introduces several of the scenes (specifically, Scenes 1, 7, 9, and 12) and who also recites the epilogue at the end of the play. As a later stage direction notes, the actor who plays the character of Wagner, a student who serves Faustus, would also recite the five choral parts. For the most part, the Chorus functions to provide introductory or explanatory information about the play. Opinion appears only in the prologue and epilogue, and that opinion is rather generalized and dogmatic (asserting basic Christian beliefs). There are, however, three characters in the play that serve a function or functions quite similar to that of the Classical Greek chorus. These characters are the three scholars. The scholars appear in Scene 2 for comical effect. But in Scene 13 they reappear and function like a chorus. They tell Faustus to call on God (line 24) -- to be prudent, to be safe. They also express dismay at Faustus' actions (line 33) -- this dismay represents the common voice of the community. And, further, they offer the general wisdom that it is unsafe to tempt God (line 46). The three scholars, then, are more symbolic than realistic. They also represent the path that Faustus should take. They pray, and Faustus should do the same. Faustus, however, does not believe that prayer can help. THE COMIC SCENES The modern reader may find it a little strange that Marlowe's play contains four scenes (Scenes 2, 4, 6, and 8) that do not pertain directly to the character of Faustus at all. These scenes are for comic relief -- to

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provide humor in an otherwise serious or tragic play. The inclusion of such scenes was a common dramatic convention in Renaissance drama. The student should note that public performances of these plays were for the educated and uneducated alike. Illiterate commoners usually expected crude humor -- usually concerning sex -- in any play they attended. Even some of the plays by Shakespeare contain such scenes. In Marlowe's play the scenes not only provide humor. They also serve a thematic purpose. The first two comic scenes concern Wagner, the servant to Faustus, and function as a parody to the scenes involving Faustus. A parody is a comic or mock version of a serious work of art. In scene 4, Wagner hires a "clown" (meaning a rustic, an illiterate country oaf), just as Fautus had hired Wagner. And just as Faustus had conjured up Mephastophilis (in Scene 3), Wagner conjures up two minor devils that chase the Clown around the stage. Wagner uses magic for slapstick, for physical comedy. He uses magic for a silly purpose. Yet, thematically, this scene criticizes the way Faustus uses magic. Marlowe is essentially saying that Faustus, too, is using magic for a silly or nonsensical purpose. The second two comic scenes (Scenes 6 and 8) also function as a parody like the scene with Wagner and the Clown. In these scenes a clown named Robin steals the book of magic belonging to Faustus because Robin wants to find a spell or incantation that will help him sleep with his master's wife. He wants to satisfy his desire, his lust. However, Robin does not succeed. When he tries to perform magic, Mephastophilis appears and throws firecrackers at Robin and his companion Rafe. Mephastophilis then turns Robin into an ape and Rafe into a dog as a punishment. Once again, physical

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humor appears in these scenes. And Robin also becomes a parody of Faustus. Robin has behaved sinfully and is punished for it. Faustus also will be punished, in a far worse way, for his sin. THE CLOSING SOLILOQUY The play ends with Faustus giving a final speech or monologue (in Scene 13). The time is one hour before midnight, at which time the devils will appear and carry Faustus off into hell. Faustus regrets his actions. He realizes that the deal he had signed is not worth it. But he also thinks it is too late. Her does not believe that God will or can help him. At one point, he even tries to call on Christ. "Yet will I call on him -- O spare me, Lucifer!" (line 71). Faustus should have said God or Jesus Christ, not Lucifer. But Faustus believes only in God's vengeance, not His Mercy. Faustus then wishes he had been born an animal without a soul -- Christians during the Renaissance did not believe that animals have souls -- or had not been born at all: All beasts are happy, for when they die, Their souls are soon dissolved into elements; But mine must live still to be plagued in hell. Cursed be the parents that engendered me: No, Faustus, curse thy selfe, curse Lucifer, That hath deprived thee of the joys of heaven. (lines 98-103) At the end, Faustus blames himself. He knows that he had a choice, and he knows that he made the wrong decision. The deal with the devil just was not worth it.

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As mentioned earlier, the story of Faustus has long been a popular one that has existed in many versions. As also mentioned previously, the themes of the story have also occurred in various literary forms, such as the American story "The Devil and Daniel Webster" (1937) by Stephen Vincent Benet and the American stage musical Damn Yankees (1955). Both the short story and the stage show also became popular as motion pictures. Benet's story was adapted as a movie in 1941, and Damn Yankees became a movie in 1958. The story of Faustus began in Germany during the Middle Ages, and the Germans have continued to be fascinated by the story. During the early 19th century the great German poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe wrote a poetic drama simply entitled Faust (Part 1 was published in 1808, Part 2 in 1832). A little more than a hundred years later, Thomas Mann combined the story with elements of Nazism in his novel Dr. Faustus (1947). Several versions of the Faust story also appear in German cinema. A film version of Marlowe's Doctor Faustus appeared in 1968 and starred Richard Burton as Faustus. Burton's real-life wife, Elizabeth Taylor, appeared as Helen of Troy. The idea of the unpardonable sin occurs in an American short story from the 19th century: "Ethan Brand" (1851) by Nathaniel Hawthorne. One other variation on the Faust tale is the short story "The Monkey's Paw" (1902) by W. W. Jacobs. In this story a family learns that having one's wishes or desires come

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true can be the worst thing imaginable. I believe there is also a Chinese proverb that echoes this idea: "Beware lest your dreams come true."

LECTURE 21
THE FIRST LECTURE ON SHAKESPEARE'S SONNETS TO THE YOUNG MAN BACKGROUND ON WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE William Shakespeare is, according to almost everybody, the greatest writer England has produced. Some people (especially if they are English) will even argue that Shakespeare is the greatest writer that the world has produced. But no matter how one may rank Shakespeare in the pantheon (or group) of the world's best authors, a person cannot help but marvel at the creativity, the insight, and the genius of William Shakespeare. Shakespeare was born in 1564. This is the same year when Christopher Marlowe was born (and when the astronomer Galileo was born). Shakespeare is also the younger contemporary of Spenser (born in 1552) and Sidney (born in 1554). William Shakespeare was both a great playwright and a great poet. His plays generally fall into three categories: comedies, histories, and tragedies. Occasionally, critics add a fourth category, romances, to define or categorize a few of the plays (like The Tempest). In some cases these categories overlap. For example, both Richard III and Julius Caesar could be labeled as either tragedies or histories. However, the former is labeled a history play and the latter is labeled a tragedy. The reason for this is that the history plays are generally those that concern English history (but not, for example, Roman history).

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Shakespeare's career as a playwright falls, for the most part, into two distinct decades: 1590's 1600's Comedies and Histories Tragedies

But the student should also note that Shakespeare did write some comedies after 1600 and some tragedies before 1600. Shakespeare's tragedies, especially, have been translated into numerous languages. And every student of English literature should be familiar with these plays: Romeo and Juliet Julius Caesar Hamlet Othello King Lear Macbeth Anthony and Cleopatra 1595 1599 1600-01 1603-04 1604-05 1606 1606

In some cases the exact date of composition is unknown. Shakespeare's plays were not published when he wrote them, but historical records do usually indicate when the plays were first performed in London. There is very little information about Shakespeare's early life. He grew up in the English countryside and received a typical rudimentary or simple education for that time. Such an education would include the study of the Latin language as well as the reading of numerous works of Greek and Roman literature, many of which were available in English translations in the late 16th century.

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Sometime before 1590 Shakespeare moved to London. Although he may have acted in a few minor roles on the stage, Shakespeare predominantly made his living in the business end of the theater (like a stage manager or producer). Even a great writer like William Shakespeare could not earn a sufficient income by his writing alone. In Shakespeare's time, actors always performed together in acting troupes. An actor in one troupe would practically never perform with the actors of another troupe. Like individual writers, an acting troupe might also seek the patronage of a wealthy aristocrat for financial support. By the early 1600's Shakespeare's troupe became so widely known and so respected that they received the patronage of the highest aristocrat in the land, King James I. From that time on, Shakespeare's acting troupe became known as the King's Men. Shakespeare, however, was actually financially successful before that time. In 1597 he bought New Place, a fine and expensive house in his country hometown of Stratford-on-Avon. Nevertheless, Shakespeare continued to write plays and work in London until approximately 1610, at which time he retired. Shakespeare died in 1616. THE SONNETS In addition to being considered the greatest playwright of England, Shakespeare was also the greatest poet of his day. His sonnets, especially, form one of the most intriguing collections of poems from the Renaissance. Like Sidney's Astrophil and Stella, Shakespeare's collection of 154 poems forms a sonnet cycle. Written

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in the early 1590's (but not published until 1609), Shakespeare's sonnets, like other cycles, concern love and focus on the attitudes and feelings of the speaker. However, Shakespeare's cycle is far different from Petrarch's or Sidney's poetry. Shakespeare creatively approached the cycle from a new and unusual perspective. Generally speaking, Shakespeare's Sonnets differ from the previous cycles in four distinct ways: (1) The object of the male speaker's affections is a young man, not a lady, in 126 of the 154 poems. The young man thus becomes the object of praise, love, and devotion just as Stella had been in Sidney's poems or Laura had been in Petrarch's poems. The love suggested in these poems is not necessarily homosexual. The love between two males suggests a bond of friendship, like that between two very close brothers. Such a Platonic love does not exclude either man from having relationships with females. (2) In the last 26 sonnets, the object of affection is a dark lady. In traditional Renaissance poetry, the beauteous lady is presented as blond-haired and blue-eyed. Moreover, she is typically virtuous and pure. Shakespeare's lady not only has dark hair and dark eyes, but she is also sensuous and sexually promiscuous (or active). Thus, lust (rather than virtue) becomes a more common motif in these sonnets.

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(3) In the sonnets by Petrarch and Sidney, the focus is primarily on the speaker as an unrequited lover. And so the poems reflect the up-and-down emotions that the speaker experiences as he goes from hope to melancholy or from delight to disgust. There is no unrequited love in Shakespeare's sonnets, and the poems do not reflect the see-saw (the up-and-down) emotions of the speaker. However, Shakespeare's sonnets do indicate several conflicts within the speaker. (4) There is, perhaps, more of a story (although it is rather vague) in Shakespeare's Sonnets than in other sonnet cycles. As our editors also indicate, the sonnets also contain several key or important motifs: Sonnets 1-17 (1) Celebration of the Young Man's Beauty (2) The Urging of the Young Man to Marry and to pass on his beauty to his children Sonnets 18-126 (3) Time as a Transient and Destructive Force (4) Friendship and Love (5) The Permanence of Poetry Sonnets 127-154 (6) The Dark Lady as a Temptation, or an Object of Lust (7) The Dark Lady as an Object of Degradation Other motifs also appear in the sonnets as well. The student should also note some of the key poetic features of the Sonnets. (1) The most often used

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kinds of figurative language are metaphors and similes. Shakespeare's metaphors are often quite complex. (2) Structurally, many of the sonnets can be divided between the first three quatrains and the couplet. The couplet then forms the conclusion to the poem. (3) The sonnets may also be structurally divided between the octet and sestet. In such cases, the first eight lines may set up a situation, but the final six lines move in an opposite direction. (4) The rhythm is consistently iambic pentameter. And (5) the rhyme scheme is usually ABAB CDCD EFEF GG. With the first sonnet the editors have added an important footnote. In many early critical studies on the Sonnets, critics and historians have attempted to identify the true identities of the young man and the dark lady. However, no genuine evidence has really proven the identities of these characters. Although Shakespeare probably did base these characters on real-life models that he personally knew, the characters themselves may be largely or predominantly fictional. The situations that Shakespeare describes in these poems would also then be fictional occurrences.

The Renaissance "SONNET 1"

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In the very first sonnet the speaker asks the young man to have children so that his beauty will be passed on to succeeding generations. In this way the speaker praises the beauty of the young man. The structure of this poem does not exactly follow the general pattern noted above. The reader should note the use of the word but at the beginning of the second quatrain (line 5). This word (or the word yet) often indicates a shift in direction. In this case, the poem is shifting from a general statement in the first quatrain to a more specific situation described in the other ten lines of the sonnet. In the first quatrain the speaker tells how people in general ("we") desire that beauty continues. The student should remember that the word fair during the Renaissance means beautiful, and so "fairest" (in line 1) means the most beautiful. The first line thus indicates that people desire to see the most beautiful creations (people, animals, or even plants) increase or reproduce. In the second line, the speaker likens the idea of beauty to a rose. A person may plant the seeds of a beautiful rose bush so that the beauty will continue in succeeding generations. So, when the original rose ("the riper") withers and dies, the new generation of roses produced from its seeds ("his tender heir") will reflect the same remarkable beauty ("his memory"). Similarly, the beauty of a human being can be passed down to his or her children. The more specific instance of beauty, which is the subject matter of the second quatrain, is, of course, the young man. The word thou (meaning you) refers to the young man. The speaker is directly addressing the

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young man and is complaining that the young man is married ("contracted") to his own bright eyes (line 5). In other words, the young man is in love with himself. He only likes to look at himself and is not looking at any particular young lady. The line suggests the Greek myth of Narcissus, a story of beautiful young man who saw his own reflection in a pool of water and fell in love with himself. The metaphor in the next line (line 6) can be interpreted in perhaps several different ways. The word flame suggests, most likely, the idea of passion. The young man is feeding his passions or desires for love on himself ("self-substantial fuel"). By expressing the idea in this manner, the speaker is suggesting that eventually the young man will burn himself out. In other words, he is wasting himself needlessly. The idea of waste is emphasized in the next line. The young man has an "abundance" of passion. But once that passion is entirely burnt away, there will be a "famine" (an emptiness) of passion -- there will be no passion left. Of course, the denotative (or literal) meanings of the words also apply. Why starve (why experience a famine) when there is plenty of food (an abundance) available? Such an act would be foolhardy, and the speaker is suggesting that the young man's actions in not finding a mate and not having children are foolish. The last line of the quatrain (line 8) emphasizes the harm that the young man is bringing on himself. The young man is an enemy or "foe" to himself. He is being cruel to himself. Here the speaker is indirectly suggesting that the young man would find life (or passion) more rewarding if he would experience passion with a woman. Then his passion could grow and not burn itself out.

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In the third quatrain the speaker is more direct. But the words do suggest the passage of time. The speaker calls the young man "the world's fresh ornament" (line 9) and the herald (or messenger) of springtime (line 10). The speaker is emphasizing the youth of the young man. The word fresh suggests newness. The young man is currently like a new decoration or ornament. But new decorations eventually become old and faded and tarnished. They lose their shine, their luster, and their appeal. Similarly, the young man may be like the beginning of springtime. But eventually spring turns into summer, and the fall and winter seasons are not far behind. The "gaudy" spring, which suggests the luxuriant growth of flowers and leaves at that season, eventually becomes a dry and barren season, fall. The leaves come off the trees and the flowers all disappear. The speaker, then, is telling the young man that his youth and beauty will not last. Eventually they will disappear as well. Words often have more than one meaning, and poets often use a word to mean more than one thing at the same time. Such is true with the word content in this poem (line 11). The word can suggests contents (what something contains), but it can also suggest the idea of being content (or being happy). The line means then both of the following: (1) The young man is burying his potential (his contents) for being a father in his own youth (his "own bud"). He is, in other words, wasting his youth and youthful potential. (2) The young man is also throwing away his chance for happiness (of being content) by not finding a woman to share his passion with.

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At the end of the quatrain (line 12), the poet directly tells the young man that he is being wasteful by being so stingy ("niggarding") and so selfish with his natural gifts and potential. In the final couplet the speaker claims that the young man cheats not only himself, but the entire world, by not having a child. Playing with language, Shakespeare sets off the idea of famine that he introduced earlier (in line 7) with the idea of gluttony (in line 13). The speaker calls the young man a glutton in the sense that the young man is keeping all of his potential (for having a child) to himself just as a glutton keeps all of the food for himself. Of course, the idea of gluttony has several connotations. As the student may recall, gluttony is one of the Seven Deadly Sins. In a sense, then, the speaker is suggesting that the young man's selfishness is also an act of sin. Furthermore, the depiction of gluttons in that time also suggests a disgusting, foul, and dirty appearance and manner. So, the speaker is also expressing his disgust with the young man's actions. In the final line of the sonnet, the speaker tells the young man that to pass on his beauty to his children is a debt that he owes to the world. The world (or nature or God) gave him beauty, and so he should not be selfish with it. Once again, the speaker emphasizes the idea of time with the word grave. The young man will die eventually. And if he dies without having a child, he will die the death of a "glutton" -- the death of a selfish and sinful and foul creature. Throughout this poem the poet uses death imagery: decease (line 3), buriest (line 11), and grave (line 14). The speaker is an older man (as will be

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revealed in later sonnets), and he has far more experience to understand how quickly times passes and how soon death comes for all of us. In fact, in some of the later sonnets (especially 71, 73, and 74), the speaker will directly comment on his own approaching death and the effect it may have upon the young man. In this poem, then, three themes are united: beauty, love, and death. The speaker's love for the young man urges him to convince the young man to do what is best for himself and for others because time and death will come far sooner than he expects it. A FEW COMMENTS ON "SONNET 3" The same motif begun in the first sonnet continues in "Sonnet 3." The speaker urges the young man to marry and have children in order to pass on his beauty. In this poem, though, the speaker emphasizes the joys that having children may bring the young man as he gets older. Perhaps the most striking metaphor in this poem is the one that occurs at the beginning of the third quatrain (line 9): "thou art thy mother's glass." The word glass here means mirror. The beauty of the young man is a reflection of the beauty his own mother once possessed when she was younger. The speaker is thereby telling the young man that he preserves the memory of his mother's beauty. And if he were to have children, then they would reflect his own beauty as well. The idea of the passage of time is also emphasized in this sonnet. The speaker tells the young man that when "age" (line 11) and "wrinkles" (line 12) come to him, he will have the beauty of his child to

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remember his own beauty when he was younger (his "golden time"). The sonnet ends in a manner similar to the first, with the imagery of death and the idea of waste (if the young man does not have a child). "SONNET 12" The motif of the transience of beauty and the quick passage of time also appears in "Sonnet 12." Once again the speaker urges the young man to have children in order to preserve or save his beauty from the destructive forces of time. In order to understand the structure of this poem, the reader should pay attention to the first word of each quatrain. Both the first and the second quatrain begin with the word when. But the third quatrain begins with the word then. The third quatrain marks the shift in the poem (beginning on line 9). And so the poem is clearly divided into an octet, which establishes the speaker's general observations about the passage of time, and a sestet, wherein the speaker comments more specifically on beauty and how it, too, fades and disappears over time. In the first quatrain the speaker presents four images that indicate the passage of time. (1) The clock is the most obvious indicator of the passage of time. (2) But the rotation of the earth as the daylight quickly turns to night also indicates the passage of time. (3) A beautiful flower, like a violet, that has dried and withered ("past prime" meaning past its moment of beauty and splendor) also suggests time passing. However, with this third image, the speaker is also introducing the idea that something that was once

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beautiful will lose that beauty. And, so, the poet is, in a sense, foreshadowing the theme of the sestet. (4) The motif of the transience of beauty develops one step further with the fourth image, as now the speaker connects that idea to humans. Dark or black hair ("sable curls") can turn gray or white or silver. Human hair can also lose its luster and beauty. With the second quatrain, the speaker presents two more images that also suggest the passage of time. (1) The first image is that of the tree. A tree that once provided shade and comfort to animals ("the herd") or people during the hot summer season eventually loses its leaves in the fall. With this image the speaker is not only suggesting that time passes quickly. He is also suggesting that, with the passage of time, an object (or person) loses its value. It may even become useless. (2) The second image is that of plants or crops that have been harvested and bundled together and carted away in a wagon. The edges of wheat that are dried and harvested often form a white, bristly fringe, which the speaker refers to as a "beard." Of course, as the student may guess, the word beard here is also meant to connect the image to humans (or specifically to the young man). An old man, after all, may also grow a "white and bristly beard." He also will lose his greenness, his youth. The most important word attached to this image is bier (in line 8). The speaker states that the crops are hauled away not on a wagon, but on a "bier." The word bier generally refers to a stand on which a corpse (a dead body) or a coffin is placed. The poet has inserted this death imagery purposely. Once again, the speaker (and the poet) wishes to suggest that with the passage of time will come death. This motif also foreshadows the message of the following sestet.

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In the third quatrain the speaker comments that if everything must grow old and wither, then the same must be true of beauty as well. The word beauty can mean the abstract quality of beauty. But the word is also a synonym for the young man. He is beauty, and he too will eventually die. His beauty will "forsake" (line 11) or leave him even if he is like a god of beauty. In the couplet, the final two lines, the poet uses personification. The poet personifies Time as a figure that is carrying a "scythe" (line 13). A scythe is a farming tool that has a long, sharp blade attached to a long wooden handle. The farmer uses it to cut down crops, like wheat. In this poem, Time uses its scythe to cut down humans who are past their prime, who have grown too old. Traditionally in literature the dark figure carrying a scythe represents not Time, but Death. Of course, Shakespeare intentionally wants to connect the passage of time to death with this one image. In the couplet the speaker also offers a solution to the problem he has presented, the problem of time being a destructive force. Thus, it would also be correct to view the structure of this sonnet as being divided between (1) the three quatrains, which introduce a problem, and (2) the couplet, which offers a solution. The speaker concludes his thoughts by telling the young man that there is only one defense, only one way to protect oneself from the destructive power of time. That way, that solution, is to "breed" (to have children). A man cannot stop Time from coming for him, but that person can be "brave" when the moment comes if he has passed on his beauty to his children.

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The destructive power of time on youth and beauty is also a motif in "Sonnet 15." In this sonnet, though, the speaker establishes the context of the beauty of the young man within the grander scheme of life. Life (as the metaphor in the third line suggests) is just a huge stage, and the stars (mentioned in line 4) control the shows or performances upon that stage. Here Shakespeare is expressing a belief in destiny. People may or may not act bravely in their lives, but even the bravest acts of men fade "out of memory" (line 8). Life itself is but an "inconstant stay," a fickle existence of good and bad luck. In other words, one cannot control what happens in life. One has to accept the good with the bad. Therefore, the speaker values his relationship with the young man. Moreover, he values the beauty of the young man as being one of those random acts of goodness that has somehow entered his own life. Nevertheless, the speaker regrets that this beauty will eventually fade or decay over a period of time (the bad aspect of life that is counteracting the good). So, the speaker feels that he is at war with time. He must preserve the beauty of the young man in his poetry before time eventually steals that beauty away from the young man forever. The poet cannot alter destiny itself, but perhaps he can alter its affects. He can make sure that the young man's beauty does not fade "out of memory."

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In "Sonnet 12" the speaker suggests that the only solution to the destructive forces of time is to have children. But in "Sonnet 18" the speaker presents a second solution to the same problem. "Sonnet 18" is probably the most famous of Shakespeare's sonnets. Although the poem does present the speaker's praise of beauty for the young man, the poem also presents love and the praise of beauty in such a general fashion that the poem could be applied to any man wishing to comment on the beauty of the lady he adores. At this point the student may already be able to determine the structure of the poem with a quick glance at the lines. The perceptive reader will note that the third quatrain begins with the word but (in line 9). Thus, a logical assumption is that the shift in the poem occurs there; and so the sonnet can be divided between the octet and the sestet. The sonnet begins with a question. The speaker is asking himself if he should compare the young man to a summer's day. The student should remember that a typical convention in love poetry is to use similes, to compare the beauty of the lady to the beauties of nature. As the poem progresses, we can see that the speaker feels that the answer to his question is "no" because he feels that the beauty of the young man is superior to the beauty of a summer's day. The comparisons, then, actually become contrasts. The following chart lists the contrasts made throughout the octet:

The Renaissance A Summer's Day Lovely Temperate (Calm) Occasional Rough Winds Lasts Only a Short Time Occasionally Too Hot ("eye of heaven" is the sun) Sometimes Cloudy Objects of Beauty Fade ("fair" means beautiful object) The Young Man More Lovely More Temperate (Calmer) No Rough Winds (always gentle) Lasts for a Long Time Never Hot (or hottempered)

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In these seven ways, then, the young man is superior to a summer's day. In this way, the speaker is proclaiming that the beauty of the young man surpasses all of the beauty of nature. In a way, Shakespeare is also surpassing other love poets. Other love poets may compare the beauty of their subjects (their ladies) to nature. But by stating that the beauty of his subject (the young man) is superior to nature, the poet is also stating that the beauty of the young man surpasses the beauty of any of the ladies who were compared to nature. The last two lines of the octet, though, present a paradox. The speaker notes that the beauty of an object, like a flower, on a summer's day will eventually decline or lose it beauty. But with that statement he is suggesting that the beauty of the young man will not fade or disappear. How can this be? In several of the earlier sonnets the speaker warned the young man that he better have children because his beauty will fade. But now he is saying that his beauty will not fade.

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The speaker presents this paradox even more directly in the first line of the sestet: But thy eternal summer shall not fade. (line 9) Eternal does mean forever, for all time; and the word summer here is used comparatively to suggest the beauty of the young man. The next two lines emphasize this same idea. The speaker asserts that the young man will never lose the beauty (the "fair") that he possesses. And Death (personified) will never be able to brag or boast that he has taken the young man. The paradox is explained at the end of the quatrain (line 12). The beauty of the young man will survive and will live forever in "eternal lines." Lines refer to lines of poetry. The beauty of the young man is captured, like a photograph, in the lines of poetry written by William Shakespeare. The young man's beauty becomes immortal by "Sonnet 18." The word this in the last line of the sestet refers to this particular poem, to "Sonnet 18" itself. The speaker states that the immortality of the young man's beauty depends upon three conditions: (1) as long as men are alive ("can breathe") (2) as long as they have the ability to "see" (and to read the poem) (3) as long as the sonnet itself exists (or "lives") As long as these three conditions are met, then the sonnet will give eternal life to the beauty of the young man. William Shakespeare, at the end of this sonnet, is voicing a conventional idea about poetry: poetry is

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immortal. As our editors comment in a footnote, even during the Classical Age poets suggested that the poetry is permanent. Thus, Shakespeare is not vainly boasting here. Rather, he is asserting his agreement with the idea that poetry and art should last as long as humanity itself lasts. And since this poem has lasted for over 400 years, that notion appears to be true. "SONNET 20" In "Sonnet 20" the goal of the speaker is to praise the young man's beauty. Of course, throughout the Middle Ages and into the Renaissance poets have always praised the beauty of women. In a sense, beauty was always a special quality that women could possess but men could not. Shakespeare essentially agrees with that premise, that idea. And so, in this sonnet, he comments that the young man's beauty is so great that his beauty is like that belonging to a woman. He felt that there was no point in comparing the young man to other men since men do not possess beauty. Only by comparing the young man to the most beautiful of women can the speaker provide the reader with some clue as to just how beautiful the young man is. The sonnet begins with the personification of Nature. Nature here is described as a creation goddess, responsible for creating not just plants and animals, but human beings as well. And, of course, Nature is responsible for the creation of the young man. In the first line the speaker states that Nature gave a woman's face to the young man. The speaker uses the word painted to suggest that Nature is an artist and that the young man is her masterpiece. The speaker also calls the young man "the master mistress of my

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passion" (in line 2). The word master refers to a male; the word mistress refers to a female. The speaker means this as a compliment: the young man has the best qualities of each gender. This line, in a sense, introduces the comparison that follows between the young man and beautiful women. The speaker wants to assert that the young man is superior to women (similar to the technique he use in "Sonnet 18" when he compared the young man to a summer's day). A chart may also help here to outline the comparisons and contrasts in this sonnet: A Beautiful Woman A Gentle Heart Inconstant in Love ("shifting change" in heart) Bright Eyes Fickle ("rolling eyes") The Young Man A Gentle Heart Constant in Love Brighter Eyes Not Fickle

The speaker is thereby indicating that the young man has the positive qualities of a woman but none of her negative qualities. In the last three lines of the octet, the speaker describes the qualities of the young man's beauty that no other man or woman possesses. (1) Any object he looks upon turns golden (line 6). In other words, just by looking at an object or another person, he enriches that object or person. He makes that object or person seem nobler or better or more meaningful than it actually is. This is quite assuredly how the speaker must feel when he is in the presence of the young man. (2) The young man's skin coloring (or "hue") is such that it seems the perfect blend of all other colors. And (3) any man or

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woman who gazes upon him is deeply amazed by his beauty. His beauty even affects their very souls. This sonnet also has a structure with a division between the octet and sestet. In the octet the speaker praises the beauty of the young man and compares and contrasts him to beautiful women. In the sestet the speaker explains how Nature decided to make her creation a man instead of a woman. The sestet begins (in line 9) with the speaker declaring that Nature had originally intended her creation to be a woman. But then Nature was so overcome by the beauty of her own creation that she fell in love ("fell a-doting") with it. So, Nature made one "addition" or change to her creation: she turned it into a man. This is great praise of beauty indeed. The speaker is saying that the young man is so beautiful that even the creation goddess fell in love with him. Of course, for the speaker, who is male, the addition or change made by Nature was not a good change for him: "to my purpose nothing" (line 12). The speaker is stating that a beautiful man does nothing for him sexually. Although he appreciates the young man's beauty and loves the young man platonically, he regrets that this particular creation by Nature was not a woman. The speaker, however, good-naturedly accepts the situation, as he comments in the couplet. Since Nature decided to create the young man for women's sexual pleasure (line 13), the speaker will accept having a platonic love with the young man even though various women will enjoy him sexually (as "their treasure").

LECTURE 22
THE SECOND LECTURE ON SHAKESPEARE'S SONNETS TO THE YOUNG MAN SONNETS ON THE POWER OF LOVE: 29 AND 30 Of all of the sonnets that Shakespeare wrote, "Sonnet 29" is the most traditional or conventional. It is a sonnet that seems quite similar to the content and emotion of the sonnets by Francis Petrarch or even some of the sonnets by Sir Philip Sidney. In this sonnet the speaker declares that the power of his love for the young man allows him to continue and be strong even during the worst of times. In regards to its structure, this sonnet can be divided into two parts: the octet and the sestet. The word yet (in line 9) clearly announces the shift in direction. In the octet, the speaker moans and weeps over his misfortunes. But in the sestet, the speaker explains how his thoughts for the young man cheer him up. In the first quatrain the speaker begins by stating that he is "in disgrace" with "Fortune." Life has not been good to him. He has had bad luck. The speaker is also in disgrace in "men's eyes." Other men criticize him or speak badly about him. Thus, the speaker feels "all alone." He feels like an "outcast," like he does not belong in the company of other men. He cries to God, but he feels that God cannot hear him ("deaf heaven"). He feels that his prayers are useless,

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that they are a waste of time ("bootless"). So, he curses himself and his misfortune (or "fate"). In the second quatrain, the speaker compares himself to other men. Some men seem to have greater prospects or opportunities for the future. They have more "hope" (line 5). Other men might be more attractive: they have more pleasing physical features (line 6). And some men have many friends (also in line 6). Some men have greater skills or talents or "art" (line 7) while other men may have greater intellect or insight into life ("scope" in line 7). Thus, the speaker is miserable. He has a low sense of self worth. He does not feel that he is as good or worthwhile as anybody else is. He is in the midst of a severe depression or even despair. Even those activities that he enjoyed in the past can bring him no pleasure ("contented least"). There is almost nothing or no one that can make him happy. Yet, there is one person who can save him from his despair: the young man. In the sestet, the speaker states that at times, when he gets to a point where he actually hates himself ("despising" himself), then he thinks about the young man ("thee"). Then his emotions and attitudes change completely. The speaker uses the simile of the lark, the bird that sings happily at sunrise. The imagery associated with this simile suggests the blackness of night turning into the brightness of day. The speaker's soul transforms from the darkness of his misery to the light of his joy in loving the young man. In contrast to the useless or futile cries to God that the speaker mentions in the octet, the speaker is now able to sing "hymns" (or religious songs) to God (line 12). The

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speaker no longer feels that his prayers are unanswered. The speaker now has hope. In the couplet, the final two lines of the poem, the speaker confidently and happily exclaims that he would rather be himself, as a person who is able to feel love for the young man, than to be the greatest king in the world. He is stating that having love is a greater gift than having riches or political power or prestige. Only love has the power to enrich the soul and bring light and hope to someone even in the darkest of times. As mentioned, the sonnet is quite similar to those by Francis Petrarch. This sonnet shows the speaker moving from one extreme emotion to another. But unlike the sonnets by Petrarch, the speaker's love for the young man is not unrequited. The love is genuine and true. The love is reciprocated (or returned). So, the theme of "Sonnet 29" is not identical to those by Petrarch. The speaker in Petrarch's sonnets never experiences a reciprocated love. Whatever hopes he has are false hopes: they will not come true. In Shakespeare's poem, the speaker -- or the poet -- is declaring the power that true love brings to those who possess it. The same theme is repeated in "Sonnet 30." But in this poem the reader should note that the division comes after the three quatrains and before the couplet. The word but (in line 13) indicates the shift. SONNETS ON THE PERMANENCE OF POETRY: 55, 60, AND 65 In "Sonnet 18" Shakespeare declares, following the tradition set by many poets during the Classical Age, that poetry is immortal. The beauty of the young man

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will live forever because the poetry that describes the young man's beauty will last forever. Shakespeare returns to the idea that poetry will outlive the ravages of time despite mankind's destructive ways in several sonnets: 55, 60, and 65. In "Sonnet 55" the speaker asserts that poetry ("rhyme") will last longer than statues made of marble or monuments made of gold or brass. Thus, the beauty of the young man will last longer in a poem than it would if it were copied into a statue or onto an engraving of some sort. Stone statues become worn away over a long period of time. And during times of war (personified by Mars -- in line 7 -- the Roman god of war) many statues and other forms of art become destroyed. When a statue or a painting becomes destroyed, the beauty of that particular piece of art is lost forever. But if a piece of paper containing a poem is destroyed, the countless hundreds or thousands of copies still remain. Thus, the beauty in a poem is immortal. Its contents can also be recopied or reprinted, and the copy is as perfect as the original. A copy of a statue or painting, on the other hand, is just a copy. Something of the original becomes lost in the process. This particular sonnet ends with a reference to Judgment Day or Doomsday ("doom" in line 12). In Christian teaching, there is a belief that eventually the world will be destroyed in a terrible fire -- at which time the forces of good will defeat the forces of evil (the idea of Armageddon). Also at this time all of mankind will have to face their Maker, God. God will judge each and every one of us and pronounce His judgement (or doom). God will decide who will be saved and live in Heaven and who will be condemned to spend eternity in Hell. The speaker -- as well as Shakespeare -- believes

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that his poem and all poetry will survive until that time. Only the forces of Heaven, only God, through the destruction of the Earth, has the ability to bring to an end the existence of any given poem. In "Sonnet 60" Shakespeare continues the same theme. In this poem Time is once again personified and carrying a "scythe" (line 12). Time is once again described as a destructive force and is associated with death. "Sonnet 65" also contributes to the same theme. Similar to "Sonnet 55," this poem compares fragile beauty ("summer's honey" in line 5) to objects that are seemingly much stronger and sturdier: rocks (in line 7) and gates made of steel (in line 8). But rocks can wear away (like the marble statues of the earlier sonnet) and steel gates can erode (like the gilded monuments of the earlier sonnet). But beauty outlives the rocks and steel gates when it is preserved in a poem. The personification of Time also appears in this poem in the third quatrain. However, Time is characterized differently. In this poem Time owns a secret chest where he keeps all of his treasures. His "best jewel" (a metaphor) is the young man. Even though the beautiful jewel (the young man) leaves the chest of Time for a brief period (when he is born), eventually Time will find his best jewel and return it to his chest (when the young man dies). Of course, the theme is the same. Even the most beautiful of objects and people are eventually destroyed over time.

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The relative ages of the speaker and the young man are emphasized in three sonnets: 71, 73, and 74. The speaker is a much older man and contemplates his own death. In doing so, he wonders what effect his death will have on the young man. In "Sonnet 71" the speaker pleas with the young man not to mourn, not to be sad, once the speaker is dead. The speaker wants the young man to get on with his life. He does not want the young man to remain in sadness for a long period of time. He even tells the young man not to read his poems (in the third quatrain) if, by doing so, that causes even greater grief for the young man. The last line of the quatrain reinforces the message: But let your love even with my life decay. (line 12) In other words, the speaker is telling the young man to forget the speaker and his love for the speaker. The speaker does not want the young man to be miserable. The shift in this poem occurs in the final couplet. There is a second reason the young man should not moan or be miserable -- at least not in front of other people. Other people might mock him or make fun of him -- and the speaker -- when they hear about the love that existed between the two of them. The word wise (in line 13) is used ironically. The world is not wise at all. The people of the world can never understand the depth and meaning of the love that existed between the speaker and the young man. The

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speaker not only hopes that the young man will not persist in his misery and sadness, but he also wants to save the young man from the ridicule of society. The majority of people in society can be cruel -- the speaker is implying -- and most would not understand what true love is. The theme concerning the death of the speaker continues into "Sonnet 73." However, in this sonnet, the speaker dwells more on the present than on the future. In the final couplet, the speaker suggests that, in contemplating the eventual loss of their love that will come with the speaker's death, the love that they now share becomes "more strong." In other words, knowing that their love will eventually end, the speaker and the young man should treasure the time that they have with each other. They value the love they have for each other precisely because their time together is so short. The moment is rare and fleeting, but wonderful. Knowing this thereby increases the love they feel for one another. "Sonnet 74" adds to the death theme by focusing on the elements of memory and soul. In this poem the speaker emphasizes the two parts of his existence: body and soul (or spirit). He notes that when he is dead, only a part of his being -- his body -- is gone. The young man should not be sad over that. The body, after all, is just a meal for the worms (line 10). The body is just a weak vessel that easily falls to the "knife" of a "coward" (line 11). The coward, obviously, suggests the personification of Time (or Death). And the knife suggests the image of the scythe mentioned in earlier sonnets. The point, though, is that the body is essentially worthless. It is not something that should be mourned.

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In the final two lines, the couplet, the speaker places greater emphasis on the spirit of his being. He tells the young man that "the worth of that [his body] is that [his spirit] which it [his body] contains" (line 13). In other words, only his spirit has any value. The body has none. The speaker ends by telling the young man that "that [his spirit] is this [his sonnet]" (line 14). In other words, his spirit resides or is reflected in his poetry. Since the young man has his poems, the young man also has the spirit of the speaker. Thus, the young man should be glad that he still has the best part, the noblest part, of the speaker. Although this poem uses the traditional Christian dichotomy (the division into two separate or opposite parts) of seeing a human being as containing both a body and soul, the poem itself is not actually expressing a Christian belief. The "spirit" that the speaker describes in this poem is not an actual soul that drifts upward to Heaven. Rather, it is a memory of the thoughts and feelings of the poet. The thoughts and feelings of the poet are captured in the poem. In that sense, then, the spirit of the poet is captured by the poem. Thus, the poem is his spirit. THE FAREWELL SONNET: 87 "Sonnet 87" also bears some similarities to the great sonnet cycles of the past. The poem deals with the unworthiness of the speaker to deserve the love of the person he adores. So, the speaker bids the young man "farewell" or "good-bye." The shift in the sonnet occurs between the three quatrains and the couplet. Yet, throughout the entire

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poem, the speaker does not change his opinion that he is unworthy of the young man's love. In the first quatrain, the speaker states that the young man is too precious, too valuable ("dear") to be loved (or possessed) by someone like the speaker. In fact, the speaker believes that the young man will eventually realize his own value or worth ("estimate"), at which time he will leave the speaker. The speaker then uses the language of business -- "charter" and "bonds" -- as metaphors for their relationship. The young man is like a valuable piece of land or property that the speaker was leasing for a short period of time, but now the speaker feels that the lease has expired. He no longer has any legal right to be on the property: he no longer deserves a relationship with the young man. In the second quatrain the speaker emphasizes his unworthiness. He describes the young man's love as a "fair" (meaning wonderful) "gift." However, he feels that a good reason ("cause") for the young man to give him such a precious gift is missing ("wanting"). The speaker is stating that he has done nothing to earn or deserve such a special love. In the third quatrain, the speaker refers to the beginning of their relationship. He feels that when the young man first expressed any signs of love toward him, the young man did not know his "own worth" (line 9) or value at the time. Or, as the speaker suggests, the young man did not realize at that time how unworthy the speaker was for such a gift. Now that time has passed, the speaker believes and fears that the young man will change his mind about the speaker -- the young man will show "better judgment" (line 12). In the final couplet the speaker still believes that he is unworthy of the young man's love and still thinks

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that the young man will leave him. However, he adds that his experience with the young man has been like a marvelous dream (another metaphor). He says that the experience was like dreaming that he was a king. However, upon waking, he finds and regrets that such is not the case ("no such matter"), that he is not really a king. Metaphorically, he is stating his feeling that his relationship will not and cannot continue. This sonnet captures the feeling of uncertainty, a feeling that can and does occur in many relationships. TWO SONNETS ON ABSENCE: 97 AND 98 In both "Sonnet 97" and "Sonnet 98" the speaker speaks about a time when the young man went away from him for some reason. The poems chronicle the effects of the young man's absence on the speaker. Both poems also use seasonal imagery to suggest the feelings of the speaker. In the first sonnet, the imagery of fall and winter reflects the theme. In the second of these sonnets, the poet uses the season of spring. The poet uses a simile in the beginning of "Sonnet 97" to describe the feeling of absence. The absence of the young man is "like a winter" to the speaker. But the actual time of the young man's absence occurred during the summer (line 5). However, since winter is the coldest and darkest season of the year, that season better reflects the emotions of the speaker while the young man is away. The "bareness" (line 4) of the winter season, when trees are barren of leaves and when many plants have withered and turned brown, also reflects the speaker's emotions. The emptiness of the

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landscape reflects the emptiness that he feels within his own heart. The fact that the young man's absence actually occurs during the summer also causes the sad speaker to ponder his situation. In the second quatrain the speaker adds that the harvest of the crops, as autumn (or fall) approaches, does not do anything to cheer his mood. The poet uses a complex metaphor: the richness of the springtime when plants and crops grow big and plentiful is compared to a pregnant woman. The expression "big with rich increase" (in line 6) could refer to the fertile land where crops are grown or a pregnant woman. But the woman in this metaphor is a widow. Her husband has died and her child is both the orphan and the "unfathered fruit" (since his father has died). The birth of the child, then, is not a happy time for the widow because she will have to struggle to support her child. Similarly, the growth (or birth) of all of the fruit and other crops that the speaker sees during the summer is not a happy time for him. Just as the widow is without her husband, the speaker is without the young man. At the end of the third quatrain, the speaker adds that the pleasures of the summer will only arrive when the young man himself appears (line 11). As he moves into the couplet (from line 12 to 13), the speaker presents two more metaphors: the birds and the leaves. The birds are mute. They are not singing the cheerful songs that birds usually sing during the summer. Or, the speaker adds, if they do sing, it is a dull and sad song because they know that winter will be coming soon. Of course, the speaker is referring to himself. He can barely speak at all because he is so sad. And when he does speak, he does so in a sad and

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gloomy voice. Similarly, the speaker is like the leaves. Normally green in summer, the speaker sees the leaves as "pale." They are white, without color. The speaker also feels pale without the young man. His life is colorless without the young man's presence. The saddening effect of the young man's absence upon the speaker also becomes the subject matter in "Sonnet 98." In this poem the joys and beauties of the springtime are set as a contrast to the speaker's own joyless mood. Personification is one of the key poetic features of this poem. April appears as a youthful and exuberant (or cheerful) clown or jester. He is dressed in a motley fashion ("proud-pied"): that is, he is wearing a costume of many bright and marvelous colors. The Roman God Saturn personifies the idea of melancholy. Saturn (the Roman equivalent to the Greek god named Cronus) was once the king of the gods. However, Jupiter (the Roman equivalent to the Greek god Zeus), the son of Saturn, defeated Saturn and forced him to give up the throne. Thus, in this poem, Saturn is the sad god, the god of melancholy. In this sonnet, however, April is so full of joy and cheer that he causes even Saturn to laugh and dance (line 4). In other words, during the springtime, the beauty of nature and the loveliness of the season will brighten or cheer up even the saddest or most melancholy of individuals. There is, though, one person who is sadder than the personification of melancholy itself: the speaker. He is sadder than sadness itself. None of the joys of springtime have any effect on him. Neither the cheerful songs ("lays") of the birds nor the fragrant perfume of the flowers can convince the speaker to tell a "summer's

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story" (line 7). That is, the speaker has no desire to speak in a light or entertaining or humorous way. He is too heavy, too sad. In the third quatrain the speaker looks at the beauty of two flowers, the lily and the rose; but their beauty only reminds him of the greater beauty of the young man. The speaker states such flowers are "figures of delight drawn after you [the young man]." In other words, the flowers are a lesser symbol of beauty that attempt to emulate or copy the greater beauty of the young man. For the speaker, such lesser beauty has no appeal for him. His thoughts are on greater beauty. His thoughts are on the young man. In the couplet, the speaker returns to a concept that he introduced in the earlier sonnet: even though the season is actually a mild and pleasant one, it seems like winter to him. The speaker compares (in a simile) the beauties of springtime to the shadow of the young man. The shadow of the young man is a dark and insubstantial copy of the young man's beauty. Thus, the speaker is implying that the beauties of nature and springtime are dark and insubstantial: they are cold and meaningless to the speaker. But those are all he has to look at or "play" with. In other words, he cannot play. And he cannot feel any joy. A SONNET ABOUT PREFIGURATION: 106 Prefiguration means that a person or object or symbol that appeared early in time represents or stands for a person or object or symbol that came later in time. For Christians, the prophets of the Old Testament, such as Joseph or Moses, were prefigurations of their Savior,

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Jesus Christ, the central figure of the New Testament. In other words, the greatness and virtue of the prophets were only lesser signs or indications of the superior greatness and virtue that Jesus Christ would exhibit. Thus, in a sense, Christians believed that the appearance of the prophets was for the purpose of preparing the world for the arrival of Jesus Christ. The idea of prefiguration plays a dominant role in "Sonnet 106." However, in this poem Shakespeare is not concerned with religious prefiguration. Rather, he is concerned with the prefiguration of beauty. Like several of the other earlier sonnets, the purpose of this one is to praise the beauty of the young man. In the first quatrain the speaker is examining all of the literature ("the chronicle") of the past. The word chronicle here (in line 1) refers to non-fictional and fictional literature. But it especially refers to poetry about love. In this literature the speaker is particularly interested in reading the descriptions of the most beautiful ("fairest") people ("wights"), whether they are female ("ladies") or male ("knights"). As he reads this literature that contains descriptions of beauty, the speaker is reminded (in the second quatrain) of the beauty of the young man. In fact, to him it even seems like the writers and poets of long ago were actually writing about the young man. The point that these descriptions prefigure the beauty of the young man is clearly stated in the third quatrain. The speaker feels that these older writers were poet-prophets. In writing about the beauty of this lady or that man, they were actually writing about the beauty of the young man, whom they saw as if in a vision. These poets looked, the speaker states, with "divining eyes" (line 11). That is, they were able to see

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into the future. However, because they could only see the young man in a vision, but not in person, they could not capture fully the greatness of the young man's beauty in their poetry: They had not still enough your worth to sing. (line 12) The speaker, then, is actually saying in this sonnet that all of the best descriptions of beauty ever written in literature are indications of the young man's beauty. However, such descriptions are incomplete or inadequate. The beauty of the young man far surpasses even the best of those descriptions. In the final lines, the couplet, the speaker admits that even if those writers could have seen the real young man (instead of just a vision of him), their poetic skills still would not have been great enough to recreate the beauty of the young man. For, the speaker adds, those who are alive and can view the young man with their wondering or amazed eyes lack the words (or "tongues") to praise his beauty. EXPERIMENTING WITH LOVE: "SONNET 110" "Sonnet 110" might be labeled as a confession poem. In it the speaker admits to or confesses having loved people other than the young man. However, the more important point that the poem makes is that the speaker pledges to be true to the young man forever after. The speaker vows to be constant. This sonnet also has a structure with the division coming between the octet and the sestet. In the

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octet, the speaker reflects on his experiences or experiments with love in the past. In the sestet, the speaker pledges his fidelity in the present and for the future. In the first quatrain, the speaker admits to having acted like a fool. The word motley (in line 2) refers a multi-colored costume worn by a court jester or a clown. The speaker is declaring that his actions in loving others have been foolish. The speaker also admits that in loving others, he has "gored" or wounded his "own thoughts" (line 3). The speaker means that he has acted against his own better judgment and his own reason. He had allowed his passions to become stronger than his mind (the reason versus emotion conflict). In other words, the speaker now regrets those actions. He additionally admits or confesses that in loving others, he has sold his love cheaply (also in line 3). The word dear means precious or valuable. So, "what is most dear" is his love. By saying that he gave his love away cheaply, the speaker is admitting that he received very little in return. The experience in loving someone else just was not worth the price he paid. At the end of this quatrain, the speaker reveals that he has repeated these actions of loving others on numerous occasions. The expression "old offenses" suggests that he has been behaving like he did when he was younger. As a young man he had loved many people without thinking about it -- without being rational. But now, even though he is an older man, he has been repeating that same foolish behavior with "new affections" or new loves. The speaker continues to admit his mistakes in the second quatrain, but adds that something worthwhile has come from his experiences. The quatrain begins with the speaker stating that by loving

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other people, he was avoiding the "truth" (line 5). He knew deep within himself that he should not have been with these others. But he had avoided this truth: he allowed his passions to cloud his judgment. But (and the speaker uses the word but in the middle of line 6) the speaker adds that these experiences, these mistakes ("blenches"), made him realize, deep within his heart, that his true and only love was for the young man. He states that the experiences "gave my love another youth" (line 7). He means that his heart became revitalized. He finally realized the truth. The speaker hopes that the young man believes him. And the speaker even swears "by all above," suggesting both God and Heaven, that what he is saying is the truth. The quatrain ends with the speaker concluding that these other experiences, these mistakes in love (or "worse essays" -- essays means attempts), only proved to the speaker that the young man is his "best of love." In the third quatrain, the speaker pledges that his experiences are over. He will never again try to love someone else ("newer proof"). Instead, he will be like a prisoner (suggested by the word "confined" in line 12) to the young man, who is referred to as the "older friend" and a "god in love." In the closing lines, the couplet, the speaker asks the young man to "welcome" him. He is asking the young man to accept his mistakes and believe that his love from that time on will belong only to the young man.

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The Renaissance THE LAST OF THE YOUNG MAN SONNETS: 126

The sonnets to the young man end with "Sonnet 126." In this poem the speaker makes a final plea for the young man to realize that his youth and beauty, although they may seem to last for a long time, cannot last forever. In this final sonnet the poet also repeats the personification of two figures: Time and Nature. Once again the poet depicts Time as a destructive force that will obliterate the youth and beauty of the young man. And once again the poet depicts Nature as the creation goddess who is still in love with her favorite creation, the young man. In the first quatrain the speaker suggests that the young man, even though he has grown older over the past few years, still appears youthful and beautiful. Thus, the speaker describes the young man as holding power over time (in lines 1-2). One of the props or pieces of equipment that Time carries is the "fickle glass." The word glass refers to a mirror here. But, like all mirrors, it is fickle because it does not keep the image that it contained in the past. As we grow older, the image that we see in the mirror changes. In this sonnet, though, the speaker is suggesting that the image of the young man has not changed in the years that he has known him. In growing older ("waning"), the young man has actually become more beautiful ("grown") while his "lovers," especially the speaker, are "withering" or looking much older. Nature appears in the second quatrain. She is the protective force that tries to "pluck" the young man

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away from destructive Time. Nature is trying to prove that she is more powerful than Time. The shift in this poem occurs in the third quatrain (line 9). The speaker warns the young man to fear Nature, for even Nature cannot defeat Time. In other words, although the beauty of the young man may have lasted much longer than it does for most other people, it eventually will experience the ravages of time. The young man will grow old and lose his beauty. Nature is described as someone who has taken out a loan (suggested by the word "audit") but must eventually pay that loan back. The metaphor indicates that even though Nature borrowed from Time to keep the young man looking beautiful, eventually she will have to pay Time back by giving the young man to Time. Thus, the young man will no longer have any power over time. The situation will be reversed. Time will have power over the young man, and he will be a young man no longer. Although the speaker does not directly state it, he seems to be implying in this poem that the young man should face the inevitable and find a way to preserve his beauty. In other words, as he had done most explicitly in the first sonnet, the speaker is urging the young man once again to have children. There is no couplet in this poem. This sonnet is only twelve lines long. The poet, perhaps, wished to express the brevity or shortness of time by the brevity of his own poem.

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The Renaissance A DEFINITION OF LOVE: 116

The purpose of Shakespeare's sonnet cycle is not only to praise the beauty of the young man. The purpose is also to express the great love that the speaker feels for this young man. The greatest poetry throughout time has always dealt with love in one form or another. And one of the finest poems that expresses the meaning of love is "Sonnet 116." For the most part, this sonnet defines love. In terms of its structure, the shift in the poem comes between the third quatrain and the couplet. However, all fourteen lines are used to express the depth and significance of a true and heartfelt love. In the first quatrain, the speaker suggests that there should be no obstacles, problems, or "impediments" in a relationship where both parties are "true." The word true here implies both fidelity and honesty. It also hints at a kind of purity in the relationship. The speaker is not talking about a conventional marriage. He is talking about a "marriage of minds," a spiritual connection between the souls of the two individuals. This is a higher love, and such a love does not suffer or end when some obstacle gets in the way. The word alteration (in line 3) also suggests an obstacle or setback that may occur in the relationship. Even though problems or alterations may occur at times in the relationship, the nature of the relationship itself does not alter. Both parties remain true. Both still love one another. The speaker repeats the idea a third time (in line 4) with the word remover, which, like the words impediments and alteration above, also indicates an obstacle or problem that may occur in the relationship. The poet purposefully uses repetition to convey the idea

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that problems do occur often during the course of any relationship. However, despite all of those problems, a true love will remain constant. The speaker uses two metaphors in the second quatrain to express the idea of constancy in a true love. The first is a "seamark" (as our editors interpret the word mark) or a landmark that is observable from the sea. The reader might envision a lighthouse, one of those strong and tall and permanent structures that sends forth a beam of light to guide sailors to safety even in the worst of sea-storms or "tempests." The lighthouse is a fixture that the sailors can always rely on. They know is has not moved, not changed, or not altered. The second metaphor used to express the constancy of love is a star, such as the North Star (Polaris). The North Star has been extremely important to sailors for centuries. Without the North Star or other stars to guide it, a ship (or "bark") could easily become lost at sea during the night. Because the stars are constant, because they are "ever-fixed" in the sky, sailors know that they can rely on them. The speaker is suggesting, then, that true love is also fixed forever. It is permanent. In the last line of the quatrain, the speaker adds that although the position of a star may be charted -- although its "highth can "be taken" -- no one can calculate its worth or value. Similarly, the value of a true love is also without measure. The idea of constancy in love is also the focus of the third quatrain, but in these lines the poet uses personification to emphasize his point. Both Time and Love are personified. But even though Time is personified as in the earlier sonnets, as a destructive figure carrying its scythe or sickle, Love (signifying true love) is the stronger of the two figures. By stating that

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Love is not the "fool" (in line 9) or victim of time, the speaker is suggesting that no matter how much time passes, true love never fades or diminishes. True love always remains strong. The speaker admits that Time can take away the "rosy [or red] lips and cheeks" of the lovers. In other words, the two lovers, over a period of time, will grow old and lose their youthful glow. But, the speaker asserts that, despite losing the attractiveness of their youth, the two lovers will continue to love each other just as strongly as they did in their youth. Their love continues even though their looks do not. At the end of the quatrain the speaker comments that true love lasts until the day of "doom" -- until Dooms Day or Judgment Day. In other words, it lasts forever. In the couplet the speaker, as a poet, inserts himself (note the pronouns me and I) into his definition. The shift in the poem occurs here. In the first twelve lines the poet defines true love. In the last two lines, he asserts the validity (the reasonableness or logic) of his claim. Essentially, the speaker is stating that if he is wrong, then he has never written anything in his life (which is untrue) and no man throughout the history of time has ever experienced love (which is also untrue). To put it simply, the speaker is stating that he is not wrong. True love is everything that he has said it is. True love is constant.

LECTURE 23
SHAKESPEARE'S SONNETS ON THE DARK LADY THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE SONNETS ON THE DARK LADY AND THE SONNETS ON THE YOUNG MAN In "Sonnet 127" Shakespeare shifts topics. He moves away from the Young Man as the subject of his poems and to the Dark Lady. Although the change in subject may seem abrupt to the reader, at least four characteristics unite the two parts of the sequence. (1) In terms of theme, both the Young Man sonnets and the Dark Lady sonnets break away from the conventions or standards of typical sonnet cycles. We can call this, then, the theme on sonnet conventions. The Young Man sonnets break two conventions: (a) the speaker adores a male instead of a female, and (b) a male is an object of great or surpassing beauty. The Dark Lady sonnets also break two conventions: (a) the lady is dark, not fair (meaning she does not have light skin and blond hair); and (b) the lady is promiscuous or sexual, rather than virtuous. (2) In terms of plot, the two sections of the cycle also contribute to the overall "story" being told about an older man (the speaker) who is at first involved with a younger man but later also begins a relationship with a female (the dark lady). In many relationships, it is hardly unusual for one member of the couple to

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The Renaissance have an affair. Such affairs happen all of the time. In the extraordinary relationship between the speaker and the young man, which does not seem to be sexual, both the speaker and the young man have other relationships. That one of these other relationships becomes more than casual, then, is not a surprise. The speaker, therefore, has become involved in a rather odd love triangle. His love is clearly for the Young Man, but he cannot deny himself the sexual pleasure that he finds in his relationship with the Dark Lady. We have, then, a story with the speaker as the protagonist who is involved in an internal conflict (the conflict of man versus himself). The speaker is struggling between the higher Platonic love that he shares with the Young Man and the earthly sexual love that he shares with the Dark Lady.

(3) In terms of structure, the Young Man is included directly in one of the sonnets on the Dark Lady ("Sonnet 144," to be discussed later). Thus, Shakespeare unites the two parts of his sequence with this one particular poem. (4) Such unity also works on a thematic level. Shakespeare's entire sonnet cycle deals with the topic of love. This theme on love explores the two different facets or types of love: (1) the higher, spiritual type of love and (2) the lower or earthly physical type of love. Thus, the second part of the sequence complements the first part. Both parts of the cycle are necessary to complete Shakespeare's exploration and analysis of love.

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In the first sonnet on the Dark Lady, "Sonnet 127," the speaker immediately launches into his complaint about sonnet conventions or, to be more exact, about attitudes regarding a standard of beauty. During the Renaissance, as noted several times previously, beauty in women was connected to having fair features: light skin, blue eyes, blond hair. Like the poets of earlier sonnet cycles, Shakespeare's purpose in this poem is to praise the beauty of the lady he adores. However, his lady is dark. She has dark skin, black eyes, and black hair. Shakespeare's argument, though, is that her beauty surpasses the beauty of all other women, including the fair ones. In regards to the structure, this sonnet has two parts: an octet (the first eight lines) and a sestet. In the octet, the speaker makes some general comments about beauty and coloring. In the sestet, he makes specific comments about the Dark Lady herself. In the first quatrain (the first four lines), the speaker states that most poets or people did not consider dark features ("black") to be beautiful ("fair") in "the old age." Here "the old age" does not refer to a time very long ago, for we know that the convention in placing value on light or fair features is a feature of the Renaissance. So "old age" here actually refers to the time, to the very moment, before the Dark Lady came into the speaker's life. In the second line of the quatrain, the speaker adds that anything or anybody that was dark could not be called an object of beauty in that "old age." The speaker informs us that such thinking will no longer be valid any longer. Using personification of abstract ideas, the speaker states that Beauty is the parent or

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mother of Black. And now Black has inherited all of the features or qualities of Beauty. In other words, from now on, whenever people think about someone who is beautiful, they will immediately think of someone who has dark features (is "black"). In the last line of the first quatrain and continuing throughout the second quatrain, the speaker continues his idea of the personification of Beauty. In these lines the speaker suggests that all fair (lightfeatured) women who in the past were called the children or heirs of Beauty are illegitimate or "bastard" children who bring "shame" to the name of Beauty. The speaker explains that these fair women are not really beautiful at all because they have to apply make-up or cosmetics over their ugly or unattractive features ("the foul") to makes themselves appear beautiful ("fairing"). The speaker concludes this part of the poem by stating that one of two situations must be true. Either (1) Beauty has been "profaned" and "slandered" -- in other words, people have lied about her -- because these fair or blond children are not really her children, or (2) if they really are her illegitimate children, then Beauty should live "in disgrace." She should be ashamed at having such ugly children. Now that the speaker has established the idea that dark features are really the only true beauty, he then moves specifically to his lady in the sestet (the last six lines). The speaker emphasizes the darkness of the lady's dark features: her eyebrows (and hair) and her eyes are "raven black," they are extremely black. The speaker then adds a metaphor to describe the appearance of her eyes. He says they look like "mourners," like individuals dressed in black clothing appropriate for a funeral. They mourn or feel pity for

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those who are beautiful even though they do not have "fair" (or light) features. Such dark beauties deserve pity, the speaker probably feels, because they have been slighted or undervalued by others for so many years. Once again the poet uses personification to emphasize his point. The appearance of such dark beauties slanders or hurts the reputation of Creation, who is responsible for the false value or esteem (or worth) given to fair (or light-featured) women. In other words, such creatures (fair women, who are products of creation) do not deserve the value that people or society gives to them. In the couplet, the final two lines of the poem, the poet concludes that even though the eyes of his lady are mourning, they make her woe or sadness seem even more beautiful. Everyone who looks at her dark eyes agrees that the Dark Lady is the very picture of beauty. SOME COMMENTS ON "SONNET 128" "Sonnet 128" is a more traditional sonnet. In fact, the subject here does not even have to be the Dark Lady. The speaker could be talking about any beautiful woman. In this poem a little story is told. The speaker is watching the woman he adores play the piano, and he becomes envious or jealous of the piano keys since she is moving her fingers over them. He describes her touching the keys as kisses: the piano keys get to kiss her fingertips. The speaker wishes that his lips, instead of the piano keys, were the ones kissing the lady's fingers. The speaker somewhat comically concludes that since the piano keys get her fingers to kiss, then he should get her lips for the same purpose. A reader might also note the metaphor in the first line. The speaker refers to his lady as "my music."

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She is the music of his soul. She is the one who transports him to such grand and eloquent feelings. The idea of envying an inanimate object in this poem may remind the reader of one of the sonnets in Astrophil and Stella by Sir Philip Sidney. In that sonnet cycle (in Sonnet 45, to be exact) Astrophil envies a story that causes Stella to feel pity and cry. Just as the speaker in Shakespeare's poem wishes to trade places with the piano keys, Astrophil wishes that he could be the story that makes Stella weep. "SONNET 129" Very soon in the second part of the sonnet cycle, the reader discovers that the "love" that the speaker feels for the Dark Lady is a far different kind of emotion than the love that he feels for the Young Man. In the third sonnet -- only the third sonnet -- in this section, the speaker moves away from praising and adoring the lady to the topic of lust. Lust, you may recall, is one of the Seven Deadly Sins that all Christians during the Middle Ages would try to avoid. In Shakespeare's poem the speaker worries not about what may happen to his soul in the afterlife. Rather, he worries about what spiritual (or, perhaps, psychological) damage his lust is causing him during his own earthly existence. "Sonnet 129," then, is a warning about the dangers of lust. In terms of structure, the division in this poem comes between the three quatrains and the couplet. In the first three quatrains, the speaker defines lust and explains the effects that it has on humans. In the final couplet he adds one additional problem that is associated with lust.

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In the first quatrain the speaker begins by explaining that when a man acts on his lust ("lust in action") and has a strictly sexual relationship, that man is wasting his spirit in an act of shame. However, if a man does not act upon his lust ("till action"), then that man is capable of many dangerous actions: perjury, murder, violence, cruelty, or deceit. The speaker is implying that man is capable of the most vile or sinful of actions in order to satisfy his lust. So, whether a man acts on his lust or not, the lust will harm him greatly. In the second quatrain the speaker returns to the idea of the man who acts on his lust. Here, the speaker is largely discussing the consequences of such actions. As soon as the man has finished his lustful act, as soon as he is done having any sexual activity, the man will come to regret and despise his own actions. The speaker explains that the feelings of the man, both before and after the sexual act, are beyond or past "reason." The reader should remember that during the Renaissance many Christians believed that Reason was a gift from God that allowed people to control their Emotions (including lust). However, Shakespeare seems to be implying that on occasion an emotion such as lust can take control over a person's ability to reason. Shakespeare does not seem to agree that one's reason can always control one's emotion. The speaker comments that before a man acts on his lust, he will pursue (or hunt -- line 6) the object of his lust in an unreasonable way. But after he has acted on his lust, the man will hate the lust, and perhaps himself, beyond reason. Also in the second quatrain, the speaker uses the metaphor of a fish swallowing bait. The fish may think that the worm or other bait dangling at the end of the

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hook is the tastiest meal to be found. But once he finds the hook pulled in his jaw, he will realize what a big mistake he has made. But it will be too late. Similarly, the man who feels lust cannot help himself. He acts quickly and unthinkingly, but then it is too late. Unlike the fish, though, which loses its life, the man loses something even more valuable: his sanity. For, as the speaker relates, lust makes a man "mad." In the third quatrain the speaker develops the theme of madness as it relates to lust. Whether the man is seeking to satisfy his lust, is engaging in an act of lust, or has completed an act of lust, that man will be "mad" in an "extreme" way. Although the moment of sexual activity may bring pleasure ("a bliss in proof"), afterwards the man will feel bad or sad ("a very woe"). In other words, the sexual act itself does not satisfy the man. That action will only seem like "a dream" to him. It will not seem real. And, so, he will not be satisfied. In the closing lines of the poem, in the couplet, the speaker makes an astute observation about life. Although every man knows that lust is dangerous and that lust leads to madness, no man knows how to avoid (or "to shun") feeling lust. Anybody can become a victim to that emotion called lust. And even though one may enjoy the brief moment of sexual activity ("the heaven"), that person knows the pain and the suffering (the "hell") that will be the result of such activity. People know it is wrong. They know it is dangerous. But they do it anyway. With this poem the speaker appears to be establishing a distinct difference between his feeling for the Young Man -- a feeling of love -- and his feeling for the Dark Lady -- a feeling of lust. The distinction, the difference, is also the difference between spirit and

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earth, between the high and the low. Yet, at the same time, by bringing these two seemingly distinct emotions into the same sonnet cycle, Shakespeare appears to commenting about how the two are invariably linked together. We are both earth and spirit, and we feel both lust and love. "SONNET 130" One of the most highly regarded and popular poems in Shakespeare's sonnet cycle is "Sonnet 130." In this unusual poem Shakespeare argues against the convention of using similes of nature to describe the beauty of the lady. As mentioned on prior occasions, a convention of love poetry for many, many years was the use of similes. Writers creating love poems for their ladies would often compare their beauty to the beauty found in nature. Her eyes are as bright as the sun. Her lips are as red as roses. Even by the 1590's such similes had become cliches. They were just used too often. So, Shakespeare wrote "Sonnet 130" as a reaction against the use of similes in this fashion. Actually, Shakespeare accomplishes two purposes in this poem: (1) He mocks or ridicules the convention of using similes, and (2) he praises the beauty of the Dark Lady. The structure of this poem relies on the division between the three quatrains and the couplet. In the quatrains (lines 1-12) Shakespeare contrasts the beauty of nature to the Dark Lady (the first purpose), but in the couplet he praises her beauty (the second purpose). In the first quatrain Shakespeare begins by negating or by invalidating the most common of similes -- the comparison of a lady's eyes to the sun. Shakespeare is, in essence, saying let us be practical.

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Let us be real. No one's eyes are as bright as the sun. Such a comparison is an exaggeration. Such an exaggeration does not truly capture the beauty of the lady. Similarly, a lady's lips can never be as red as fine deep-red coral. Of course, the lady in this poem is the Dark Lady; so some of the standard or conventional similes would not apply in any case. A lady's skin is never actually as white as freshly fallen snow, but the Dark Lady's skin is the color of "dun," a very plain brown color. At this point, the reader might think that the speaker is criticizing the appearance of the Lady. Of course, this is not the case, as the rest of the poem will reveal. At the end of the quatrain Shakespeare ridicules the simile of comparing a lady's hair to fine silken strands (or "wires") of gold. Of course, the Dark Lady has black hair, so the speaker would have to then call her hair "black wires." Here the image is definitely an unattractive one. Of course, the point here is not to discredit the beauty of the lady. Instead, the point is to discredit the use of such a simile. A comparison of hair to fine golden wires is a foolish comparison, the poet seems to be saying. In the second quatrain the speaker discredits or mocks the comparison of a lady's skin color in her cheeks to red and white roses (in lines 5-6) and the comparison of a lady's breath to the smell of a flowery or fragrant perfume (in lines 7-8). The alert reader should note the use of the word "reeks" to describe the lady's breath. The word reeks does suggest an unpleasant or even bad odor. Shakespeare is providing some naturalism here. The poet is bringing the reader down to earth -- to reality. Two more similes complete the list in the third quatrain. Music is more pleasing than the voice of his

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lady, the speaker admits. And the speaker also adds that his lady walks solidly on the ground. She does not float above the air like a goddess. In the final lines, the couplet, however, the speaker praises her beauty. He claims that his lady is as beautiful and special or "rare" as any woman may be or as any object in nature may be. He does not need to falsely compare the lady to images in nature because such comparisons would be untrue. They would be lies. For the speaker, the beauty of his lady matches (or is equal to) the beauty of nature even though her beauty is of a much different kind. In the footnote, our editors suggest that the word "rare" can also mean extraordinary. The beauty of the lady is extraordinary. It is wonderful. For the speaker, the lady's beauty is enough. It does not need to be compared to anything else. A COMMENT ON "SONNET 135" During the Renaissance poets enjoyed playing with language and making use of the many different meanings of a single word. They would do this to create a complexity of meanings within a single line or two of poetry. Shakespeare employs the use of puns in "Sonnet 135" for a comic effect as the speaker begs the Dark Lady to accept him as a lover. In this poem the speaker puns on the word will, which can mean (1) desires or wishes; but it also quite frequently refers to (2) sexual desire. Of course, the word Will (with a capital W) is a nickname for William. The speaker is also called Will. However, even though Shakespeare uses a version of his own name for the speaker, such usage does not necessarily prove that the speaker is not a fictional

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character. In any event, by asking the lady to have her will, the speaker is asking her (1) to fulfill her wishes or dreams, (2) to be with him, and (3) to have sex with him. All three meanings are intended. The use of puns in sonnet cycles does not begin with Shakespeare. The reader may recall that in Astrophil and Stella by Sir Philip Sidney, the poet puns on the word rich (see Sonnet 37). Like the word will, this word was also a name. The real-life model for Stella, a woman named Penelope Devereux, was married to a man named Lord Robert Rich. "SONNET 138" For many reasons, lovers sometimes play games with one another. Such games may make the relationship more exciting. On other occasions, the games may help the lovers accept the faults in each other. Such a game is the topic in "Sonnet 138." In this particular case, the speaker and the Dark Lady tell deliberate lies to one another because the truth would affect the quality of their relationship. The truth would make them unhappy. In regards to the structure of this sonnet, the division comes between the octet and sestet. In the octet the speaker explains what the lies are, but in the sestet he explains why he and the Dark Lady pretend that the lies are true. In the first quatrain, the speaker presents a kind of paradox. He claims that he believes the Dark Lady even though he knows that she lies to him. How can a person believe something when that person knows it is a lie? It is a game. It is an act of imagination. The speaker and the Dark Lady play this game so that they

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can enjoy being with each other all the more. The word truth (in line 1) actually has two separate meanings here. First, the word refers to the truth accepted by the speaker when the Dark Lady lies to him. She tells the speaker that he is young ("some untutored youth") and innocent ("unlearned in subtleties") even though he is old and experienced. The speaker accepts the truth of the statement even though he is painfully aware that he is an older man. He enjoys the lie. Second, the word truth also suggests the idea of being true or faithful in a relationship. The Dark Lady swears that she is true to the speaker, and the speaker pretends to believe her. However, he knows it is really a lie. He knows that she has other lovers. But it is better to pretend that she does not. If he thinks about her other lovers, after all, it would only bring him grief and sorrow and perhaps drive him mad with jealousy. In the second quatrain we find that the Dark Lady is pretending as much as the speaker. She pretends that the speaker is young even though she knows that he is old, that his "days are past the best" (meaning his best days are past or over, line 6). Thus, both the speaker and the Dark Lady suppress or avoid the truth. In the first two lines of the sestet (lines 9-10), the speaker asks two questions: Why does the Dark Lady claim or pretend to be true or faithful? And why does the speaker claim or pretend to be young? In the next two lines the speaker then answers those questions. In answer to the first question, the speaker states that "seeming" or pretended trust is the best way to behave or act in a relationship ("love's best habit"). If one does not have trust -- or at least pretend to have trust -- the relationship would not go well. The couple would fight. In answer to the second question, the speaker asserts that

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older people do not like to be reminded or told that they are old. The speaker would rather not think about his age at all. At the end of the poem, in the couplet, the speaker concludes that, for the reasons he has given (in lines 9-12), he and the Dark Lady have decided to lie to one another. They have decided that this game they play is in their best interest. However, the speaker adds one more word in explanation: flattery. He explains that hiding their faults (his old age and her infidelity) with lies makes them both feel better. They are "flattered" in pretending that the lies are true. It is flattery. It is vanity. But it makes them happy. "SONNET 144" The two separate sections of the sonnet cycle, the sonnets on the Young Man and the sonnets on the Dark Lady, are united in "Sonnet 144." In this poem both the Young Man and the Dark Lady are the subjects. In this way, Shakespeare brings unity to his sonnet cycle. The plot of the sonnet cycle is also developed further in this poem, for the love triangle suddenly becomes more complex. Not only does the speaker love both the Young Man and the Dark Lady, but also the speaker now suggests that the Dark Lady is also having a relationship with the Young Man. For the structure of this poem, the poet makes use of the octet and sestet division. In the octet the speaker states the situation, but in the sestet he focuses more on his reaction to that situation. The use of contrasts also helps to lend structure to this sonnet. The following chart may be useful in discovering the poet's strategy in this regard:

The Renaissance THE YOUNG MAN Comfort (1) Better Angel (3) Right Fair (3) Saint (7) Purity (8) THE DARK LADY Despair (1) Worser Spirit (4) Colored Ill (4) Devil (7) Foul Pride (8)

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The poem also unites the two sections of the sonnet cycle thematically. The speaker states at the beginning of the first quatrain that he has "two loves." Of course, these two loves literally suggest the Young Man and the Dark Lady. But the words also suggest the two kinds of love that the speaker is experiencing: (1) spiritual love and (2) earthly love (or lust). In this sonnet, then, the poet is indirectly but thematically making a comment about the effects of these two kinds of love. Thus, the words that the speaker uses to describe the Young Man should also be considered as part of the poet's definition of spiritual love. Similarly, the words the speaker uses to describe the Dark Lady contribute to the poet's definition of earthly love. The Young Man (or spiritual love) brings the speaker "comfort." The speaker feels calm, peaceful, or serene with the Young Man. His soul is at rest. However, the Dark Lady (or earthly love) brings him "despair." The speaker becomes depressed, anxious, unreasonable, and perhaps even mad in her presence. His soul is troubled. The speaker refers to the Young Man and the Dark Lady as "two spirits" (in line 2) that affect him greatly and constantly. Like the Good Angel and the Bad Angel who spoke to Faustus (in the play by Christopher Marlowe), the two spirits here may represent the conscience (the impulse to do good) and the desire (the

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impulse to do evil) of the speaker. The Young Man then, is like an angel to the speaker. The Young Man inspires the speaker to be good or to perform acts of goodness. The Dark Lady, on the other hand, is like a devil. She inspires the speaker to commit acts of evil and to commit acts of sin. In the second quatrain the speaker states his belief that the Dark Lady is trying to persuade the Young Man to have a relationship with her. This, of course, drives the speaker mad ("to win me soon to hell"). The situation is a living hell for him. The speaker describes the Dark Lady as a powerful devil who is trying to tempt or seduce the most beautiful and innocent of angels (the Young Man) to an act of evil (to sleep with her). The speaker is not so much jealous as he is concerned for the safety of the Young Man. The speaker fears the effect that the Dark Lady will have on the Young Man. This is not a matter of sexuality. Earlier (beginning with "Sonnet 1") the speaker had urged the Young Man to have relationships with women so that he could have children. But the speaker does not want the Young man to have a relationship with the Dark Lady, specifically, because the speaker feels that she will corrupt him. Somehow, she will make him evil like herself. He will lose his "purity" and be contaminated or stained by her "foul pride." The speaker admits, in the third quatrain, that he is not sure whether the Dark Lady and the Young Man are actually having an affair. The speaker only does "suspect" that they might be having an affair because (1) he knows that they are friends to another and (2) he realizes that both of them are away from him at the same time. The speaker is only making a "guess." He does not know for certain. This brings up an

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interesting question. Does the speaker really have a good reason to suspect his "two loves"? Perhaps there were other indications or hints (left unsaid in this very short poem) that suggested the affair was taking place. Or also quite likely is the possibility that the speaker is allowing his imagination to run wild. This idea would not be contrary to the poet's thematic intentions. Once again, the poet may be attempting to show the negative emotions and the psychological effects of lust on a man. Perhaps the speaker's lust has caused him to lose his reason and imagine the worst. Perhaps the speaker has created this nightmare for himself. In the couplet, we find that the speaker realizes his own uncertainty. He states that until the Dark Lady drives the Young Man away, he (the speaker) will never know if the affair is taking place or not. And, unfortunately, the reader will never know either. The answer is never given in the sonnet cycle. "SONNET 146" Toward the end of the sonnet sequence on the Dark Lady, the poet focuses more on the idea of regret. This is very much like the sonnet cycle written by Francis Petrarch. The speaker regrets the waste of spirit spent in pursuit of his earthly desire. However, unlike the cycle by Petrarch, Shakespeare's sonnets do not deal with unrequited love. Rather, the speaker has been with the Dark Lady; the speaker has acted on his lust. However, such actions have harmed him more than made him feel good. And, so, he regrets ever having been with the Dark Lady at all. In "Sonnet 146" the poet examines the two parts that make up (according to Christians) all human beings:

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the body and the soul. Structurally, the poem can be divided between the octet and the sestet. In the octet the speaker examines the value of the body, but in the sestet he recognizes the worth of the soul. This sonnet, then, does not deal with the Dark Lady directly. But since we know that the speaker has given his body to the Dark Lady, that he has used his body to satisfy his lust for this woman, his comments about the body then are a direct result or consequence of his relationship with her. In the very first line of the poem (in the first quatrain) the poet describes his body as earth. This metaphor suggests the low value that the body has. It is as common as dirt. Of course, the body is also "sinful." As we know, the speaker has given in to the temptation of lust. However, at the center of the body resides the soul. The speaker describes the soul as the "lord" or commander of all emotions. But the emotions are "rebel powers" because they cause a person to rebel or act against goodness. They bring harm to the soul. Yet, at the same time, the soul (personified) provides the emotions (also personified) with fine and elegant military uniforms (or "array"). By this Shakespeare means that the soul is somehow the seat or center of our emotions. Our emotions come from our soul. This is a paradox. If our emotions come from our soul, then how can our emotions be harmful to our souls? At the end of this quatrain, the speaker asks this very question. Why does the soul create such powerful emotions within us (line 4) when those same emotions cause the soul to suffer and become weak (line 3)? This is a large and, of course, inexplicable (or unexplainable) philosophical question. In short, Shakespeare is asking this: why does a man act in a way that is harmful to himself?

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Related questions are asked in the second quatrain. The speakers uses the metaphor of the "fading mansion" (an old, large house that is falling apart) to describe the body because the body houses or contains the soul. However, the body is fading. It will eventually die. So, the speaker asks the soul this: Why is it spending so much money on a house that will fall apart? In other words, why is the soul pouring out so many emotions on the body when the body will soon die? The body, the speaker's next question implies, is nothing but food for the worms. So, the speaker cannot see the sense in allowing the body to become so full of harmful emotion. Although the speaker does not bring in the idea of God in his poem, the question could be addressed to God. Why does God allow man to experience such sinful emotions for the short period of time that he is on the earth? In the sestet the speaker vows to work on the soul's behalf at the expense of his body's enjoyment. To put it more simply, the speaker vows to give up sex so that he can make his soul stronger. In the first line of the third quatrain (line 9), the speaker refers to the body (in another metaphor) as the "servant" to the soul. The "servant's loss" is the loss of physical or emotional pleasure (sex) so that the soul will thrive or grow stronger. In the following line the pronoun that also refers to the body. Let the body "pine" or be sad, the speaker adds, so that the soul's "store" of goodness becomes larger. A reader might recall the book of Good Deeds that stored or recorded all of the good deeds committed by Everyman in the medieval play entitled Everyman. Thus, the speaker plans to experience hours of boredom or inactivity ("dross") so that his soul shall become more holy or good or "divine." The speaker

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will enrich his soul ("within") but will deprive his body ("without"). Simply put, the speaker will give up sex. In the couplet at the end of this sonnet, the speaker concludes that the soul will become stronger upon his death -- the death that takes (or "feeds on") all men. And once he is dead, the speaker will no longer have to worry about death. The ending of this poem is somewhat odd and problematical. The speaker seems to be implying that by giving up his emotions, by denying himself the activity associated with those emotions (namely sex), then all he has to look forward to is death. The couplet might also be implying that by giving up such earthly pleasure, the speaker is experiencing a kind of death anyway. In the following poem, we discover that the speaker has not been so successful in putting his emotions to rest. He still craves earthly love. "SONNET 147" Despite his plan to give up sex and to enrich or feed his soul (as he declares in "Sonnet 146"), the speaker finds that giving up earthly desire is not so easy. Perhaps it is even impossible. In "Sonnet 147" the speaker admits that the lust within him is stronger than his soul. In "Sonnet 146" the speaker describes his internal conflict and the anguish that he feels within himself in terms of body and soul. In "Sonnet 147" the speaker once again suggests that the conflict within him is caused by the dual or twopart nature of man, but in this poem the two parts are referred to as Reason and Desire (or Emotion). Although the terms are different, they are related.

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According to Christianity at that time, the soul was the center or source of Reason, but desire is a condition of the body. The reader may also find it helpful to view the structure of this poem in terms of the octet and sestet. In the octet the speaker explains how Desire is in not only in conflict with Reason but how Desire also appears to have defeated Reason. In the sestet the speaker then explains his state or condition now that his Reason is gone. The sonnet begins with a simile. The speaker compares his love (that is, his earthly love or lust for the Dark Lady) to a fever (or to a disease that causes a fever) in the first quatrain. It is an appropriate simile. The heat of a fever is like the heat of passion, and such heat makes the sufferer burn and suffer. However, unlike a typical disease, the patient (the speaker) in this case desires or wants the very germ or microorganism that causes or worsens ("nurses") his disease. In other words, he wants sex. But having sex only increases his lust, his desire. It only makes him worse. The metaphor is continued or extended in the second quatrain. Reason is personified as a physician or doctor who walks out on his patient because the patient refuses to listen to or accept the doctor's help. To put it another way, the speaker refuses to listen to reason. So, the speaker then believes that the only possible cure to his condition, the only remedy that will bring an end to his desire, is death. His doctor (his reason), though, did not see death as an acceptable alternative (line 8). Thus, Shakespeare may be suggesting that death is not a reasonable or acceptable way to escape or avoid desire.

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Some time has apparently passed for the patient as the reader begins the third quatrain. The patient or speaker is no longer thinking about death. The speaker just does not care. He no longer believes that he can find any cure for his disease. He no longer thinks that he can control his desire. Since his reason has left, the speaker is now mad. He cannot sleep at night (line 10) because his thoughts are always on his lust. He adds that both his thoughts and his speech (or "discourse") are those belonging to a madman. They do not make sense, and they do not express the "truth" (line 12). In the final two lines of the poem, the couplet, the speaker becomes more specific as to which statements are untruthful and which thoughts are lies. The speaker exclaims that he has thought and said that the Dark Lady is beautiful ("fair") and, perhaps, virtuous (suggested by the word "bright"). However, he knows that she is neither fair nor bright. Not only does she have dark features, but also (although she may be beautiful in appearance) she is not beautiful on the inside. She is not virtuous. She is not good. The simile the speaker uses to describe her coloring ("black as hell") more accurately depicts the condition of the speaker, who is in a living hell. Shakespeare's commentary on lust in the Dark Lady sonnets provides no solutions. Shakespeare seems to be commenting that no solutions exist.

LECTURE 24
THE SECULAR POETRY OF JOHN DONNE BIOGRAPHICAL BACKGROUND John Donne was born in 1572. That makes him only eight years younger than William Shakespeare. However, in the poetry by Donne and those who came after him, a new direction in Renaissance poetry becomes apparent. Sidney, Spenser, and Shakespeare (for the sake of simple categorization) could be labeled as Elizabethan poets. But Donne and many of the later poets (such as Richard Crashaw) belong to this new category of writers commonly referred to as the Metaphysical poets. Donne was born into a Catholic family at a time in England when great prejudice and hatred against Catholics were evident. So, Donne's early years were difficult ones. Yet, despite the obstacles he had to face, Donne attended (but never graduated from) the top universities and colleges in England: Oxford University, Cambridge University, and Lincoln's Inn (law school). At some point during the 1590's Donne gave up being a Catholic. He did not necessarily like the Church of England. But he knew that in order to find suitable employment, he could not remain a Catholic in London. In 1598 Donne became a secretary (meaning, at this time, an administrative position) to an English lord in the London court. This was not an easy position to obtain, and Donne's life could have been quite comfortable had he been able to keep this employment. However, in 1601, Donne secretly married the daughter

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of this English lord. When the lord finally did hear about the marriage, he was outraged. Donne lost his position. His career was ruined. Despite this problem, however, Donne and his wife remained faithfully married (until her death in 1617). The next fourteen years (following 1601) were ones of hardship and financial struggle for Donne and his family. Finally, in 1615, Donne decided to become an Anglican priest. Donne was a deeply religious man, but his choice in this regard was probably due more to financial reasons than to anything else. Yet, despite his reasons for becoming a priest, Donne was quite successful at it. He became known as a great preacher and as a writer of great sermons. His successes led to a promotion: in 1621 he became the Dean of St. Paul's Cathedral. His choice to work for the Church of England proved to be a wise one. All of his life Donne had been writing poetry. Yet none of it was published during his lifetime. Donne died in 1631. His poetry did not appear in print until 1633. Donne's poetry can be clearly divided into two distinct categories: secular and religious: 1) Secular Poetry -- often bawdy or cynical. Includes verses to his mistresses. 2) Religious Poetry -- eloquent poems of devotion and repentance. Some critics wonder how someone like Donne could have written such distinctly different kinds of poems. His secular poetry could be full of sexual imagery or implication. Some people might even call them immoral. Yet, there is not much mystery here. As a

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young man, Donne enjoyed a certain amount of freedom of thought and liberal thinking. As he grew older, he became more devout. As suggested earlier, Donne's poetry is significantly different from the Elizabethan poets of an earlier generation. Elizabethan poetry is often described as flowery or ornate. It is decorative and artistic. Donne's poetry, on the other hand, is usually described with adjectives like dramatic and intellectual. The imagery is sharp and direct. It is far less likely to contain images of goddesses and nymphs. One point that Donne does have in common with Shakespeare, though, is that Donne liked to satirize the cliches of love poetry. As noted in a previous lecture, Shakespeare, for example, satirized the convention of using similes to nature in his famous poem "Sonnet 130." As the reader will discover, Donne also made fun of such conventions in his own poetry. THE METAPHYSICAL SCHOOL The expression Metaphysical School is a term invented sometime after the Renaissance for the writing of John Donne and his contemporaries (such as Richard Crashaw, George Herbert, and Henry Vaughan, all of whom appear in The Norton Anthology). It is not an actual school. Rather, the term suggests a similarity of style and thought as if these writers were trained in a similar manner. Some of the adjectives used to describe the poetry of the metaphysical writers are (1) intellectual, (2) analytical, (3) psychological, (4) bold, and (5) disillusioning. The writers tend to focus on the complexities and contradictions of life, and the most common topics of their poetry are (1) death, (2) physical

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love, and (3) religious devotion. All three of these topics are certainly examined in the poetry by John Donne. The one most notable stylistic feature of these poets is the Metaphysical Conceit. The word conceit here does not mean vanity or excessive pride (as it does in modern usage). Rather, the word has a meaning similar to concept or idea. But in the case of this poetry, it actually means metaphor. The metaphysical conceit is a thoughtful and carefully constructed metaphor used for the purpose of humor or creating a dramatic effect. Some of the adjectives frequently used to describe metaphysical conceits are (1) ingenious, (2) witty, (3) elaborate, or (4) shocking. The reader will find such conceits or metaphors in poems like "The Flea" or "A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning." "THE GOOD-MORROW" Many of Donne's poems deal with love and the relationships between men and women. Often, the relationships are negative ones; and the speaker, a man, expresses misogynist views (a hatred of women). Other poems, though, are quite positive and sincere about love. "The Good-Morrow" belongs to this latter category. The word morrow means morning or day, and here the good morning or the good day is a metaphor (or conceit) for the moment that the speaker and his lady first met. That day, for the speaker, marks the moment when time began or when his life began. All other moments before that day do not really seem to exist to him. The poem is divided into three stanzas. In the first stanza the speaker begins by asking a question. He

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wonders what he and his lady did with their lives before they fell in love. The speaker adds the expression "by my troth" (which means truly) to the question. He truly and sincerely feels that his life had no meaning before he met his lady. The speaker follows the first question with two additional questions. In the second question (lines 2-3), the speaker suggests that before they fell in love, they were like children who were not weaned. The word wean indicates the time when an infant stops drinking the milk from his mother's breasts. Here the poet is suggesting that during all of that time before they met, they were like infants or babies. They had not really grown up yet. The metaphor becomes extended or more elaborate within this question as well. The reader should note that this addition or extension of the metaphor is a quality of the metaphysical conceit. Just as a baby sucks on its mother's breasts for milk, the poet suggests that he and his lady "sucked on country pleasures" before the time that they met. The expression ("country pleasures") suggests rural, simple, and innocent activities. It suggests a time of play, a time of inexperience. There was no real, deep-felt experience in their lives until they met each other. The metaphor becomes altered with the third question. As related in the footnote of our text, there is an old Christian legend or story about seven young people who hid in a cave because they were being persecuted or treated badly because of their religious belief. The seven people fell asleep and did not wake up until 187 years had passed. When they finally did wake up, they found that their land had become a Christian one. And, so, they were allowed to worship the Christian God without any more fear of persecution.

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The speaker compares the time before he met his lady to the 187 years of sleep that the seven young people experienced. The metaphor not only suggests that the time before the speaker met his lady was a long one of sleep (and inactivity). It also suggests that his meeting with the lady is like awaking into a glorious age of freedom. The age is a marvelous one in which light shines where there was darkness before. That is, he has moved from a sad time to a happy one. The metaphor becomes extended yet again at the end of the first stanza. The speaker adds that any "pleasures" that he experienced before he met his lady were "fancies" (line 5). The word (fancies) means products of the imagination. All of his earlier pleasures existed only in his head. They were not real. They were like dreams. The speaker even uses the word dream at the end of the stanza. But he extends the metaphor yet again by suggesting that the pleasures he experienced earlier and the beauties that he saw earlier were actually dreams of his lady. Somehow he was mystically receiving visions of the glorious woman whom he would meet in the future. A chart may clarify or simplify the strategy that the poet uses in this first stanza:

The Renaissance BEFORE THE SPEAKER MET THE LADY Night Children, Babies Innocent, Childish Pleasures Long Sleep Pagan Time Persecution Dreams of Pleasure Dreams of Beauty

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AFTER THE SPEAKER MET THE LADY Morning Adults Experienced, Grown-Up Pleasures Awake Christian Time Freedom Real Pleasure Real Beauty

The first stanza focuses primarily on the past, but the second stanza focuses on the present (note the word "now"). The poet continues to extend his metaphor by suggesting that the good morning is the moment when their souls awakened. Thus, the poet places their love on a spiritual or higher level. Another metaphor is introduced in this stanza. The speaker comments that "one little room" (line 11) where he and his lady can be together will be like an entire world to them. They do not need anything else or anybody else. As long as they are together, they are satisfied. They are complete. The speaker adds that discoverers or explorers can go off and discover new worlds -- the reader should remember that the exploration of North and South America was at its height during this time, and these continents were referred to as new worlds. The speaker adds the explorers can unlock the mysteries of these new worlds by making their maps. But the speaker is content in exploring his own world, and his metaphor becomes altered again as he suggests that he is a separate world ("each ... is one") and his lady is a

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separate world. So, as they get to know each other, they will both be exploring new worlds. In the third and final stanza, the speaker discusses the strength of their relationship, a relationship that will continue throughout all future time. In terms of structure, then, the three stanzas represent three different periods of time: past, present, and future. However, the extension of the metaphors from one stanza to the next also provides structure to the poem. The metaphor about the world extends into the third stanza. The speaker now turns to their eyes, his and those of his lady. As he stares into his lady's eyes, he sees his own reflection; and she sees her reflection in his eyes. The poet then describes the eyes as "hemispheres" -- the shape of each eye forms half a globe or half a world. Because his reflection appears in her eyes and her reflection appears in his, they have become a part of each other's world. Their two worlds have joined. Their two worlds have become one. The metaphor of their two lives as joining worlds -- and their two loves becoming one -- continues at the end of the stanza but is extended with a philosophical metaphor. In medieval and Renaissance philosophy, there was the belief that solid objects, or physical objects (including the human body), were imperfect and capable of decay or destruction because the elements that made up these objects were imperfectly mixed. The decay of the human body, they believed, was like the corrosion of a metal object. The elements of the both the human body and the metallic are improperly mixed together. Spiritual material on the other hand -- the stuff that angels and Heaven are made of -- do contain the proper balance of elements. They are perfectly mixed

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and, therefore, will last forever. The mixture of the two worlds or (to be more precise) the mixture of the man and this lady in love is a perfect mix, according to the speaker. Therefore, their love will last forever. Their love will never die. "The Good-Morrow," then, defines what true love is. It examines and explores the nature of a love that is both physical and spiritual. "SONG" On occasion Donne could be quite cynical about love, as he is in "Song." In this poem Donne criticizes the most important virtue of a lady: her fidelity. Like the earlier poem, this one has three stanzas. In the first stanza the speaker asks his listener to try and do one of the following seven impossible tasks: 1) To catch a falling star -- a comet, also known as a shooting star 2) To become pregnant ("get with child") from a mandrake root -- a mandrake is a plant whose root resembles the arms, legs, and trunk of a human being. Because of that resemblance, people during the Middle Ages believed that it had special or magical properties. Some people even believed that the mandrake root was an aphrodisiac, a kind of love potion. Of course, since the mandrake root is not human, it could not by itself make a woman pregnant. 3) To tell where all of the past years have gone

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The Renaissance 4) To say who put the cleft in the devil's foot -according to superstition, the devil has hooves (the plural of hoof), like a horse or deer, instead of feet. A cleft is the indentation or space inside a hoof. 5) To teach the speaker to hear the song of mermaids -- mermaids are mythological creatures: half-woman and half-fish. Here, the mermaids are the same as the sirens in Greek mythology. In The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus has the men on his ship plug up their ears so that they cannot hear the song of the sirens. The song was irresistible, and men would often steer their ships into the rocks in order to get closer to the sirens. The reader should note that this particular impossible task also contributes to the poem's theme regarding the dangers of women. 6) To keep off the pain ("sting") that envy brings -- this task may also hint at the feelings of the speaker. Perhaps he is envious that a particular lady has left him for another man. 7) To find a force ("wind") that would advance or reward someone with an "honest mind" -here honest is used in terms of a relationship between a man and a woman. Thus, honest means faithful -- being true to the man or woman one loves. Here the speaker is suggesting that honesty or fidelity in a relationship does not pay off. The honest or true lover does not advance. He gets no reward. He just gets hurt in the relationship.

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The idea of impossible tasks is continued in the second stanza. The speaker tells his listener that if he can do such impossible tasks or if he is capable of seeing strange or invisible things (meaning spirits or ghosts), then the speaker has an equally difficult or impossible task for him to try. The speaker tells his listener to ride, to travel, for 10,000 days (which would be for more than 27 years) to see if he can find a woman who is both true and fair (or both virtuous and beautiful). In other words, the speaker is telling his listener that if he were to travel the world for all the years of his life, until his hair has turned gray or white, he would never find a woman who is faithful or true. Such a task, the speaker is saying, would be impossible. There is no such thing as a faithful woman. At the beginning of the third stanza the speaker seems to suggest that there is a very slight possibility that he could be wrong. Maybe somewhere in the world there is "one" woman who is faithful. The speaker then tells his listener that if he should find that one, the speaker would like to know about it. The speaker says that a journey to see such a one would be a pleasant (or "sweet") "pilgrimage" (line 20). A pilgrimage, the student should remember, is a journey made for religious purposes. Thus, the speaker is implying that a journey to visit the one virtuous lady in the world would be like taking a trip to visit the shrine (or holy place) of a saint. Or, to put it more simply, a faithful lady should be worshipped. Midway through this last stanza, though, the speaker changes his mind. His tells his listener that, on second thought, he would rather not hear about this one virtuous lady. The speaker then explains his reason. He says that even if that one lady was virtuous at the time

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when the listener met her, by the time that the speaker arrived at her place, even if she only lived next door to him, she would be false "to two, or three." In other words, she would have had affairs with two or three men by the time that the speaker saw her. What the speaker is actually saying here is that there are no virtuous women. Such creatures do not exist. Whatever fidelity one may find in a woman is a quality that will not last. In this comic poem, the reader may easily guess what has happened to the speaker. Obviously, the woman he adored was untrue to him. And so, in his sorrow, he blames all women. Thus, we have a poem about misogyny -- the hatred of women. "THE INDIFFERENT" "The Indifferent" is another comic poem that also deals with the subject of infidelity. In this poem, though, the man is the one who is unfaithful. Donne, then, through these two poems -- "Song" and "The Indifferent" -- suggests, although humorously, that infidelity is a common flaw of both men and women. The reader should also note that these comic poems are simpler than many other poems by Donne. The two poems do not contain the extended metaphors or the metaphysical conceits that exist elsewhere in Donne's poetry. "The Indifferent," in regards to its structure, contains three stanzas. In the first stanza, the speaker, a male, declares his aversion or dislike of fidelity. In the second stanza, a dialogue exists. Actually, the dialogue is more like a debate. In the first part of this second stanza, a different speaker -- a woman -- argues for fidelity. But in the remaining lines, the speaker defends

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his position. Finally, in the third stanza, Venus, the Roman goddess of Love, comes down to earth to investigate the occurrence of fidelity on earth. In the first stanza, the speaker begins by declaring that he can love a variety of women and that he can accept in her almost any quality that she possesses. He can love blondes or brunettes (line 1), rich women or poor women (line 2), solitary women or sociable women (line 3), country women or city women (line 4), and so forth and so on. The speaker states that he can love women with just about any quality except one: she should "be not true" (line 9). She should not be faithful. She should not be constant in her love. The speaker actually prefers women who are unfaithful, women who have more than one lover. Obviously, this speaker is much different from the one in "Song." But he explains his reason for wanting an unfaithful woman in the following stanza. The debate begins in the second stanza. The first four lines appear to be spoken by a woman, who is asking questions of the man. The first question she asks is this: "Will no other vice content you?" (line 10). The word vice means fault (or a negative characteristic), and content means satisfy. The woman, then, is asking the speaker if he cannot find some other fault to satisfy him. Why does he choose infidelity as the fault or vice that will make him feel content or satisfied? Of course, the woman is implying that the man wants infidelity in a woman because he is unfaithful himself. He does not want to have a relationship with only one woman. The woman then asks three more questions that (even though they are questions) criticize the man's preference for infidelity. (1) She begins by suggesting that since his mother was faithful, he should also be faithful. (2) Then

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she suggests that he has become unfaithful because he has tried all other vices or faults and now wants to try infidelity. (3) Finally, she suggests that men are really capable of being faithful but that idea bothers the speaker. The three questions rely on different strategies. (1) The first of these relies on an emotional appeal to family and motherhood. Be good, the woman seems to be saying, for the sake of your mother. (2) The second question criticizes the character of the man. You just like being bad, she seems to be telling him. (3) With the third question the woman seems to be questioning the manhood of the speaker. A real man is true, she is saying, even though you are not. Of course, as the reader will discover through the following lines, the woman desires a relationship with the man, a relationship that would, of course, include fidelity. The remaining five lines of the second stanza are the speaker's response. The speaker asserts that all men ("we") are not true, and the woman should not be true either. He then adds that she should let him take on twenty other lovers, and she can do the same (line 15). He even states that he would rather be robbed rather than be trapped (or bound) in a relationship (line 16). At the end of the stanza, the word travail (in line 17) suggests sorrow or, perhaps some complication or problem in their relationship. The speaker, then, is asking the woman why should he be true just because she is true, especially since there is a problem in their relationship. Perhaps fidelity is the problem. The speaker finds that being with this one woman only will bring him grief. Divine intervention (or help from the gods) seems to be the only solution to the speaker's problem. In the third stanza of the poem, the speaker suggests

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that Venus, the Roman goddess of love, heard about his debate concerning fidelity and came to investigate. Venus, in this poem, does not believe in fidelity. She asserts that the "sweetest part" of love is "variety" (line 20). This means having more than one partner. It means having many lovers. The pronoun this (in line 21) refers to fidelity. Venus vows to put an end to the idea of fidelity. In her search on earth, though, Venus finds only two or three people who believe in fidelity or "constancy" (line 25). Of course, these people are "heretics" (people who do not follow the accepted religion of a place) because they act against the goddess of Love. Venus teaches variety, but they practice constancy. The goddess does not punish these heretics, though. She only warns them. She tells them that even though they are true or faithful, their lovers will not be. The end of the poem (which establishes the speaker's point of view) implies that people who believe in and practice fidelity are fools. Like the poem "Song," this poem indicates that fidelity is a rare and almost non-existent quality. But unlike that earlier poem (where the speaker criticizes infidelity in women), the speaker in "The Indifferent" criticizes the very nature of fidelity. The speaker is a man who is arguing that infidelity or inconstancy is a natural and common condition of life. The poem is a statement by a man who does not wish to remain faithful to the woman he is seeing. "AIR AND ANGELS" A more serious approach to relationships and love occurs in the poem "Air and Angels." In this poem Donne speaks not about earthly love, but about spiritual

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love. The poem, in a sense, tries to define or describe the nature of this spiritual love. Of course, since such abstract or spiritual ideas cannot be described directly in earthly language, Donne must rely on metaphor to convey his thoughts and feelings on the subject. The reader may recall how in "The GoodMorrow" the speaker suggested that all pleasures and all sights of beauty that he had experienced before he met his lady were actually dreams of that lady. A similar idea is introduced in the first stanza of "Air and Angels." Here the speaker asserts that his love for his lady existed before he even met her. Sometimes the speaker might have heard a "voice" that moved him spiritually. Or the sight of a quivering flicker of a "flame" may have caused him to feel a deep emotion within himself. He uses the word angels (in line 4) to suggest that some spiritual or supernatural force is at work that allowed him to experience love before he even knew the source of that love. He is suggesting that there was some power of her soul that supernaturally affected his own soul. There were the stirrings or feelings of love within him for her despite the fact that they had never made contact. When the speaker finally did meet his lady, he did not feel attracted to her body. Rather, his attraction was for "some lovely glorious nothing" (line 6). He uses the word nothing here because what he loves is not physical. It cannot be seen. He is talking about the soul. In the second part of the first stanza (beginning with line 7), the speaker explains the relationship between the soul, love, and the body. First, the speaker uses the metaphor of a parent and child to explain the relationship between the soul and love.

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Love springs from the soul. Love is created out of the soul. The speaker then explains that since the soul must have a human body in order to exist on earth, then love must also have a human body or shape. Love (the child) should not be more crafty or sly (or "subtle") than the Soul (the parent) is. The child cannot be essentially different from the parent. If the parent has a body, the child must also have a body. And the body that the speaker's love has taken is that of his lady: SOUL | LOVE --In Speaker's Body In Lady's Body

Through this metaphor (or metaphysical conceit), then the speaker is declaring that a relationship exists and has always existed between him (his soul) and the lady (his love). The love that he has for her is born out of his own soul. In the second stanza the speaker uses a "pinnace" (a small sailing boat) as a metaphor to describe the extent or degree of his love. The word ballast (in line 14) refers to weight or heavy cargo (objects to be shipped) that are placed inside a ship so that it will sail steadily. The metaphor is used to describe the physical beauty of the lady. The word wares literally refers to objects that are being moved or transported by the ship, but here they symbolize the physical features of the lady. The "pinnace" or boat itself is her body (and his love). The lady is so beautiful

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that the speaker sinks or faints in admiration. But a boat with too many wares, with too much weight, might literally sink. The speaker is thus implying that the body of his lady, his love, is too beautiful. The speaker then adds that his love should take on a different ("some fitter") form because love should not be based on physical attraction. Love must have some form. One cannot love "nothing." But one cannot love objects, like "scatt'ring bright" diamonds or the beautiful body of a woman. Love is spiritual, not physical. In the remaining lines of the second stanza (beginning with line 23), the speaker extends his metaphor to include a Christian belief about the material that angels are made from. According to this belief, the body of an angel is made from a spiritual material that is lighter or finer than air. This spiritual material is invisible. Humans cannot see it. So, when angels come down to earth, they take on a new body made out of air so that human beings can see them. The spiritual material that angels are made from is perfect. It is pure. The body of air that they put on when they come to earth is fine and light, but it is not perfect. It is not pure. The speaker compares the body or form that his love should take to that of the body of air that an angel might put on. The speaker is saying that what he loves does have form. It does exist. But it is not like anything solid on earth. The speaker makes a distinction or difference (or "disparity") between the love of man and the love of woman with this metaphor (extending the metaphysical conceit from the first stanza).

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SPIRITUAL MATERIAL OF AN ANGEL = SOUL = MAN'S LOVE BODY OF AIR THAT AN ANGEL ASSUMES = LOVE = WOMAN'S LOVE

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Just as the spiritual material of the angel is fine and perfect and pure, so too is the soul. The speaker argues that a man's love is also perfect and pure. When the angel comes down to earth, it is still wonderful and light; but it is not so perfect and pure any longer. The speaker is suggesting that spiritual love -- and the love of a woman -- is also wonderful, but not completely pure or perfect. Through this metaphysical conceit Donne argues that the true love of both a man and a woman extends beyond the physical or earthly. It is spiritual in nature. However, Donne also argues that man's love is higher than that of a woman. But more importantly, Donne draws a connection between the soul and love that is not only spiritual, but also eternal and marvelous. "BREAK OF DAY" A reader should note the difference between an alba and an aubade in order to label or categorize the poem "Break of Day." Both the alba and the aubade are poems (or songs) that concern two lovers parting at sunrise or dawn. And both the alba and aubade are common French forms of poetry: however, the aubade is usually considered more generally French. The alba, on the other hand, is more specifically attributed to the region of Provencal. More importantly, the aubade contains a joyous or happy tone, but the alba is usually sad and tearful. "The Break of Day," then, is an alba

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(and not an aubade as the Norton editors note). A more popular alba that many modern readers are familiar with appears in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet (Act III, Scene 5: lines 1-36). In this scene Juliet pleads with Romeo not to leave her room so quickly, but Romeo fears Juliet's family and must get away before they find him. It is a sad parting. In Donne's "Break of Day" at least one of the two lovers is upset at the parting as the day breaks (or as the sun rises). In this case, the woman is the one who is upset. This poem is also rather unusual for Donne in that the speaker of the poem is female. In all of the other poems discussed so far, the speaker has been male. This poem contains three stanzas of six lines each. The rhyme scheme, aabbcc, gives it a simple song-like quality. It is not, therefore, one of Donne's more serious poems. In the first stanza the speaker, a female, asks her lover why he is leaving her. The sun has risen, and he is getting ready to go. The speaker suggests, in the form of questions, that it was not the darkness or the night that brought them together and caused them to sleep with one another. So, she asks, why should the daylight make them separate? The sunlight should not force them to leave one another. She concludes that since love was the force that brought them together, it should also be the same force that keeps them together. Obviously, she does not want him to go away. The speaker continues her argument, her plea for her lover to stay, in the second stanza. Here she personifies Light, or the Sun, to help her present her argument. The Sun is like a giant eye in the sky. It can look or "spy" down upon people, but it cannot speak. The Sun, though, is the witness or observer of love

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through the ages. The speaker states that if the sun could speak, it would say that it would gladly ("fain" in line 10) stay. The pronouns in the last line might be a little confusing. The pronoun "him" refers to the male lover, and the pronoun "them" refers to "heart and honor" from the line above. The speaker is suggesting, then, that the Light, as a female, would be saying this: I would not stay away from the man who has my heart and my honor. I would not stay away from the man I love. The speaker is arguing that if the man loves her and honors her, he would not be in such a hurry to leave her. The reason for the man's departure is given in the third stanza. He has to go to work. He has "business" to attend to. The speaker does not like that reason. She uses a metaphor here: she describes business as the "worst disease of love" (in line 14). In other words, work can destroy a relationship. Donne is not predicting the fault of the modern workaholic here. Rather, he is providing the viewpoint of someone who is in love. For the hopeless lover, nothing else matters except being with the one he or she loves. In the following lines the speaker exaggerates the situation -- which adds to the humor of the poem. She states that she can accept a "poor" man, an ugly (or "foul") man, and even a "false" (or unfaithful) man. But she cannot accept a man who is always involved in business. The reader should question whether the speaker would really want an ugly or unfaithful lover. Obviously, she probably would not. The exaggeration continues in the final lines of the poem. The speaker compares a male lover who goes away on business to a married man who goes away to have an affair. If she were married, she would probably never make such a statement.

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Donne is having fun in this poem. He is not serious here. However, he is capturing fairly accurately the kind of irrational statements a person might make when that person is in love.

LECTURE 25
JOHN DONNE: SECULAR AND RELIGIOUS POEMS SEDUCTION: "THE FLEA" One of Donne's most famous comic poems is "The Flea." In this poem, which also depends upon the metaphysical conceit as the major figurative device, Donne tells a definite story. The speaker of the poem, a male, is trying to convince the lady he adores that she should sleep with him. However, she is not willing to do so. Therefore, the man continues with pleas and arguments throughout the poem in order to get her to change her mind. There is a third character in the poem: a flea. A flea is one of those troublesome insects that usually attaches itself to a cat or dog and survives by biting the animal and drinking its blood. In this poem the flea, which first lands on the man and bites him, becomes the metaphor, the metaphysical conceit, to represent the relationship between the speaker and the lady. The poem is divided into three stanzas, and each stanza begins with three rhyming couplets -- often a feature of comic poems -- and ends with three additional rhymed lines. Thus the rhyme scheme for each stanza is this: aabbccddd. In the first stanza, the speaker draws the lady's attention to the flea, which first landed on the man and drank (or "sucked") his blood and then landed on the lady and did the same to her. The speaker subtly refers to intercourse, the sexual act between the two of them, as "that which thou deniest me" because the lady is

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denying him, saying "no" to him. But the man argues that such an act is not a big matter ("how little"). In other words, he is saying that she should not refuse him such a little or small request. Intercourse, the sexual act, he argues, is simply an exchange of bodily fluids. And if that is all that it is, then such an act has already occurred between them. The speaker explains that the flea, which first drank his blood and then drank hers, now contains the blood of both of them. Their blood is mixed together inside the flea. The flea, at this point in the poem, thus represents the sexual act. The speaker furthers his argument in the second part of the first stanza. He argues that the mixture of their blood inside the flea is not a "sin." No one can blame them or accuse them because of what the flea has done. The speaker adds that the flea's action also does not bring "shame" to the lady, and certainly nobody would claim that the lady has lost her "maidenhead" (her virginity or chastity) because of the flea's action. The speaker is suggesting that since the lady does not lose her virtue by the mixing of their blood in the flea, she would also not be losing her virtue by having intercourse with him. The speaker's arguments do not stop there. He continues to argue, and the metaphor becomes extended further. The speaker adds that the flea did not even bother to "woo" the lady, to speak any words of love to her. In addition, the flea has now become swollen ("swells"), has become bigger, because it has drunk their blood. Such swelling by a mixture of one "blood" with another suggests pregnancy, the swelling of the woman's womb as a child grows inside her. The flea, the way the speaker describes it, has had intercourse and is now pregnant. But that is acceptable: it is not a sin. It is not

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a loss of virtue. At the end of the first stanza the speaker then concludes the first part of his argument by stating that this little creature, this flea, has done something "more" than the man and lady have done. The speaker is suggesting that the flea should not be the only one to enjoy the pleasure of such an act. Despite all of his clever arguments, the lady does not seem to agree with the speaker. As the story progresses into the second stanza, the lady raises her hand as if she is about to hit and kill the flea. The speaker tells her to stop ("stay") because, by killing the flea, she would be killing three lives: his life, her life, and the flea's life. The reader should remember that blood is a symbol of life. And since the flea contains her blood and the speaker's blood, it also contains their lives. The speaker and the lady are, in a sense, joined together inside the flea. And the speaker suggests that being joined together so completely is just like being married. In fact, he adds, such joining brings them together even more closely than marriage. The flea, then, now becomes a symbol for two different objects: 1. The flea symbolizes the "marriage bed" (line 13) because within the flea the speaker and the lady have mixed their bodily fluids. 2. The flea symbolizes the "marriage temple" (or church) because within the flea the speaker and the lady were joined together just as husband and wife are joined together inside a church. So, the speaker continues, even though her parents and his parents may not approve or deny ("grudge") them from getting together, and even though she may also

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refuse to sleep with him, he says that it is too late: "we are met" (line 14). The wedding has already occurred. The two of them are "cloistered" (secluded or hidden) inside the flea (which has "living walls of jet" -- the word jet refers to the color black). The word cloister, which refers to a convent or monastery, also contributes a religious connotation. The speaker is suggesting, perhaps, that the act of the two of them sleeping together would be a holy or scared act. At the end of the second stanza the word use (line 16) refers to custom or habit. The speaker suggests that the lady's habit is to "kill" him: every time she rejects him or says "no" to him, he feels like it is a death. He feels like he is dying. Of course, in killing the flea, she would also be killing him, taking his life, since his blood is inside the flea. But the speaker adds, she would then also be killing herself ("self-murder") since her blood is also inside the flea. Suicide in that time (and even today) was considered a very serious sin. Christians believed that God gave man life as a gift, and to give up that life intentionally is a direct insult to God. It is a sin. It is "sacrilege." At the beginning of the third stanza, we find that the lady still does not accept the speaker's arguments. In fact, she has taken action. Smack! She has crushed the flea. She has killed it. The speaker complains that her action has been "cruel and sudden." He takes her action as a sign that she is still refusing him (which she is). But the speaker does not stop trying. The speaker tells her that the blood on her fingernail (purple, suggesting the color of the blood) is the blood of innocence. The flea was not guilty of doing anything wrong. The speaker is still arguing that the sexual act is an innocent one -- there is nothing wrong in

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doing it. But the lady is pleased with her act. She feels triumph or victory. She tells the speaker that if their lives were inside the flea, then they should be "weaker now." In fact, they should be dead. But they are not, she declares. They are still strong and healthy. In other words, she is implying that the speaker's arguments were wrong. At the end of the poem (in lines 25-27), though, the speaker still does not give up trying to seduce the lady. The speaker even agrees with the lady (it is "true") and tells the lady that her fear about losing virtue or honor by having sex is a "false" fear. He tries to argue that there is no loss of honor in such an act. The sexual act is now compared to the flea's death. In dying, the flea took away the life (the blood) of the lady. Her death or suicide (by killing the flea with her life or blood inside the flea), the speaker argues, is not an act of sin or sacrilege after all. She still has her honor. She still has her virtue. If such a loss of fluid or blood or life brings no dishonor with it in this situation, then losing her fluids or blood in a sexual act will also bring no dishonor. The poem ends there, but we can guess that the speaker's last argument still did not convince the lady. We can guess that she still said "no." DEATH -"A VALEDICTION: FORBIDDING MOURNING" In a much more serious manner, Donne discusses the topics of love and death in "A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning." As he does in some of his other serious poems on love (such as "The Undertaking" or

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"Air and Angels"), Donne views love in spiritual terms, not earthly ones. For him real love is spiritual, not physical. Therefore, love does not end when the earthly body of a man or woman dies. In this poem, the speaker addresses the woman he loves (probably his wife) and tells her not to mourn (not to be sad or to cry) when he dies. The word valediction actually refers to a farewell speech, usually the kind of speech given by one of the senior students at a graduation ceremony. In this poem, however, the speaker is saying farewell to his lady. The poem is divided into nine stanzas. Each of the stanzas is four lines long. In the first stanza the speaker begins by talking about "virtuous men." A virtuous man is one who has led a good and decent life. He has tried to stay away from sin. Therefore, he does not fear death. He knows that his soul will go to Heaven. So, he is able to allow or even urge his soul "to go" on its journey. The virtuous man can die quietly and peacefully. The speaker tells his lady in the second stanza that they also should remain quiet and peaceful upon his death. The implication is that he has been a good and decent man, and he can accept what will come next (death). So, he tells the lady that she should not cry many tears (using the metaphor of the "flood") and that she should not make loud sighs (using the metaphor of the "tempest" or windstorm). The speaker adds that such loud and inappropriate actions would be profane -sacrilegious or unholy. Their love (or "joys") is a higher one, a spiritual one. Therefore, earthly noises are unfit to express their emotions. The word laity (which usually means people who are not priests or members of the church) in this poem suggests earthly or physical lovers who are not capable of understanding spiritual

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love. The speaker is thus suggesting that his lady or wife should not attempt to reveal their love to other people who would not understand. A more complex metaphor appears in the third stanza. In ancient and medieval times, people would be afraid of earthquakes because they thought it was a sign or omen of a worse event (like the death of their king) that would occur later. However, in times long ago, people also believed that there were nine spheres or balls that surrounded the earth and that these spheres moved (which is why the planets and the moon, each of which was in a different sphere, would move). The movement of the spheres, though, was not considered to be an omen. The speaker is suggesting that death is not harmful. Death is like the movement of the spheres. The movement is a gigantic one, but it brings no harm. It is "innocent." The speaker more directly makes the comparison of earthly lovers to spiritual lovers in the fourth stanza. Earthly lovers are also sublunary (meaning beneath the moon) lovers because, like the moon, they are inconstant. Their love switches and changes. They lack fidelity in their relationships. Furthermore, their "soul" (meaning their love) is based on the senses (such as sight and touch). Their love is based on physicality. Therefore, the death or absence of a loved one bothers them greatly because they have completely lost that which they were in love with -- the physical being. Their love or soul ends with such an absence. By contrast, the spiritual lover -- as described in the fifth stanza -- can accept death or absence because death or absence does not bring an end to what they love. They love the soul or spirit of the other, and their connection to that soul or spirit continues even when the

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other is absent or even dead. Therefore, they do not worry about or care about what happens to the body ("eyes, lips, and hands"). The connection of two souls after the physical death of one of the lovers is compared to beaten gold in the sixth stanza. If a person takes a lump of gold and beats it with a hammer into a fine, paper-thin sheet ("airy thinness"), the amount of gold remains the same. It has just taken on a different shape. In this metaphor (this metaphysical conceit), the two spiritual lovers are still the same even though they now have a different shape -- even though now one of them is dead. The "weight" of their love remains the same. A separate metaphor (but still part of the same metaphysical conceit) appears in the last three stanzas (lines 24-36). In these stanzas the speaker uses the metaphor of the compass to refer to the two souls that are connected by spiritual love. The word compass here refers not to the directional device to help someone determine north from south and east from west. Rather, the compass here is the V-shaped object with movable arms and with, usually, a pencil attached to one of the arms so that one can use it to draw circles. For the speaker in this poem, the souls of the two lovers are like the arms (or legs) of a single compass. In this case, the leg or foot in the center of the circle ("the fixed foot") refers to the lady's soul. The other leg refers to the man's, the speaker's, soul. No matter how far out the leg of the man extends, it always remains connected to the leg of the lady. And even if he does go out far, the lady will bend or "lean" (line 31) toward him. The movement of one depends upon the other. The speaker even adds that if the fixed foot, the lady, stands up straight ("erect"), the other foot or leg

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will return to it. In other words, the souls of the two lovers are really never separated. In the ninth and last stanza, the metaphor becomes extended in two additional ways. (1) First, the speaker declares that his path in life and death (his "circle") is true and "just," good and right, because of the "firmness" or strength of his lady. This is just like the circle made by the outer leg of a compass. It is true and just (or accurate) because the other leg, the inner leg, is held down rigidly and firmly. The speaker is suggesting that he is good and virtuous (bringing us back to the first stanza) because of his relationship with his lady. (2) Second, the speaker compares his life to the making of a circle. When a person uses a compass to draw a circle, that person ends at the same point where he or she began. Similarly, the speaker is suggesting that his life, his spiritual life, will end where it began. It will end with his lady. Their two souls will always be together. POEMS ON RELIGION: HOLY SONNETS As mentioned in a previous lecture, Donne gave up the Catholic religion and later became an Anglican priest. However, throughout his lifetime, Donne apparently had mixed feelings over these actions. He may have even regretted them. In many ways, in his thinking, Donne remained a Catholic. As the editors of out text suggest in a footnote, the Holy Sonnets were greatly influenced by the Jesuits (a group of priests within the Catholic Church) and often suggest Catholic (not Anglican) beliefs.

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Holy Sonnets also marks a new direction for the sonnet cycle. Unlike the earlier sonnet cycles (such as Shakespeare's Sonnets or Sidney's Astrophil and Stella), Donne's poems do not focus on love -- unrequited or otherwise. Rather, they focus on man and his relationship with God. More specifically, they often focus on sin and death. This change in content for the sonnet cycle somehow epitomizes (represents or indicates) the change that was occurring in English poetry more generally. The change could be described as a movement from the ornate to the stark, from the imaginative to the intellectual, or from the emotional to the philosophical. It was a literature that would eventually develop into a literature of reason and a literature of prose in the following century, the 18th century. However, the imaginative and the emotional would never entirely disappear; and they would return in force by the end of the 18th century with the coming of the Romantics. SONNET 1 In his first sonnet, Donne presents what may be described as a deathbed poem. The speaker is literally about to die, and he is directly asking God for help. He is asking God for his Grace (blessing, good will, and mercy). But the speaker recognizes that his sins are many, and he worries that perhaps they are too many. Perhaps God will not allow him into Heaven. In order to understand Donne's sonnets, the reader should use the same technique used in analyzing other poems and other sonnets. However, with Donne's poetry, the break (the shift in the poem) may occasionally be more complicated. Donne's rhyme

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scheme is somewhat different from the earlier English sonnets: abba abba cdcd ee. However, we can still see that Done does divide his poems into three quatrains and a couplet. In looking at the structure of this particular sonnet, the major shift actually occurs in the final lines, in the couplet. The poem is like a prayer. The speaker is directly speaking to God and asking for help. In the first quatrain the speaker refers to himself as God's "work" because God has made him. So, the speaker is actually asking God if God will watch his work (that is, the speaker) "decay." The word decay actually suggests two ideas. First, the word suggests physical decay, the decay of the human body. And even in the next line, with the words "repair me now," the reader may at first think the speaker is asking God to cure him physically so that he will not die. But that is not the case. The word decay here actually refers to the condition of the speaker's soul, which is decaying or is rotten because it is full of sin. The soul is also God's work, and it is the immortal part of the speaker. The speaker wants God to cure his soul, to forgive him of his sins. As he approaches death, the speaker recognizes that all of his sins (or "pleasures") are like yesterday. The speaker is aware that all of his sins -- including those from the time of his childhood and from the time when he was a young man -- are still part of his soul. The reader may recall the word reckoning from the medieval play Everyman, which suggested the account of good deeds and sins that one accumulated throughout one's lifetime. God does not care whether the sins happened yesterday or fifty years ago. All sins are current in God's eyes. In this sonnet, the speaker is thus remembering many of his past sins and is regretting having committed them.

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In the second quatrain the speaker worries about both the past and the future. When he speaks about turning his eyes, he is not talking about outward, physical vision. Rather, he is speaking metaphorically to suggest that when he looks back upon (or thinks about) his past, he is full of "despair." As he looks back upon his past, he remembers the many sins that he has committed. He believes that he has committed so many sins that God may not forgive him. So, he worries -- he becomes full of despair. He becomes sad when the thinks about the condition of his soul. Similarly, the future also troubles him. When he looks to (or thinks about) the future, he becomes terrified. He is afraid because he knows that his death will occur soon and after that, if God does not forgive him, he will spend an eternity in Hell. The speaker mentions "hell" directly at the end of the quatrain. The imagery of decay is repeated when the speaker describes his weak or "feeble flesh" as wasting away, as falling apart. Once again, this actually refers more to the speaker's soul than to his body. The sins in his soul weigh it down so that, instead of floating up to heaven, it will sink down to hell. A shift in the direction of the poem does occur at the beginning of the third quatrain. The words thou and thee refer to God, and once again the speaker uses the metaphor of vision (or looking or seeing) to suggest his inward vision or thoughts. When the speaker thinks about God, he is able to rise again. He is not weighed down. He feels stronger and does not feel a sense of despair. The reader should note that rising and falling are metaphors for the condition of the speaker's soul and suggest his sense of hope or lack of hope (or despair).

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But rising and falling can also describe the structure of this particular sonnet. Instead of one shift in the poem, there are actually three shifts. The following chart indicates these changes: Lines 1-8 9-10 11-12 13-14 Direction Falling Rising Falling Rising Focus Decay, Despair, Terror, Sin, Hell Inward Vision of God Devil, Temptation, Weakness Grace of God, Strength

The most important of these shifts -- the major shift -- is the last one. In the second half of the third quatrain (in lines 11-12), as noted above, a second shift occurs. The "subtle foe" or clever enemy is, of course, Satan or the Devil. Satan continues to tempt the speaker even though the speaker is on his deathbed. The speaker is suggesting here that he still has evil thoughts. Perhaps he still feels lust or anger. Even though he knows that he is dying, he cannot get such negative or improper thoughts out of his head. He knows he should be preparing his soul. He wants his soul to be clean, to be pure, to be free from sin. Yet he realizes that his soul will not be entirely pure. This causes him to feel despair -- to become weak -- again. He cannot "sustain" himself. He cannot keep himself up. In the final lines of the poem, in the couplet, the speaker rises once again. He believes that there is something that can save him: the Grace of God. The word grace in this context suggests God's blessing, His good will, and, most importantly, His mercy. The poem

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ends on a positive note. The speaker feels hopeful. He feels strong. He uses the metaphor of a magnet ("adamant" or lodestone) and iron to indicate the strength of his hope. God is a magnet that will attract or pull up the soul (the "iron heart") of the speaker. The speaker will rise to God. SONNET 5 In "The Good Morrow" Donne used the metaphysical conceit of the world and explorers as part of his description of true love or spiritual love. A similar metaphor occurs in this sonnet although here such figurative language is used for religious purposes. Once again the speaker is addressing God and asking God to purify or cleanse his soul. And once again the speaker worries that he is too full of sin. The sonnet begins with the metaphor of the world. The speaker is a world that is made from two different kinds of material: body (or "elements") and soul (the "angelic sprite" or spirit). However, the "world" of the speaker is different from the earth or other planets. The speaker's world is always dark (line 3). There is only night, no daylight. By this the speaker is suggesting that his soul is dark (or impure) because of his many sins. At the end of the first quatrain (in line 4) the speaker makes a comment that seems contradictory to Christian belief. The speaker states that both parts -body and soul -- must die. This is a paradox because Christians believe that the soul is immortal. It cannot die. What the speaker probably intends by this contradiction is that the better part of his soul is dead or gone. The goodness or purity is gone, and he does not believe he can get it back.

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The reader might find it helpful to recall the advances made in astronomy by Galileo and others during the Renaissance in order to understand the second quatrain. As the astronomers discovered and gazed upon the planets through their telescopes, they naturally believed that these planets contained oceans and possibly living inhabitants. The speaker directly refers to these astronomers (with the pronoun "you" in line 5) and asks them to take a sea or ocean that they have discovered on one of these planets and pour it onto the "world" of the speaker. In fact, he wants this sea to be in his "eyes" (line 7). In other words, the speaker feels he should cry an ocean of tears for the many sins that he has committed. A normal amount of tears cannot begin to wash away the many sins he has committed. Normal crying cannot begin to show how sorry he is. Of course, a flooding of the world also suggests the story of Noah and his ark. In that story, God flooded the world and destroyed all the race of mankind (except for Noah and his family) because mankind had become too full of sin. The speaker is suggesting that he (his world) is like the world before the flood. His world is too full of sin and needs to be destroyed. But God made a promise to Noah (in the book of Genesis in the Old Testament). God promised never to flood the world again, never to destroy the world with water. In the New Testament, however, the story of the end of the world (Doomsday in the book of Revelation) indicates the world will be destroyed by fire. In the third quatrain, the speaker suggests that maybe the little world (as a metaphor for himself) should also be destroyed by fire. The word fire, as a metaphor, actually refers to three separate ideas in this poem:

536 Line 10 Lines 10-11 Lines 13-14

The Renaissance The Fire of Doomsday The Fire of Passion (Lust and Envy) The Fire of Holy Devotion (Zeal -- a Fervor or Enthusiasm for God)

The speaker thus suggests that since the fire of passion (or sin) has already burnt his soul, the additional fire to end his world (the fire of doomsday) would be appropriate to destroy the black soul that is a part of that world. In the couplet, the word fire takes on a positive meaning. A "fiery zeal" or desire for God can "heal" his world. It can cure his soul. Once again, the major shift in the poem occurs in the couplet. In the three quatrains the poet focuses on the negative, on his sin. But in the couplet the poet focuses on the positive, on his salvation. SOME COMMENTS ON SONNETS 9 AND 10 The topics of sin and death also appear in sonnets 9 and 10. In the ninth sonnet the speaker uses the division between the octet and sestet to examine the nature of sin. In the octet the speaker questions the nature of sin. He wonders why sin is wrong and even questions God about the threat of punishment to sinners. In the sestet, however, the speaker realizes that he should not dispute or argue with God. Instead, the speaker asks God for Mercy. The entire sonnet suggests the models of proper and improper thinking for the Christian. An unrepentant sinner (a sinner who is not sorry) may think improperly and blame God rather than himself for his sinful actions.

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A repentant sinner (one who is sorry), on the other hand, realizes that he is to blame for his own sins. "Death, be not proud" is a famous phrase that come from the tenth sonnet. The poet uses the devices of personification and apostrophe to examine the nature of death and to indicate that people should not be afraid of death. The speaker directly addresses death (apostrophe) and tells Death (personified as a proud figure) that he should not be so proud because he is actually weaker than humans are. This sonnet also has its division between the octet and the sestet. In the octet the speaker not only addresses Death, but also comments upon the nature of death. Death is nothing but a long period of sleep (a metaphor). Since sleep is pleasurable to humans, death will be so too. People are not afraid of sleep. Therefore, they should not be afraid of death. In the sestet, the speaker suggests that Death is just a lowly servant or even a slave to greater supernatural forces (such as "fate" or "chance"). Death is also a slave to humans (such as "kings" who can command someone to his death or "desperate men" who commit murder or suicide). These forces or humans make the decisions about death, and Death (personified) has to obey their decisions or commands. More importantly, the speaker concludes, Death is inferior to humans. Humans will live forever, but Death will not. According to Christian belief, after Doomsday, when God brings about an end to the world and brings all good people into Heaven, there will be no more people created and no more death. Therefore, there will be no more Death.

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In this poem two very separate and quite distinct images from the New Testament of the Bible appear: the Crucifixion and Doomsday. Donne thus unites an idea from the beginning of the New Testament to one from the end of that work. But once again Donne's point in this sonnet is discuss the ideas of death and salvation. The sonnet begins with a question. If tonight were the last night of the world and the world were to end tomorrow, would the image of the Crucifixion (of Jesus Christ dying on the cross) frighten you or not? The image of the Crucifixion is a highly symbolic one for Christians. Jesus Christ allowed himself to be tortured and killed in order that all Christians could be saved, could enter Heaven. The image, then, is both a negative one (depicting the brutal treatment and death of the Son of God) and a positive one (symbolizing the hope and salvation for mankind). But what the speaker is actually implying by his question concerns a personal response. Each person must decide for himself or herself. If a person lived a good and pious life, then the sacrifice that Jesus Christ made was a useful one. But if a person lived a sinful and selfish life, then the sacrifice of Christ was in vain. Christ's sacrifice will be of no value to the sinner. The sonnet, in terms of structure, has the form of a question in the octet and an answer in the sestet. At the end of the octet the speaker more directly asks the question to himself. Can the same face that died on the cross and that had asked God to forgive his own enemies be a face that can frighten the speaker and sentence him to hell? The first word of the sestet answers that question: "No."

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In the octet the speaker makes an observation about the difference between "beauty" and ugliness (or "foulness"): Beauty is an indication of pity. Ugliness is an indication of "rigor" (severity, strictness, or cruelty). To the speaker, the image of Christ on the cross is a beautiful one, not an ugly or frightening one. Christ has a piteous mind. Christ even has pity (or feels sorrow) for his enemies. The speaker feels confident, then, that Christ will also have pity for him. Christ will forgive the speaker for his sins. Christ is not cruel. Therefore, the image of Christ can never be ugly or frightening to the speaker. One line that may be confusing to the reader concerns the comment that the speaker had spoken about beauty and ugliness to his "profane" or worldly "mistresses," to his lovers (line 10). The speaker is saying that he preferred beautiful women to ugly women because beautiful women have kind, generous, or piteous minds. Ugly women, on the other hand, have cruel or strict minds. The line, though, not only reveals where the speaker came up with his philosophy about beauty and ugliness. It also reveals the speaker's sin -the sin of lust. The speaker feels that despite his sins, God will have pity on him. He will be saved.

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This poem is a more personal one for Donne. It is a poem about the death of his wife. Ann More Donne died in 1617. She had been his wife for 16 years and had given birth to 12 children. Donne had only been an Anglican priest for two years at the time of her death. For the most part, they had had lived a hard and poor life. The reader can only begin to imagine how close they became as they suffered through so many hardships together. Her death clearly affected Donne greatly. And in this sonnet Donne tries to understand and accept that death. The poem also distinguishes between two kinds of love: earthly love (the love of his wife) and spiritual love (the love of God). The speaker (or perhaps we should say Donne himself) feels that he should turn all of his attention to God -- "on heavenly things my mind is set" (line 4). His wife is gone, and he believes that the love of God should be enough. He should not need any other love. As a good Christian, he believes he should devote all of himself to God. The speaker even suggests that his love for his wife was just an early form and lesser form of love that prepared him ("whet" in line 5) for the greater love that he has for God. The octet ends, though, with the speaker declaring that he still desires (feels "thirsty") or craves the love of his wife. However, the speaker describes this feeling or passion as an illness (with the word "dropsy"). He hopes that God can cure him. He does not wish his emotions or passion to affect his reason or to diminish (make less) his love for God. In the octet the speaker states his problem or dilemma, but in the sestet he moves toward a solution. The speaker recognizes that God has substituted His

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love for the love of his wife. The pronoun thou refers to God (in line 9, and the word dost in line 10 is an archaic form for does). God woos (or seeks the affection of) the speaker -- not for his heart or body, but for his soul. God also fears that the speaker's spiritual love may be replaced by earthly ("world, flesh") love. As the speaker describes the situation, God feels "tender jealousy" in regards to the speaker. God cares about the speaker. The speaker, Donne, is thus suggesting that he recognizes and understands the worth of God's love. He sees God's love as higher, more valuable, and ultimately more rewarding than earthly love. Finally, and most importantly, he knows that earthly love is connected to evil and the "devil" (line 14). Therefore, we can assume that the speaker will strive to fill himself only with God's love. He will work to cast aside his worldly emotions. SONNET 18 The topic of this sonnet is much different than all of the others in the cycle. In this poem Donne examines the fragmentation of the church. The reader should remember that Donne was a Catholic during his childhood and into his early manhood. Initially, he probably gave up his Catholicism for practical reasons -to obtain a job in London and to avoid the prejudice against Catholics that was so widespread there. Donne did become a devout Protestant, a good Anglican, later in his life. But as this poem reveals, there was always doubt in his mind. Donne wondered which religion actually had more right on its side. He probably wondered whether he had made the right decision in converting to a Protestant faith.

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Once again, the reader also needs to remember that during the Middle Ages there was only one group of Christians: the Roman Catholics. And the head of the Roman Catholic Church is the Pope, who resides in Vatican City near Rome. In 1517 Martin Luther (in Germany) led a rebellion (a protest) against the Catholic Church. This protest marked the beginning of the Protestant Reformation. Now there were essentially two groups of Christians: Catholics and Protestants. Actually, there are several different kinds of Protestants. One group of Protestants is the Anglicans (the Anglican Church is the Church of England). In 1534 King Henry VIII of England quarreled with the Pope. Since the Pope would not grant him a divorce, Henry decided to break away from the Catholic Church. Of course, that also meant that all of the inhabitants of England would also have to give up being Catholics -- although not all of them did. Thus, the Church of England began. This division of Christians into two (or more than two) groups is sometimes referred to as the fragmentation (breaking into pieces) of the church. In Donne's sonnet, the speaker questions why God allowed this to happen. The poem actually has a structure that depends upon the question and answer approach. Here, the break comes in the eleventh line. In the first ten lines the speaker asks questions about the fragmentation of the church. But in the last four lines, he prays or pleads to God to provide an answer. The poem begins with a common Christian metaphor: Jesus Christ is the husband and the Church is his wife (or "spouse"). The speaker asks Jesus Christ to reveal his spouse -- to reveal the true church. The

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following lines metaphorically refer to either the Catholic Church or the Protestant Church. The Catholic Church is the church on "the other shore" (line 2). Vatican City is on the western coast of Italy. The Catholic Church is "richly painted" (line 3) - suggesting the treasures of Vatican City as well as the tendency for Catholic Churches and Cathedrals to be beautifully decorated. The church on "seven" hills (line 8) also refers to the Catholic Church. Rome is built on seven hills, and Rome is often used as the more general geographical reference for Vatican City. The Protestant Church is the one located in "Germany" and England ("here" -- in line 4). The Protestant Church is also the one that slept for a "thousand" years (because it did not exist) and suddenly awoke (or "peeps up") in "one year" (suggesting the year 1517 and the beginning of the Protestant Reformation). "Self-truth" (in line 6) could refer to either church since both of them declare themselves to have the true or rightful way of worshipping God. But if one is true, then the other "errs" or is wrong. The question is this: which one is true? The church on "one" hill (in line 8) probably refers to the Protestant Church although it does not necessarily indicate any specific geographic place. But "no hill" suggests that there is the possibility of a third alternative. Perhaps neither the Catholic Church nor the Protestant Church is the true spouse of Jesus Christ. Perhaps both the Catholics and Protestants are wrong. The speaker then suggests that perhaps the people of the Western world must travel, "like adventuring knights" (line 9), in order to find the true church and to experience the spiritual love of God. The idea of the knights is an appropriate one. It suggests the knights of

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the Middle Ages who went off on the crusades to show their devotion to God. The speaker also wishes to show his devotion to God. The sonnet ends with the speaker asking Jesus Christ (the "kind husband") to reveal his true spouse, his mild dove: the true church. The speaker even makes a suggestion at the end. If the true church were loved ("embraced") and open to all men, then it would be "most true and pleasing" to Jesus Christ (referred to by the pronoun "thee"). The ending suggests another question. Would not Jesus Christ (or God) be even more pleased if everybody recognized the true church and worshipped there? Then why is it that man cannot easily recognize the true church? Unfortunately, Donne would not be able to answer questions such as these in his lifetime.

LECTURE 26
PARADISE LOST: "BOOK 1" JOHN MILTON John Milton was born in 1608 and died in 1674. The student should note that Milton was born just two years or so before Shakespeare retired from the stage. Both Milton's life and his writing reflect a much different generation from that which Shakespeare lived in. Milton's greatest work, Paradise Lost, was completed in 1667. That is seven years after the time when Charles II was restored to the throne -- in the time of the Restoration. Milton is, in a sense, a transitional figure. He is both a Renaissance writer and a Restoration writer. His literary work reflects characteristics from both periods. Milton attended Cambridge University, graduating in 1629. He went on to pursue a graduate degree and earned his A.M. (Master of Arts degree) in 1632. Milton's life and work can be broken down into three major periods: 1608-39 1640-60 1661-74 Education, Foreign Travels, Early Poetry Prose Writing, Controversy: Political and Social Issues Return to Poetic Literature

Milton was one of the very few writers who were sympathetic to the Puritan cause. The Puritans felt that the Church of England was too much like the Catholic

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Church. They wanted to purify it -- to make it simpler. Milton also did not follow the practices of the Church of England. Milton was unorthodox in his beliefs. He simply felt that the Anglican Church was wrong in some, if not many, of its beliefs. As noted above, Milton is a transitional figure between two quite distinct literary periods. Critics often see his work as falling into two quite distinct intellectual and social movements: 1. Renaissance: Classical References Epic Allusions (Virgil and Homer) Topics of Humanism: War, Love, Religion, Hell, Heaven, Cosmos. Worldly Experience 2. Protestant Reformation: Human Conscience Guilt and Repentance As many critics note, one Protestant characteristic of Adam in Paradise Lost is that he is not a character of active heroism (unlike Homer's Odysseus or Virgil's Aeneas). Rather, he is a character of passive suffering. Many Protestants, including most of the Puritans at that time, believed that mankind is meant to suffer on earth. Paradise Lost is both a religious and a political work. Like many writers of the time period, Milton could not help but be affected by the political turmoil and chaos that was occurring during his own lifetime. Civil war had taken place in England; King Charles I was beheaded; for the first time in many, many years England was without a king; and a reign of tyranny by

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Oliver Cromwell lasted for many years until Charles II became the king in 1660. The problems did not even end with the restoration of the king. Milton felt that England was experiencing not only a political or national crisis. His land was also experiencing a spiritual crisis. One large question that Milton hoped to answer by writing his epic, Paradise Lost, is this: "Did God maintain, despite the chaos of the historical period, a sustaining plan for his favored people?" During the Renaissance, England, both politically and culturally, advanced in many ways. Many people in England did feel that they were truly blessed by God. They believed that God had chosen them. God would take care of them on earth and bring them to Heaven when they died. With the civil war and political conflicts, with all of the hatred and religious disagreement, Milton was not alone in wondering if, maybe, God had abandoned them. Maybe God no longer cared for the people of England. But John Milton was an extremely religious man. He did believe that God was still there for England, for the people of England. And, so, Milton wrote Paradise Lost to answer that question. Milton's epic, then, is a philosophical explanation to prove that God was (and is) still very much a part of the lives of all of the people in England. Milton's epic was also an attempt to give the people of England the knowledge and the strength to survive the spiritual crisis that was affecting them. As noted above, Milton was unorthodox in his religious beliefs. He did not believe everything that most Christians believed. In fact, Milton wrote a large volume entitled De Doctrina Christiana (On Christian Doctrine) in which he expressed his own interpretation of Christianity. This work, written in Latin, was not

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published in Milton's own lifetime. In fact, it was not published until 1825, more than 150 years after Milton's death. One idea that Milton believed in is known as the Arian Heresy. In this heretical view, Jesus Christ (the Son) is not co-substantial with God the Father. In other words, Jesus is not equal to God. Jesus is not a part of God. This belief is called an Arian Heresy because the priest who originated it was named Arius (who lived during the 4th century). This view also is evident in Paradise Lost. Milton, like many a Puritan, believed that individual men should interpret the Bible for themselves and not necessarily accept the interpretations given by the Anglican Church or the Catholic Church. The student should also note one other point about Milton's great literary work. Paradise Lost is a modern epic. In fact, only two modern epics appeared in England during the Renaissance: Paradise Lost and Edmund Spenser's Faerie Queen. And, as might be expected, Milton's work was influenced by Spenser's epic. Milton's epic also reflects many of the characteristics of the older epics (like The Iliad and The Odyssey): the vast setting, the use of supernatural forces, a grand or elevated style, the use of formal speeches, the epic simile, and others. However, unlike the older epics, Paradise Lost did not grow and develop out of an oral tradition (even though the story of Adam and Eve did). Paradise Lost is primarily the work of a single mind, a single genius. That, more than anything else, establishes it as a modern epic.

The Renaissance THE STRUCTURE OF "BOOK 1"

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The student struggling with Milton's poetry for the first time may find it reassuring that many people in England during Milton's own lifetime also found it difficult. Originally Paradise Lost did not contain any prose sections. But many people complained to the publishers that they had trouble following the plot. So, the editors asked Milton to add prose introductions before each section (or book). These introductions are called "arguments." Each introduction or argument, then, is essentially a summary of the section. Paradise Lost contains twelve books and recounts not only the story of Adam and Eve. It also includes the story of creation, the battle in Heaven between God and the rebellious angels, the structure of Hell, and a discourse (or lecture) by Raphael (an angel) on reason, free will, and predestination. The setting for the first book of Paradise Lost is Hell. Milton begins his epic with a scene that occurs after the time that Lucifer and one-third of all of the angels in Heaven decided to rebel against God. To punish these rebellious angels, God threw them down into Hell and turned them into devils. In the beginning of "Book 1" we see Satan (or Lucifer) and the other devils waking up for the first time in Hell and discovering that their bodies have been changed or transformed into something ugly or hideous. In terms of its structure, "Book 1" has four major sections:

550 I. II. III. IV.

The Renaissance Introduction, Invocation to the Muse Dialogue between Satan and Beelzebub Catalog (Description) of Devils Building of Pandemonium

Largely, then, Milton is introducing his themes and characters in this section of his epic. At the end of the book, Satan and the other devils decide to accept their new residence in Hell. And so they build for themselves a splendid palace called Pandemonium. THEME AND INVOCATION In the first stanza (lines 1-26) of the book, Milton introduces his theme and invokes (or calls upon) a Muse to inspire him. The theme actually is stated directly at the end of this stanza, and has two parts: 1) to "assert Eternal Providence" (line 25) 2) to "justify the ways of God to men" (line 26) Eternal Providence suggests the fate of mankind as directed by God. God has a Divine Plan for mankind, and everything that happens on earth is somehow related to that plan. Milton focuses on the story of Adam and Eve because that (according to Christian belief) is when mankind's fate or providence begins. Milton is hoping to prove that the plan that God devised back in the time of Adam and Eve is still in effect in his own day. Milton wants to prove that nothing has changed. God's plan, Divine or Eternal Providence, is still very much a part of the lives of all humankind.

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The word justify means to explain. But, as our editors note, the word also means to show the justice of something -- in this case, the justice of God's actions. Milton wants to show, to prove, that God is Right and that God is Just. Despite the terrible events that may occur on the earth (or in England specifically), those events are still part of God's plan. And what may seem terrible or horrible to us is actually part of a Higher Purpose, God's Purpose. Milton in his epic hopes to explain or reveal that purpose so that his readers will understand the ways of God. In this stanza Milton also calls upon a muse, a goddess, to inspire him. The Invocation of a Muse is a feature of epic poetry. But with Milton, the muse he calls upon is more complex. The muse he calls upon is Urania, the Muse of Astronomy, because he wishes to takes his readers soaring into the skies or heavens as well as delving (or digging) beneath the earth (into Hell). Of course, Paradise Lost is a Christian work. So, Urania here is actually a symbol for the Holy Spirit, the voice or power of God. The Holy Spirit instructed Moses, referred to as "that shepherd" (in line 8), to tell his the Jews (the Chosen People or "chosen seed") about creation, about "how the heavens and earth rose out of Chaos" (lines 9-10). Milton, quite simply, is asking for inspiration directly from God Himself. Just as God inspired Moses to lead his people to the true path, the path toward God, Milton hopes that God will inspire him to lead the people of England to God. The reader should also note the simile that Milton uses to refer to his Muse, the Holy Spirit (or Urania). As he does throughout his entire epic, Milton constantly alludes to or quotes from the Bible. In this stanza he alludes to the Gospels to compare the Holy

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Spirit to a dove (in lines 20-21). Similar to stories from Greek mythology, the Bible suggests that initially the universe was nothing but chaos -- a formless, shapeless mass of swirling elements. The universe was a "vast abyss." But God brought order out of that chaos. The Holy Spirit (or God) is like a dove (a gentle bird usually associated with peace) who sat upon the universe and made it pregnant. The dove brought peace and order and life out of chaos. Milton's dove is a nurturing dove, a female dove. Milton is thus suggesting that God is nurturing and caring and motherly toward all of us. SATAN AND HELL The topic or primary subject matter of Milton's epic is "man's first disobedience" (line 1), the sin committed by Adam and Eve. After introducing his theme and muse, Milton provides a transition (lines 2733) to the second section of "Book 1" by informing his readers that he will begin first with the "cause" (line 28) of that disobedience. That cause is Satan. Satan caused Adam and Eve to commit "foul revolt" (line 33). He caused them to rebel against God by convincing them to eat the forbidden fruit. Following the transitional lines, Milton provides a stanza (lines 34-49) in which the poet describes Satan. Among the words that Milton uses to describe Satan, the reader should immediately notice that two of them refer to the Seven Deadly Sins: envy and pride. Satan was once a glorious and beautiful angel up in Heaven. However, he became too proud. He thought he was equal to God. He thought he was as powerful as God is (line 40). So, he convinced one-third of all of the angels in Heaven to join his rebellion.

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Satan's angels rebelled and fought against God, but they lost. And God sent all of them down to Hell. In this stanza on Satan, Milton refers to God as "the mother of mankind" (in line 36). This is a metaphor to specifically depict God as the Creator. God created not only mankind: God also created the angels. God also created Satan. The metaphor emphasizes the idea in the simile of the dove earlier in this book. More importantly, the metaphor suggests that Satan uses guile and deceit to cheat his own parent -- to cheat his own mother. Another metaphor that Milton uses in this same stanza suggests that God is a King. Of course, the expression that names God as the King of Heaven is an old one that existed many hundreds of years before Milton wrote Paradise Lost. However, the reader should keep in mind the historical context of the work. A rebellion "against the throne and monarchy of" (line 42) King Charles I had only recently occurred in England. That rebellion had occurred in Milton's own lifetime. Of course, the readers of Milton's own time would most assuredly be thinking about the rebellion in England during the 1640's. In this way Milton links the rebellion in England to the rebellion of Satan. Thus, if the poet can explain why God allowed Satan's revolt to occur in the first place -- if he can justify that action -then the poet is also indirectly explaining and justifying the violent events that have occurred in England. Milton will be explaining why God allowed such terrible events to occur. In the third and final stanza (lines 50-83) of the second section of "Book 1," Milton describes Hell. The perspective or view of Hell comes directly from Satan. The reader sees Hell through Satan's "eyes" (line 56)

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when Satan first wakes up and looks around. Satan and the other fallen angels had been lying in the fire of Hell for nine days. Because they are "immortal" (line 53), they cannot die. However, the fires of Hell do change their appearance -- they change into hideous devils. Milton describes Hell "as one great furnace" (a simile in line 62). Hell is a large pit full of fire. However, the fire of Hell is unlike the fire on earth. The flames in Hell produce "no light" (line 63). Light is associated with God. Light is a creation of God. In fact, metaphorically speaking, God is Light. The place where Satan and his followers reside is distant from God and all of God's glorious creations. The devils cannot share in any of the glories of God. That is part of their punishment. An important word for the student to remember is accommodation. Throughout all of Paradise Lost, Milton is attempting to describe actions that have occurred on a spiritual level. However, he has to use earthly language -- the language of English -- to describe Heavenly events that are really quite beyond the understanding of earthly creatures. So, Milton must use metaphor. Comparing Hell to a furnace, comparing Satan's rebellion to an earthly battle, and comparing God to a King are just poetic devices that Milton uses so that his readers can have some understanding of spiritual events that cannot be directly expressed in human language. Milton is thus accommodating his readers. The poet is trying to simplify the actions and thoughts of God so that his readers can gain some understanding of spiritual events. But Milton is not being literal. The poet does not intend his readers to believe that what he describes is a literal truth.

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The location of hell is also described through metaphor. Ancient man believed that the underworld or Hell was located beneath the ground, beneath the earth. However, Milton describes Hell as being "as far removed from God and light of Heaven" (line 73) as possible. Hell is on the distant rim of the universe. Later in the epic, Satan will take a journey to earth; and he has to travel through the universe, through the cosmos, to get there. The point is a metaphorical one. God has punished the devils by depriving them of God and all of God's good works. THE DIALOGUE BETWEEN THE DEVILS: THE FIRST SPEECH As noted previously, speeches dominate each of the books in Milton's epic. In "Book 1" the speeches are made by Satan and his second in command -- his lieutenant -- a devil named Beelzebub. The speeches actually form a dialogue between Satan and Beelzebub as they decide what their next course of action should be. Since the devils have lost the battle in Heaven, they have to decide whether they should try to fight again or pursue some other course of action. There are six speeches in the book: 1. Satan (lines 84-124) recognizes Beelzebub and asks about next course of action 2. Beelzebub (lines 128-54) fears eternal punishment 3. Satan (lines 157-91) plans life of evil and plans for council of devils 4. Satan (lines 242-70) accepts his fate and defines Hell

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5. Beelzebub (lines 272-82) asks Satan to encourage devils 6. Satan (lines 622-62) addresses devils and calls for council The first speech begins with Satan looking upon Beelzebub and noticing how vastly different he is in appearance ("how changed" in line 84). The change in appearance from beautiful angels to hideous devils is just one of their punishments. Being sent to the fires of Hell is another. Satan tells Beelzebub, however, that even though the strength or force of God proved to be "stronger" (line 92) than the strength of Satan, he will not "repent or change" (line 96). He is not sorry for what he has done and never will be sorry. Satan then asks Beelzebub, "What though the field be lost?" (line 105). He is suggesting that even though they lost the battle in Heaven, they have not lost the war. Satan is saying that he will never give up, never "submit or yield" (line 108) to God. He will never "bow" (line 111) down to God. A word needs to be said here about the heroic portrayal of Satan. In the first two books of the epic, Satan does come across as being strong and heroic. Satan talks about his "unconquerable will" (in line 106) or his grim determination to accomplish what he believes in. Not giving up is a quality that many people, both today and in the past, admire. Such strength of character is made even more attractive by Satan's refusal to bow down to an oppressor, to someone who (Satan feels) is a tyrannical ruler. England has certainly had its share of tyrants in the past, and many people in England would agree that they should not tolerate an unjust ruler or leader.

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Thus, many readers have seen Satan as a noble and heroic individual who is fighting against tyranny and oppression. A few generations later the Romantic poets, especially Percy Bysshe Shelley, would declare Satan as the "true hero" of Paradise Lost. This interpretation, however appealing it may be, is wrong. First, Milton certainly does not see God as an unjust ruler. God is just. Milton's theme is to justify God's actions -- to show the justice of what God has done. Second, the reader needs to keep in mind the entire context of the epic. Despite the strength and courage that Satan displays in Hell among his fellow devils, once he leaves Hell, he no longer appears so strong and brave. As he approaches earth (in "Book 3"), he fears the angel Uriel, who is standing guard. Satan thus disguises himself as a cherub, the youngest and weakest of angels, to get past Uriel. Milton continues to use imagery to show the degeneration (becoming weaker) of Satan as the epic progresses. The image of the cherub is used to show that Satan himself is weak. And in the next book ("Book 4") Satan is compared to a toad, an ugly and loathsome creature. In the Garden of Eden Satan decides to tempt Eve instead of Adam because he fears that Adam will be too strong and resist him. Satan thus is a cowardly and weak figure in most of the books in Milton's epic. However, Satan himself believes he is a strong figure. In his first speech he declares that he and all of the other devils still have "the strength of gods" (line 116). He does not recognize that God was the one who gave him his strength and his immortality. He still thinks he is great, and he wants to be greater. So he asks Beelzebub how they should continue their conflict against God: "to wage by force or guile eternal war"

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(line 121). Force suggests open battle, but guile indicates treachery, deceit, and cunning. Of course, all Christians know that Satan chooses guile. Satan knows deep within himself that to use force against God again would be foolish, for he inwardly knows that God is stronger and that he, Satan, is weaker. THE FOURTH SPEECH: THE IDEA OF HELL In the fourth speech (lines 242-70) Satan decides to accept Hell as his new home. This ready acceptance, this "making the best out of a bad situation," also seems to be an admirable trait in Satan. Satan, almost happily, says good-bye to Heaven and accepts Hell as its substitute: "Farewell, happy fields Hail, horrors!" (lines 249-50). But the word horrors indicates that Satan may actually not really mean what he is saying. Satan realizes that he has lost "joy" (line 250) and will never have a chance to get that joy again. He is not joyous. His words may seem like an indication of strength, but perhaps they are actually his own feeble attempt to convince himself that his situation is not so bleak and miserable as it actually is. In one famous sentence from this speech, Satan declares that the strength of his own mind can transform his misery to delight: The mind is its own place, and in itself Can make a Heaven of Hell, a Hell of Heaven. (lines 254-55) Satan here is saying that the power of his own mind is so strong that no matter how hard and severe his

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environment may be, in his own mind he can make it seem like a paradise. He can enjoy the surroundings no matter where he is. Such a sentence certainly has appealed to poets and writers and philosophers over the years. The sentence also clearly reflects the positive view of Humanism that was so strongly admired and accepted during the Renaissance. During that time many poets and philosophers delighted in the power of the human mind and accepted that power as part of the free will that resides within each individual. The human mind is capable of many extraordinary tasks. The ability of the human mind, some thought, is unlimited. As our editors note, though, later in the epic this idea, this "heroic resolution," will change. Satan will not make a Heaven out of Hell. Instead, he will make a Hell out of the heavenly paradise of Eden (in "Book 4"). However, the student does not even need to read further into the epic to see the truth and the contradiction within these lines. After all, Satan was once a glorious angel up in Heaven. But he was not happy there. He was not full of joy. His mind had already made a Hell out of Heaven. The lines spoken by Satan also suggest a different definition of Hell. In fact, at least four different definitions of Hell appear in Paradise Lost: 1. 2. 3. 4. A state of mind (Book 1: 254-55) A pit of fire and darkness (Book 1: 52-78) Pandemonium (Book 1: 670-730) A separate world (Book 2: 570-628)

As suggested in the above quote (lines 254-55), one definition of Hell is that Hell is an abstract idea that exists in the mind. Hell is simply a state of mind. This

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is a profound psychological insight. Happiness (Heaven) or sadness (Hell) is dependent upon one's psychological approach to life as much as it is to the circumstances (or events) that one encounters on a day to day basis. The belief that Hell is a state of mind is also similar to a belief presented in Christopher Marlowe's Doctor Faustus. In that Renaissance play the character of Mephastophilis tells Faustus that even on earth he is still in Hell because he is "deprived of everlasting bliss" (scene 3, line 80). Both Marlowe and Milton realized, centuries before Freud introduced the study of psychology to the world, that the mind is a powerful instrument. The mind is capable of producing amazing accomplishments and, sometimes, devastating (or harmful) effects. Nevertheless, for Christians, Satan's belief that he can make a Heaven out of Hell is an act of heresy, an action against God. Although God has indeed given man a remarkable mind with the gifts of reason and free will, such a mind is not capable of changing or altering God's Divine Will. The human mind is not more powerful than God's will. The other three depictions or definitions of Hell reflect real-life sources or models. Once again, Milton is using accommodation. He is using earthly metaphors to suggest spiritual or otherworldly concepts. (1) Milton's description of Hell as a place of darkness and fire is an ancient belief. However, Milton adds to that belief by using imagery from the Phlagraean Fields of Naples. This area is a desolate wasteland caused by the eruption of a volcano. It is a dark and dreary desert. (2) Pandemonium, the rich palace that the devils build for themselves, represents or reflects St. Peter's Cathedral (a Catholic structure) in Rome. By

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connecting the Cathedral to Rome, Milton is thereby connecting the Catholics to Satan and to evil. (3) In "Book 2" of his epic (lines 570-628), Milton describes Hell as being a separate world in itself, with regions of varying climate and with diverse geographical features. This idea comes from the book Somnium by Johannes Kepler (a German astronomer in the early 17th century). Kepler described the moon as a separate world that is geographically similar to the earth. By using different methods to describe Hell, Milton is thus suggesting that Hell is actually not any one of these. Hell is supernatural. It is otherworldly. It is indescribable. One other line in the fourth speech is also noteworthy: Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven. (line 263) As our editors note, this line is an allusion to Homer's The Odyssey. But it is an ironic allusion because it states an idea that is opposite to what Homer implies. In Homer's epic, the ghost of Achilles tells Odysseus that being a poor peasant on earth is better than being a king in Hades. In other words, being alive and poor (or even miserable) is better than being dead and being the ruler of the underworld. This line reflects the ancient Greeks' fear of death. Milton's ironic reversal of this line may make Satan seem heroic, but it actually suggests his own foolishness. Satan should be afraid to live in Hell for all of eternity.

562

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Toward the end of "Book 1" Satan assembles all of the devils who had been lying in the fires of Hell. He addresses or speaks to them like a military general addressing his troops. In fact, even before the speech, Milton uses military language and imagery: "warriors" (line 565), "battalion" (569), "infantry" (575), and so on. This is also part of the poet's accommodation, part of the metaphor that he uses to describe otherworldly events. Here, the metaphor helps to suggest Satan's relationship to the other devils. Satan is their leader, a military leader. In his speech (lines 622-62) Satan reassures his troops that despite their losses, he and the other devils should not give up hope. The speech has essentially three basic parts: 1. Lines 622-34 2. Lines 635-42 3. Lines 643-62 Encouragement. Emphasis on Power of Devils. Hope. God's Deception. What should they do next?

In the first part of this speech, Satan, using questions, basically implies that their loss in the battle in Heaven is remarkable, almost unbelievable, since they are so strong (or "puissant" or powerful). Satan is flattering his troops. He is trying to make them feel good about themselves after they have experienced such a terrible and devastating loss. Satan also encourages them by stating that they will rise (or "reascend") to Heaven again and return to their homes ("their native seat") there.

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In the second part of the speech, Satan asserts that he does not regret his actions. He does not regret that he had neither followed different advice ("counsels different") nor acted differently ("danger shunned"). He has not lost hope (line 637). The reader should note that Satan actually says "our hopes," the hopes of all of the devils. Satan is cleverly trying to make the devils feel and believe that they still have hope. Satan then adds that they lost their battle because God had tricked them. God had kept His power hidden ("his strength concealed") from them. But now that they know how powerful He is, they can act more wisely in the future. At the end of the speech, Satan offers the devils a choice as to which method to use next in their war against God. Should they use force (or "open" war) or fraud (or "understood" war -- line 662). Satan calls for a council -- a meeting of the devils -- so that they can debate and decide. But actually he has already decided for them: "our better part remains to work in close design, by fraud or guile" (lines 645-46). Satan has already made up his mind. However, he pretends to be democratic -- to make the devils think they have a choice. In "Book 2" Satan will cleverly conduct or arrange the debate so that the devils will decide his way. EPIC SIMILES Throughout Paradise Lost Milton uses epic similes for two purposes: (1) as part of the poetic craft that is so very much a part of the epic tradition and (2) as another method to accomplish the difficult task of accommodation, of relating otherworldly events in earthly language. The epic simile is longer than the typical simile. It could be 10 or 20 lines long, or

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possibly even longer. It is richer and more descriptive than a typical simile. "Book 1" contains several epic similes. Two of them occur early in the book. The first epic simile is to provide the reader with some idea about the size of Satan and the other devils. Satan is a giant. And Milton actually makes several comparisons to impress this idea on the minds of his readers. The simile states (beginning in line 196) that Satan is "as huge as" the (1) Titans, (2) certain mythological monsters (named Briareos and Typhon), or (3) a whale ("that sea beast Leviathan"). The Titans were giant gods who waged war against Zeus (or Jupiter or Jove) and the other gods of Mount Olympus. One of the most famous Titans is Atlas, who was so large that he could hold the world on his shoulders. Satan is also that big. Milton is also aware that many of the readers in his day would probably not be familiar with just how large a whale could grow. So, as part of his epic simile, he relates a tale about a Norwegian who is a pilot of a small ship. The Norwegian gets lost at sea during the night and sees what he believes is an island. So, he casts his anchor and takes refuge (or safety) there for the night. However, he wakes up and discovers that the island is actually alive. It is a creature of the sea. It is a whale. Such creatures can become so large that sailors had actually mistaken them for islands. This particular epic simile is 13 lines long (lines 196-208). The three comparisons also contribute to the characterization of Satan. (1) Satan fought against God, just as the Titans fought against the gods of Olympus. (2) Satan is monstrous or hideous, just like Briareos and Typhon. And (3) Satan is dangerous to man, just as the

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whale is potentially dangerous to sailors lost at sea in the dark. Milton also uses a shorter epic simile (in lines 230-36) to describe the landscape of Hell. Milton compares Hell to a dark and ash-covered land in Italy where volcanic mountains had erupted. The image of the volcano also contributes to the imagery of Hell -- as a dark place of fire and smoke and ash. THE CATALOG OF DEVILS A large portion of "Book1" is largely a catalog or listing of devils with a brief description of each one. This catalog reflects a Christian view that began in medieval times. Christians believed that the gods that were worshipped by non-Christians were actually devils. Milton similarly believed that people who worshipped any god or gods other than the Christian God were mistaken. So, the poet uses the names of the nonChristian gods for the names of his devils. Milton divides his catalog of devils into three sections. Each section represents a different geographical region: I. Gods of the Near East (Babylonia, Syria, Arabian countries) 1. Moloch (line 393) 2. Chemos or Peor (406) 3. Baalim (422) 4. Ashtaroth (422) 5. Astoreth or Astarte (438) 6. Thammuz or Adonis (446) 7. Dagon (457) 8. Rimnon (467)

566 II.

The Renaissance Gods of Egypt 1. Osiris (478) 2. Isis (478) 3. Orus (478) 4. Apis, the Golden Calf (484) 5. Belial (490) Gods of Rome and Greece 1. Cronus or Saturn (512) 2. Rhea (513) 3. Zeus or Jupiter (514)

III.

In his descriptions of these devils, Milton indicates that each of them is responsible for promoting or encouraging sins in their lands. Moloch, for example, encouraged "human sacrifice." And Chemos (also known as Peor) was a god associated with "lustful orgies." By using the names of the ancient gods, Milton is thereby connecting the acts of evil in ancient times to the devils -- the fallen angels -- who live in Hell. THE TINY DEVILS At the end of "Book 1" the devils start to enter Pandemonium, the splendid golden palace that they have built for themselves. However, there are too many of them, and each one is a giant -- as huge as a whale. So, the devils shrink. They magically make themselves small (in lines 777-88) so that all of them can fit into Pandemonium. Milton uses another epic simile as he compares these tiny devils first to pygmies and then to "fairy elves."

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This epic simile provides fitting contrast to the titan/whale simile used earlier. However, this fairy/elf simile is also used for the purpose of symbolism. Satan and his followers have not only physically been reduced in size. They have also been socially reduced or demoted -- from angels to devils. Most importantly, they are reduced spiritually as well, for they have lost God.

LECTURE 27
PARADISE LOST: "BOOK 2" THE STRUCTURE OF "BOOK 2" Just as he had done with "Book 1," Milton begins his second book with a prose introduction or argument. Once again, the setting is Hell. In this book Satan calls his troops of devils together for a council or meeting. They begin by debating whether or not they should wage open war against God. But then Beelzebub reminds the devils of a rumor that they had heard when they were in Heaven. The fallen angels had heard that God was going to create another race of creatures -which, of course, would be the race of mankind. They also heard that God was going to place this new race on a new world: the earth. Satan proposes that one of them should journey out of Hell and find out whether this rumor is true. If so, perhaps the devils can attack God indirectly by bringing harm or mischief to this new race. All of the devils are afraid to go. So, Satan volunteers himself. Once again, Satan appears heroic or courageous. After the meeting is over, the devils break up and go in different directions. Apparently, they have different jobs and activities to keep themselves busy. They also seem to have different social classes. Meanwhile, Satan begins his journey to earth. First, he goes to the Gates of Hell; but he finds that two monsters, Sin and Death, are guarding those gates. Second, after passing through the gates, Satan must

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travel through space and past the realm of Chaos. Finally, he arrives in sight of the earth. "Book 2" has five major sections: I. II. III. IV. V. The Council of Devils (lines 1-485) The Employment of the Devils (521-628) Satan's Journey to the Gates of Hell (629889) Satan's Journey through Chaos (8901020) The View of Earth (1021-55)

The student should note that nearly half of the book is devoted to the council scene. Once again, the primary literary form used throughout the book is the speech. Not only are several speeches given in the council scene. But as Satan encounters the monstrous figures at the Gates of Hell and beyond, more speeches are presented. THE COUNCIL SCENE Milton begins "Book 2" with a brief poetic introduction (lines 1-10) to describe the scene and then quite quickly moves to the speeches. In the introduction the poet describes Satan, like a king, sitting on a throne. His throne is placed high up, so that all of the devils have to look up to see him. Satan thus has a psychological advantage over the others. Although Satan may appear to be regal and splendid, the reader should carefully note Milton's description of him. The poet not only describes Satan as being "vain" (line 9) and "proud" (line 10). But he also adds that Satan has not learned from his mistakes ("by success untaught"). Satan has not learned the lesson that his own pride was

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the cause of his doom. His pride was the cause of his failure. Milton is thereby suggesting that Satan will continue to fail because he continues to be proud. Satan will never be able to accomplish anything that God does not want him to accomplish. There are seven speeches in this section: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Satan's Opening Address (lines 11-42) Moloch's Speech (51-105) Belial's Speech (119-225) Mammon's Speech (229-83) Beelzebub's Speech (310-78) Satan's Conclusion (389-416) Satan Volunteers Himself (430-66)

In his opening address, Satan again suggests that the devils still have hope: "I give not Heaven for lost" (line 14). He is suggesting that the devils will eventually be able to defeat God and return to Heaven. Satan next asserts himself as the ruler or chief of the devils. He explains that there are three reasons why he should be leader. (1) First, there are the "fixed laws of Heaven" (line 18). Because Satan was their leader up in Heaven, he should naturally remain their leader in Hell. (2) Second, he is their leader because the devils chose him (line 19). The devils chose him to be their leader when they decided to rebel against God. (3) None of the other devils want the position. Satan sits on an "unenvied throne" (line 23) because the devils know that God's greatest anger will be reserved for their leader. By assuming leadership, Satan thereby suggests that he is putting himself in great danger. Of course, actually his great pride is the reason why he wants to rule.

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Satan ends his address by once more proposing the two possible choices that the devils might take: "open war or covert guile" (line 41). Satan pretends that he is giving the devils a choice -- to fight openly against God or to use fraud, deceit, and guile against God. Of course, we already know that he would never choose open war. Despite his words, he is too afraid for that. MOLOCH Moloch is the first of the devils to give an opinion. This bloodthirsty devil associated with human sacrifices quite naturally votes for open war. Despite the terrible loss that the devils had experienced, Moloch suggest several reasons why the devils should openly attack God once again: 1. To remain in Hell would be an act of "shame" (line 58). 2. The devils can use the "sulphur and strange fire" (69) of Hell as weapons. 3. The devils "proper motion" (75) or natural instinct is to rise up and move upward toward Heaven. 4. Their own "fear" (85) that God will do something worse to them stops them, but Moloch believes that there is nothing worse than to be in Hell. 5. If God can destroy their immortal lives, being nothing would be better than living a "miserable" (98) life for all of eternity.

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6. If, on the other hand, they are truly immortal and cannot be destroyed, then they have already experienced the worst thing that can happen to them. Moloch concludes by stating that the devils do have the power to "disturb" God (102), and they should do so to get revenge. Moloch, from the Christian viewpoint, does make several errors. God is all-powerful. God could find an even worse punishment for them. And God could even destroy them completely. The devils have not experienced the worst that could happen to them. BELIAL The next devil to speak is Belial. He is a lazy devil; so, he quite naturally advises sloth. In other words, the devils should do nothing. However, as the poet informs us, Belial speaks sweetly: "his tongue dropped manna" (lines 112-13). He can make even the most irrational and illogical ideas sound reasonable and convincing. Belial begins by arguing against the ideas proposed by Moloch: 1. The heart of Moloch's argument is based on "despair" (line 126). In other words, Moloch does not argue strongly about the positive accomplishments that they might achieve. Rather, he bases his argument on the negative result that could possibly happen. This is not a strong argument in Belial's opinion.

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Belial thus argues against using either "force or guile" (188) against God. God, he argues, is too strong and can stop all of their "plots and wiles" (193). God can prevent any attack or deception that they might try against Him. If they do nothing, though, God might "remit his anger" (210-11). God might make their punishment easier. Belial concludes that maybe then the fires of Hell will not be so painful to them. Although Belial argues from the standpoint of his own laziness, he is closer to the truth in his estimation (his guess) about the power of God. MAMMON The third devil to voice an opinion in the council is Mammon. Mammon is a selfish devil. He believes that it is better to be free in Hell than to be God's servant or slave in Heaven (line 247). He is far more interested in the "gems and gold" (line 271) that they can dig up in Hell than in any war they might wage. Basically, he agrees with Belial that they should not fight against

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God. However, his reasons are far different. Where Belial represents sloth, Mammon represents greed. Moloch also represents one of the Seven Deadly Sins: the sin of anger. However, it is the pride of Satan that will prevail (or dominate) over all of them. BEELZEBUB All of the devils applaud and cheer Mammon at the end of his speech (line 290) because they fear God and a worse punishment to come. Of course, neither Moloch nor Belial nor Mammon agrees with what Satan wants. The next speaker to address the devils is Beelzebub. Beelzebub is Satan's lieutenant, his secondin-command. Beelzebub is also the second most powerful of all of the devils. The devils will value his opinion more highly than that of the other devils who spoke. Beelzebub delivers a long and convincing speech. But the careful reader will note that, after his speech, Milton informs us that Beelzebub's speech was "first devised by Satan" (line 379-80). Satan is the author of the speech, but he allows Beelzebub to deliver it so that the other devils will not think that he is forcing them to agree with him. Satan lets Beelzebub voice the idea, which he will then praise and agree to. Beelzebub also presents his arguments based on what the other devils had said before: 1. He notes that the majority of devils, the "popular vote" (line 313), want to stay in Hell and not fight against God. But he argues that Hell may not be a "safe retreat" (317), a place of safety away from God. God may still be able to punish them further.

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Beelzebub then states the following: War hath determined us. (line 330) By this sentence Beelzebub is actually making two points. (1) Their first war or battle in Heaven moved them in a certain direction from which they cannot return. (2) Now that they are in a state of conflict, they must act in an appropriate manner. The conflict that they have with God is forcing them to continue moving toward further conflict. Beelzebub next discusses the idea of peace and seems to agree with Mammon that God could make the devils His slaves (333). And he also seems to agree with Belial that more and worse punishment could follow (334). Finally, Beelzebub even seems to be agreeing with Moloch that the devils' best course of action is to take "revenge" (337). In this way, Beelzebub appears to be reaching a consensus, finding a position of compromise for all of the devils. However, Beelzebub realizes that the biggest opposition to maintaining conflict with God is the devils' terrific fear of God's great power. So, Beelzebub considers that issue next. He tells the devils that they do not have to wage open war against God. There is an easier way, an "easier enterprise" (line 345). At this point in his speech Beelzebub then brings up the race of

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mankind. Satan's lieutenant basically suggests that they should use fraud and direct their energies against this new creation. Beelzebub adds that the devils should study this new creature to discover its "weakness" (357). Then, they can decide whether to use "force or subtlety" (358), to fight this new enemy directly or to use fraud against it. Beelzebub's plan seems safe, and Beelzebub then suggests some possible actions that the devils can take against the humans: 1. 2. 3. 4. To destroy them (lines 364-65) To own them as slaves (365-66) To banish them, to drive them away (366-67) To seduce or trick them to join the devils (367-68) and thus have the race of man become enemies to God

Beelzebub concludes that this would "surpass common revenge" (lines 370-71). In other words, this would be the best possible revenge ever, but still be less dangerous to the devils. The other devils agree with Beelzebub because they still feel "spite" (385) toward God. They still hate God and desire revenge. SATAN'S REPLY After Beelzebub's speech (which Satan had written himself), Satan congratulates the devils for conducting such a thoughtful debate and for deciding so wisely. He then asks the devils a question: "whom shall we send in search of this new world?" (lines 402-03). Satan is asking for a volunteer to fly through the dangers of space in order to go to the Garden of Eden on earth

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and study the race of mankind. Satan's words especially make the devils realize that this is an important mission and that failure would be unforgivable. He tells the devils that this is their only hope, their "last hope" (416). All of their futures depend upon the success of this volunteer. The reader should, of course, remember Satan's use of the word hope on earlier occasions. Without hope, there is only despair. And the devils do not want to sink into the depths of despair. After Satan asks his question, there is complete silence. "All sat mute" (420). The devils are too afraid to risk their futures and their hope on this one attempt. This response is exactly what Satan had expected. Satan, still sitting on his throne above the other devils, then tells them that he alone will take the journey (44556). But first he stresses the dangers that he will encounter (432-44) along the way. Satan wants to look good in front of his troops. He wants to look brave. And to the other devils, Satan does look brave. They cheer and applaud him and praise him (476-85). Again, though, the reader should remember that although Satan is brave as long as he is in Hell, once he leaves Hell he is no longer so courageous. Satan concludes his final speech to the devils by telling them to make Hell more comfortable -- "render Hell more tolerable" (459-60) -- since Hell is now their new home. In the meantime, Satan will be travelling to Eden. AUTHORIAL INTRUSION Following the scene with the council of devils, Milton adds an epic simile to describe the dispersal (or the leaving or exiting) of the devils as they leave

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Pandemonium and move off to other places. Their dispersal or movement is like dark or "dusky clouds" on the mountain tops being blown away by the wind (line 488). Milton then launches into social criticism, a direct attack against the faults of mankind (lines 496505). This social criticism might also be labeled as an authorial intrusion. The author, Milton inserts his opinion on an issue that is really quite separate or distinct from the story he is telling. In a sense, he intrudes on the story. In his intrusion Milton notes that the devils act in a way much differently from mankind. The devils, upon the conclusion of their debate, hold "firm concord" (line 497) with one another. They are strongly united. They are at peace with one another. After such a debate among humans, there would still be quarrelling and fighting and bickering afterwards. Man is not a peaceful creature. He is belligerent and aggressive and full of "hatred, enmity, and strife" (line 500). Man cannot live peacefully with his fellow man. So, Milton criticizes man's hatred and anger and tendency to fight. In this respect, men are worse than devils. Thus, Milton expresses his sorrow with the expression, "O shame to men!" (line 496). Milton also points out (in lines 497-98) that of all of the "rational" creatures that God has created, only men disagree and fight with one another in such an irrational way. The angels do not. And even the devils do not. Milton concludes his intrusion by commenting that the race of man has enough foes or enemies in Hell (504). Man has no need to make additional enemies from among his own kind.

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Milton's comments in this intrusion may at first seem a little strange or out of place. But the reader should keep in mind the historical context in which Milton was writing. During the 17th century Englishman fought against Englishman. Bloodshed and violence were not uncommon events. Milton in this passage is indirectly criticizing the civil violence and civil war in his own country and in his own time. He is criticizing the lack of "concord" and peace of his day. He is criticizing the "hatred, enmity, and strife" that occurred regularly during his own lifetime. THE EMPLOYMENT OF DEVILS As Satan gets ready for his voyage to the gates of Hell and beyond, the other devils break up into groups and move off in various directions. Each group engages in a different activity or occupation. Milton especially notes four groups of devils: 1. 2. 3. 4. Athletes (lines 529-46) Singers (545-56) Philosophers (557-69) Discoverers (570-76)

The Athletes engage in races or other games similar to what used to occur in the Olympian games of Greece. The Singers, on the other hand, are more mild and enchant their fellow devils with their harmonious music. Meanwhile, the Philosophers debate topics such as "foreknowledge" and predestination and "free will." Finally, the Discoverers or Adventurers travel through the various regions of Hell, which Milton then describes (in lines 572-628) as a separate world all to itself. It has

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rivers and mountains and regions of extreme heat and extreme cold. Of course, it is a darker place than the Earth. And Hell contains many terrifying sights and even horrible monsters. The comparisons of Hell to Earth and of the devils to mankind are, of course, quite deliberate on Milton's part. Once again, he is using accommodation to make his point. Milton accomplishes two goals or purposes in this section. First, he establishes his devils as being very much like humans. They are individuals. They have their own interests and hobbies and occupations. Milton, in this way, wants his readers to identify with the devils. He wants his readers to see themselves in these devils. Most readers would find at least one of the four activities that Milton lists as activities that they themselves would like to participate in. Both men and devils are creations of God, and both men and devils were given the free will to choose between good and evil. However, the devils have made their choice. Man, on the other hand, still has a choice. He can choose good or evil. And in every day of his life he can continue to choose whether he will lead his life in a good or evil manner. The second goal that Milton accomplishes in this section is to warn, indirectly, the race of man. Hell is an unpleasant place, and the devils are limited in what they can accomplish there. The athletic accomplishments of the Athletes in Hell can never compare to those performed by the angels in Heaven. The Singers in Hell can never sing as delightfully as the angels can. The Philosophers in Hell will never understand the Divine Wisdom of God. And the

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Discoverers can explore only the dark and dreary regions of an evil world. Man has the freedom to choose good or evil. But in so doing, man will also be choosing where to spend eternity: in Hell or in Paradise. THE GATES OF HELL Perhaps the most exciting and fascinating segment of Paradise Lost occurs at the end of "Book 2." After the council is over and the devils have departed from Pandemonium, Satan begins his journey to earth. The section blends elements of science fiction and supernatural fantasy as Satan flies through space and encounters the strange inhabitants of the darkness along the way. This section does contain far more action than the first part of the book. But the reader should also note that even in this section, most of the lines are presented in dialogue or speeches. Satan's journey has two primary stages or sections: (1) the Gates of Hell and (2) the Realm of Chaos. In the first of these two, Satan encounters the allegorical figures of Sin and Death. The section on the Gates of Hell can be further subdivided into eleven major parts: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Satan begins his journey (lines 629-48) Description of Sin and Death (648-80) Satan warns Death (speech: 681-87) Death's reply (speech: 688-703) Satan and Death prepare to fight (704-26) Sin speaks to stop the fight (speech: 727-35) Satan questions Sin (speech: 736-45)

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8. Sin's Reply (speech: 746-814) 9. Satan's Response to Sin (speech: 815-45) 10. Sin speaks about her duty (speech: 850-70) 11. Sin opens the gates (871-84) The section is approximately 255 lines long, but nearly 160 lines are devoted to speeches or dialogue. The descriptions of both Sin and Death are certainly noteworthy, and bizarre. Both are monsters. Both are creatures out of some kind of nightmare. Sin (described in lines 649-64) is half-woman and halfserpent. From her head to her waist, she is like a beautiful woman (the reader should note that the word fair here means beautiful). But from the waist down, she is like a snake or serpent (and the reader should also note that the word foul means ugly in this context). Moreover, at the end of her tail is a dangerous and deadly or "mortal sting." And her ugliness does not end there. Monstrous dogs or "Hellhounds" surround her. Whenever they are disturbed, they creep inside her womb. But even once they are inside Sin, they continue to make a ferocious and horrible noise. The description of Sin as an allegorical monster has two sources. (1) In Edmund Spenser's Faerie Queen, the poet describes the allegorical figure of Error as being half-woman and half-serpent. (2) In The Metamorphoses by Ovid, Scylla is a beautiful maiden who is turned into a monster by the witch Circe. Scylla's lower body is a mass of barking dogs. Milton ends his description of Sin with an allusion to Scylla. Milton suggests that Sin is a monster who is far uglier than any other creature in literature, including Scylla. Of course, this is a metaphor. Milton

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is actually saying that the act of sin itself is ugly and horrible. The description of Death is quite different from the way it has been personified in other literary works. Apparently, this is Milton's invention. There are no sources for it. In Paradise Lost Death is shapeless or formless (666-78). It is like a big, massive "shadow" (669). And, like Sin, it also has a deadly "dart" or stinger to threaten its enemies. Death blocks the Gates of Hell, and Satan warns it to stand aside or he will attack it. Here especially the reader may note that Satan especially appears to be heroic. However, the reader should also keep in mind that Satan knows that he is immortal and -- as far as he knows -- the monster is not. Satan, therefore, does not really believe that the monster could possibly cause him any real harm. A terrific battle is about to take place, like the battle between Achilles and Hector, the two champions in The Iliad by Homer. But the action never happens. Milton replaces the action with speeches. Sin stops the battle by calling Satan her "father" and by telling Satan that Death is his "son" (727-28). These statements astound Satan. And he asks Sin to explain. In the speech that follows (lines 746-814), Sin describes the origins of both Death and herself. Sin relates an extraordinary tale of how Satan, when he was still an angel up in Heaven, became the father of Sin. The very moment that Satan first thought of the idea to rebel against God was the moment when the first sin was created. Sin literally grew in his head. At that moment, Satan had a terrible headache. His head split open. And Sin -- then appearing as a beautiful goddess -

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- came out. That was, then, the birth of Sin. The source of this story comes from Greek mythology. Athena, the goddess of wisdom and battle, sprang out of the head of Zeus in a similar way. Milton's story about the origin of sin serves two purposes or goals. (1) The story directly connects Satan to sin. The two words become almost synonymous. The story thus reveals the very close connection between the devil (and evil) and sin. And the story suggests that all sins are actions against God. All sins are related to the sin committed by Satan. (2) Having Sin appear as a beautiful goddess metaphorically suggests that sin may look pleasurable and seductive, but actually it is evil and dangerous. And it is actually quite ugly. The birth or origin of Death, according to Sin, occurs when Satan has an incestuous relationship with Sin. Thus, Death is both a son and grandson to Satan. The incest theme is carried out further when Death later chases and rapes Sin, his own mother. The Hellhounds are the offspring or children of Sin and Death. Again, the relationship among Satan, Sin, and Death is metaphorical. The act of sin by Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden brought about the punishment of death. Similarly, Satan's lustful sin with Sin brought about Death. The Hellhounds symbolize further acts of sin that breed or grow and become monstrous over time. Milton's story here, then, is an allegory. Each of the characters represents an abstract idea associated within the Christian concepts concerning the origins of evil and sin. As our editors also suggest, the relationship among Satan, Sin, and Death presents an evil parallel or "parody" of the family relationship among God the

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Father and the Son, and God and Adam and Eve. But another way of viewing the relationship of Satan, Sin, and Death is to describe it as an unholy trinity. In the Catholic faith God has three separate but equal forms: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These three forms are referred to as the Trinity. THE REALM OF CHAOS Satan's journey through the Realm of Chaos contains seven sections: 1. Description of space (lines 890-916) 2. Satan's difficulties (917-59) 3. Allegorical figures of the realm (96067) 4. Satan's speech to Chaos (968-87) 5. Reply by Chaos (988-1009) 6. Satan continues (1010-40) 7. Satan views Earth (1041-55) When Satan first looks beyond the Gates of Hell, he hesitates before taking his first step. The dark space beyond is all chaos. It is a swirling mass of the four elements (earth, air, water, and fire) and the four qualities (hot, cold, moist, and dry). It is confusion. It is like a raging storm that has swept up land, oceans, and fire and keeps them all moving in a constant swirl. Drawing upon ancient sources from the Greeks and Hebrews, Milton describes space as being unaffected or untouched by God. That is how Christians defined chaos. God is Order and Light. This outer space, on the other hand, is Chaos and Night. Chaos and Night thus become personified as the king and

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queen of this dark realm. Other allegorical creatures in the dark space include Rumor, Chance, Tumult, Confusion, and Discord. Milton metaphorically suggests that these five qualities or conditions occur when mankind denies or is without God. Life is chaotic without God. Life is a mess without God. Satan has difficulty traveling through this realm. Sometimes he can fly, but other times he must walk or even crawl. In an epic simile Milton compares Satan to a gryphon (or griffin: lines 943-47). As our footnote relates, the gryphon was a mythological monster, half eagle and half lion. If another creature steals the treasure of this monster, the gryphon will chase it in a mad or frantic fashion -- sometimes flying, sometimes running, sometimes leaping. The gryphon, like a dragon, is often a symbol of greed. It is, for Christians, a symbol for sin. Therefore, Milton appropriately applies the simile to Satan (who is, after all, the father of sin). In his speech to chaos and the other inhabitants of space, Satan admits he is lost and needs help. But he also, in a way, bribes Chaos into helping him. Satan informs Chaos that his plan to ruin man will also return "that region lost" (982), meaning Earth, back to the realm of Chaos and Night. Once God had brought light and order to the earth and the surrounding universe, that area or region had become lost to or taken from the Realm of Chaos. Satan is an opportunist. Just as he had told Sin and Death that it would be to their benefit to help him in his revenge, so he suggests a similar idea to Chaos. Satan thus converts his potential enemies into his fellow conspirators.

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Chaos is an "anarch" (988), not a monarch. A monarch is a ruler who enforces rules or laws. Chaos, on the other hand, prefers misrule and disorder. Chaos complains to Satan that his realm is shrinking because the creation of Hell and then of Earth and its universe had taken away part of his realm. So, Chaos agrees to let Satan pass through his realm and directs the devil on his way to earth. The description of Satan's voyage through space loosely incorporates some of the astronomical discoveries and theories made in the time of the Renaissance by Copernicus, a Polish astronomer (14731543); Galileo, an Italian astronomer (1564-1642); and other scientists of the age. In a book entitled A World in the Moon (written in 1936 by Marjurie Nicholson), the author notes that cosmic voyages and especially voyages to the moon are part of a fairly substantial literary tradition. The earliest story in this tradition appeared in the second century by a Greek writer named Lucian. Even during the Renaissance, Galileo believed that the moon had valleys and seas, not unlike those of the earth. THE BRIDGE TO HELL As Satan approaches Earth, Sin and Death follow closely behind him (lines 1024-25). In doing so, Sin and Death create a "bridge" (1028) that connects the Earth to Hell. No longer will the journey from Hell to Earth, or, more importantly, from Earth to Hell, be as difficult for Satan as it was during his first trip to Earth. Milton is once again creating another metaphor here. The road to Hell, he is warning us, is an easy one.

LECTURE 28
THE FIRST LECTURE ON 1 HENRY IV AN INTRODUCTION TO THE PLAY Critics usually divide the plays by William Shakespeare into three major categories: tragedies, comedies, and histories. Occasionally, critics add a fourth category, romances, to describe a few of his plays. Ten of Shakespeare's plays belong to the category of histories. However, the student should keep in mind that such classification is not an issue that Shakespeare himself would have been too particularly concerned with. The ten plays that are called histories focus only on English history. Shakespeare also wrote plays that cover historical figures and events of other lands. For example, Julius Caesar is also an historical play about Rome in the Classical Age. But for the sake of convenience, critics label it as a tragedy. On the other hand, Richard III is also a tragedy. But for the sake of convenience, critics label it as a history. Another historical play by Shakespeare, King Henry V, however, contains more elements related to comedy than to tragedy. Although classification and labels are sometimes helpful, the student should not let the label "history" be too misleading. An historical play may contain elements of both tragedy and comedy, and the emphasis may be on either one. One of Shakespeare's best history plays is The First Part of King Henry the Fourth (hereafter referred to as 1 Henry IV). Shakespeare actually wrote two plays about the reign (or time period) of King Henry IV

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(1399-1413). (1) In 1 Henry IV Shakespeare covers the rebellion of the Percy family, English aristocrats who had originally helped King Henry IV gain possession of the throne. The play primarily focuses on the young son of the king. Prince Henry (the future Henry V) is an embarrassment to the king, for the prince spends an idle and lazy life drinking and gambling in the taverns of England. However, with the coming of the rebellion, the prince is forced to grow up quickly. (2) In 2 Henry IV (or The Second Part of King Henry the Fourth) Shakespeare examines a second rebellion against King Henry IV and continues to develop the maturation (or growing up) of Prince Henry. The play also includes the death of Henry IV and ends with Prince Henry being crowned as King Henry V of England. Shakespeare's 1 Henry IV was published in 1598, but was probably written as early as 1596. During the Renaissance the growth and development of English drama was remarkable. The reader should keep in mind that just a hundred years earlier English audiences were attending morality plays like Everyman. But in the second half of the 16th century, numerous comedies, tragedies, and histories were playing in London and throughout England. However, when Shakepeare's 1 Henry IV first appeared on stage in 1596 (or 1597), the audience encountered a brilliant and new kind of history play that surpassed any other written before that time.

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Some historical information will be useful to the student who wishes to understand Shakespeare's play in depth. The following chart may also prove helpful: King Edward III (d. 1377)
Edward, Prince of Wales (d. 1376) | | King Richard II Lionel, Duke of Clarence John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster | | Henry IV | | | | Henry V

| | Phillipa (married Edmund Mortimer, Earl of March) | | Roger Edmund Mortimer Mortimer | (married | Caitrin | Glendower) | Edmund Mortimer
(Richard IIs Successor)

The chart above is simplified. King Edward III actually had seven sons. But his eldest son, Prince Edward, died a year before the king did. In such circumstances, the remaining family members often will contest or argue over who should be the next rightful heir to the throne. But such conflicts were not simply a matter of the law. They also concerned a conflict for power.

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The events of 1399 certainly reveal such a power struggle. Richard II was named king when he was still a child. And as he grew older, he proved to be not a very good king. On occasion he could even be a tyrant. Henry Bolingbroke (the future King Henry IV) returned from an exile in France in 1399 because his father, the Duke of Lancaster, died. Henry Bolingbroke returned to become the new Duke of Lancaster. Henry Percy (the Earl of Northumberland) and Thomas Percy (the Earl of Worcester) assisted Henry in attaining his title. Meanwhile, Richard II was away in Ireland fighting a war. Richard named Edmund Mortimer (the son of Roger Mortimer, the Earl of March) to be his successor (to be the next king) should he die in the war. Not everyone agreed with King Richard's choice. As a grandson to Edward III, Henry Bolingbroke felt that his claim to be the next king was stronger than that of Edmund Mortimer. Mortimer, after all, was (1) a greatgreat grandson of Edward III and (2) was not directly descended from the male line of that king. There followed an extreme amount of political confusion and conflict at that point. When Richard II returned from Ireland, Henry Bolingbroke, with the assistance of the Percy family and other nobles, captured Richard and put him in prison. Henry then became King Henry IV. Henry, therefore, did not inherit the title: he seized it (a coup d'etat). The following year, in 1400, he executed Richard II. The political problems for Henry IV, however, were just beginning. Both Wales and Scotland were at war with England. The problems became worse when the other Edmund Mortimer (the son of the Earl of March and Phillipa) became a prisoner in Wales. Owen Glendower, the leader of the Welsh forces, demanded

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that King Henry IV pay a ransom to release Mortimer. Henry refused. The Mortimers, after all, also had a claim to the throne. And Henry wanted to protect his position. However, Hotspur (also known as the younger Henry Percy, the son of the Earl of Northumberland) became angry that King Henry IV would not pay the ransom. Mortimer was the brother-in-law to Hotspur, who was married to Elizabeth Mortimer (sister to Roger and Edmund). So, a plot, a conspiracy against the king, began. Hotspur gathered other members of the Percy family together with the Earl of Douglas (a leader of the Scots), Glendower (the Welsh leader), the Archbishop of York, and other powerful individuals who were not pleased with the leadership of Henry IV. Hotspur's forces then rebelled and waged open war against the forces of the king. The rebellion and fighting reached a climax in 1403. In that year the two opposing sides met in a momentous struggle known as The Battle of Shrewsbury. Hotspur died in that action, and the forces of the rebellion were brought down. Henry IV would continue to sit on the throne for another ten years. SHAKESPEARE'S APPROACH TO HISTORICAL DRAMA In writing his play about the historical events from 1400 to 1403, Shakespeare's main concern was not in presenting a historically accurate or faithful recreation of the events. Shakespeare's primary interest is in drama, not history. Shakespeare, in his mind, in his imagination, looked for the drama that underlies the

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events. The brilliance of Shakespeare's plays is found far more often in the characters than in the plot. Shakespeare imagined the people involved in the events and recreated how they would think and react as a result of those events. In 1 Henry IV especially, Shakespeare brought to life an interesting assortment of characters that are motivated into action by a number of complex and intriguing reasons. In 1 Henry IV three characters dominate the action and capture the attention of the audience. None of these characters is King Henry IV. Renaissance audiences would certainly have expected the focus of the play, given its title, to be Henry IV. But Shakespeare was not a playwright who followed conventions. For him, the craft of the play was everything. The artistic merits of the play overshadowed both historical accuracy and dramatic convention. The three characters that dominate 1 Henry IV are Prince Henry, Hotspur, and Falstaff. Henry, the Prince of Wales, is also referred to as Hal or Harry. He is a prodigal son -- a reckless and rebellious young man who would rather spend his time at a tavern than at court. Hotspur, as his nickname suggests, is a character who is rash or easily becomes angry. His real name is Henry Percy (yes, another Henry). Hotspur becomes almost a symbol of vengeance and rebellion when he recognizes that the king is treating his father and his brother-in-law (Mortimer) unfavorably and unjustly. Falstaff, whose full name is Sir John Falstaff, is an old and fat scoundrel and thief who becomes a surrogate (or substitute) father to Prince Henry. Idleness and gluttony are two of the fat lord's traits. But Falstaff also has an attractive side to his personality. His carefree manner,

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his love of luxury, and his eloquent bombast (prideful speech or boasting) make him an intriguing figure that attracts not only the young prince but many of the members in the audience as well. In fact, most people, when they think about 1 Henry IV, immediately think about Falstaff. Falstaff is one of those wonderful comic creations whose popularity surpasses even that of the play itself. Shakespeare would bring Falstaff back to life not only in 2 Henry IV but also in a later comedy, The Merry Wives of Windsor. Shakespeare's plays often contain more than one central story or conflict, and 1 Henry IV is no exception. In fact, there are three central stories in this history play. And each one of these stories focuses on the three main characters listed above. 1. The first story is that of Prince Henry. We could describe the conflict of this story as a protagonist versus himself conflict. Henry realizes that his lazy and dissolute (or immoral) life in the taverns cannot last. Thus, this is a story about honor and reputation. Early in the play -- in fact, in Act I -- Henry pledges to reform himself, to start living a better and nobler life. Yet he continues to be an associate to Falstaff, a man for whom the word honor is an evil term. Thus, Henry's reformation of character is in jeopardy.

596

The Renaissance 2. The second story about Hotspur also concerns honor. Hotspur feels that King Henry's treatment of his father and brotherin-law is dishonorable. So, Hotspur's story is also one about revenge. Hotspur's conflict is a simple one of man versus man. He positions himself against King Henry IV and, later, Prince Henry. However, there is also a protagonist versus himself conflict with Hotspur. Hotspur is hot-tempered and easily angered. He needs to learn self-control and patience. 3. The third story concerns Falstaff, but the conflict in this tale is difficult to determine. There is no movement or dynamic quality with the character of Falstaff. He is at the bottom of the social ladder at the beginning of the play, and he does not rise at all during the course of the play. If anything, Falstaff sinks even lower as the story progresses. Perhaps the reader may liken (or compare) the "fall" of this figure as a movement from the gutter to the sewer.

Shakespeare's overall plot is, indeed, intricate and elaborate. Although each of the three tales above is rather simple and based on other sources, the mixing of these three plots into one unified whole is not so simple. Shakespeare weaves back and forth between the tales; and, of course, the characters in one also appear in the other. If the elements of one of these stories were altered or deleted, that alteration or deletion would also significantly affect the other two stories as well.

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Moreover, the themes of the stories are also mixed together as well. As noted, both the Prince Henry story and the Hotspur story involve the idea of honor. Shakespeare intends further that his readers (or audience) should compare and contrast the two main figures, the two Henrys. Prince Henry seems to rise or gain honor as the play progresses, but Hotspur clearly loses his honor as the play draws to a climax. DYNAMICS OF THE PLAY (1) Prince Henry rises from Dishonor to Honor (2) Hotspur falls from Honor to Dishonor Oddly enough, the commentary, the dialogue, about honor comes not from Henry or Hotspur. It comes from Falstaff, who tries to justify or rationalize his own dishonorable behavior. The conflict about personal honor is mixed with the more personal man to man conflict at the climax of the play when Prince Henry fights against Hotspur during the Battle of Shrewsbury. For both of them, winning is not just a matter of survival: winning is a matter of honor. The conflict or fight between the two Henrys is a fictionalized treatment of historical events. As noted earlier, Shakespeare was not overly concerned with historical accuracy. One of the most noted differences between Shakespeare's play and actual historical events is the age of Hotspur. The real Hotspur was actually older than Henry IV. However, for the thematic and dramatic purposes of his play, Shakespeare made him the same age as Prince Henry. For Shakespeare, the theme about youth and honor and purposeful or rightful behavior was a far more important and crucial dramatic feature of the play than any attempt

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to restate history. A second historical change -- but a far less important one -- concerns the two historical figures named Edmund Mortimer (the uncle and the nephew). Shakespeare decided to conflate (or combine) the two Edmund Mortimers into one character in the play for two reasons: to avoid confusion (after all, he already has four Henrys in the play) and to keep the action tight and flowing smoothly. Such a change also saves the playwright from wasting time in attempting to explain the complicated family relationships and Mortimer's connection to King Edward III. Shakespeare's own audience would also have found the Mortimer family tree more than a little confusing. The issues of honor, loyalty, and kingship are ones that can be found in many history plays. But another feature of 1 Henry IV that sets it apart from other history plays is the setting. Where the court and battlefield are the typical settings that can be found in most Renaissance history plays, Shakespeare's play includes many scenes that are set in the tavern or in the lowly and disreputable world of Falstaff and the other tavern inhabitants. These scenes often provide a commentary or parody of court life and court behavior. There is even a scene where Falstaff pretends to be King Henry IV. From this world of the tavern Prince Henry learns many valuable lessons, often negative ones. However, despite the startling contrast of the world of the tavern to the world of the court, the figure of Prince Henry brings the two worlds together. And, perhaps, William Shakespeare is commenting that these two worlds may not be very different after all. Shakespeare's 1 Henry IV is a mixture of genres: the history of political intrigue and conflict, the subtle comedy of Prince Henry as he struggles to prove

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himself, the broad comedy of Falstaff, and the tragedy of the heroic Hotspur. The play intrigues readers and viewers precisely because it is so rich in content, in characterization, and in theme. SOURCES FOR THE PLAY Shakespeare usually read several sources on his topic before he began to write his play. For 1 Henry IV William Shakespeare used three primary sources: 1. The Chronicle of England, Scotland, and Ireland: Written by Raphael Holinshed in 1587, this chronicle was a popular source that Shakespeare used in writing many of his plays. This historical text is popularly referred to simply as Holinshed's Chronicle. 2. The Civil Wars: This is an historical poem written in 1595 by Samuel Daniel. Daniel also wrote a tragedy, Cleopatra, in 1594, that Shakespeare used as a source for his own play on Antony and Cleopatra. However, Daniel is far more respected for his contribution to history than for his contributions to poetry or drama. 3. The Famous Victories of Henry V: This early play was written sometime in the 1580's. All three of these sources portray Prince Henry as a wild youth and a companion to Sir John Oldcastle (the prototype or original for Falstaff), a fat knight. Shakespeare apparently changed the name to Falstaff out

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of respect for members of the Oldcastle family still living in Shakespeare's time. In Holinshed's Chronicle Hotspur is accurately identified as being older than even King Henry IV. Shakespeare altered this historical fact (as did Daniel) to make Hotspur a foil to Prince Henry. As the editors of the Norton Anthology relate, the character of Falstaff, Shakespeare's intriguing and rich comic character, appears to be a combination of six different sources: 1. The braggart soldier of Roman comedy 2. The allegorical figure of Vice from medieval morality plays 3. The Lord of Misrule, a character popular in folk festivals and folklore 4. The hero of the ballad on Sir John Oldcastle 5. The figure of Gluttony from the pageant of the Seven Deadly Sins (as seen in Christopher Marlowe's Doctor Faustus and other plays) 6. The picaresque (or literary) rogue or highway man Falstaff has elements from all of these sources, but he is more than the sum of his parts. He is an original comic creation. As also noted earlier, Shakespeare would use Falstaff again in two other plays: 2 Henry IV and The Merry Wives of Windsor.

The Renaissance THE FIRST SCENE

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First scenes in Shakespeare plays often determine the theme and substance of the entire play. In 1 Henry IV the first scene does set up the content and a theme regarding political conflict, but it does not introduce the three main characters of the play directly. Rather, it focuses on King Henry IV himself. In the play the story and personal conflicts of the king do play a lesser role to the other three stories of the play. However, the king's conflict does appear as a fourth story in the play. And that story is directly intertwined with the stories of Prince Henry and Hotspur. The first scene begins with a speech where King Henry IV declares that peace should now reign in England. The year is 1400. Henry IV has only been a king for a short while, and he only became king through the use of power. In a civil conflict, Henry defeated Richard II and declared himself as king. As the play opens, the audience finds that Henry regrets the bloodshed that occurred during the conflict. But now that the conflict is over, he vows that no longer shall Englishmen kill Englishman:
No more the thirsty entrance of this soil Shall daub her lips with her children's own blood. (I, i: 5-6)

The word soil in this quote stands for England. And Shakespeare personifies England here as the mother to all Englishmen. Civil war in England is thus a conflict of brother against brother, and the imagery of a mother whose lips are wet with her children's own blood intensifies the horror and the sadness of such a tragic

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episode. Henry is sincere in his desire for peace and his wish to stop civil bloodshed in England. Henry's plan is to reunite England, especially the fighting forces of England. So, he plans a crusade. During the Middle Ages the idea of going to pagan lands to spread Christianity and to defeat the forces of nonChristian adversaries (especially the Muslims in Spain or the Near East) was considered a noble and virtuous activity. Many Englishmen saw themselves as soldiers of Christ: their duty was to promote Christianity and to destroy their pagan enemies. However, Henry's plan is also a wise political move. By uniting the opposing forces within England against a common enemy, the tensions that exist between the two sides will be relieved or redirected as they face a new enemy. Henry's plan for peace in England never materializes. After his speech is over, one of his nobles, the Earl of Westmoreland, informs Henry that conflict in England is already occurring in two areas. (1) To the west, from Wales, the forces of Owen Glendower have attacked England and taken Edmund Mortimer (the Earl of March) as prisoner. (2) In the north, from Scotland, the forces of Archibald, the Earl of Douglas, are also attacking England. However, all is not bleak for England. Hotspur, or "Young Harry Percy" (line 53), has defeated the forces of Archibald and taken Archibald as prisoner. Toward the end of scene one King Henry presents a speech (lines 78-90) where he directly compares Hotspur to his own son, Prince Henry. In the speech King Henry admits that he envies the Earl of Northumberland (Henry Percy) for being blessed with such a noble and honorable son. The king then adds the following:

The Renaissance Whilst I, by looking on the praise of him, See riot and dishonor stain the brow Of my young Harry. (I, i: 84-86)

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The king even adds that he would wish that some supernatural being, some "fairy" (line 87), as a joke, had taken his own child as a baby and exchanged it for Henry Percy's baby. In other words, King Henry would rather have Hotspur as his child. This short speech serves three functions. (1) It contributes to the story of the king. Henry IV not only has to contend with the political problems within England. He also has to contend with the more personal problem of having a son and heir who behaves immorally and improperly. For Henry such a son is both an embarrassment and a source of personal grief. (2) The speech also introduces the theme of honor that is at the heart of this play. Hotspur has achieved deeds of glory and honor, but Prince Henry is a figure full of "dishonor." (3) In addition, the speech begins the comparison and contrast of the two principal characters, Hotspur and the Prince. Thus, the speech also serves to unite two separate stories presented in the early part of the play. PRINCE HENRY: REPUTATION AND REFORMATION In the second scene of Act I, Shakespeare moves his audience from the court of the king to a lowly tavern where Prince Henry is drinking and exchanging quips (witty, clever, or sarcastic comments) with the old, fat knight named Falstaff. Through their conversation some the past activities of the Prince become revealed. Such

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activities include sleeping with prostitutes (line 39) and even robbing travelers (lines 25-26). A hint of the Prince's regret over his past actions does occur early in the conversation when Falstaff indirectly hints at Prince Henry's character: God save thy grace -- majesty I should say, for grace thou wilt have none -- (I, ii: 13-14) Falstaff is making a pun here. Puns are often used as part of Shakespeare's comic dialogue. In this pun, however, Falstaff introduces a more serious matter for the prince. The expression "thy Grace" is the proper form of address for a prince. But the second time Falstaff uses the word -- in saying that Prince Henry will have no grace -- he is referring to Divine Grace. The implication here is that Henry has lost the favor and grace of God because he behaves so immorally and dishonorably. For Falstaff, this is a pun or joke. But Henry's response indicates, perhaps, surprise, if not shock: "What, none?" Although Henry continues to exchange witty remarks with Falstaff, the idea that he is possibly out of God's favor is not a comfortable one to him. As the scene progresses, another character named Poins enters and informs Falstaff and Prince Henry about some wealthy travelers that they can rob. The prince refuses to join the others in robbing the travelers. Then, after Falstaff leaves, Poins tells the prince that Falstaff and three of his companions can rob the travelers. Afterwards, the prince and Poins can then put on disguises and rob the robbers. Poins convinces the prince that this will be a great jest or joke, especially when they later will hear how the boastful Falstaff will

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explain how thirty men (instead of only two) took the money away from them. The prince agrees to participate in this joke. He is not completely worried yet about his state of grace. The scene ends with a soliloquy (a speech delivered directly to the audience and meant to represent the thoughts of the speaker). This speech may be somewhat puzzling to the reader because Prince Henry declares his intention to reform yet still decides to remain in the company of Falstaff and the other rascals a little longer. The speech begins with the following lines: I know you all, and will awhile uphold The unyoked humor of your idleness. (I, ii: 150-51) The prince's words might be rewritten as follows: I know all of you for what you are -- rascals and villains and thieves; nevertheless I will continue to participate in your wild and villainous activities, and I will continue to act in an idle and immoral manner for a time. The prince is saying that he knows this behavior is wrong, but he is going to do it anyway. This may seem like an illogical act or a contradiction of character. But that may not necessarily be the case. The prince is maturing; he is growing up. Although he realizes the responsibility of adulthood, the games and fun of youth still attract him. Simply, playing a joke on Falstaff appeals to him. Prince Henry realizes that his time for playing such jokes will not last much longer. He will soon take on the responsibilities of his position as prince of the realm. But, no doubt, he is not anxious to assume those responsibilities too soon.

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In his soliloquy Prince Henry uses the metaphor of the sun to describe his situation (lines 153-58). Just as the sun allows itself to be covered by dark clouds for a time before it breaks through the clouds and shines brightly, Prince Henry will allow himself to be surrounded by dark companions for a time but will then dismiss those companions to shine brightly as a prince. In short, Henry does perceive that he requires a "reformation" of his character; and he uses that word directly near the end of his speech (in line 168). He realizes he must change his ways. Henry further realizes that a life of idleness and immorality, although fun for a while, will eventually be unfulfilling: If all the year were playing holidays, To sport would be as tedious as to work. (I, ii: 159-60) Here Henry is suggesting that a life of nothing but fun and play would become boring. His playing with Falstaff and the others is already becoming somewhat jaded or uninteresting to him. Although Henry has enjoyed Falstaff's companionship, he is not like Falstaff. Falstaff has spent his entire life in idleness and play, and these lines suggest that for even Falstaff such a life is wearing him down and perhaps even ruining him. But for Falstaff the opportunity for reformation has passed. For Henry, there is still time. Perhaps the most troubling or perplexing aspect of this speech is that Prince Henry seems to be using Falstaff and the others. He is not a true companion to them. He will throw them off when he is through with

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them. So, perhaps, the prince may appear rather cold in this respect. A comparison could even be made to King Henry IV. The king befriended the Percy family so that he could attain his position as the Duke of Lancaster and, later, as the King of England. But later, as events in this play relate, the king became a foe or enemy to the Percy family. For King Henry, the change in loyalty could be explained by his new position as king. As the ruler of England, the concerns of the state must outweigh personal concerns regarding friendship. As Shakespeare tells it, Henry's political decisions and actions may have angered the Percy family, but they are the ones who decide to react violently and rebelliously in response. To understand Prince Henry, a simpler explanation for his decision may exist. A child growing up will leave or abandon some or even all of his childhood friends once he realizes that those friends no longer share the same attitudes or interests. Falstaff is, among other things, a childhood friend to Prince Henry. But the prince has outgrown the fat knight. The time has come (or is coming shortly) for the prince to move on with his life. PRINCE HENRY: CRITICISM OF HOTSPUR In the first act King Henry contrasts Hotspur with Prince Henry and finds the prince to be definitely the inferior of the two. In the second act Prince Henry contrasts himself with Hotspur, but he finds a defect with Hotspur. The prince begins his criticism of his rival with the following:

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Prince Henry then goes on to suggest, using hyperbole (exaggeration), that Hotspur kills dozens of Scots before breakfast and then complains to his wife that his life is too quiet. In one sense, Prince Henry may seem envious over the glorious reputation that Hotspur has earned as a soldier, a warrior. But in another sense, the prince may be revealing a reason why he is in no hurry to grow up. As a leader of England, he will find it necessary to engage in acts of violent bloodshed. Prince Henry is suggesting that Hotspur has a cavalier (a disdainful and uncaring) attitude about killing. The prince, on the other hand, has no desire to rush out and kill someone. Henry's hesitation to grow up and his reluctance to become like Henry Percy (Hotspur) may be a subtle commentary about honor on Shakespeare's part. Although there is honor in protecting one's king and kingdom, there is no honor in someone who feels delight in killing. As a soldier, Prince Henry may have to kill. But as a human, he does not have to find pleasure in killing another. Perhaps Henry is suggesting that the dishonorable activities in the world of the tavern -- as bad as they may be -- are still less dishonorable then some of the actions that are called honorable in the world of the court. Perhaps, then the honor that is associated with Hotspur is undeserved.

The Renaissance PRINCE HENRY: "CHILD OF HONOR AND RENOWN"

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Shakespeare shifts from the political conflict affecting King Henry to the personal family conflict in the third act. At this point (in Act III, scene ii) the king has a private conversation with his eldest son, Prince Henry. The scene is an important one for the prince since it marks a turn, a change, in his behavior. He becomes ready to abandon the world of idleness and play (the world of the tavern) and to move into the world of action and work (the world of the court). The scene begins with the king telling his son how the prince's behavior had so deeply affected him. Using metaphors, the king compares the prince to "a scourge" (a whip or some other means of punishment: line 8) and "the rod of heaven" (11). In other words, the king believes that God has purposely given him a bad son as a means of punishment for the king's own misdeeds. Although Prince Henry certainly enjoyed his carefree life in the tavern, his intention never was to hurt his father. The king's words must surely hurt him and affect him deeply. King Henry then criticizes his son for engaging in actions that are so contrary and unsuitable to the dignity and "greatness" of his "blood" and "princely heart" (lines 17-18). The prince begins to feel sorry and asks the king for his "pardon," for his forgiveness (29). The king, however, is not so sure that the prince means what he says: God pardon thee; yet let me wonder. (III, ii: 30)

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The king then launches into a rather long speech (lines 30-92 and continuing into 94-129) about how a king and also a prince should behave in public. The focus of the king's speech is on reputation. King Henry explains to his son that having a positive reputation is absolutely necessary for a king: Opinion, that did help me to the crown. (III, ii: 43) Here the word opinion stands for the public's opinion of King Henry: it stands for Henry's reputation. Using personification here, King Henry is telling his son that reputation will help make him a king. But a negative reputation will also cause him to lose the crown. King Henry contrasts himself to his predecessor, King Richard II. Where King Henry was "seldom seen" because he kept away from the public except for rare moments, King Richard was seen too much and even became a joke or laughingstock (lines 66-67) to the commoners throughout England. Henry thus explains that he was able to defeat Richard because Richard had lost his good "name" (66), his reputation, at a time when Henry, on the other hand, was gaining a positive reputation throughout England. If Richard II had not been such a fool, he would have been able to keep his crown. The point of the speech becomes clear in the second part. King Henry explains that the situation or relationship that existed between himself and King Richard is exactly the same as the relationship that now exists between Hotspur and Prince Henry. The king is thus telling his son that because he has lost his reputation, he has put himself into serious peril or

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danger. Hotspur, who has a solid reputation and the support of the public, is now in a good position to seize the throne away from the prince when he becomes king. Reputation: An Historical Parallel 1. Richard II had a negative reputation that allowed Henry Bolingbroke, who had a positive reputation, to seize the throne. 2. Prince Henry has a negative reputation that may allow Hotspur, who has a positive reputation, to seize the throne. The king ends his speech by adding that, for all he knows, his son is so base or low that he may even join Hotspur in the conspiracy and rebellion against him (127). These words, too, must hurt the prince deeply. He had just been too immature. He did not realize or understand the seriousness of his immoral behavior. The scene, the dialogue between father and son, ends with Prince Henry deeply regretting his past behavior and vowing to act in the pursuit of glory and honor for now on. In fact, Prince Henry vows to snatch (or take) away the honors that Hotspur has accumulated for himself. -- for the time will come That I shall make this northern youth exchange His glorious deed for my indignities. (III, ii: 145-47) In other words, the prince is vowing to live nobly and to join the military campaign against the rebels and especially against Hotspur. By acting nobly and by defeating a rebel in England, Prince Henry thereby

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knows that he will turn the tide of public opinion to his favor. He will take back his reputation. The prince vows or promises this to his father, and he adds that he will die in battle if he cannot fulfill his promise. At the end of the play -- in Act V -- Prince Henry does keep his promise. Not only does he defeat his angry rival in single combat, but he also saves his father, the king, during the battle. The prince wins his reputation and his honor. Moreover, he wins the respect of his father. The Battle of Shrewsbury occurred in 1403. Prince Henry would not become King Henry V for another ten years. At the end of 1 Henry IV, the prince has grown up and reformed himself. But he is not completely ready to be the monarch of England. He still has affection for Falstaff. The world of the tavern is still in his blood. The prince will need another test -- which he will encounter later, as seen in 2 Henry IV -- before his maturation is complete and before he is ready to sit on the throne of England.

LECTURE 29
THE SECOND LECTURE ON 1 HENRY IV HOTSPUR: FOIL AND PROTAGONIST The character of Hotspur, whose real name is Henry Percy (son of the older Henry Percy, the Earl of Northumberland), functions as a foil to Prince Henry. As such, the purpose of Hotspur is to provide a contrast to the central character. And indeed, as the play progresses, the audience cannot help but compare the behavior of Hotspur to the prince. As suggested earlier, especially in regards to the theme of honor, the comparison and contrast is intentional. In the opening scene of the play King Henry directly contrasts the two younger Henrys. Thus the audience is prepared to continue comparing the two Henrys throughout the rest of the play. The figure of Hotspur, though, is actually much more than just a foil. He is also the protagonist of a smaller story within the play. This story is a tragedy. According to the classical definition of tragedy, two features are necessary in such a play. First, the central figure or protagonist must be a figure of high estate. Often that figure is a king (as in King Lear) or a prince (as in Hamlet). But the protagonist of a tragedy can also be a nobleman or other figure of high renown. As the son of an earl, Hotspur is a member of the nobility. Moreover, he is also a national hero to England because of his military successes. The second essential quality of a tragedy is that the action focuses on the fall of the protagonist. That fall often is a fall from honor and

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prestige to disgrace or ruin. In many tragedies, the fall often includes the death of the protagonist as well. Hotspur, as the play progresses, will fall from honor and will die at the end of the play. Another feature of the tragedy is the fatal flaw or tragic flaw (also known by the Greek word hamartia). Some critics mistakenly refer to such a flaw as a "flaw in character." Such a flaw might be hubris (or pride) or possibly a more basic characteristic like greed or melancholy or weakness. However, according to the classical Greek philosopher Aristotle (in his Poetics), the tragic flaw is actually a "flaw in action." The protagonist makes a mistake in judgment or makes a wrong decision that propels the action of the play toward his own downfall. The flaw in action, though, is often connected to the flaw in character. In Hamlet, for example, Hamlet's melancholy (a flaw in his character) prevents him from taking revenge for his father's death (a flaw in action). In 1 Henry IV Hotspur has a flaw in a character: he becomes angry all too quickly. But because of his anger, he makes several bad decisions or judgments in regards to action. (1) He decides to lead the rebellion against the King. (2) He alienates (or becomes unfriendly with) Owen Glendower, his ally (someone who is fighting on his side). And (3) he decides to fight a battle against the king's forces without the support of his father's troops and the help of several other allies. The last decision is especially costly for Hotspur. His troops are defeated, and he is killed.

The Renaissance HOTSPUR: THE ANGRY YOUNG MAN

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In the first scene of the play, the audience receives a glowing report of Hotspur from the King Henry's own lips. Hotspur, the king relates, is an honorable young man and a hero. The king even states that he wishes Hotspur were his own son in place of Prince Henry. However, when Hotspur first appears on the stage (in Act I, Scene iii), the audience soon learns that there is more (or perhaps less) to his character than what King Henry reported. The image of Hotspur's greatness and honor becomes diminished or weakened in the very first act of the play. In the third scene of the play, Hotspur is in conflict with the king. The conflict rests on two related issues. First, Hotspur refused to send the Scottish prisoners that he had captured in battle to the king. King Henry sees this as act of disloyalty. This is a serious offense. The king's word is law. To disobey the king is not only an act of disloyalty. It is also an act of treason. The second issue regards the capture of Edmund Mortimer (Hotspur's brother-in-law) by Owen Glendower of Wales. Glendower had asked the king to send a ransom (a sum of money) in return for the release of Mortimer. King Henry refused to pay the ransom. Hotspur is upset that King Henry still refuses to help rescue Mortimer. In regards to the issue of the Scottish prisoners, Hotspur relates (in lines 49-69) that the fault lies with the king's messenger. According to Hotspur, this messenger came up to him immediately after a long and tiring battle against the Scots and demanded the prisoners. The imagery is important here. The messenger is a fresh dandy, dressed in elegant clothes

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and smelling sweetly of perfume (perhaps not unlike the character of Absolon in Chaucer's "The Miller's Tale"). Hotspur, on the other hand, is hot and tired and sweaty and is covered with dirt and blood. When this dandy messenger complains about Hotspur's soldiers and starts making demands, Hotspur becomes angry with him and refuses to meet his demands. Hotspur ends this speech by asking the king not to let the report from this messenger hold any meaning. Although Hotspur would naturally become angry with such a messenger, his action was both disloyal and rash. In such circumstances, the king messenger represents the king himself. Disobeying the king's message is the same as disobeying the king directly. It is still a treasonous act. Although King Henry would be likely to excuse Hotspur's action toward his messenger as the act of a rash and impetuous youth, there is another problem. Hotspur continues his refusal to deliver his Scottish prisoners to the king unless the king will pay the ransom for Mortimer. To make such a demand of the king is not only disloyal. It could also be costly to Hotspur. Hotspur argues (perhaps justly and accurately) that Mortimer is a loyal subject to the king who has been fighting bravely for England. King Henry, however, demands that Hotspur must never speak to him about Mortimer again. After King Henry exits, Hotspur's anger and disloyalty to the king erupts. He claims that he will never give his Scottish prisoners to King Henry now: An if the devil come and roar for them I will not send them. (I, iii: 125-26)

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From Hotspur's point of view, King Henry may seem like a devil. However, Henry is the king; and Hotspur's refusal to send the prisoners is an act of disobedience and even treason. As the scene continues, Hotspur learns from his father (the Earl of Northumberland) and his uncle (the Earl of Worcester) that Mortimer was chosen to be the successor to King Richard II (in lines 145-46). Thus, Hotspur finally understands King Henry's real reason for not paying the ransom to free Mortimer. However, Hotspur does not let his anger for the king diminish (or become less). He still is upset that the king treats his father and uncle so poorly after they had helped Henry become king. Hotspur even blames his father and uncle for replacing King Richard with King Henry: To put down Richard, that sweet lovely rose, And plant this thorn, this canker, Bullingbrook. (I, iii: 175-76) The metaphors here reflect Hotspur's outlook. To him King Henry is a thorn or a disease (a canker). He is something dangerous and deadly. Of course, Hotspur's anger and his decision to rebel are either noble or ignoble depending upon the point of view being presented. To Hotspur, the decision to rebel is an honorable act: he wishes to restore the honor that his father and uncle had lost by helping Henry Bollingbrook to become king (lines 181-83). For him such action and revenge is justified. He feels he is further justified in his action and belief because he feels that King Henry is unfair to Mortimer. Hotspur is putting his loyalty to his family above his loyalty to the king. From the Renaissance point of view, that may not

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be exactly the correct or noble thing to do. On the other hand, King Henry was disloyal and rebellious against Richard II. By supporting Mortimer, Hotspur is exhibiting a loyalty to King Richard over King Henry since Richard had selected Mortimer to be the next king. The problem is not so much, then, that Hotspur has decided to rebel. The problem is with how he proceeds. The problem is with his behavior. Hotspur continues to rant and rave, to vent his anger. His uncle (Worcester) eventually gives up trying to speak calmly and rationally to him: Farewell, kinsman; I'll talk to you When you are better tempered to attend. (I, iii: 234-35) The audience might be sympathetic to Hotspur's reasons for hating the king and rebelling against him. However, they also have to recognize that Hotspur lacks selfcontrol. Although he eventually calms down and listens to the rational and more sober advice of his uncle at the end of this scene, he clearly proves himself to be a person whose emotions control his thoughts and actions. He is the type who will act first and think later. That will be his undoing. HOTSPUR: A LACK OF FAITH AND TRUST Shakespeare continues to develop Hotspur as a rash and impetuous character as the play progresses. In the second act of the play, Shakespeare includes a scene that does not really contribute to the plot, but does contribute greatly to the characterization of Hotspur. Once again, Shakespeare is deliberately setting up a

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contrast between Hotspur and Prince Henry. In the previous scene, the audience views the prince beginning to take part in his last act of merriment and immorality, in his final joke against Falstaff. In a sense, then, the prince is beginning his transformation from a character of rash action and emotion to a character of thoughtful behavior and reason. But with Hotspur the transformation appears to be going in the opposite direction, from reason to emotion, from thoughtful behavior to rash action. In the first act, Hotspur does finally listen to the reasonable words spoken by his uncle. But in the second act, he appears to disregard words of reason. The scene (Act II, scene iii) has two parts, and both parts contribute to the characterization of Hotspur. In the first part (lines 1-26), Hotspur is reading a letter from a nobleman who refuses to join the rebellion. In the letter, the nobleman informs Hotspur that his plot is too dangerous and not very carefully planned. The letter even contains foreshadowing when the nobleman declares "the friends you have named uncertain" (lines 8-9). The nobleman is warning Hotspur that he cannot rely upon or trust everyone who has joined in his rebellion. Hotspur will later find that this is true at the Battle of Shrewsbury, when several of the forces of his allies do not show up. Hotspur should have given greater attention to the warning and the wisdom (or reason) in the letter. Instead, Hotspur becomes angry and emotional and brushes the warning aside as nonsense. In the second part of the same scene (II, iii: 27109), Hotpsur has a conversation with his wife, Lady Kate Percy. Hotspur's wife becomes annoyed at him because he will not share his thoughts or his plans with

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her. In one sense, the language between Hotspur and Lady Percy is playful and amusing. But in another sense, the language also points to some serious defects in Hotspur's character. Upset with Hotspur, Lady Percy says the following to him: Out, you mad-headed ape! A weasel hath not such a deal of spleen As you are tossed with. (II, iii: 68-70) These animal metaphors, the ape and the weasel, suggest that Hotspur is wild, crazy, foolish, and unpredictable. The spleen, an organ of the human body, was, according to superstitious belief, the source of passions and emotions, especially violent or negative emotions. Lady Percy is stating that Hotspur's spleen controls his behavior. The words by Hotspur's wife indicate not only that Hotspur is inherently (or naturally) rash and impetuous, but also that his decision to rebel is foolhardy and thoughtless. The scene ends with Hotspur refusing to reveal any of his plans to his wife (lines 99-103). He simply does not trust her. A theme concerning a lack of faith and trust connects the first part of the scene (the letter) with the second part (the conversation with the wife). In the letter Hotspur receives a warning not to trust or have faith in some of his allies. Instead, Hotspur lacks faith and trust in his own wife. Hotspur's misplaced faith in his uncertain allies is a mistake in action.

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The dominance of emotion, especially rashness, over reason in the character of Hotspur develops even further and more seriously in the third act (Act III, scene i) of the play. At this point in the play, Hotspur is now in the company of his fellow rebels, including Owen Glendower of Wales. Despite the fact that Hotspur and Glendower are united for a common goal -to defeat King Henry IV -- they do not get along. Glendower irritates Hotspur, and Hotspur is too rash and too impetuous to control his tongue and his temper. The scene begins with Glendower boasting of being a sorcerer or magician and how several omens (such as earthquakes and strange visions appearing in the night sky) appeared at his birth (III, i: 13-17). Hotspur cannot tolerate Glendower's boasting and angrily tells him that any earthquakes that may have occurred at that time have nothing to do with the Welshman's birth. Hotspur thus argues with Glendower over an unimportant matter. Instead of fighting over such a trivial and relatively unimportant matter, Hotspur should be strengthening his relationship with the Welshman and making plans for the battle. Hotspur is not acting wisely. Hotspur further upsets Glendower when Hotspur complains about the division of land that each of them will receive after they defeat King Henry. Hotspur argues that the division is unfair to him (lines 93-94). Hotspur believes that he is being cheated -- even though he admits by not very much -- and again falls to arguing with Glendower. Here the rebels are arguing about the rewards of a victory that they have not even won. This

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is the wrong time to engage in such arguments. The actions are foolish and rash. Hotspur's conflict with Glendower has a significant and serious consequence. Just before the Battle of Shrewsbury, Hotspur learns that Glendower and his army will not be able to arrive in time (IV, i: 124-26). Although Shakespeare does not provide an explanation for Glendower's delay, the audience cannot help but think that Glendower's quarrel with Hotspur is the actual cause and that Glendower is purposely leaving Hotspur to fight against the forces of King Henry on his own. HOTSPUR: THE END OF LIFE AND HONOR The climax of 1 Henry IV is the Battle of Shrewsbury. And the climax for the tragedy on young Henry Percy, also known as Hotspur, occurs during a single combat between him and Prince Henry. The impetuous and rash behavior of Hotspur becomes even stronger and prominent as the play draws to a conclusion. Hotspur is eager to fight. He is all passion, all violence. Nothing can deter him from proceeding. Even when certain events that weaken the chances for the success of the rebellion occur, Hotspur is still anxious and eager for battle. Hotspur learns that not only will the army of Owen Glendower not be joining him during the battle, but also the forces from his own father (the older Henry Percy, the Earl of Northumberland) will not be able to arrive in time as well. Hotspur easily (and irrationally) accepts the news and sees the battle as his opportunity to achieve even greater glory and honor since he will be fighting with a much smaller army (IV, i: 132).

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Later in the same act (IV, iii: 1), Hotspur tells his companions that he wants to fight right away, that very night, even though not all of his forces have arrived and some are expected the following day. Hotspur is forced to wait until the following day, as events happen. However, poor Henry Percy, the impetuous young Hotspur, should not have been so eager in any case. The day of the battle would end up being his last day of life as well. At the Battle of Shrewsbury, Prince Henry encounters Hotspur and fights against him in single combat (V, iv: 59-77). The prince kills Hotspur. With his dying breath, Hotspur worries about the honor he has lost: I better brook the loss of brittle life Than those proud titles thou hast won of me. (V, iv: 79-80) In other words, Hotspur would be able to accept his own death if he knew that his reputation and honor, his "proud titles," were not lost as well. However, his successes as a military leader and soldier become meaningless with his defeat. Prince Henry assumes or wins those military honors from him by defeating him. Prince Henry proves himself to be a greater military hero. But as the defeated leader in a lost cause, a failed rebellion, Hotspur's reputation or good name in history and for all time is lost. Prince Henry's final words about Hotspur thus reflect the tragic fall: How much art thou shrunk! (V, iv: 89)

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Prince Henry is commenting on honor, on Hotspur's honor. The honor of the fallen rebel has shrunk (past tense of shrink). That is, Hotspur's honor has become so diminished that it has practically disappeared. What Hotspur has lived for most -- his honor -- is now gone. FALSTAFF: THE FIRST VIEW As mentioned earlier, the most intriguing character in this play is Falstaff. Falstaff is a surrogate (or substitute) father to Prince Henry. Indeed, as the play begins, Falstaff clearly has more influence on the prince than does King Henry. Falstaff is a figure of the tavern. He is lazy. He likes to eat and drink. He likes to spend time with prostitutes. And he likes to boast or brag about his position and actions. Certainly, the medieval notion of the Seven Deadly Sins seems appropriate in helping to describe the fat knight's character, for Falstaff clearly embodies or represents several of those sins: Sloth, Gluttony, Lust, and Pride. And even the other three sins -- Envy, Anger, and Greed -- are not totally absent from his character. Prince Henry's attraction to the lazy knight is not a mystery. Falstaff appears to enjoy life. He has fun in life. To a young man not yet ready to accept the grave and serious responsibilities of a life in the court and on the throne, the life that Falstaff leads is quite appealing. Yet, there is also a danger in the kind of life that Falstaff leads. Falstaff's life is purposeless. He is going nowhere, except possibly to the hangman's gallows (a place to be executed, put to death). As Prince Henry grows older and matures, he begins to realize that a life full of fun and idleness is just as bad as a life full of work and political activity. The prince learns the

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necessity for balance, for moderation. A purposeful life contains both fun and work. That, however, is a lesson that Falstaff never learns. With the character of Falstaff, Shakespeare presents a character that not only provides a third view on the theme of honor (as mentioned with both the characters of Prince Henry and Hotspur). The character also provides a view on a minor theme concerning family. At the beginning of the play the audience sees not only the problems in the political affairs of King Henry's life. The audience also witnesses a problem in the king's family life. King Henry feels disappointed that his son spends so much time in the world of the tavern and engages in such corrupt and immoral activities. The king even wishes that Hotspur were his son instead of Prince Henry. Prince Henry, on the other hand, finds no joy in the political and business world of his father. So, the prince selects, in a way, Falstaff to be his father. The conflict between court and tavern thus becomes a conflict between king and prince or between father and son. However, the court and the tavern are really both part of the same world. They both are part of London. And, using the court and tavern as symbols, Shakespeare may be implying that work and fun are also both part of the same world. Prince Henry learns the value of his father's world, but one may also wonder whether King Henry recognizes any value in his son's world. One of Falstaff's appealing traits is his use of language. Falstaff does have a poetic spirit, and the poetic spin he uses to describe himself and his activities provides much of the humor and entertainment of the play. In the first scene where Falstaff appears (Act I, scene ii), Prince Henry ridicules (or makes fun of) the

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old knight when Falstaff asks about the time. The prince states that for a fat knight who sleeps all day long, the time is unimportant. Although the prince, in jest, has just criticized the knight, Falstaff accepts the criticism in a positive manner: Indeed, you come near me now, Hal, for we that take purses go by the moon and the seven stars, and not by Phoebus, he, "that wandering knight so fair." (I, ii: 10-12) Phoebus (or Apollo) is the Greek god of the sun, and thus becomes a personification of the sun itself. Falstaff, in other words, is stating that thieves, such as himself, live and act at night; but they sleep when the sun is up. Falstaff thus makes his low and immoral activities sound adventurous and poetic. Falstaff continues using personification and mythological allusions in continuing to describe his activities to the prince: Let not us that are squires of the night's body be called thieves of day's beauty; let us be Diana's foresters, gentlemen of the shade, minions of the moon. (I, ii: 19-21) Falstaff use personification to describe the day and night, and he uses a mythological allusion to Diana (or Artemis), Apollo's sister, the goddess of the moon and also the goddess of chastity. Moreover, Falstaff also uses a pun, a doubleentendre (a pun that involves a sexual meaning), and irony in this passage. Falstaff has two puns in this line. The first is with the word body: (1) a squire of the

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body, as our editors inform us in a footnote, is an attendant to a knight. (2) But the word is pronounced the same as the word bawdy, (which means obscene, risque, or indecent). Thus Falstaff means that thieves such as himself should be active only at night and that they also should engage in obscene or indecent activities at night. The second pun involves the word beauty: (1) of course, there is the literal meaning, the reference to the beauty of the day. (2) But the word is also pronounced similarly to the word booty, which refers to the money taken by thieves. Although the thieves will not steal the beauty of the day, they will steal the booty of the day. That is, they will steal the money earned by honest people. Two examples of irony also appear in this passage. The first example is with the expression "Diana's foresters." Although the thieves do follow Diana in the sense that they work only at night, under the moonlight, they do not follow Diana in the sense that they follow the practice of chastity. As suggested elsewhere, rascals such as Falstaff also spend time with prostitutes. They are certainly not chaste. The second example is with the word gentleman. A thief such as Falstaff is most definitely not a gentleman. Shakespeare uses the character of Falstaff to provide humor in his play. But Falstaff is also a necessary character for plot and theme. As noted earlier, one of the themes presented with the story about Prince Henry concerns a reformation of character. The prince realizes that he is growing up and that he must change his ways of behavior. There is a comic parallel of this theme with the character of Falstaff. In the same scene (I, ii), the old knight ironically blames the prince for his immoral life and claims that he needs to make a change, that he needs to reform:

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The comedy or humor of the line depends upon the lines that follow. After making this strong declaration to live a better and moral life, Falstaff quickly, in less than a second, changes his mind. The prince asks the fat knight where they should steal purses the next day, and Falstaff eagerly tells Prince Henry that he is ready to go anywhere with the prince to take part in such an activity. Falstaff is a thief and villain, and will always remain so. These lines actually occur before the prince's soliloquy (I, ii: 150-72) where he declares his intentions to reform. Thus, the comic lines with Falstaff serve two purposes. (1) They set up a contrast between the prince and the old knight. Although they both recognize the debauchery (a life of nothing but sensual pleasure) and immorality in their actions, only the prince will seriously attend to reforming his character. (2) But at the same time, Falstaff's immediate renunciation (his taking back his words or his giving up on his plan) might make the audience also wonder whether the prince will also renounce (or stop) his plan for a reformation of his character. As Falstaff shows, to say the words is easy, but to do the act is difficult. The difference between words (or language) and actions continues with the character of Falstaff throughout the rest of the play. In a sense, a theme concerning words and actions also connects the various stories of the play.

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In the second act of the play, Prince Henry, with the help of another tavern thief named Poins, decides to play a trick on Falstaff. After Falstaff and three of his companions rob some travelers, the prince and Poins put on disguises and rob Falstaff and the other three thieves. The humor of the action, for Prince Henry and for the audience, occurs later when Falstaff meets with the prince in the tavern (in Act II, scene iv) and tells him how a troop of thieves had stolen the very money that he himself had stolen from the travelers. Part of the humor depends upon comic exaggeration. As Falstaff continues his tale, the number of thieves that had attacked him continues to increase. First there are two. Then there are four. Then there are seven. And finally, there are eleven. Of course, all during this tale Prince Henry knows that there were only two men who attacked Falstaff and his three companions: himself and Poins. However, Falstaff wants to make himself look brave and courageous; so he claims to have fought off eleven men by himself. This is comic exaggeration on Shakespeare's part. But it is bombast and boasting on Falstaff's part. The audience, too, is in on the joke. The audience too saw how the prince and Poins easily scared away Falstaff and his companions (in Act II, scene ii). Finally, Prince Henry tells Falstaff that the men who attacked him were Poins and himself. But even after the prince proves that Falstaff is a liar, a fat old knight full of hot air, Falstaff finds a way to defend himself. He claims (in II, iv: 214-21) that he instinctively knew that his attacker was the prince. Of course, he claims, he would never dare to strike at or

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harm the prince. So, he says, he acted as a coward for the sake of the prince's safety. Even when he is made a fool, Falstaff finds a way to retain his sense of pride. He uses pompous or proud language, bombastic speech, to retain his sense of self-worth. Later in the same scene, when Falstaff warns the prince that he better prepare a speech when he must report to his father, Prince Henry asks Falstaff to pretend to be his father (II, iv: 299-300) so that he can practice what words he might say to the king. Thus, in this comic scene of role-playing, Prince Henry's "surrogate" father thus pretends to be the real father, King Henry IV. Pretending to be the ruler of England, Falstaff tells Prince Henry that he should stop associating with the rogues and rascals of the tavern; and, more importantly, he should worry about his reputation. However, the fake king adds, there is one old knight by the name of Falstaff who is worthy and virtuous and is a fit companion for the prince: There is virtue in that Falstaff; him keep with, the rest banish. (II, iv: 342) This scene is a comic parody of a later scene (in Act III, scene ii) when the real King Henry does warn his son about reputation and honor. However, the real king's point is truly to help his son. But the advice of the fake king (Falstaff) has as it central purpose the plea that the prince should keep Falstaff as his companion even once the prince returns to the court and enters into the business of being a ruler in England. Falstaff may be looking out for the prince's welfare to some extent, but he is far more concerned with his own welfare.

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A sadder side of Falstaff's character appears in the third act. At the tavern (in Act III, scene iii), Falstaff complains about his life to his companion, Bardolph. Falstaff is getting old and recognizing that his life of sin and pleasure has not been good for him. He thinks about his soul and about going to a church to confess his sins: Well, I'll repent, and that suddenly, while I am in some liking; I shall be out of heart shortly, and then I shall have no strength to repent. (III, iii: 3-5) To "repent" means to feel sorry or to feel regret over one's past actions. Falstaff does recognize that his behavior, his life, has not amounted to anything. However, once again, Falstaff may be saying the words, but he will not take any action. He blames Bardolph and others for the life he has led. Falstaff does not take any responsibility for his own sins. Thus, he can never confess his sins and never correct his faults. In fact, only a minute later, Falstaff returns to his false and sinful ways. In the same scene he accuses Mistress Quickly, the hostess of the tavern, of stealing from him while he was asleep. Flastaff falsely claims that he had forty pounds and a valuable ring stolen from him. Actually, in an earlier scene (II, iv: 430-31) Poins had looked through Falstaff's pockets, but all he found was a grocery list. And the ring that Falstaff had received from his grandfather was, according to Prince Henry, made of cheap copper and not of any great value. Falstaff lies to avoid paying his bill at the tavern. He is

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not only a thief, but he cheats his own friends and companions. He is a very low rascal indeed. Falstaff will never repent. He is incapable of repenting. The actions of Falstaff become lower, worse, and more serious as the play continues. In order to make Falstaff pay back the money that he has stolen, Prince Henry decides to give Falstaff a position in the army. The prince assigns Falstaff to be a captain in the infantry. This is another joke on the prince's part. Prince Henry knows that Falstaff, because he is so overweight, hates to walk. Falstaff becomes exhausted after walking only a few short steps. But the infantry is a troop of soldiers who travel on foot: they walk. The prince feels that giving Falstaff such a position is a fitting punishment for all of the robberies that he has committed in the past. However, the prince does make a mistake. Falstaff receives some money to recruit (or hire) the men who will serve in his troop of infantry soldiers. However, Falstaff recruits only the lowliest and most slovenly of men, the worst soldiers ever assembled. And the reason Falstaff does this is to save money so he can buy wine and food for himself. Falstaff even admits the lowness and the immorality of his actions (in IV, ii: 10-37), but that does not stop him. As might be expected, most of these men later die during the Battle of Shrewsbury. In a brief soliloquy, Falstaff relates that out of 150 men, only two or three are left alive (V, iii: 35). Falstaff is responsible for the deaths of these men, but that does not bother him greatly. He cares only for himself and his own comfort. Falstaff is a man who is completely without honor. Before the battle begins, Shakespeare provides a soliloquy for Falstaff in which he discusses honor:

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How if honor prick me off when I come on? Can honor set to a leg? No. Or an arm? No Honor hath no skill in surgery What is honor? A word. (V, i: 127-37) Falstaff is asking what is the good of honor if he dies ("prick me off") or even loses an arm or a leg during the battle. Honor cannot restore a lost leg or arm, nor can it bring him back to life should he die. For Falstaff, honor is just a "word." And words, for Falstaff, are usually meaningless. At the end of his soliloquy, Falstaff compares (a metaphor) honor to a "scutcheon" (or escutcheon: a shield with a coat of arms, a family symbol). As our editors note, the escutcheon appears on a tombstone or grave marker. To some people, the escutcheon may look fine and noble. But, to Falstaff, the symbol cannot bring the body buried in that grave back to life. For him, honor, like the escutcheon, is powerless and meaningless. Of course, Shakespeare does not agree with Falstaff regarding honor. Falstaff's dishonor brought about not only the death of nearly 150 men. His dishonor also brought about the waste of his own life: a life that was purposeless, foolhardy, and without much meaning. Toward the end of the play, Falstaff pretends to be dead (another dishonorable act) in order to avoid fighting one of the enemy. When Prince Henry sees him lying down and thinks he is dead, the prince states the following: I could have better spared a better man. (V, iv: 105)

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The prince realizes that there are many men who are much better men than Falstaff. Still, the prince will miss Falstaff more than many of the brave noblemen who have died. The prince realizes that his life with Falstaff was immoral and even sinful. But the prince did learn something indirectly from the old bombastic knight. The prince learned that an idle life can be just as overwhelming and suffocating as a life of nothing but work and drudgery. But the prince does make a mistake in saying that he cannot afford to lose Falstaff. The prince has not quite fully matured. Falstaff is harmful to him, and later (in 2 Henry IV) Prince Henry will realize that he is better off with the old, fat knight. ADDITIONAL NOTES ON THE PLAY Many additional comments can be made about the play. The student who desires to learn more about Shakespeare's art of stagecraft in regards to this play may find it helpful to start with reading other critical introductions besides the one in The Norton Anthology to English Literature. The student can find such introductions in The Riverside Shakespeare or The Norton Shakespeare. The following notes and comments appear in the latter of these two books. 1. Shakespeare's 1 Henry IV differed from earlier history plays because other plays were set only in the court and battlefield. 2. This play is also unusual because Henry IV is a minor character in the play.

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3. In 1569 the Percy family joined a rebellion in the north of England to overthrow Queen Elizabeth and to put Mary, Queen of Scots, on the throne. History thus repeats itself. 4. Hotspur is the embodiment of medieval chivalry, symbolizing the ideas of Honor and Glory. (However, as noted earlier, Hotspur also loses that honor as the play progresses.) 5. King Henry IV seized political control and authority. He did not inherit it. Thus, he was "on shaky ground" in dealing with the rebellion. In other words, he could have lost his position as quickly as he had taken it. 6. Prince Henry, as the son of a usurper (someone who seized power), will also be in an unsafe position when he becomes king. The prince has to prove himself to the people of England that he is worthy to be king. So, his winning the battle against Hotspur is essential to him if he wants to keep the throne. 7. The relationship between Prince Henry and Falstaff appears like the prince is using or exploiting his companions of the tavern. Perhaps the prince has no real affection for Falstaff. (However, as noted above, the prince's exclamation when he thinks Falstaff is dead does indicate that the prince has affection for the old knight.)