THE DEVELOPMENT OF STYLE IN POETRY
With poetry in such an immature condition, it can be easily understood that style is of secondary importance. The prevailing, almost the universal, style is one of artless simplicity. Very often, owing chiefly to lack of practice on the part of the poet, the style becomes obscure; and when more ambitious schemes of meter are attempted (as in Pearl) the same cause leads to the same result. Humor is rarely found in Middle English, but quaint touches are not entirely lacking, as facts revealed in the life of Hampole show. Pathos of a solemn and elevated kind appears in the Moral Ode, and the romance called The Pistyl of Susan and the Pearl, already mentioned, have passages of simple pathos.
EXERCISES
1. The following extracts show the development of English poetry from Old English to Chaucerian times. Trace the changes in meter (scansion, rhyme, and stanza-formation), alliteration, and style. Are there any traces of refinements such as melody and vowel-music?
| (1) Swá íú wætres thrym | When of old the water’s mass |
| Ealne middan-geard, | All mid-earth, |
| Mére-flód, theáhte | When the sea-flood covered |
| Eorthan ymb-hwyrft, | The earth’s circumference, |
| Thá [`s]e æthela wong | Then that noble plain |
| Æg-hwæs án-súnd | In everything entire |
| With yth-fare | Against the billowy course |
| Gehealden stód, | Stood preserved, |
| Hreóhra wæga | Of the rough waves |
| Eádig unwemmed, | Happy, inviolate, |
| Thurh áest Godes; | Through favour of God. |
| Bídeth swá geblówen | It shall abide thus in bloom, |
| Oth bæles cyme | Until the coming of the funeral fire |
| Dryhtnes dómes. | Of the Lord’s judgment. |
| The Phœnix, 900 |
| (2) And ich isæh thæ vthen | And I saw the waves |
| I there sæ driuen; | In the sea drive; |
| And the leo i than ulode | And the lion in the flood |
| Iwende with me seolue. | Went with myself. |
| Tha wit I sæ comen, | When we two came in the sea, |
| Tha vthen me hire binomen. | The waves took her from me; |
| Com ther an fisc lithe, | But there came swimming a fish; |
| And fereden me to londe. | And brought me to land. |
| Tha wes ich al wet, | Then was I all wet |
| And weri of soryen, and seoc. | And weary from sorrow, and sick. |
| Tha gon ich iwakien | When I gan wake |
| Swithe ich gon to quakien. | Greatly I gan quake. |
| Layamon, Brut, 1200 |
(3) Ich am eldre þan ich wes. a winter and ek on lore.
Ich welde more þan ich dude. my wyt auhte beo more.
Wel longe ich habbe child ibe[`s]. a werke and eke on dede.
Þah ich beo of wynter old. to yong ich am on rede.
Vnneð lif ich habbe ilad. and yet me þinkþ ich lede.
Hwenne ich me biþenche. ful sore ich me adrede.
Mest al þat ich habbe idon. is idelnesse and chilce.
Wel late ich habbe me bi-þouht. bute god do me mylce.
Veole idel word ich habbe ispeke. seoþþe ich speke cuþe.
And feole yonge deden ido. þat me of-þincheþ nuþe.
Moral Ode, 1250
(4) Herknet to me, gode men,
Wiues, maydnes, and alle men,
Of a tale that ich you wile telle
Wo so it wile here, and ther to duelle
The talk is of Hauelok i-maked;
Wil he was litel he yede ful naked;
Havelok was a ful god gome,
He was ful god in eueri trome,
He was the wicteste man at nede
That thurte riden on ani stede
That ye mouen nou y-here,
And the tale ye mowen y-lere.
At the beginning of vre tale
Fille me a cuppe of ful god ale.
Havelock the Dane, 1300
(5) Byteuene Mershe & Aueril
When spray biginneþ to springe,
Þe lutel foul haþ hire wyl
On hyre lud to synge;
Ich libbe in louelonginge
For semlokest[13] of alle þynge,
He may me blisse bringe,
Icham in hire baundoun.[14]
An hendy[15] hap[16] ichabbe yhent
Ichot[17] from heuene it is me sent
From alle wymmen mi loue is lent
& lyht on Alysoun.
Alysoun, 1300
| (6) In Nauerne be [gh]unde the see | In Avergne beyond the sea |
| In Venyse a gode cyte, | In Venice a good city |
| Duellyde a prest of Ynglonde, | Dwelled a priest of England, |
| And was auaunsede, y understonde. | And was advanced I understand. |
| Every [gh]ere at the florysyngge | Every year at the flourishing |
| When the vynys shulde spryngge | When the vines should spring |
| A tempest that tyme began to falle | A tempest then began to fall |
| And fordede here vynys alle; | And ruined all their vines. |
| Every [gh]ere withouten fayle | Every year without fail |
| And fordyde here grete trauayle. | And ruined their great labour. |
| Therfor the folk were alle sory | Therefore the folk were all sorry |
| Thurghe the cyte comunly: | Through the city commonly. |
| Thys prest seyde, y shal [gh]ou telle | This priest said, “I shall you tell |
| What shall best thys tempest felle; | What shall best this tempest fell; |
| On Satyrday shal [gh]e ryngge noun | On Saturday shall ye ring noon |
| And late ne longer ne werke be doun. | And let no longer work be done.” |
| Handlyng Synne, 1350 |
(7) Ther faure citees wern set, nov is a see called,
That ay is drouy[18] and dym and ded in hit kynde,
Blo[19] blubrande[20] and blak, vnblythe to ne[gh]e[21]
As a stynkande stanc that stryed[22] synne
That euer of synne and of smach,[23] smart is to fele;
Forthy the derk dede see hit is demed ever more,
For hit dede[gh] of dethe duren there [gh]et.
For hit is brod and bothemle[gh] and bitter as the galle,
And no[gh]t may lenge in that lake that any lyf bere[gh],
And all the coste[gh] of kynde hit combre[gh][24] vchone[25]
For lay ther-on a lump of led and hit on loft flete[gh],
And folde ther-on a ly[gh]t fyther and hit to founs synkke[gh],
And ther water may walter to wete any erthe,
Shal neuer grene ther-on growe, gresse ne wod nawther.
Cleannesse, 1350
2. Account for the poor quality of English prose during this period.
3. What were the effects of the Norman Conquest upon English literature?
4. Describe the main features of the romance.