An Introductorie for to Lerne to Read, To Pronounce, and to Speke French Trewly

by Giles Du Wés

Anima quid.

Mary.
After that well I me remembre, I have herde here above speke of the soule,
Selon que bien me recorde, je uous ay ouy cy dessus parlér de lame,
but neverthelesse ye have nat declared what it is, wherfore I wolde of it
mais toutes fois uous naues point declaré que cest, pourquoy jen uouldroie
faine here somwhat.
bien ouir quelque chose.
Gil.
Trewly, madame, it shuld be necessary to be better lerned in good lettres
Certes, madame, il seroit necessaire destre mieulz qualifiéz ez bonnes lettres
than I am for to satisfy to your question.
que ne suis pour satisfaire a uostre question.
Ma.
It is nat to me unknowen that ye be nat of the best lettred of the worlde,
Il ne mest point incongneu que nestes pas des mieulz lectrés du monde,
howbeit that I doubt nat but of it ye can somwhat, wherfore
combien que point ne doubte que nen scaues quelque chose, pourquoy
take hede that the lytell that ye therof can, be nat hydde to me.
gardés que le petit que uous en scaués ne me soit point celé.
Gyl.
Trewe it is that the philosophers have spoken therof, albeit that it hath nat ben
Il est bien uray que les philosophes en ont parlé, ja soit que pas na esté
sufficiently specially touchyng the soule resonable, for some
souffisanment, especiallement touchant lame rationnelle, car aulcuns
of them have it esteme mortall, as Pliny among other that sayth that suche
deulz lont estimé mortelle, come Pline entre aultres qui dit que tel
shalbe the soule after the dethe of the body, as she was before the lyfe
sera lame appres la mort du corps, quelle elle estoit deuaunt la uie
of the same, and it is nat yet come to my knowlege that
dicelluy, et il nest point encore uenu a ma congnoissance que
the holy scripture doth make of it any mention; but syth that your
lescripture saincte en face mention aulcune; mais puisque uostre

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pleasure is suche, I shall recyte you (submyttyng me to the correction of
plaisir est tel, je uous réciteray (me soubmetant a la correction de
your grace, and of all persons connyng) that whiche I have therof gathered
uostre grace, et de toute persone scauante) ce que jen ay peu ceulliér
from the philosophers, and of the holy s. Isodore, wherfore it shall please you to knowe
des philosophes, et de saint Isidore; pourquoy il uous plaira scauoir
that all thynges created of God under the moone ben or elemented
que touttes choses créez de Dieu soubz le globe lunaire sont ou ellementées
onely, as precious stones and other with all mettalles, or
seullement, come pierres precieuses et aultres auec tous metaulz, ou
be elemented and vegetables, as herbes, trees, and all maner
sont ellementées et uegetables, come herbes, arbres, et touttes manieres
of plantes, or ben elemented vegetables and sensytyves, as ben
de plantes, ou sont elementées uegetables et sensitiues, come sont
all beestes, byrdes, fyshes, reptyll them movyng from place to other,
touttes bestes, oiseaulz, poissons, reptiles se mouuant de lieu a aultre,
or ben elemented vegetables sensytyves and reasonable, as ben the
ou sont elementées uegetables sensitiues et racionelles, come sont les
men whiche have in them all the fours proprietees above sayd;
hommes lesquelz ont en eulz touttes les quatre proprietes dessus dictes;
for as touchyng the body (which is a masse elemented) it is but a
car quant au corps (qui est une masse elementée) ce nest que une
conglutination and combination of the foure elementes in the whiche our
conglutination, et combination des quatre elementes ezquelz nostre
Lorde hath planted the soule vegetable by the whiche it groweth in length,
Seigneur a planté lame uegetable par laquelle il croist en longeur,
largenes, and depnes (whiche one calle thre dimensions) by cause that the
largeur et profundité (quon dit trois dimensions) a cause que la
sayd vegetable hath in her foure vertues, by the whiche she subsiste and
dicte uegetable a en soy quatre uertus, par lesquelles elle subsiste et
groweth, that is to saye, the atractyve or appetityve, the retentyve, the digestyve,
croist, cest a scauoir, latractiue ou appetitiue, la retentyue, la degestiue,
and expulsive; a body may nat ete without appetit, nor may nat
et expulsiue; une personne ne peult menger sans appétit, ne ne peult

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degeste without holdyng that mete, or keping in his stomake that which is eten,
degérér sans retenir ce qui est menge,
nor may nat grow by the vertue of such degestion without expulsion or
ne ne peult croistre par la uertu de telle degestion sans expulsion ou
evacuation, for it is nede or to destroy the meate receyved in
euaccuacion, car il est de necessité ou de destruire la uiande receue en
the stomake, or to be destroied by the same; but to be wyllyng to warne your
lestomac, ou estre destruit par icelle; mais uouloir aduertir uostre
grace of all that which doth depend to this purpos, shulde be to be wyllyng to declare
grace de tout ce qui depend a ce pourpos, seroit uoulloir declarér
all the philosophy naturall withe all phisyque and astrologie
toutte la philosophie naturelle auec toutte phisycque et astrologie
in shewyng with all all the movyng of nature, wherof procede
en comprenant tous les mouuemens de nature, dont procedent
and sprynge all corruption and generation expoundyng what it is of the XII
et pulullent toutte corruption et generation declarant que cest des douse
signes of the Zodiacque with the seven planettes and all the starres
signes du Zodiacque auec les sept planettes et touttes les estoielles
fixe, and to shew how the sayd XII signes havyng relacion, and similitude
fixe, et monstrér comment lesdictz douse signes aiantz relacion, et similitude
to the foure ben devided by foure triplicites the whiche
aux quatre elementz sont distinguez par quatre triplicités lesquelz
up holde and kepe up the fore sayd foure might and
suffultent et maintiennent les deuant dittes quatre puissances et
to the whiche one ought to have recourse for to put them agayn in ordre by medecyne
auxquelz on doibt auoir recours pour les remectre en ordre par medecine
whan by some accident they ben alterat. But for to eschew so
quant par alcun accident ilz sont altérés. Mais pour euitér sy
wondrefull prolixite and that I have hope here and there therof to talke
enorme prolixité et que jay espoir cy et la den communiquer
somtyme with your grace, with that that of it ye have somwhat tasted
alcune fois auec uostre grace, auec ce quen aues quelque petit gousté
in lernyng the Ephemerides I shall passe it so.
en apprenant lEphémérides je men passeray a tant.

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Now turnyng agayn to our porpos the soule vegetable, as I have tolde you, is
Or retournant a nostre pourpos lame uegetable, come je uous ay dit, est
setted within the myght elemented, the whiche doth upholde her as the
plantée dedans la puissance ellementée, la quelle la soubstient come le
vessell doth the lyker, and the sensytyve nother more no lesse is setted within
uaisseau fait la liqueur, et la sensitiue ne plus ne moins est plantée dedens
the vegetable, as the ratyonell is within the sensytyve, the whiche ye may
la uegetable, come la racionelle est dedens la sensitiue, ce que pouéz
clerely parceyve by that that whan the body begynneth to fayle
clerement apercepuoir par ce que quant le corpz commence a deffaillir
by age or otherwyse, the vegetable lyfe herselfe by and by, bycause
par uiellesse ou aultrement, la uegetable se pert incontinent, pour ce
that thappetite begyn to fayle whith retayning and voyding, which make to perish
que lappetit se pert auec retencion et euacuacion, qui fait perir
the sensytyve, for as the persone lese the luste, and the dygestion, also soone
la sensitiue, car come la persone pert lappetit et le degérér, tout aussy tost
begynne he to juge the switte bytter, and the bytter swete, and say that he seeth
commence il a jugér le doulz amér, et lamér doulz, et dit quil uoit
that whiche other may nat se, and also of all his fyve wyttes, and
ce que les aultres ne peuuent ueoir, et ainsy de tous ses cincq sens, et
lykewyse thintellectyve lese the reason and the jugement of thynges,
par consequent lintellectiue pert la reason et le discernement des choses,
for she beynge in the body humayne can nat attayne to any knolege
car elle estant ou cors humain ne peult paruenir a aulcune cognoissance
(nat beyng inspyred ghostly) without it be by the meane of the fyve
(selle nest inspirée diuinement) ce se nest par le moien des cincq
wyttes aparteyning to the sensytyve, for before that ye do understande any
sens apartenant a la sensitiue, car deuant que uous entendez aulcune
thyng, it behoved fyrst that it be to you shewed by the syght, by
chose, il faut premiérement quil uous soit monstré par la ueue, par
meane of colours, or by the hering by the meane of sound or voise, or by
moien de coulleur, ou par louye moiennant son ou uoix, ou par
smelyng, goustyng and tastyng, the whiche thyng so perceved by the fyve
flairér, goustér et tastér, laquelle chose ainsy aperceue par les cincq

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wyttes, is sende to the comon witt which lieth in the formest parte of the
sens, est enuoiée au commun sens qui gist en la partie anteriore du
braine, the whiche goeth incontinently to the memory in the whiche he
cerueau, lequel sen ua incontinent a la remembrance en laquelle il
fynde what thynge it is after that one have him somtyme sayd and thought,
treuue quelle chose cest selon quon luy a autfrefois dit et appris,
wherfore it appere clerly that these thre myghtes beyng in man
pourquoy il appert clérement que ces trois puissances estant en lhome
and named onely by the name of soule resonable, in takynge denomination
et nommée sullement par le nom de ame raisonable, en prenant denomination
of the most noble, that is to understande of her which doth discesse,
de la plus noble, qui est a entendre de celle qui discerne,
ben hankyng the one of the others, and we juge clerely that the
sont dependantes les unes des aultres, et dijudicons clérement que la
sayd intellectyve or resonable is without comparation more excellent than
dicte intellectiue ou racionelle est sans comparation plus excellente que
the others, wherfore we juge her a thought or understandynge incarnate,
les aultres, pourquoy nous la jugeons une pensée ou intelligence incarnée,
the whiche is perpetuell and immortall, by cause that she is created to
laquelle est perpétuelle et inmortélle, pource quelle est crée a
thymage of God almighty, and if you aske me of what substaunce
limage de Dieu tout puissant, et sy uous me demandés de quel matiére
she is, I may say that it is fyre spirituell as ben the angels of God,
elle est, je puis dire que cest feu espirituél come sont les angeles de Dieu,
the whiche shalbe in her hyghe strength and prosperitie, whan she shalbe separate
laquelle sera en sa haulte uigueur et prosperite, alors quelle sera separée
from her body, by the meane of the whiche she is infatuate, for by
de son corps, par le moien duquel elle est infatuée, car par
the vegetable myght, with the whiche she is bounde, she thynketh day
la uegetable puissance, auec laquelle elle est liée, elle pense jour
and nyght to serve her body of drinke and meat, and by cause of the sensityve,
et nuyt a seruir son corps de boire et menger, et a cause de la sensitiue,
with the whiche she is lykewyse alyed, she hath her syght to
auec laquelle elle est semblablement aliée, elle a son respect a
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generation, to pride of lyfe, and to all lyfe sensyble, the whiche yelde her
generacion, a orgeul de uie, et a toutte uie sensuelle, qui la rend
blunt, rude and forgetefull, and by the whiche she becomed spotted and cancred,
obtuse, rude et ygnorante, et pourquoy elle deuient tachée et enroullé,
as a harneys or clere glasse doth cancre by humydite of
come ung harnois ou clér mirouer senroullist par humidité de
rayne or other moystnesse, in suche wyse that by this meane she is all togeder
pluie ou aultre moisteur, tellement que par ce moien elle est du tout
blynded, and hath no knowlege of her pasture wherby she becometh
aueuglée, et na nulle cognoissance de sa pasture par quoy elle deuient
lene and folyshe; for as the wyse man saith, truth is the fote of the
mesgre et ignorante; car come dit le sage, uerité est le past de
soule. Aristotel saith that the soule is as a table made euyn and clere,
lame. Aristotle dit que lame est come une table rase et clére,
polished, in the whiche all maner shape and effigiation doth shyne clerely so
polie, en laquelle toutes formes et effigie reluysent clérement sy
well corporates as incorporates, by cause therof we understande with
bien corporéez come incorporéez, a cause de quoy nous entendons auec
the angels, that is to saye, in the meane tyme that she is nat cancred by
les angeles, cest a dire tandis quelle nest pas enrouyllée par
synne, as I have sayd before. Here myght I open unto you, what it is
peché, come jay dit deuant. Icy uous poulroy je ouurir que cest
of understandyng actyve and passyble, but in this doyng I shulde be to tedyous.
dentendement agent et passyble, mais en ce faisant je seroie trop tedieus.
Ma.
Trewly, Gyles, I laude your persuacion, for by that that ye have sayde of it
Certes, Giles, je los uostre parsuasion, car par ce quen aués dit
I parceyve clerelye that it is nat possyble to declare it, the whiche one may
japarcoy clérement quil nest possible a la declarér, ce quon peult
conjecte by that that she doth resemble unto God and to be wyllynge
conjecturér parce quelle resemble a Dieu et uoulloir
to declare his ymage shalde be wyllyng to do a thyng impossyble, bycause that he is
declarér son image seroit uoulloir faire impossible, pource quil est
uncomprehensyble.
incomprehensyble.