It is to be noted that Gower gives ‘Achelons’ instead of Achelous, as he does also in the Traitié, vii. 5, where the story is shortly told in the same way as here, and there we find ‘Achelontis’ in the margin as the genitive case. He ought to have been preserved from the mistake by the occurrence of the name in Ovid’s verse.
2054. For these two pillars cp. Chaucer, Cant. Tales, B 3307 f., but Gower supposes them to have been both set up in the ‘desert of India,’ ‘El grant desert d’Ynde superiour’ as he has it in Traitié, vii. 1, whereas according to Chaucer one was set up in the East and the other in the West, to mark the extreme bounds of the world.
2123 f. Such forms of spelling as ‘sleighte,’ ‘heighte’ are unusual with our author, but cp. vii. 1121, 1227 f.
2135. For the stories of ‘Pantasilee’ and Philemenis we may refer to the Roman de Troie, 23283 ff. and 25663-25704.
2200 ff. From this question arises the inevitable discussion of the nature of ‘gentilesse’ and how far it depends upon birth, riches or personal merit. Gower accepts only the last qualification, and argues for it after the fashion of John Ball, though he was neither a Lollard nor a social revolutionist: cp. Mirour, 23389 ff. For the general subject cp. Dante, Convito, iv. 10, Roman de la Rose, 18807 ff. (ed. Méon), Chaucer, Cant. Tales, D 1109, ff.
To Gower we must grant the merit of clearness and conciseness in handling the well-worn theme.
2208 f. Cp. Dante, Convito, iv. 3.
2305 ff. ‘And love is of profit also as regards women, so that they may be the better “affaited.”’
2314. make it queinte, ‘behave gently’: cp. ‘make it tough,’ Chaucer, Troilus, v. 101. For the meaning of ‘queinte’ see the quotations in Godefroy’s Dictionary under ‘cointe.’
2325. 1 John iii. 14.