English Literature: From the Norman Conquest to Chaucer, Volume 10Macmillan, 1906 - 500 pages |
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Common terms and phrases
adventure Anglo-Norman Anglo-Saxon appears Arthur Arthurian ballad Breton lays Britain castle chansons de geste Charlemagne Chaucer Christian Chronicle Church clergy clerks composed Conquest contemporary court Crestien Crusade death early England epic extant fables familiar favour fourteenth century France French friars Gawain Geoffrey Geoffrey of Monmouth Gower Grail Henry Henry II hero Holy honour interesting John King King Arthur knight lady Lancelot land large number later Latin Layamon learned legend literary literature lives Lord manuscript matter of Britain mediæval medieval Merlin metre Middle Ages Middle English minstrels monks narrative noble Norman original Paris poet popular prose Provençal queen redaction religious rhyme Richard Robert Robert of Brunne romance saints Saxon scholars secular song spirit stanzas story style tale thirteenth century Thomas thou tion tongue translated treatises Tristram twelfth century vernacular verse Wace Welsh William writers written wrote Ywain
Popular passages
Page 446 - When in the chronicle of wasted time I see descriptions of the fairest wights, And beauty making beautiful old rhyme, In praise of ladies dead, and lovely knights, Then in the blazon of sweet beauty's best, Of hand, of foot, of lip, of eye, of brow, I see their antique pen would have express'd Even such a beauty as you master now.
Page 319 - ... loyalty to rank and sex, that proud submission, that dignified obedience, that subordination of the heart, which kept alive, even in servitude itself, the spirit of an exalted freedom. The unbought grace of life, the cheap defence of nations, the nurse of manly sentiment and heroic enterprise is gone ! It is gone, that sensibility of principle, that chastity of honour, which felt a stain like a wound, which inspired courage whilst it mitigated ferocity, which ennobled whatever it touched, and...
Page 381 - Hearken, O daughter, and consider, and incline thine ear; forget also thine own people, and thy father's house; So shall the king greatly desire thy beauty : for he is thy Lord ; and worship thou him.
Page 319 - Never, never more shall we behold that generous loyalty to rank and sex, that proud submission, that dignified obedience, that subordination of the heart, which kept alive, even in servitude itself, the spirit of an exalted freedom.
Page 427 - But when lust, By unchaste looks, loose gestures, and foul talk, But most by lewd and lavish act of sin, Lets in defilement to the inward parts, The soul grows clotted by contagion, Imbodies and imbrutes, till she quite lose The divine property of her first being. Such are those thick and gloomy shadows damp, Oft seen in charnel vaults and sepulchres, Lingering and sitting by a new-made grave, As loth to leave the body that it loved, And linked itself by carnal sensuality To a degenerate and degraded...
Page 101 - Witnesse on him, that any perfit clerk is, That in scole is gret altercacioun In this matere, and greet disputisoun, And hath ben of an hundred thousand men. But I ne can not bulte it to the bren, 420 As can the holy doctour Augustyn, Or Boece, or the bishop Bradwardyn, Whether that goddes worthy forwiting...
Page 257 - ... and do as well as thou mayest, for in me is no trust for to trust in ; for I will into the vale of Avilion to heal me of my grievous wound : and if thou hear never more of me, pray for my soul.
Page 305 - Such notes as warbled to the string, Drew iron tears down Pluto's cheek, And made Hell grant what love did seek. Or call up him that left half told The story of Cambuscan bold, Of Camball, and of Algarsife, And who had Canace to wife, That owned the virtuous ring and glass, And of the wondrous horse of brass, On which the Tartar king did ride...
Page 201 - ild you! They say the owl was a baker's daughter. Lord! we know what we are, but know not what we may be.
Page 189 - For ther as wont to walken was an elf, Ther walketh now the lymytour hymself In undermeles and in morwenynges, And seyth his matyns and his hooly thynges As he gooth in his lymytacioun.