"TROTULA" There has not been any adequate explanation of the reason that the name of "Trotula" should appear as the author of one of the books "bounden in o volume" which was the Vade Mecum of Jankin in the Wife of Bath's Prologue.' Tyrwhitt merely cites the title of one of the several editions of the Trotulae curandarum aegritudinum muliebrium ante, in, et post partum, liber unicus. Skeat scarcely adds to our knowledge by following Warton in citing as two other works of the writer, a manuscript and an imprint of the same work under different titles. And yet one does not need to go far for an explanation. Trotula was the first and most distinguished of the female representatives' of the medical school of Salerno. The little that is known of her life is that she lived about the middle of the eleventh century, that she had the family name of di Ruggiero; that she was the wife of one member of the Salernitan school, Johannes Platearius I, and the mother of two others, Johannes Platearius II and Matthaeus Platearius I. Of her works the most important was a treatise on the diseases of women and the 1 Canterbury Tales, ed. Skeat, Group D, 677, “Crisippus, Trotula, and Helowys." 2 Note to C. T., 1.6253. He cites from the edition contained in the Medici antiqui (f. 71-80) published by Aldus in 1547. Besides this edition P. Meyer (Rom., Vol. XXXII, p. 270 n.) notes the first edition published in Strasburg in 1544, and that which appeared in Gaspard Wolf's Gynaeciorum published in Basle in 1566. To these are to be added the edition in the reprints of the latter work: Basle, 1586, 4to, I, pp. 89-127; in the Gynaeciorum of Spath, Strasburg, 1597, fol. ff. 42-60; in the three editions of Victorinus Faventinus, Empirica, Venice, 1554, 1555, 1565; 12mo, pp. 460-525; and in Heinrich Kornmann, De virginitate, Leipzig, 1778. 3 Works of Chaucer, Vol. VI, p. 309. The two works noted are "Trotula Mulier Salernitana de passionibus mulierum," and "Trottula, seu potius Erotis medici aegritudinum muliebrium liber; " Basil, 1586; 4to. The latter of these is evidently the edition found in the Gynaeciorum of 1586, noted above. Renan (Hist. litt., Vol. XXX, p. 578) makes the curious mistake of stating that "le médecin salernitain est transformé en une femme." Upon the other female representatives of the school of Salerno, cf. de Renzi, Collectio Salernitana, Vol. I, pp. 372 ff.; Choulant, Haesers Archiv, Vol. II, pp. 301 ff.; J. K. Proksch, Die Geschichte der venerischen Krankheiten, Vol. I, p. 285. 5 De Renzi, loc. cit., Vol. I, pp. 149-64; Vol. III, pp. 327 ff.; Choulant, Geschichte und Litteratur der älteren Medicin, Vol. I, pp. 293, 294, 299; E. G. J. Siebold, Essai d'une histoire de l'obstetrice, Vol. I, pp. 296–300. care of children, known under the various titles of De passionibus mulierum,' De aegritudinibus mulierum,' De curis mulierum,3 Trotula major, and Trotula. A work dealing with the care of the complexion and cosmetics, known as De ornatu mulierum® and Trotula minor, is generally appended in manuscripts to the more important work. The printed editions only present an abridged version of these two works, which cannot have been made before the thirteenth century,' although in Wolf's edition the work is attributed to a certain Eros, a freedman of Augustus, the physician of the emperor's daughter, Julia.10 The great reputation of this medieval Lydia Pinkham is not only evidenced by the large number of manuscripts of her work, and copies of certain chapters under the titles of Practica domine Trote ad provocanda menstrua," and Practica de secretis mulierum," liberal use was made of her work in later medical compilations; it was translated into various vernacular tongues, and the authoress was cited as a high authority. Her work is an important 1 MS Bibliotheque nationale, Lat. 7856, Fol. 112 recto. Cf. Renzi, loc. cit., Vol. V, p. 121; M. R. James, Ancient Libraries of Canterbury and Dover, p. 481, “Trotula major de passionibus." This title is not to be confused with another medical treatise with the Incipit "De passionibus mulierum," sometimes attributed to Trotula, sometimes to Cleopatra (Rom., Vol. XXXII, p. 272; M. Steinschneider, Virchows Archiv, Vol. LII, pp. 349, 350) and again to Theodorus Priscianus (Oxford, Coll. Magd. CLXIV, 243 recto). 2 James, loc. cit., p. 62; Oxford, Merton Coll. CCCXXIV, Fol. 94 verso. 3 James, loc. cit., p. 338, "Trotula major de curis mulierum," also pp. 345, 347. Cf. title of MS Univ. Bibl. Breslau, Practica Trotulae mulieris Salernitanae de curis mulierum, which according to Haeser, Lehrbuch der Geschichte der Medicin, 3d ed., Vol. I, p. 663, is chiefly devoted to cosmetics. 4 James, loc. cit., pp. 341, 385. 5 Rom., Vol. XXXII, p. 270; Oxford, Merton Coll. CCXXX, Fol. 11 verso; Digby, 29, Fol. 278 verso; cf. 291 verso, "Explicit hec Trota multum mulieribus apta." 6 James, loc. cit., p. 59; Meyer, loc. cit., p. 270; Coll. Magd. CLXXIII, Fol. 253 recto; A. Schultz, Anz. f. d. Kunde d. deutschen Vorzeit, 1877, col. 186-90. 7 Meyer, loc. cit., p. 271; James, loc. cit., pp. 340, 385; Haeser, p. 663. 8 Cf. Rom., Vol. XXXII, pp. 88, 270; Haeser, p. 662. Perhaps it would be better to speak of the two parts of one work, remembering that the first sixteen books of Priscian were known as Priscianus major, and the last two as Priscianus minor, cf. Thurot, Notices et Extracts des MSS, Vol. XXII, 1, 213; G. Becker, Catalogi Antiqui Bibliothecarum Britique, p. 321. 9 Choulant attributes the revision to a female physician of Salerno in the thirteenth century; Jahr. f. d. deutsche Med., Vol. III, p. 144. 10 G. C. Gruner. Neque Eros, neque Trotula, sed Salernitanus quidam medicus, isque Christianus, auctor libelli est, qui de morbis mulierum inscribitur, Jena, 1773. 11 James, loc. cit., p. 58. Upon the importance in medieval medical treatises of this subject cf. J. Haupt, Wiener Ak. Sitzungsber. phil. hist. Cl., Vol. LXXII, pp. 477, 480. 12 Oxford, Bodleian, Rawlinson, C, DVI, Fol. 146 recto. 3 5 source of the twelfth century De aegritudinum curatione,' and of the Poema medicum' of the thirteenth century. It was translated, or at least largely utilized in two Old French verse compositions, and once translated into French prose and once into German. The popularity of the work was in part due to its pornographic character, and later compositions of the same stamp, such as the Secreta mulierum, falsely attributed to Albertus Magnus,' refer to Trotula as one who sat on the bench of last appeal. A most striking instance of such a use, and its justification is to be found in a French work of the fourteenth century, Le livre des secrets aux philosophes: 8 6 Premierement je vous di que une feme qui fu philosophe, appellee Trotula, qui mout vesqui et fu moult belle en sa jeunece, de laquelle li phisicien qui riens sevent tiennent moult d'auctoritez et de bons enseignemenz, nous dist une partie des natures aus femmes. L'une partie nous en pot elle bien dire tant comme elle en sentit en soi; l'autre partie que, comme elle fust feme, et toutes femmes descovroient plus volentiers a li toutes leur contenances et leur secrez que a un home, e li disoient leur natures, et elle regardoit en ses livres et trouvoit concordances a ce que nature li en divisoit. Par icelle seusmes nous grant partie des natures aus femmes." How well the name of Trotula was known one sees from the way she is mentioned in the Diz de l'erberie of Rutebeuf. In this composition, a parody of the advertising methods of the traveling quack doctor, the charlatan, after puffing his wares, addresses the audience with Or veiz ce que m'encharja and dropping into prose continues: Bele gent, je ne sui pas de ces povres prescheurs ne de ces povres herbiers qui vont par devant ces mostiers a ces chapes mau cozues, qui 1 Choulant, Haesers Archiv, Vol. II, pp. 302 ff.; de Renzi, loc. cit., Vol. II, pp. 81 ff. 2 de Renzi, loc. cit., Vol. VI, pp. 1 ff.; cf. Hist. litt., Vol. XXII, p. 105 (V. Le Clerc). On a reference to her as an authority in a medical work of the school of Salerno in Hebrew, cf. Steinschneider, Virchows Archiv, Vol. XL, p. 124. 3 Meyer, loc. cit., pp. 88, 101. 4 Ibid., p. 270. Cf. P. Giacosa, Magistri Salernitani nondum editi, p. 429. 5 Spiller, Zeits. f. deutsches Alterthum, Vol. XXVII, p. 167. 6 On similar works cf. Steinschneider, Virchows Archiv, Vol. XXXVII, p. 405, n. 53. 7 On attribution to Albertus, Hist. litt., Vol. XIX, pp. 171, 173. 8 Spiller, loc. cit., p. 166; cf. Oefele, Allgemeine deutsche Biographie, Vol. X, p. 672. 9 Hist. litt., Vol. XXX, p. 578. portent boites et sachez, et si estendent .i. tapis, car teiz vent poivre et coumin [et autres espices] qui n'a pas autant de sachez comme il ont. Sachiez que de ceulz ne sui je pas; ainz suis a une dame qui a nom Trote de Salerne, qui fait cuevre chief de ces oreilles, et li sorciz li pendent a chainnes d'argent pardesus les espaules; et sachiez que c'est la plus sage dame qui soit enz quatre parties dou monde.' Assuredly in Jankin's "book of wikked wyves" the work of such an authority on women, and of such wide repute would not be out of place. UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN GEORGE L. HAMILTON 1 Euvres complètes de Rutebeuf, ed. A. Jubinal, 1874, Vol. II, pp. 58, 59. I have corrected the text after the extracts printed by Picot in Rom., Vol. XVI, p. 493. His comment on the passage is worth citing: "Trot de Salerne, ou Trotola de Roggeri, est resté célèbre parmi les médecins du XIe siècle: mais Rutebeuf semble jouer ici sur le nom de ce médecin et sur la mule du marchand d'orviétan. C'est à cette dernière qu' appartiennent les longues oreilles et la chaine d'argent qui sert de bride." G. Mannheimer, in his article "Etwas über die Ärzte im alten Frankreich," cites only the Rutebeuf passage (Rom. Forsch., Vol. VI, p. 596). Cf. A. Delpeuch, La Goute et la Rhumatisme, p. 350, for a comment on the passage. THE RELATION OF DRYDEN'S "STATE OF INNOCENCE" TO MILTON'S "PARADISE LOST" AND WYCHERLEY'S "PLAIN DEALER": AN INQUIRY INTO DATES In the history of English literature few incidents are better known or more attractive to the imagination than the meeting of Dryden and Milton, recorded by Aubrey.' In that meeting confronted each other not only radically contrasting personalities and geniuses, but epochs of society and government, of literary ideals and form. Dryden came to do honor to Milton, but he came with the proposal to translate Milton's greatest work into a form which the age could comprehend and enjoy, to turn the blank-verse epic into a rimed "sacred opera." Whether Milton's feeling was one of amusement, as Masson suggests, or indifference, as Scott has it, or something deeper, he answered Dryden at all events with superb self-reliance and control. "Certainly," he appears to have replied, "you may tag my verses, if you will." And so, some time after the publication of the second edition of Paradise Lost, in 1674, came out Dryden's The State of Innocence and Fall of Man. It was entered on the Stationers' Register by Herringman, the publisher, on April 17, 1674, under the title The Fall of Angells and Man in Innocence, and was published, according to Scott," soon after Milton's death, on November 8 of that year. This date of publication has been accepted by Genest,' Saintsbury,' Masson, A. W. Ward, W. C. Ward,' and by scholars in general. During the interval between entry and publication, "many hundred" surreptitious and erroneous copies had got abroad, as Dryden informs us in the well-known "Apology for Heroic Poetry and 5 1 Lives.. 72. 2 Works of Dryden, ed. by Scott and Saintsbury, V, 99. 3 History of the Drama and Stage in England, I, 161. 4 Works of Dryden, V, 94. 5 Life of Milton, VI, 710. 6 History of English Dramatic Literature, III, 368. 7 Plays of Wycherley (Mermaid Series), 364. |