NOTES ΤΟ THE LEGEND OF GOOD WOMEN. NOTES TO THE PROLOGUE. N.B. The references are to the B-text, except where special mention of the A-text is made. The latter is denoted by the letter 'A,' preceded by a short line. 2. Compare Chaucer's Troilus, book ii. ll. 894-6. This use 5. Nis noon=ne is noon, is not none, i. e. is no one. of the double negative, as in modern provincial English, is extremely common, and need not be again remarked upon. Cf. ll. 7, 15, &c. 9. For there may no man prove it by actual trial.' 10. Leve, believe. Notice the numerous senses of leve, viz. (1) believe; (2) leave, v.; (3) grant; (4) dear; (5) leave, sb.; (6) leaf (dat. case). 11. Wel more thing, many more things. The word thing was originally neuter, and long remained unchanged in the plural. In 1. 23, we have thinges. The M. E. more usually means 'greater'; it is seldom used (as here) in the modern sense. 12. Men shal nat, people ought not to. The use of men in the general sense of 'people' is extremely common in Chaucer, and the student should notice that it usually takes a singular verb, when thus used. With ll. 12, 13 cf. Hamlet, i. 5. 166. 13. But-if, unless, except. Great attention should be paid to the exact sense of these apparently less important words. Frequently the whole sense of a sentence is missed, even by editors, owing to inattention to their use. 14. For, God knoweth, a thing is none the less true, although no one can see it.' > 16. In the margins of MSS. C. and F. is written the Latin proverb here referred to, viz. 'Bernardus monachus non uidit omnia'; i. e. Bernard the monk (even) did not see everything. The reference is to the great learning and experience of St. Bernard of Clairvaux (born A.D. 1091, died Aug. 20, 1153). This we know from an entry in J. J. Hofmann's Lexicon Universale (Basileæ, 1677), s. v. Bernardus, where we find Nullos habuit præceptores præter quercus et fagos. Hinc proverb: Neque enim Bernardus vidit omnia.' See an account of St. Bernard in Alban Butler's Lives of the Saints, or in Chambers' Book of Days, under the date of Aug. 20. Cf. ' to bear in mind. 18. Minde, remembrance; see 1. 26. 'Car par l'escript que nous avons, Les fais des anciens savons; Si les en devons mercier, Et loer et regracier.' 26. Rémembráunce; accented on the first and last syllables. The melody of innumerable lines in Chaucer is only apparent to those who perceive the difference between the present and the old accentuation, especially in the case of French words. Besides, such accent is frequently variable; Chaucer has hónour, rénoun, &c. at one time, and honour, renóun, &c. at another. Thus in l. 27 we have honouren; and in 1. 31 credénce. 27. Wel oghte us, it is very necessary for us, it well behoves us. Us is here the dative case, and oghte is the impersonal verb; in accordance with Chaucer's usual method. But, in this case, there is a grammatical difficulty; for the past tense oghte is here used with the sense of the present; the right form would be expressed, in modern English, by oweth, and in M. E. by ah (also awe, oze). Such use of the right form of the present tense is exceedingly rare; and (possibly owing to a sense of uncertainty about its true form) the form of the past tense was used both for past and present, whether personal or impersonal, precisely as we now use must in place both of M. E. mot (present) and moste (past). Mätzner only gives three examples of the present tense of this verb, when used impersonally; viz. 'Hym awe to rise,' it behoves him to rise, Metrical Homilies, p. 77; Vus oze,' it behoves us, Allit. Poems, ed. Morris, i. 552; 'Him owith to mynystre,' Reliquiæ Antiquæ, ii. 48. The only right way of thoroughly understanding Chaucer's grammar is by comparing one passage with another, observing how particular expressions occur. This is best done by the proper process of reading the text; but even the usual glossarial indexes will often furnish ready examples. Thus the glossary to the Prioresses Tale gives the following examples : *** 'And ther she was honoured as hir oughte'; E 1120. U -'wel more us oughte Receyven al in gree that god us sent'; E 1150. The glossary to the Man of Law's Tale gives :— 'Alla goth to his in, and, as him oughte,' &c.; B 1097. 'Wel oughte us werche, and ydelnes withstonde'; G 14. As to the spelling of the word, it may be remarked that oghte is the more correct form, because ō answers to A.S. ā, and gh to A.S. h in the A.S. form ähte. But a confusion between the symbols ogh, ugh, and ough soon arose, and all three were merged in the form ough; hence neither ogh nor ugh occurs in modern English. See Skeat, Eng. Etymology, § 333, p. 361. The full explanation of this and similar phrases would extend these notes to an inordinate length. Only brief hints can here be given. 28. Ther, where. The sense 'where' is commoner than the sense 'there.' 29. Can but lyte, know but little. Cf. Prior. Tale, B 1726, 1898. 30. For to rede, to read. The use of for to with the gerundial infinitive is found in Layamon and the Ormulum, and may have been suggested by the like use of the French pour, O. Fr. por (and even por a). See Mätzner, Engl. Grammatik, ii. 2. 54. Compare Parl. Foules, 16, 695; Ho. Fame, 657. 36. This connection of 'the month of May' with song and poetry is common in Mid. Eng. poetry, from the natural association of spring with a time of joy and hope. We even find something of the kind in A.S. poetry. See The Phoenix, 1. 250; Menologium, 1. 75. The earliest song in Middle English relates to the cuckoo; and, before Chaucer, we already find, in the Romance of Alexander, 1. 2049, such lines as 'In tyme of May hot is in boure; See also the poem on Alisoun, in Morris and Skeat, Spec. of Eng., part ii. p. 43. Again, we have a like mention of the May-season and of the singing of birds in the introduction to the Roman de la Rose; see vol. i. p. 96. Nevertheless, the whole of the present passage is highly characteristic of the author, and extremely interesting. Cf. ll. 108, 176. 40. Condicioun, temperament, character, disposition. Prof. Corson here refers us to Shakespeare, Merch. Ven. i. 2. 143; Cor. v. 4. 10; Oth. iv. 1. 204; Jul. Cæs. ii. 1. 254, &c. 41. On the scansion, see note to i. 67. 43. Daysyes, daisies; here dissyllabic. But in 1. 182 we have the full form day-es-y-e, of four syllables, answering to the A.S. dages éage (or ége), lit. day's eye, or eye of day, as Chaucer himself says in 1. 184. And it is worth adding that his etymology is perfectly correct; for, in the few instances in which etymologies are suggested in Middle English, they are usually ludicrously wrong. In 1. 184, the word is only trisyllabic (day-es-y'), the last syllable suffering elision. The A.S. dægesége occurs in a list of plants in A.S. Leechdoms, ed. Cockayne, iii. 292, 1. 8; and we also find in Wright's A.S. Vocabularies, ed. Wülker, col. 135, 1. 22, and col. 322, l. 11, the following entries:'Consolda, dægesege,' and 'Consolda, dægeseage.' The primary meaning of dæges éage is doubtless the sun; the daisy is named from its supposed likeness to the sun, the white petals being the rays, and the yellow centre the sun's sphere. Compare Lydgate's Troy-book, ed. 1555, fol. K 6, back:— 'And next, Appollo, so clere, shene, and bright, 46. 'That, when in my bed, no day dawns upon me on which I am not (at once) up, and (am soon) walking in the meadow.' Nam=ne am, am not. 49. By the morwe, with the (dawn of the) morning. 50. Sight-e is dissyllabic, as the scansion shews. In l. 15, wight is monosyllabic. It is often difficult to ascertain Chaucer's usage of such forms, and we have to observe, where we can, any instances that are helpful. The Rime-Indexes to the Canterbury Tales and to the Minor Poems are often of great service. We learn from them that wight rimes with the monosyllables bright, knight, might, night, right, &c., whereas sighte rimes with the infin. moods light-e, fight-e, &c., as well as with monosyllables, and is therefore used somewhat capriciously. Another helpful list is that given in Ellis's Early Eng. Pronunciation, ch. iv. § 5, founded upon Prof. Child's articles on Chaucer and Gower. This at once refers us to C. T. 2118 (It were a lusty sight-e for to see); 2335 (But sodeinly she saugh a sight-e queynte) ; &c. We should also consider the etymology. Now wight = A.S. wiht, is monosyllabic, and gives no difficulty. On the other hand, the A.S. for 'sight' is gesiht or gesihp; but it is a fem. sb., and makes all its oblique cases with a final -e, viz. gesiht-e or gesihp-e. In such instances, the nominative case often lost its distinctive form, and took the form of the other cases, so that already in the Ormulum (l. 12670) we find the nom. case sihhp-e, dissyllabic. Such usages have received careful attention in the present edition, and in almost every case the addition of a final e in an unexpected place can be amply justified by instances of Chaucer's usage in other passages. If the student will endeavour to verify some of the examples here given, he will soon come to a clearer knowledge of the matter. 52. Hit, it, i. e. the daisy. But in 1. 53 it is referred to as she. We shall see why this is hereafter. As a mere flower, it is neuter; but as being the type of Alcestis, it is feminine. Cf. ll. 62, 63. 53. We have come to the first instance in which Chaucer transposed the order of his material in the course of revision. Line 53 of the B-text corresponds to A. 55, whilst B. 61 corresponds to A. 51. All such instances are clearly shewn by printing the transposed passages twice over, once in their right place, and again in their changed place in a smaller type. By this arrangement all such transpositions can be understood at a glance. The blank space which here appears in the A-text corresponds to II. 50-52 in B, which are marked with an asterisk as being peculiar to the latter text. In order to save space, a small blank space (of one or two lines only) often corresponds to an insertion in the other text of some length. 56. 'And I love it, and ever (do so) equally anew,' i. e. unalterably. 57. The word herte is so common that it is worth while to remember that it is usually dissyllabic; the A.S. form being heorte. 58. Al, although (very common). Of this, in this matter. 61. Weste, is here a verb; 'to turn to the west.' See l. 197. 65. Probably to be scanned thus: Óf the sónn' | for thér | hit wól unclós-e. See note to l. 67, and cf. l. III. 66. Ne had, pronounced as nad; and often so written. 67. The first syllable of a line is often wanting in Chaucer; so that the first foot consists of a single emphatic syllable. Such lines are now considered faulty, though examples may be found in Tennyson's 'Vision of Sin,' which cannot be called unmelodious; but they were once common, especially in Lydgate. Some examples from the present poem are the following: That of alle the floures in the mede; 41. Of this flour, whan that hit shulde unclose; 111. So also ll. 245, 303, 722, 783, 797, 859, 863, 901, 911, 1024, 1030, 1076, 1187, 1275, 1324, 1342, 1498, 1551, 1828, 1996, 2471, 2575. 68. Conning, knowledge. Many words now used with a changed signification are well explained in Trench's Select Glossary, which should be consulted for them. Thus, in the article upon cunning, Trench quotes the following from the examination of Wm. Thorpe, as preserved in Foxe's Book of Martyrs :-'I believe that all these three Persons [in the Godhead] are even in power and in cunning and in might! 69. Make, compose poetry; of sentement, concerning your feelings. So in 1. 74, making is 'poetry.' See Trench, s.v. make; where it is shewn that the use of the word arose quite independently of the Gk. use of ποιείν and ποιητής. One of the earliest instances of the use of |