[Transcriber's Note: This text has words or letters enclosed in caret brackets < > that were added by the author to complete the manuscript; corrupt readings retained in the text are indicated in the original by daggers ††. #Bold# text has been marked by #; _underscores_ have been used to indicate _italic_ fonts; an emphasis by font change of single letters within an _it~a~lic_ context has been indicated by ~. For transcription of unusual letters and errata see the Transcriber's Note at the end. Original spelling variants and punctuation have not been standardized. The companion volume, _A Middle English Vocabulary, designed for use with SISAM's Fourteenth Century Verse & Prose_, by J. R. R. Tolkien is available at PG #43737.] Fourteenth Century VERSE & PROSE edited by KENNETH SISAM OXFORD AT THE CLARENDON PRESS M D CCCC XXI Oxford University Press _London Edinburgh Glasgow Copenhagen New York Toronto Melbourne Cape Town Bombay Calcutta Madras Shanghai_ Humphrey Milford Publisher to the UNIVERSITY PRINTED IN ENGLAND. CONTENTS PAGE MAP viii INTRODUCTION ix I. ROBERT MANNYNG OF BRUNNE'S HANDLYNG SYNNE 1 The Dancers of Colbek 4 II. SIR ORFEO 13 III. MICHAEL OF NORTHGATE'S AYENBYTE OF INWYT 32 How Mercy increases Temporal Goods 33 IV. RICHARD ROLLE OF HAMPOLE 36 A. Love is Life 37 B. The Nature of the Bee 41 C. The Seven Gifts of the Holy Ghost 42 V. SIR GAWAYNE AND THE GRENE KNIGHT 44 The Testing of Sir Gawayne 46 VI. THE PEARL, ll. 361-612 57 VII. THE GEST HYSTORIALE OF THE DESTRUCTION OF TROY 68 Prologue 69 The XXXI Book: Of the Passage of the Grekys fro Troy 72 VIII. PIERS PLOWMAN 76 A. From the B-Text, Passus VI 78 B. From the C-Text, Passus VI 89 IX. MANDEVILLE'S TRAVELS 94 Ethiopia.—Of Diamonds 96 Beyond Cathay 100 Epilogue 104 X. JOHN BARBOUR'S BRUCE 107 An Assault on Berwick (1319) 108 XI.