King Horn, Floriz and Blauncheflur, The Assumption of Our Lady
General
King Horn, Floriz and Blauncheflur, The Assumption of Our Lady
English poetry -- Middle English, 1100-1500; Mary, Blessed Virgin, Saint -- Legends; Romances, English
The most natural products of this development are the two types: (1)
with three accents and feminine rime, the natural product of the OE. A,
D, and C metrical types, (2) with four accents and masculine rime, the
natural product of the OE. B and E types. These forms of verse were very
similar, as Schipper has pointed out (as above, § 39), to two popular
Romance forms of verse--namely: the first form, three accents with
feminine ending, to the half verses of the Alexandrine; and the second
form, four accents with masculine ending, to the verses of the short
riming couplets and to the first member of the septenar. The development
toward regular measure, which had its origin as explained above, was
furthered by the influence of the Romance and Mediæval Latin forms of
verse. In certain ME. poems, notably the _Bestiary_, there are to be
found verses constructed regularly after Romance or Mediæval Latin
models along with native forms in all the stages of development:
1. His muð is yet wel unkuð
Wið _pater noster_ and crede;
Faren he norð, er fare he suð
Leren he sal his nede. vv. 112-15.
2. Ðe mire muneð us
Mete to tilen,
Longe liuenoðe,
ðis little wile. vv. 273-6.
Ðe leun stant on hille
And he man hunten here. vv. 1-2.
The native forms must have been influenced by this close association
with foreign forms.
To these conditions and to this course of development we must probably
attribute the origin of the versification in King Horn. The rime has
become a regular and essential element, the alliteration, a rare and
unessential element in the verse. The forms mark a transitional stage in
development, but are more closely related to the new than to the old.
There has been a half-hearted attempt to introduce regularity of
measure, but the rhythm of the OE. types has still influenced the ear of
the composer. The most frequent verse form is the one with three accents
and feminine rime, about 1300 verses (Schipper). This is developed from
the OE. through a stronger accent on one of the original theses; e.g.,
_king he was biweste so longe so hit laste_, vv. 5, 6 C, where the
measure has been developed from the OE. #A.# type through stronger
stress on _was_ and _so_ respectively. Sometimes the original OE. #A.#
type is preserved; e.g., _Hi slóȝen and fúȝten þe níȝt and þe úȝten_,
1473-4 C. But that this was not considered normal is shown by the fact
that the other two texts, #L# and #H#, have made these two verses
quoted, fit into the new normal form, by adding a new syllable in each
verse, so that we have in MS. L, _He smýten ánd he foúten þe nýȝt and
éke þe oúȝten_, vv. 1473-4 L. Cf. also H. The next most frequent type is
the one with four accents and masculine rime; e.g., _Here sone hauede to
name horn; Feyrer child ne micte ben born_, 9, 10 L. Less frequent types
are; that with three accents and masculine ending, e.g., _þu art gret
and strong, Fair and euene long_, 99-100 C; and that with four accents
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