South London

Name: South London
Author: Besant, Walter

Besant, Walter

London (England) -- Description and travel

A CLERK ther was of Oxenford also,
    That un-to logik hadde longe y-go.
    As lene was his hors as is a rake,
    And he nas nat right fat, I undertake;
    But loked holwe, and ther-to soberly.
    Ful thredbar was his overest courtepy;
    For he had geten him yet no benefyce,
    Ne was so worldly for to have offyce.
    For him was lever have at his beddes heed
    Twenty bokes, clad in blak or reed,
    Of Aristotle and his philosophye,
    Than robes riche, or fithele, or gay sautrye.
    But al be that he was a philosophre,
    Yet hadde he but litel gold in cofre;
    But al that he mighte of his freendes hente,
    On bokes and on lerninge he it spente,
    And bisily gan for the soules preye
    Of hem that yaf him wher-with to scoleye.
    Of studie took he most cure and most hede.
    Noght o word spak he more than was nede,
    And that was seyd in forme and reverence,
    And short and quik, and ful of hy sentence.
    Souninge in moral vertu was his speche,
    And gladly wolde he lerne, and gladly teche.

Would it be possible to find a clearer picture of what in those days we
should perhaps call a 'lower middle class' woman than that of the Wyf of
Bath? She is dressed in all the splendour that she can afford: she
frankly loves fine dress.

    A good WYF was ther of bisyde BATHE,
    But she was som-del deef, and that was scathe.
    Of clooth-making she hadde swiche an haunt,
    She passed hem of Ypres and of Gaunt.
    In al the parisshe wyf ne was ther noon
    That to the offring bifore hir sholde goon;
    And if ther dide, certeyn, so wrooth was she,
    That she was out of alle charitee.
    Hir coverchiefs ful fyne were of ground;
    I dorste swere they weyeden ten pound
    That on a Sonday were upon hir heed.
    Hir hosen weren of fyn scarlet reed,
    Ful streite y-teyd, and shoos ful moiste and newe.
    Bold was hir face, and fair, and reed of hewe.
    She was a worthy womman all hir lyve,
    Housbondes at chirche-dore she hadde fyve,
    Withouten other companye in youthe;
    But thereof nedeth nat to speke as nouthe.
    And thryes hadde she been at Ierusalem;
    She hadde passed many a straunge streem;
    At Rome she hadde been, and at Boloigne
    In Galice at seint Iame, and at Coloigne.
    She coude muche of wandring by the weye.
    Gat-tothed was she, soothly for to seye.
    Up-on an amblere esily she sat,
    Y-wimpled wel, and on hir heed an hat
    As brood as is a bokeler or a targe;
    A foot-mantel aboute hir hipes large,
    And on hir feet a paire of spores sharpe.
    In felawschip wel coude she laughe and carpe.
    Of remedyes of love she knew per-chaunce,
    For she coude of that art the olde daunce.
    .   .   .   .   .   .   .

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

Opening the text

South LondonBesant, Walter

History

South London

Besant, Walter

London (England) -- Description and travel

A CLERK ther was of Oxenford also,
    That un-to logik hadde longe y-go.
    As lene was his hors as is a rake,
    And he nas nat right fat, I undertake;
    But loked holwe, and ther-to soberly.
    Ful thredbar was his overest courtepy;
    For he had geten him yet no benefyce,
    Ne was so worldly for to have offyce.
    For him was lever have at his beddes heed
    Twenty bokes, clad in blak or reed,
    Of Aristotle and his philosophye,
    Than robes riche, or fithele, or gay sautrye.
    But al be that he was a philosophre,
    Yet hadde he but litel gold in cofre;
    But al that he mighte of his freendes hente,
    On bokes and on lerninge he it spente,
    And bisily gan for the soules preye
    Of hem that yaf him wher-with to scoleye.
    Of studie took he most cure and most hede.
    Noght o word spak he more than was nede,
    And that was seyd in forme and reverence,
    And short and quik, and ful of hy sentence.
    Souninge in moral vertu was his speche,
    And gladly wolde he lerne, and gladly teche.

Would it be possible to find a clearer picture of what in those days we
should perhaps call a 'lower middle class' woman than that of the Wyf of
Bath? She is dressed in all the splendour that she can afford: she
frankly loves fine dress.

    A good WYF was ther of bisyde BATHE,
    But she was som-del deef, and that was scathe.
    Of clooth-making she hadde swiche an haunt,
    She passed hem of Ypres and of Gaunt.
    In al the parisshe wyf ne was ther noon
    That to the offring bifore hir sholde goon;
    And if ther dide, certeyn, so wrooth was she,
    That she was out of alle charitee.
    Hir coverchiefs ful fyne were of ground;
    I dorste swere they weyeden ten pound
    That on a Sonday were upon hir heed.
    Hir hosen weren of fyn scarlet reed,
    Ful streite y-teyd, and shoos ful moiste and newe.
    Bold was hir face, and fair, and reed of hewe.
    She was a worthy womman all hir lyve,
    Housbondes at chirche-dore she hadde fyve,
    Withouten other companye in youthe;
    But thereof nedeth nat to speke as nouthe.
    And thryes hadde she been at Ierusalem;
    She hadde passed many a straunge streem;
    At Rome she hadde been, and at Boloigne
    In Galice at seint Iame, and at Coloigne.
    She coude muche of wandring by the weye.
    Gat-tothed was she, soothly for to seye.
    Up-on an amblere esily she sat,
    Y-wimpled wel, and on hir heed an hat
    As brood as is a bokeler or a targe;
    A foot-mantel aboute hir hipes large,
    And on hir feet a paire of spores sharpe.
    In felawschip wel coude she laughe and carpe.
    Of remedyes of love she knew per-chaunce,
    For she coude of that art the olde daunce.
    .   .   .   .   .   .   .

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

South London

South London

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