Top murder ballad:
Bruton Town
In Bruton town there lived a farmer
Who had two sons and one daughter dear.
One told his secrets to no other,
but to his brother this he said,
"I think our servant courts our sister,
I think they have a mind to wed.
I'll put an end to all their courtship,
I'll send him silent to his grave."
A day of hunting was prepared,
Where only bush and briars grew.
And there they did this young man murder,
And in the brake his body threw.
"Now welcome home, my dear young brothers,
Our serving man, is he behind?"
"We've left him where we've been a-hunting,
"We've left him where no man can find."
As she lay dreaming on her pillow,
She thought she saw her own true love;
She dreamt she saw him standing by her,
She saw his coat was red with blood.
"Don't weep for me, my dearest jewel,
Don't weep for me nor care nor pine,
For your two brothers killed me cruel-
In such a place you may me find.
"Rise up, my love, tomorrow morning,
Go straightway to that brake you know,
For there you'll find my body lying,
Where only bush and briars grow."
She went out early in the morning,
And in the garden brake she stood
And there she found her own dear jewel,
All covered o'er in a gore of blood.
She took a kerchief from her pocket,
And wiped his eyes though he was blind.
"Because he was my own true lover,
My own true love and a friend of mine."
Three days and nights she did sit by him,
And her poor heart was filled with woe,
Till cruel hunger crept upon her,
And home she was obliged to go.
- Joined
- 18 Jan 07
- Moves
- 12477
Originally posted by Bosse de NageChaucer. Almost anything by Chaucer.
Books and music.
Malory's Morte d'Arthur -- you can feel the steel, taste the blood, smell the piss and vomit, and pass out into an erotic dream of the quim-quivering queen. Easy reading, too -- adopt (eg.) a Yorkshire accent and Bob's your uncle.
Karel ende Elegast, which is Middle Dutch.
Richard
- Joined
- 18 Jan 07
- Moves
- 12477
Originally posted by Bosse de NageNever read all of it - I could only find the first volume of a set of two.
Piers Plowman? Like John Bunyan on magic mushrooms?
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, of course, and Pearl et al., too.
Elckerlijc is interesting, but doesn't speak to us today as it did when it was written. The Chanson de Roland (which I read in an English and in a Dutch translation; early French is a bit too much for me, I fear) does, though.
Richard
Originally posted by Shallow BlueThe Everyman version is more than adequate, unless you insist on reading all the variants.
Never read all of it - I could only find the first volume of a set of two.
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, of course, and Pearl et al., too.
Elckerlijc is interesting, but doesn't speak to us today as it did when it was written. The Chanson de Roland (which I read in an English and in a Dutch translation; early French is a bit too much for me, I fear) does, though.
Richard
It is interesting how mediaeval texts can speak to us, often more so than modern works, I'm finding these days. Downhill since Shakespeare, in some ways ...
The poet Douglas Oliver wrote a great Thatcher-era satire, "The Infant & The Pearl", modelled closely on Pearl both in terms of allegory and form. It's well worth a read.
Early French spelling, with 'k' not 'qu', often resembles modern French text message spelling ... I can't read it because I don't know what it should sound like at all. Speaking of which can you recommend a spoken word version of Chaucer? There's bits and pieces of him and others all over the Internet (eg. modern and mediaeval (with American accent 🙂 ) versions of Piers Plowman here: http://writing.upenn.edu/pennsound/x/Piers-Plowman.html ) but I'd like to listen to the (in)complete Canterbury Tales in Middle English some time.
Wouldn't mind finding something similar for Francois Villon, too. I need aural authority ...
Originally posted by Bosse de NageWhat's a quim-quivering queen? It sounds really hot.
Books and music.
Malory's Morte d'Arthur -- you can feel the steel, taste the blood, smell the piss and vomit, and pass out into an erotic dream of the quim-quivering queen. Easy reading, too -- adopt (eg.) a Yorkshire accent and Bob's your uncle.