The Vision Of Piers Plowman - Part 01 Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: ABCDAEFDADG HFAEDHCEEIDJJHCICCFC CHCEDHFAFK DC EF HADDF F ALC CC HACJADDDA DCCDBCA EEJHI CFHDACECHHCCCEDE DFDDHDCEBEHHHEDDMDMC EICHLA CABFCHAECF D EFMCJCDDDHFCFWhat this mountaigne bymeneth and the merke dale | A |
And the feld ful of folk I shal yow faire shewe | B |
A lovely lady of leere in lynnen yclothed | C |
Cam doun fom the castel and called me faire | D |
And seide 'Sone slepestow Sestow this peple | A |
How bisie they ben aboute the maze | E |
The mooste partie of this peple that passeth on this erthe | F |
Have thei worship in this world thei wilne no bettre | D |
Of oother hevene than here holde thei no tale' | A |
I was afeed of hire face theigh she faire weere | D |
And seide ' Mercy madame what may this be to mene ' | G |
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'The tour upon the toft' quod she 'Truthe is therinne | H |
And wolde that ye wroughte as his word techeth | F |
For he is fader of feith and formed yow alle | A |
Bothe with fel and with face and yaf yow fyve wittes | E |
For to worshipe hym therwith while that ye ben here | D |
And therfore he highte the erthe to helpe yow echone | H |
Of woilene of lynnen of liflode at nede | C |
In mesurable manere to make yow at ese | E |
And comaunded of his curteisie in commune three thynges | E |
Are none nedfulle but tho and nempne hem I thynke | I |
And rekene hem by reson reherce thow hem after | D |
'That oon is vesture from chele thee to save | J |
And mete at meel for mysese of thiselve | J |
And drynke whan thow driest ac do noght out of reson | H |
That thow worthe the wers whan thow werche sholdest | C |
For Lot in hise lifdayes for likynge of drynke | I |
Dide by hise doughtres that the devel liked | C |
Delited hym in drynke as the devel wolde | C |
And leccherie hym laughte and lay by hem bothe | F |
And al he witte it the wyn that wikked dede | C |
Inebriemus eum vino dormiamusque cum eo ut | C |
servare possimus de patre nostro semen | H |
Thorugh wyn and thorugh wommen ther was Loth acombred | C |
And there gat in glotonie gerles that were cherles | E |
Forthi dred delitable drynke and thow shalt do the bettre | D |
Mesure is medicine though thow muchel yerne | H |
Al is nought good to the goost that the gut asketh | F |
Ne liflode to the likame that leef is to the soule | A |
Leve nought thi likame for a liere hym techeth | F |
That is the wrecched world wolde thee bitraye | K |
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For the fend and thi flessh folwen togidere | D |
And that shendeth thi soule set it in thin herte | C |
And for thow sholdest ben ywar I wisse thee the beste ' | - |
'A madame mercy ' quod I ' me liketh wel youre wordes | E |
Ac the moneie of this molde that men so faste holdeth | F |
Telleth me to whom that tresour appendeth ' | - |
Go to the Gospel ' quod she 'that God seide hymselven | H |
Tho the poeple hym apposede with a peny in the Temple | A |
Wheither thei sholde therwith worshipe the kyng Cesar | D |
And God asked of hem of whom spak the lettre | D |
And the ymage ylike that therinne stondeth | F |
Cesares thei seiden 'we seen it wel echone ' | - |
''Reddite Cesari '' quod God '' that Cesari bifalleth | F |
Et que sunt Dei Deo or ellis ye don ille ' | - |
For rightfully Reson sholde rule yow alle | A |
And Kynde Wit be wardeyn youre welthe to kepe | L |
And tutour of youre tresor and take it yow at nede | C |
For housbondrie and he holden togidres ' | - |
Thanne I frayned hire faire for Hym that hire made | C |
'That dongeon in the dale that dredful is of sighte | C |
What may it bemeene madame I yow biseche ' | - |
'That is the castel of care whoso comth therinne | H |
May banne that he born was to bodi or to soule | A |
Therinne wonyeth a wight that Wrong is yhote | C |
Fader of falshede and founded it hymselve | J |
Adam and Eve he egged to ille | A |
Counseilled Kaym to killen his brother | D |
Judas he japed with Jewen silver | D |
And sithen on an eller hanged hym after | D |
He is lettere of love and lieth hem alle | A |
That trusten on his tresour bitrayed arn sonnest ' | - |
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Thanne hadde I wonder in my wit what womman it weere | D |
That swiche wise wordes of Holy Writ shewed | C |
And halsede hire on the heighe name er she thennes yede | C |
What she were witterly that wissed me so faire | D |
'Holi Chirche I am ' quod she thow oughtest me to knowe | B |
I underfeng thee first and the feith taughte | C |
Thow broughtest me borwes my biddyng to fulfille | A |
And to loven me leelly the while thi lif dureth ' | - |
Thanne I courbed on my knees and cried hire of grace | E |
And preide hire pitously to preye for my synnes | E |
And also kenne me kyndely on Crist to bileve | J |
That I myghte werchen His wille that wroghte me to man | H |
'Teche me to no tresor but tel me this ilke | I |
How I may save my soule that seint art yholden ' | - |
'Whan alle tresors arn tried ' quod she Treuthe is the beste | C |
I do it on Deus caritas to deme the sothe | F |
It is as dereworthe a drury as deere God hymselven | H |
Who is trewe of his tonge and telleth noon oother | D |
And dooth the werkes therwith and wilneth no man ille | A |
He is a god by the Gospel agrounde and olofte | C |
And ylik to Oure Lord by Seint Lukes wordes | E |
The clerkes that knowen this sholde kennen it aboute | C |
For Cristen and uncristen cleymeth it echone | H |
' Kynges and knyghtes sholde kepen it by reson | H |
Riden and rappen doun in reaumes aboute | C |
And taken transgressores and tyen hem faste | C |
Til treuthe hadde ytermyned hire trespas to the ende | C |
For David in hise dayes dubbed knyghtes | E |
And dide hem sweren on hir swerd to serven truthe evere | D |
And that is the profession apertly that apendeth to knyghtes | E |
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And naught to Fasten o Friday in fyve score wynter | D |
But holden with hym and with here that wolden alle truthe | F |
And never leve hem for love ne for lacchynge of silver | D |
And whoso passe th that point is apostata in the ordre | D |
But Crist kyngene kyng knyghted ten | H |
Cherubyn and Seraphyn swiche sevene and another | D |
And yaf hem myght in his majestee the murier hem thoughte | C |
And over his meene meynee made hem archangeles | E |
Taughte hem by the Trinitee treuthe to knowe | B |
To be buxom at his biddyng he bad hem nought ellis | E |
'Lucifer with legions lerned it in hevene | H |
And was the lovelokest to loke after Oure Lord one | H |
Til he brak buxomnesse his blisse gan he tyne | H |
And fel fro that felawshipe in a fendes liknesse | E |
into a deep derk helle to dwelle there for evere | D |
And mo thousandes myd hym than man kouthe nombre | D |
Lopen out with Lucifer in lothliche forme | M |
For thei leveden upon hym that lyed in this manere | D |
Ponam pedem in aquilone et similis ero Altissimo | M |
And alle that hoped it myghte be so noon hevene myghte hem holde | C |
But fellen out in fendes liknesse ful nyne dayes togideres | E |
Til God of his goodnesse garte the hevene to stekie | I |
And gan stable it and stynte and stonden in quiete | C |
' Whan thise wikkede wenten out wonderwise thei fellen | H |
Somme in eyr somme in erthe somme in helle depe | L |
Ac Lucifer lowest lith of hem alle | A |
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For pride that he putte out his peyne hath noon ende | C |
And alle that werchen with wrong wende thei shulle | A |
After hir deth day and dwelle with that sherewe | B |
Ac tho that werche wel as Holy Writ telleth | F |
And enden as I er seide in truthe that is the beste | C |
Mowe be siker that hire soules shul wende to hevene | H |
Ther Treuthe is in Trinitee and troneth hem alle | A |
Forthi I seye as I seyde er by sighte of thise textes | E |
Whan alle tresors arn tried Truthe is the beste | C |
Lereth it th u s lewed men for lettred it knoweth | F |
That Treuthe is tresor the trieste on erthe ' | - |
'Yet have I no kynde knowynge ' quod I 'ye mote kenne me bettre | D |
By what craft in my cors it comseth and where ' | - |
'Thow doted daffe ' quod she dulle are thi wittes | E |
To litel Latyn thow lernedest leode in thi youthe | F |
Heu michi quia sterilem duxi vitam iuvenilem | M |
It is a kynde knowynge that kenneth in thyn herte | C |
For to loven thi Lord levere than thiselve | J |
No dedly synne to do deye theigh thow sholdest | C |
This I trowe be truthe who kan teche thee bettre | D |
Loke thow suffre hym to seye and sithen lere it after | D |
For thus witnesseth his word worche thow therafter | D |
' For Truthe telleth that love is triacle of hevene | H |
May no synne be on hym seene that that spice useth | F |
And alle his werkes he wroughte with love as hym liste | C |
And lered it Moyses for the | F |
William Langland
(1)
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