Art. 78, Nicholas Bozon, Femmes a la pye

by: Susanna Greer Fein (Editor)

from: The Complete Harley 2253 Manuscript, Volume 3  2015

112ra]    5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 112rb] 50 55 60 65 70 75 80

¶ Femmes a la pye Portent compagnye    En maners e en mours. Escotez que vous dye E quele assocye    Yl tienent en amours. La pie de costume Porte penne e plume    De divers colours, E femme se delite En estraunge habite    De divers atours. La pie ad longe cowe Que pend en la bowe    Pur la pesauncie, E femme fet la sowe Plus long que nule cowe    De poun ou de pye. La pie est jangleresse E reelement cesse    De mostrer ou ele est, E la femme par son us D’assez jangle plus.    Issi nature crest. Par jangle de la pie, Um vient a troverye    De gopyl e de chat; Femme par parole Meynt honme afole    E ly rend tot mat. Vous troverez la pye Si pleyne de boydie    Que ele se garde bien, Mes la femme pase La pie en cele grace,    Quar ele ne doute rien. La pie en arbre haut En freit e en chaut    Prent soun repos, E femme velt reposer En hautesse de cuer    E desyre los. La pie quant ele greve Countre son mary leve    E l’enchace de ly, E femme de grant cuer Son baroun par tencer    Fet autresy. Pour icele gyse, Je lou que un se avyse    Avaunt qu’l soit mary. E, nequedent, la pye Soun compaignoun espye    De quel part s’en va, E la femme auxi Espie son mary    Par gelosie que ele a. La pie par yre Les gardyns empire    Par braunche debruser, E en femme corocee Rien serra celee    Quant ele se puet venger.      Hom dit que la pie En sa nature crye,    “Il nous viegnent gestes.” E la femme puet dire A soun mary, “Syre,    Par moi averez blestes.” La pie siet musser Quanqe ele puet gayner    En un privé lu, E la femme se purveit Avant qe ele vidve seit    Dount ert sustenu. Bien dust la pie, Queiqe um en die,    A femme estre chere, Puis qe lur vie Par tiele compagnie    Acordent en manere.

¶ Women with magpies Keep close company    In manners and in morals. Listen to what I tell you And what likenesses    They maintain in love. Magpie by custom Wears feather and plumage    Of various colors, And woman delights In outlandish clothes    Of various ornament. Magpie has a long tail That hangs in the mud    For heaviness, And woman makes her own Longer than any tail    Of peacock or magpie. Magpie is a chatterbox And she rarely ceases    Revealing where she is, And it’s woman’s habit To chatter even more.    Thus she expands nature. By magpie’s chatter, One comes to the discovery    Of fox and cat; Woman by speech Drives man crazy    And entirely breaks him. You’ll find magpie So full of trickery    That she keeps herself safe, Yet woman surpasses Magpie in this talent,    For she’s afraid of nothing. Magpie in lofty tree In cold and in heat    Takes its rest, And woman wants to rest In loftiness of spirit    And wishes for praise. Magpie when she’s upset Rises up against her mate    And drives him from her, And proud-hearted woman When scolding her husband    Does likewise. Given this behavior, I advise that one reflect    Before he gets married. And, nonetheless, magpie Spies on her companion    Regarding where he goes, And likewise woman Spies on her husband    For the jealousy she feels. Magpie in anger Harms gardens    By breaking branches, And from enraged woman Nothing may be hidden    When she’s bent on revenge. They say that magpie By her nature announces,    “Glorious events come to us.” And woman can say To her husband, “Lord,    By me you’ll have setbacks.” Magpie knows how to hide Whatever she can acquire    In a secret place, And woman provides for herself      Before she becomes a widow    What will be her sustenance. Well ought the magpie, Whatever one may say,    Be dear to woman, Since their lives By such comparison    Accord in behavior.

(t-note) (see note) (t-note) (t-note) (t-note) (t-note) (see note) (t-note) (see note) (t-note) (t-note)

Go To Art. 79, Un sage honme de grant valour, introduction
Go To Art. 79, Un sage honme de grant valour, text

Footnotes

ART. 78, NICHOLAS BOZON, FEMMES A LA PYE: EXPLANATORY NOTES

Abbreviations: AND: Anglo-Norman Dictionary; ANL: Anglo-Norman Literature: A Guide to Texts and Manuscripts (R. Dean and Boulton); BL: British Library (London); Bodl.: Bodleian Library (Oxford); CT: Chaucer, Canterbury Tales; CUL: Cambridge University Library (Cambridge); DOML: Dumbarton Oaks Medieval Library; FDT: French Devotional Texts of the Middle Ages (Sinclair 1979); FDT-1: French Devotional Texts of the Middle Ages, . . . First Supplement (Sinclair 1982); IMEV: The Index of Middle English Verse (Brown and Robbins); MED: Middle English Dictionary; MWME: A Manual of the Writings in Middle English, 1050–1500 (Severs et al.); NIMEV: A New Index of Middle English Verse (Boffey and Edwards); NLS: National Library of Scotland (Edinburgh).

13 Compare the long robes of the proud in The Sayings of St. Bernard (art. 74), line 133.

49–51 This warning about marriage, which Jeffrey and Levy call “gratuitious and slightly clumsy” (p. 228), expands the stanza and is not found in BL Addit. MS 46919.

69 blestes. “Setbacks.” Compare The Sayings of Saint Bernard (art. 74), line 150. According to the poet, a magpie predicts future glory, while a woman’s presence promises the opposite.

ART. 78, NICHOLAS BOZON, FEMMES A LA PYE: TEXTUAL NOTES

ABBREVIATIONS: As: Aspin; Bö: Böddeker; Br: Brook; BS: Bennett and Smithers; BZ: Brandl and Zippel; B13: Brown 1937; Dea: J. M. Dean; Do: Dove 1969; Fl: Flood; Fö: Förster; Fu: Furnivall; HB: Hunt and Bliss; Kem: Kemble; Ken: Kennedy; Mi: Millett; Mo: Morris and Skeat; MS: MS Harley 2253; Mu¹: H. J. R. Murray; Mu²: J. A. H. Murray; NB: Noomen and van den Boogard; Pa: Patterson; Rev: Revard 2005a; Ri: Ritson 1877; Ro: Robbins 1959; SP: Short and Pearcy; Si: Silverstein; St: Stemmler 1970; Tu: Turville-Petre 1989; Ul: Ulrich; W¹: Wright 1839; W²: Wright 1841; W³: Wright 1842; WH: Wright and Halliwell.

3 maners. So MS (er abbreviated), W³, Do. Ken: maneres.

19 pie. So MS, W³, Ken. Do: pye.

29 honme. So MS, W³. Ken: homme. Do: houme.

31 pye. So MS, W³, Do. Ken: pie.

42 desyre. So MS, Ken. Do. W³: de syre.

66 nous. So MS, Ken. W³: nus. Do: vus.

73 purveit. So MS (ur abbreviated), W³, Ken. Do: priveit.

76 Bien. So W³, Do. MS, Ken: bie.