Spice Cookies

Love, Peace and Joy to all-

Arabella’s Christmas Spice Cookies

½ cup molasses

½ cup butter

1/3 cup dark brown sugar

1 tsp. each ginger, cinnamon, cloves

½ tsp. black pepper

1 Tbs. dark rum

1 tsp. baking soda

2 cups unbleached flour

1.    Combine butter, molasses and brown sugar in a small Dutch oven. Heat until butter is melted and sugar is liquid. Do not boil.

2.    Remove from heat. Add everything else except flour. Stir well; Cool to lukewarm.

3.    Add flour and mix until smooth.

4.    Roll, cut out and bake 350 for 5-8 minutes.

Bile and Vanity

There are many themes and motifs worth exploring in The Nun's Priest's Tale, but I was struck by the introduction early on of diet and body humors. The widow/dairywoman doesn't play an important role in this story, but of the few things we are told about her, one is of her diet. Chaucer tells us that, "Attempree diete was hir physik." She eats moderately and modestly. She doesn't have a rich diet-- she eats brown bread (not the Boston variety, I'll warrant) and drinks milk. She doesn't have gout (a rich man's disease) and she doesn't drink wine, either white or red.  Sometimes she has bacon and eggs, a good English (or French) supper. This aspect of the widow strikes me as an odd thing to focus on. If I were having my biography written, I would not want the focus to be on what I eat!

After we are introduced to the widow and her "doughten" the narrator focuses in on the subjects of the tale, Chanticleer and his favorite wife, Pertylote. We are told that Chanticleer's bile is black and that he is melancholy, which is redundant. Melancholics are the lovers, the poets, and the dreamers. Chanticleer doesn't disappoint.

In 2940-2950 after Chanticleer has had a dreadful nightmare, his wife tells him that he is too full of poop and he had best take a laxative. Chanticleer tells her that Pharaoh didn't need a laxative when he told his dreams to Joseph. And the rooster's dream turned out to be just as prophetic as Pharaoh's.

The sin that entrap's Chanticleer is vanity. He falls into the fox's trap of flattery. "Pride goith bifore sorewe; and the spirit schal be enhaunted byfor fallyng." So says Solomon by way of Wycliffe.

Education Adenda

Well, for whatever reason, I messed up the slides for my part of the education presentation last week. And in my flusteredness (my word) I also left off an important point as I spoke: Dante was writing about writing, which was a new concept. In his work The Vida Nuova Dante writes a collection of sonnets about the girl he loves from afar, Beatrice. But before, during and after all these sonnets, Dante discusses what exactly inspired him, but more importantly, how we, the readers, should read and understand his poems. It is an amazing work that gives us a look into the mind of a great poet and his writing process. So sorry I left it out last week. What differentiates Dante from other writers of commentary in the Middle Ages is that there were scholars writing commentary on the Bible and on the Classics, but Dante was one of the first writing commentary on his own works.

The second example is The Letter to Can Grande, in which Dante is instructing his benefactor and patron how and why he wrote The Divina Comedia -- and how to read it. There is an excerpt in the documents section of our text (education section). Give it a look/see-- or sign up for Dante for the spring!

I am attempting to post the pictures that I should have had in the slide. Keep a lookout-
See you this afternoon : )

Cheesecake Recipe

Okay, I have done some research and discovered that Graham crackers were invented by a Presbyterian minister in New Jersey (Bound Brook, which is a section of Newark) in 1826. I had originally thought that it was Kellog in Michigan in 1926, but I am learning that the more I know, the more I don't know. : )

Anyway, the crackers weren't around in Chaucer's day, but oatcakes were, so I made a batch of oatmeal cookies with 3 cups of oats and 1 cup of walnuts, baked them off, and when they had cooled, I processed ten of them to dust and pressed them into my springform pan. The very one that our fearless professor has in her possession even now). Here is the rest of the recipe:

In my standing mixer (Kitchen Aid) with the paddle attachment, I cream 5 packages of Neufchatel cheese (cream cheese with 30% less fat) with 2 cups of sugar. I then add 5 eggs (just think of one egg per package of cream cheese), 1 Tbs. of almond extract (when I can find ours I usually use 2 Tbs. almaretto) and 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract. I then add 1/2 cup of whole milk or 1/2 and 1/2. Finally, I pour the batter into the cookie-lined pan and bake at 450 for 10 minutes, then at 250 for an hour.

I have also used a chocolate cookie crust (Famous Chocolate Wafers or Oreos!) with the almaretto cheesecake, and it is also scrumptious.

Feast Songs

Here are the lyrics of the songs Erin and I sang today-

Sumer is Icumen In

Sumer is icumen in,
Lhude sing, cuccu;
Groweth sed
and bloweth med,
And springth the wode nu;
Sing, cuccu!

Awe bleteth after lomb,
Lhouth after calue cu;
Bulluc sterteth,
Bucke uerteth,
Murie sing, cuccu!

Cuccu, cuccu,
Wel singes thu, cuccu;
Ne swic thu naver nu.

Sing, cuccu, nu; sing, cuccu;
Sing, cuccu; sing, cuccu, nu!



Deo Gracias

Middle English original spelling[8]	Middle English converted[9]
Adam lay i-bowndyn, bowndyn in a bond, Fowre thowsand wynter thowt he not to long	Adam lay ybounden, Bounden in a bond; Four thousand winter, Thought he not too long.
And al was for an appil, an appil that he tok. As clerkes fyndyn wretyn in here book.	And all was for an apple, An apple that he took. As clerkes finden, Written in their book.
Ne hadde the appil take ben, the appil taken ben, Ne hadde never our lady a ben hevene quen.	Ne had the apple taken been, The apple taken been, Ne had never our ladie, Abeen heav'ne queen.
Blyssid be the tyme that appil take was! Therefore we mown syngyn Deo gracias!	Blessed be the time That apple taken was, Therefore we moun singen. Deo gracias!

Here's the song-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERWREcPIoPA

A Relevant Song (Only the Good Die Young)

Click on the forthcoming link too! (from Billy Joel)

Come out, Virginia-
Don't let me wait.
You Catholic girls start much too late.
Ah! But sooner or later it comes down to fate.
I might as well will be the one.

Well they showed you a statue-
Told you to pray.
They built you a temple and locked you away.
Ah! But they never told you the price it would pay.
The things that you might have done...

Only the good die young.
That's what I said!
Only the good die young.
Only the good die young...

You mighta heard I run with a dangerous crowd.
We ain't too pretty, we ain't too proud.
We might be laughin' a bit too loud.
Ah! But that never hurt no one...

So come on Virginia!
Show me a sign-
Send up a signal; I'll throw you a line.
The stained glass curtain you're hidin' behind-
Never lets in the sun...

Darlin' only the good die young!
Oh woe woe woe woe!
I tell ya only the good die young.
Only the good die young...

You got a nice white dress and a party on your confirmation!
You've got a brand new soul.
Mmm, and a cross of gold.
But Virginia they didn't give you quite enough information!

You didn't count on me-
When you were counting on your rosary.
Oh woe woe!

And they say there's a Heaven,
And those who will wait.
And some say it's better,
But I say it ain't!
I'd rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints.

The sinners are much more fun...
You know that only the good die young!
Oh woe woe baby bay!
I tell ya only the good die young!
Only the good die young...

Said your mother told you all that I could give you was a reputation!
Ah! She never cared for me.
But did she ever say a prayer for me?
Oh woe woe!

Come out, come out, come out!
Virginia don't let me wait!
You Catholic girls start much too late!
Sooner or later it comes down to fate.
I might as well will be the one...
You know that only the good die young!

Tell ya baby!
You know that only the good die young!
Only the good die young.
Only the gooood!
Only the good die young.

Oo oo oooo
Oo!

Read more: Billy Joel - Only The Good Die Young Lyrics | MetroLyrics 

A Woman's Virture

I came across this quote today from our Companion to Chaucer (333) "...all wives should be honoured but especially those who are distinguished by virtue."  (and boy do I want to add a comma after 'honoured'!) This is from the Morale Scolarium by John of Garland, which Chaucer would have been familiar with. I think this quote sheds light on the tales that feature Griselde, Constuance, and Dorigen. Chaucer's audience probably appreciated these women in a way that we, perhaps, don't. Context is king.

Queinte and Curious

This is just an unimportant musing.

Several times tonight I have seen the word 'queinte' in our readings-- and the definition used has been 'curious'. For me, especially at this time of year, these two words paired together bring to mind dear old Poe:

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
`'Tis some visitor,' I muttered, `tapping at my chamber door -
Only this, and nothing more.'

Was he familiar with  Middle English? Is this a coincidence? I give him the benefit of the doubt. Good job, Poe.

Freshe May; Hoary January

What do Vanity Fair, The Scarlet Letter, Francesca (Inferno Canto 5) and Grover Cleveland have in common with The Merchant's Tale?

Well, Grover Cleveland married Frances Folsom at the age of 54. His bride was 21.
Francesca was married to a much older man and died in the arms of his brother, Paolo, who was much closer to her age.
Hester Prynne married Roger Chillingworth when she was 16 and he was an aged scholar and alchemist. She truly loved the young minister, Arthur Dimmesdale (although for the life of me I could never see why).
And Rebecca Sharp had several lovers, but one of the early ones was a very old man (with money).

The May-December romance (or May/January marriage) is a convention, but Dante, for one, asked the question, "Is it a sin to force such a marriage on a young girl?" In such a marriage the older husband is certainly tempting fate as well as his young wife to adultery with someone closer to her own age. Is it a sin against nature for a young, pretty and nubile female (like May) to be married to a hoary, wrinkly, perhaps toothless old man?

The Clevelands were happy-- and Frances wanted the marriage. Perhaps it is just arranged or forced marriages that are wrong. I am not a fan of adultery, but I found myself feeling sorry for May throughout the tale. And everything January was afraid of happened. His reasons for marriage were selfish all along- and he treated his wife as an object. It is hard to sympathize with him.

PS Frances's father's name was Oscar-- and he was Cleveland's best friend. They were the original Oscar and Grover.

The Bible and Lit

A few weeks ago Jonathan and I were talking about teaching high school lit, and we agreed that more and more middle and high school students don;t seem to have even a cursory knowledge of the Bible-- and it is affecting how they read and understand literature.  I make no secret of my own Christian faith, but I want to write the following as a teacher of literature, apart from my own beliefs.

In 1963, through the efforts of a woman named Madeline Murray O'Hare, prayer and Bible reading as opening exercises in public schools were deemed unconstitutional. In the school system I grew up in, almost all the students I knew (and it was a small town) were either Jewish, Catholic or Protestant, and the reading that was done each day was Psalm 23 (The Lord is My Shepherd) so, given the population, it is likely that no one was offended. However, as the 60s rolled on into the 70s there were growing numbers of families who would probably identify themselves as uncommitted or agnostic, as church and synagogue attendance dropped off radically. By the time I got to high school, the 'separation of church and state' that ceased prayer and Bible reading as part of the curriculum, had become an outright ban on anything that looked Christian. The Christmas tree in the lobby in December disappeared, but oddly enough the menorah display stayed). The morning readings over the PA system each morning could be from any book (including the Koran) but not the Bible (this was written policy). While there was a transcendental meditation club, voluntary Bible study after school or at lunch was forbidden. That was 1973-1976. Fast forward to now.

My friends who are public school teachers in Frederick and Montgomery Counties have told me that with all the allusions, concrete symbols and motifs, and themes that are based on the Bible in classic literature, students nowadays are missing what students in previous generations understood quite easily.Let me give you some examples:

• Charles Darnay's substitutionary death in A Tale of Two Cites.
• Santiago's (the old man) carrying a cross-like mast on his back after three days and nights at sea
• The title East of Eden
• Anything by Flannary O'Connor
• The Scarlet Letter
• Claudius's murder of his brother, old King Hamlet (Volumes have been written on biblical allusions in Shakespeare)
• Most of Dante
• Much of Chaucer (as we have seen)

etc., etc., and so much more (triple redundancy on purpose!)

When I was a college sophomore and taking Survey of Am Lit and Survey of Brit Lit, I was frustrated at my lack of a solid foundational knowledge of the ancient classics. It was hard to understand Poe's poetry, for example, with his references to Pallas, Lethe, Psyche, etc.  I was constantly looking at the notes on the bottom of the page. So I asked the department head (cheeky, yes?) if he would consider a class in mythology as a prerequisite for English majors.  He listened; Lebanon Valley now has that.

In the same way, I think that public schools, without endorsing any religion, should teach the Bible as literature, in order to help students fully get and appreciate the literature they are reading.

And, of course, this relates to Chaucer. A foundational knowledge of the Bible, both Old and New Testaments, will alleviate some of the back and forth with the glossary and deepen the readers' experience with Chaucer.

Feast Food

Here are the food assignments so far. Feel free to add your name with additional offerings.

Meatless savories:
Fungus/Leek Soup-- Andrew (V)
Cheese Tart-- Laura
Mushroom Pasties--Diane
Spinach Tart-- Jonathan
Browned Vegetables--Diane (V)
Beans Yfried--Yasmine (V)
Chyches--Jonathan (V)

Meat Offerings:
Chicken Meatballs-- Meg and Dr.MB
Blank Manger-- Andrew
Norse Pie (no Norsemen will be harmed in the making of this recipe)-- Jessica
Sausages-- Heather

Breads (gluten-free and fully glutened availed): 
Sour Dough- Jessica (V)
Wheat Bread-- Jessica (V, unless yeast is an issue)
English Egg Bread-- Diane

Desserts:
Apple Pudding-- Meg and Dr.MB (V)
Baked Apple and Pear-- Katie (V)
Honey Cakes-- Heather
Honey Candy-- Jessica (V)
Almond Cheesecake-- Diane
Pears in syrippe--Jonathan (V)

Cheeses:
Laura, Jessica?, Diane (Gorgonzola!)

Drinks:
Mulled Cider-- Katie
Spiced Grape Juice-- Meg and Dr.MB
Lemonade-- Andrew

Rhyme Royal as ice cream

Wassail!
I was just thinking that if rhyme royal were an ice cream it would have a rich vanilla base-- the kind with lots of eggs in the custard-- and would have swirls and swirls of lovely caramel...

The Seven "Deadly" Virtues

And here is Mordred's take on the seven virtues, from Lerner and Lowe's Camelot (singing the role is the great Roddy McDowell):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8VdnRpI_s4

Narnia in Medieval Context

Greetings! In prepping for Jonathan's and my presentation on religious life this Thursday, I was reminded of an article I read a few years ago which looks at the seven books of Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia as fictionalized portrayals of the seven dead;y sins (and of course, they are not only that-- they are wonderful children's stories that stand on their own). To get you started, think of Edmund in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, who sells his brother and sisters for a box of candy. Hmmm. Here is the article, so you can read it, if you are intrigued-

http://cslewis.drzeus.net/papers/7sins.html

Satan as Summoner

Greetings, hwaet!
When I read The Friar's Tale yesterday, I immediately thought of a Bible verse that Chaucer probably used as a foundation for his plot. Here it is:

13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. 15 So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds. 2 Corinthians 11:13-15)

 Paul tells his readers that Satan can disguise himself as an angel of light; Chaucer has a devil disguise himself as Robin Hood (my take).

The influence of this verse appears many times in literature-- Shakespeare uses it in Hamlet (and rightly so; that darn ghost doesn't act like any father I have known) May be the devil, and the devil hath power/ T' assume a pleasing shape (II. ii. 606-07)

Another reference to this verse is in Measure for Measure in the character Angelo (angel) who appears to be righteous and chaste, but who can wait to steal the virginity of Isabella. He appears good, but is in fact, wicked. 

The Wife of Bath's Tale and Purgatory

Hwaet! I am so glad I took Dante last semester! I am seeing things in Chaucer that I never saw before.
Today I wish to argue that The Wife of Bath's Tale fits very nicely with Dante's view, not only of 'contrapasso', where the punishment fits the crime (as Gilbert and Sullivan put it), but that for the knight in the tale, his punishment works towards his redemption, as happens in Purgatory.
The knight is shown grace twice- the first time is when Queen Guinevere and her ladies ask Arthur for mercy from the death penalty. I will get to the second in a moment.

The knight in the tale commits the horrible crime of rape. He approaches a damsel in distress-- one whom the knight should be protective of-- and when he cannot seduce her, he rapes her quite violently. It is anti-chivalry. As his punishment the knight must marry an old crone, one who is low-born and hideously ugly. It is a punishment to be in bed with her. This is an appropriate punishment for one who forced sex on another. The punishment fits the crime.

But after he hears a sermon about his hypocrisy (you think I'm low born and yet you did what you did to the maiden?), the knight proves that his punishment has redeemed him. The knight has changed, and as another gift of grace, he is rewarded with a beautiful and loving wife.

Please watch this for a lingering giggle-

Here is a video of the song I just posted the lyrics of (of which I just posted...)
I believe the character is Morgan Le Fay, who is special to my heart, for that is the part I played in Camelot my senior year of high school : )

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_H9yGF36Rc

"I've married many men-- a ton of them..."

I am sending this one out for the wife of bath. This song is from the Broadway musical A Connecticut Yankee, lyrics by Lorenz Hart, music by Richard Rodgers. This is one of the funniest songs I have ever heard.

I've been married and married,
And often I've sighed,
I'm never a bridesmaid,
I'm always the bride.
I never divorced them-
I hadn't the heart.
Yet remember these sweet words
"Till death do us part."
REFRAIN 1
I married many men,
A ton of them,
And yet I was untrue to none of them
because I bumped off ev'ry one of them
to keep my love alive
Sir Paul was a frail;
he looked a wreck to me.
At night he was a horse's neck to me
So I performed an appendectomy
To keep my love alive.
Sir Thomas had insomnia
he couldn't sleep at night.
I bought a little arsenic
he's sleeping now all right.
Sir Philip played the harp;
I cussed the thing.
I crowned with his harp
to bust the thing.
And now he plays where harps are
just the thing,
To keep my love alive,
To keep my love alive.
REFRAIN 2
I thought Sir George had possibilities,
but his flirtations made me ill at ease,
and when I'm ill at ease
I kill at ease
To keep my love alive.
Sir Charles came from a sanatorium
and yelled for drinks in my emporium
I mixed one drink
He's in memorium
To keep my love alive.
Sir Francis was a singing bird
A nightingale. That's why
I tossed him off my balcony
To see if he could fly
Sir Athelstane indulged in fratricide;
He killed his dad and that was patricide
One night I stabbed him at my mattress side
To keep my love alive,
To keep my love alive.

Mother-in-Law

This one is dedicated to Custaunce!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sclhVBsZiGo

Mother-in-Law, 1961!