Chaucery

[Delta40]

I chesen fro herte
ay to trowe
that soote aventure
clepen atte my wel

He that sooth wot
loke atte my gere
and conseil agayns pleye

Yet I axe of my paramour
deye by my song
and never doute
fro I nam fair

Bet love litel nyce
than lyke goldlees
to souls tomorwe


or in other words:


I choose from heart
always to believe
that sweet chance
calls at my well

He that truly knows
look at my belongings
and advise against play

Yet I ask of my lover
die by my song
and never hesitate
For I am not beautiful

Better love a little foolish
then listen penniless to souls tomorrow

[Virgil]

Very nice Delta. I really like both versions, though the middle english one I can't claim to have gotten it. In contemporary English it's a really solid poem:


I choose from heart
always to believe
that sweet chance
calls at my well

He that truly knows
look at my belongings
and advise against play

Yet I ask of my lover
die by my song
and never hesitate
For I am not beautiful

Better love a little foolish
then listen penniless to souls tomorrow

[blazeofglory]

I am not good at reading the old styled poem like this. But I enjoy it even I understand little.

[firefangled]

I trried to get at the ME, but it was never one of my strenghts.

I love the translation. The first stanza is a beautiful introduction to the remainder. What a declaration the whole!

[Delta40]

I'm thinking of translating 'The Road Not Taken' by Robert Frost if I can because I love this poem and I would like to feel it in Middle English.

Is this an insult to Frost?

[Delta40]

It is odd but writing in ME changes my poetry style. I would never have written this in CE. It is almost like writing with my left hand - as if another person penned it. Is that really my wisdom and insight on this page? how extraordinary....

[firefangled]

I'm thinking of translating 'The Road Not Taken' by Robert Frost if I can because I love this poem and I would like to feel it in Middle English.

Is this an insult to Frost?

Frost played with language as much as any poet ever did. If he could see his poem in ME, I'm sure he would consider it both interesting and complimentary.

[Virgil]

Is the contemporary version a Frost poem? Did I miss that?

[OrphanPip]

It is odd but writing in ME changes my poetry style. I would never have written this in CE. It is almost like writing with my left hand - as if another person penned it. Is that really my wisdom and insight on this page? how extraordinary....

It's very interesting, it's a bit like Edmund Spenser, who deliberately imitated Chaucer's English to the point of inventing words that just sounded like Middle English.

It's also odd to see Middle English poetry not in iambic pentameter haha.

[Delta40]

that is /my ig /norance

Da Dum

[~Sophia~]

It must be wonderful to be ambidextrous! I can't say I understood the ME but along with everyone else, the contemporary version captured ME.

[OrphanPip]

that is /my ig /norance

Da Dum

I think it's interesting to see ME used like this when I'm so used to those pages and pages of rhyming couplets in iambic pentameter in the Canterbury Tales. I love the language too, its got this French/German feel to it.

For those not used to reading ME it becomes much easier to understand when read out loud. The biggest problem is usually encountering words you recognize that are being used in a way different from their contemporary meaning.

[Delta40]

Good point. reading to oneself and reading out loud are two different experiences. I feel that silently I appreciate the structure and beauty of the language in its natural state. Reading it out loud has a different tone and prompts me to think about what I am saying and is it effective?

[Buh4Bee]

Nice poem, I also do not have a mind to translate ME. It may be easier to listen to then to read.

[MorpheusSandman]

I just recently bought The Riverside Chaucer and plan on diving into it and learning a bit of ME after I finish the Oxford Shakespeare. I really like the look and sound of ME just from what little I know and I quite enjoyed this.

[qimissung]

I like a little Middle English, the famous ones we study in English Literature. How did you learn to write in this language, Delta? Did you actually study it as a language?

It's a beautiful poem.