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<p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;">Email from John Bowman August 14, 2014:</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;">"I'm an old English Lit major but can't say I ever read these two poems until by chance I have come across them while browsing in the Norton Anthology of Poetry.</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;">"The first is one of (it turns out) best known and still sung medieval English carols (in this case, not a Christmas carol), "The Bitter Withy." (withy is the willow tree) I am writing this while away from my home and libraries, so I do not know if scholars have commented on just what ball game is involved. The carol is dated to around 1400.</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;">As it fell out on a holy day.</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;"> The drops of rain did fall, did fall,</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;">Our Saviour asked leave of his mother Mary</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;"> If he might go play at ball.</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;">"To play at ball, my own dear son,</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;"> It's time you was going or gone,</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;">But be sure let me hear no complain of you</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;"> At night when you do come home."</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;">It was upling scorn and downling scorn,[scorn everywhere, up and down)</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;"> Oh, there he met three jolly jerdins [boys],</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;">Oh, there he asked the jolly jerdins,</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;"> If they would go play ball.</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;">"Oh, we are lords' and ladies' sons,</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;"> Born in bower or in hall,</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;">And you are some poor maid's child,</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;"> Borned in an ox's stall."</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><span style="font-size: medium;">The poem then tells how the boy Jesus tricks the boys into drowning and is spanked by his mother with a willow branch. Although I do knot know what scholars have to say about the ball game, it is clear that the upper-class boys regard it as lower-class!</span></span></p>
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