Poems by Queen Elizabeth I

Biography

Queen Elizabeth I is an early woman writer who may not have been the most talented, but her poems have deep meaning and her skill is still apparent. She was known for her great intelligence and ability to translate in 5-6 foreign languages. Elizabeth never married, which may be attributed to the fact that she was sexually abused as a child and surrounded by poor marriages her entire life. Elizabeth's misfortunes did not end with her sexual predicaments, as her own sister Mary attempted to have Elizabeth killed for supposedly committing treason. Throughout her teenage years, Elizabeth is imprisoned at Woodstock and The Tower of London for her crimes against her sister Mary. 

Poems

Ah, Silly Pug, wert thou so Sore Afraid: 

• Elizabeth assured her dog she won't be swayed by money and she will take care of the dog no matter her financial situation
• The dog may have been Elizabeth's only friend and way to vent her frustrations and worries as dogs are loyal to their owners
• Elizabeth's dog may have been frightened by the coming and going of soldiers in Elizabeth's confinement time

In Defiance of Fortune:

• Elizabeth explains that virtue will always prevail over fortune

On Monsieur's Departure:

• This poem discusses Elizabeth's lifelong struggle to cope with the fact that her interest in marriage will never bear fruit as her position as a monarch would cause too much political controversy should her marriage go awry 
• In addition to the potential political controversy, Elizabeth acknowledges that she has trust issues from previous bad sexual relationships 
• The issue of marriage is not only hard for Elizabeth mentally, but also socially because it is very dangerous for a woman to be a monarch and in Medieval times, it is considered to be unnatural for a woman to be unmarried

The Doubt of Future Foes:

• Elizabeth acknowledges that she likes when men fight in her honor, but currently she has no men that she needs to fight for her 
• The Pope said whoever killed Elizabeth would go straight to Heaven for their deed

When I Was Fair and Young:

• Elizabeth says in her youth she was fair and beautiful and enjoyed the attention from suitors that these attributes brought her
• Elizabeth enjoyed the flattering comments and gestures, but only to a certain point, then they disgusted her

Written in her French Psalter:

• Elizabeth notes that no physical deformity is half as unattractive as a shady, untrustworthy individual with questionable motives

Written on a Wall at Woodstock:

• Woodstock was one of Elizabeth's palaces
• In this poem, Elizabeth is showing a desire for vengeance against her violent sister Mary
• The alcoholic beverage "Bloody Mary" came from Mary's murderous tendencies against countless Protestants 

Written with a Diamond on her Window at Woodstock:

• This poem was carved into a window at Woodstock with a diamond as Elizabeth probably did not have access to a writing utensil in her imprisoned state 
• Many of the people who overthrew Mary said they were doing it in Elizabeth's honor, even though Elizabeth had nothing to do with her sister's demise
• This poem explains that although much was suspected of Elizabeth, Elizabeth was innocent with regards to her sister's overthrowing 

The Wife of Bath's Tale by Geoffrey Chaucer

The Wife of Bath's Tale is a tale about a woman who has been married five times and is on the hunt for husband number six. The woman is a self-described expert in marriage and desires sovereignty over her husbands. Throughout the tale, the woman is very mouthy and enjoys talking about her marital experiences.

The woman states that her favorite virtue is power, which she seeks through her body. In the tale, the woman misinterprets the Bible in order to justify her marital conquests. She says just like King Solomon, she should be able to have many spouses. According to the woman, wives should not be required to submit to their husbands as commanded by Saint Paul. To say the least, religion and marriage are not painted in a great light in this tale & prologue.

It becomes apparent that the Wife of Bath may behave the way she does because of past sexual experiences. It was stated that the woman married at 12 after her husband lusted after her and she became pregnant. The wife apparently was abused in the past as well, although she shows the most sympathy for the husband who abused her to most.

The Wife of Bath finished her tale by stating that if a man wants to have power over his wife, curse him for such a request. 

The Franklin's Tale by Geoffrey Chaucer

The undertone of "The Franklin's Tale" by Chaucer starkly contrasts the undertone of Chaucer's "The Clerk's Tale." The Franklin's Tale describes marriages as a mutual, humorous arrangement, while The Clerk's Tale describes marriage as a one-sided, subservient arrangement where the wife should serve her husband. 

In the Franklin's Tale, Arveragus promises never to be jealous of his wife Dorigen, as their marriage was defined by great amounts of trust. One of the only similarities between the two tales is that both wives are willing to die to honor their husbands. 

This tale emphasizes the importance of keeping one's word, especially in Medieval times. Arveragus told Dorigen the worst thing you can do is promise a man something because promises in this period were believed to be tied to the fate of one's soul. Because Aurelius completed Dorigen's assigned quest, Dorigen is bound by chivalric code to enter courtly love with Aurelius. Arveragus has no problem telling Dorigen to honor her commitment to Aurelius because he knows that if Dorigen sleeps with Aurelius, the couple is breaking chivalric code which may be punishable by Aurelius' death. 

Conclusively, we are supposed to pity both Aurelius and Dorigen in this tale for their love that was not meant to be. 

"Medieval Marriages" Documentary

The documentary "Medieval Marriages" helped me build connections between the modern interpretations of medieval marriage history with the lais of Marie de France and "The Clerk's Tale" by Geoffrey Chaucer. This documentary helped clarify topics brought up in our reading that were hard to interpret such as divorce, consummation of marriage, marital abuse, and social class differences. The following comparisons between the documentary and our readings are listed below:

• In "The Clerk's Tale", Walter wanted a divorce, but the documentary told us that even nobles could not easily divorce.
• In "Chevrefoil", Tristram and his Queen often met in order to quench their physical desire for one another, which the documentary states was common for those in unhappy marriages to do in Medieval times.
• In "Chaitivel", the castrated knight is not able to maintain relations with his lady because he cannot consummate their marriage. The documentary cites inability to consummate a marriage as a viable reason for seeking a divorce in Medieval times.
• Abusive relationships such as the one in "Laustic" were hard to leave in Medieval times according to the documentary, trapping both the abuser and abused individuals.
• "Yonec" confirmed the notion that nobles should seek to have male heirs to inherit their wealth as the documentary states that having a daughter inherit familial wealth was not encouraged.
• The documentary stated that it is forbidden for a spouse to remarry unless given special permission by the church, which contradicts the actions of Biclavret's wife, who takes a new husband after Bisclavret's disappearance.
• The documentary repeatedly made the point that marriages in Medieval times were about what each party could financially bring to the table. In "Le Fresne", the relationship between the noble prince and Le Fresne would be considered socially acceptable because of the apparent class differences of the individuals involved in the relationship. 
• Marriage in Medieval times was very easy for couples to enter into, but very difficult for couples to exit regardless of the reasoning behind the request for divorce. This notion was displayed in "Equitan", as all the couple had to do in order to enter into marriage was exchange rings and vows.

In conclusion, the documentary highlights how easy it was for a couple to be considered married, but how difficult it was to complete a divorce. 

The Clerk's Tale by Geoffrey Chaucer

I thought this e-card was appropriate for The Clerk's Tale because Lord Walter was somewhat of a politician and he fooled Griselda multiple times. If Lord Walter was a modern man, he would make a great congressman!

The Clerk' s Tale discusses the life of Lord Walter, who is a bachelor enjoying the freedoms of a man with no dependents. Lord Walter's people desperately want him to get married, but he wants such an occasion to naturally fall into place at his leisure. Walter does not want a forced marriage based around finances like other nobles, as such setups are common as one climbs up the noble ranks.

Walter decides to marry a beautiful, but financially humble maiden named Griselda. Walter proposes to Griselda on the condition that she will remain faithful to Walter no matter the tests he puts Griselda through. This is an important component of their marriage because as Walter continues to test Griselda, she maintains her class and faith in their marriage. 

It is believed that Chaucer wanted the reader to resent Walter's ways just as Walter's people did. Also, this tale was possibly meant to show that that forced marriage is bad as Walter was clearly uncomfortable with traditional marriage and had been very set in his bachelor ways. Ultimately, this tale shows that just as Walter tested Griselda, so will God test His people. 

Getting Around in Medieval Times

After watching "Tristan and Isolde" in class, I was amazed by all of the modes of transportation displayed in the film. People of all classes traveled extensive distances in Medieval times. In Medieval times, people traveled mainly by foot, ship, horse, or carriage among many other modes of transportation. Horses were much smaller in Medieval times than they are now.

• Methods of travel as designated by class:
• If you were in the upper class, you may travel by:
• Horseback
• Covered wagon
• Ship
• Powered by sails or oars
• If you were in the middle or lower classes, you may travel by:
• Horseback
• By foot
• Ship
• Powered by sails or oars
• Knarrs
• Used early in Medieval times to transport cargo
• This ship type was featured in "Tristan and Isolde"
• Trade-Cogs
• Had one mast, steep sides, and a flat bottom
• Used for military transportation and as warships
• The Hulks
• Flat-bottomed
• Lacked stern and sternposts
• Used mostly in rivers and canals, not oceans
• Caravels
• Used in late Medieval times
• Used for exploration voyages
• Used lateen sails for greater speed and the ability to sail toward the wind
• Christopher Columbus' ships the Nina and Pinta are examples
• Carracks
• Used in late Medieval times
• Larger than Caravels
• Christopher Columbus' ship the Santa Maria was an example 
• Galley ships
• Used in early Medieval times
• Used for trade, welfare, and piracy
• Propelled by rowing 
• Longships
• Made famous by the Vikings
• Used for transportation, trade, and commerce, and welfare
• Were light and therefore very fast
• These ships were double ended, allowing them to change they course very quickly

"Tristan and Isolde" Film

In the beginning of the film, the relationship between Tristan and Isolde honors the chivalric code, but at the conclusion of the film, their relationship does not honor the chivalric code. Below is evidence of how Tristan and Isolde conformed to and broke the chivalric code:

• Evidence of conforming to the chivalric code:
• At the beginning of the film, Tristan respects the marriage commitment of Isolde to the king by leaving their sexual relationship in the past
• Tristan completes a quest to win Isolde's love for Tristan's king
• Evidence of breaking the chivalric code:
• Once Isolde joins Tristan and Tristan's King at their home, Tristan and Isolde eventually cannot contain their desire for one another and return to maintaining a physical relationship, which breaks the chivalric code

I believe the film depicts Tristan and Isolde's relationship in a sympathetic light because King Mark and Tristan have a father an son relationship that makes their secret love triangle very complex and sad. The scene where Tristan and Isolde are caught in the garden is very similar to the scene in Marie de France's "Equitan"where the two lovers are caught bathing. 

Also, I believe the film depicts King Mark's predicament with Tristan and Isolde's love because Mark loves both Tristan and Isolde. His relatively calm response to the discovery of the affair is very "Hollywood" and much less dramatic than would have actually occurred in Medieval times. Had the events in this movie actually taken place in Medieval times, both Tristan and Isolde would potentially face death or extradition from their homeland. 

Chevrefoil by Marie de France

The love between Sir Tristram and the Queen in Chevrefoil is likened to the relationship between a honeysuckle vine and a hazel tree. If you try to remove the honeysuckle vine from the hazel tree, they both die. So when the King banished Sir Tristram from his kingdom, both Sir Tristram and the Queen felt like they had died inside without their mutual love. 

Sir Tristram could not stay away from the Queen and decided to return to Cornwall and see the Queen secretly. Sir Tristram hears about the King's sport day the King is hosting at his castle with the Queen. 

Tristram decides he must see the Queen so he hides along a frequently traveled grove path and carves a staff to attract the Queen's attention as she passes. Sir Tristram's plan works and the Queen dismounts her horse to observe the carved staff. The Queen steps off the path and finds Tristram and is overcome with excitement. The Queen advises Tristram on how to make peace with the King and leaves Tristram weeping. Tristram wrote a lai about his events with the Queen so he would not forget them and called the lai "Goatleaf". 

Chaitivel by Marie de France

(With so many men fawning over one woman, I couldn't help but draw similarities between this lai and ABC's "The Bachelorette".)

This lai is about a fine, beautiful lady who was loved by every knight who looked upon her. Four young, nameless, handsome barons fell in love with the lady and all fought for her love. In the time period this lai was set in, women were supposed to be gracious and thankful for the love comments given by any man, regardless of how they really felt about the circumstances. With that being said, the lady truly loved these four men and could not turn away the love of three knights for the love of one knight. 

A tournament was held in the lady's town to get to know these four nameless knights and attracted the attention of knights far and wide who came to participate in the festivities. In the heat of the tournament, the four knights were under attack and were knocked off their horses. Following the tournament, the four knights instigated an isolated fight, killing three of the lady's lovers and castrating the fourth lover. The lady is devastated by the deaths of her three lovers and has their bodies richly dressed and buried in an elaborate monastery. The lady has the fourth wounded knight brought to her castle for rehabilitation and she visits him often. To commemorate her love and "death" of her love of the four knights, the lady writes a lai which she calls "The Four Mournings", but the fourth knight asks the lady to call the lai "Chaitivel--The Wraith".

The fourth knight feels he is at the losing end of a horrible joke because after surviving his fight for the lady's love, he is unable to enjoy his victory due to his castration. The fourth knight claims he would rather be dead than be tortured by the love of his lover. The knight is caught in a horrible catch 22 situation, so he asks his lover to change the lai's name to Chaitivel, which she does in the fourth knight's honor. 

Laustic by Marie de France

Laustic is a tale about a love triangle involving two knights, one married and one a bachelor, living in neighboring castles. The bachelor knight, who was known for his partying ways, shared a secret affair with the wife of the married knight. Due to the danger associated with the affair, the bachelor knight and the wife were never physically intimate, but spoke to each other frequently from their castle windows. The married knight was very protective of his wife and their marriage, so when he left town, he ensured that his wife was guarded. A critical component of the affair between the bachelor knight and the wife was their nightly summertime ritual of watching each other from their castles and taking in the song of the nightingale as the married night slumbered. 

The married knight asked his wife why she did not sleep at night and his wife tells the knight she stays awake to listen to the song of the laustic (nightingale). The married knight is angered that the laustic does not allow his wife to sleep at night, so he decides to trap the laustic out of bitterness and jealousy. The married knight has his castle booby trapped and eventually captures the laustic. The married knight kills the laustic despite his wife's cries for the bird's freedom. 

The married knight throw's the laustic's body at his wife and gets blood on her chemise. With the wife's scapegoat for staying awake late at night, dead, the wife knows she cannot lie awake at night and secretly stare at her lover. The wife worries her lover will doubt her faith, so she has her servant send the laustic's body to the bachelor knight. The bachelor knight has a smith craft a vessel (reliquary) to hold the body of the laustic, which he carries with him at all times to commemorate his love for the wife.