8synglure. I.e., “unique.” A and Gor emend to synglere; G to syngulere. I follow the MS reading, since -ure rhymes with -ere in words of French origin, as H notes.back to note source
11fordolked. G emends to fordokked.back to note source
17herte. MS: hert. G also emends for the sake of meter.back to note source
25mot. In the MS only the t is clear. Editors have emended to mot.back to note source
26runne. MS: run̄en (runnen). Editors, except V, emend.back to note source
35spryngande. MS: sprygande. I accord with A, AW, G, and Gor who emend to spryngande; H and V retain MS reading and divide spryg ande.back to note source
46fayr reflayr. AW suggest that word division in the MS is unreliable and that fayrre flayr, the conditional/comparative construction gives a more logical reading. But Cleanness, line 1079, gives “Þer watȝ rose reflayr where rote hatȝ ben ever,” which suggests that the MS reading in Pearl is probably correct. See MED reflair(e) n.back to note source
49spenned. MS: spen̄d (spennd). V reads spenud; AW retain spennd.back to note source
53penned. MS: spen̄ed (spenned). I follow AW and G in emending to penned (“imprisoned”) on the basis of alliteration and the grounds that the poet normally avoids repeating rhymes.back to note source
54fyrce. MS: fyrte. Editors, except H and V, emend. See note to line 675.back to note source
60precios. MS: p9cos (precos). Editors, except V, emend.back to note source
68ryche. MS: rych. G also emends.back to note source
72adubbemente. MS: adubmente. My emendation accords with AW, G, and Gor. A and V emend to adubbement.back to note source
77on slydes. MS: onslydeȝ. My reading agrees with A, AW, and Gor, who read as two separate words, “slide over each other.”back to note source
81gravayl that. G emends to gravayl that I.back to note source
89flowen. MS: floyen, with y changed to w by scribe.back to note source
95gracios. MS: gracos. Editors, except V, emend.back to note source
103feier. G and H emend to feirer.back to note source
106bukes. Editors, except V, have emended as bonkes. The word in the MS is either bukes or bnkes. Although u and n are virtually indistinguishable in the MS, editors have added o to read bonkes, “steep banks.” V argues for a reading of bukes as variant spelling of bek, “small stream.” Streams sparkling as spun gold makes far more sense than river banks sparkling.back to note source
113stonden. AW emend to stoden, “shone.”back to note source
115As. MS: a. Editors, except V, emend.back to note source
119alle. H emends to all.back to note source
122wlonke. MS: wlonk. G also emends.back to note source
131waynes. H reads as “gains”: “the mortal for whom she gains her intent.”back to note source
134I tom. G emends to tom I.back to note source
138over. MS: oþ9 (other). Editors emend to over, except H and V, who retain MS reading.back to note source
142hoped. MS: hope. Editors, except H and V, emend.back to note source
144ay. MS: a. Editors, except H and V, emend.back to note source
154wo. G emends to wothe.back to note source
166schore. Gor emends to shore.back to note source
179astount. MS: atount. I follow AW and G in emending to astount on the basis of alliteration.back to note source
185hoped. MS: hope. Editors, except H and V, emend.back to note source
192precios. MS: p9cos (precos). Editors, except V, emend.back to note source
200yyen. G and Gor emend to ene.back to note source
225tonge. MS: tong. G also emends.back to note source
229pyse. G and Gor emend to pyece; H to pece.back to note source
241quoth. Gor and H render as quod. The manuscript abbreviation for this word gives no indication of present or past tense. I expand throughout to quoth.back to note source
244thee. MS: þe. I have followed METS policy of differentiating the pronoun from the article on grounds that they were probably pronounced differently in the fourteenth century; so too in lines 263, 266, 267, 268, 274, 316, 341, 343, 385, 397, 402, 474, 558, 560, 700, 707, 743, 747, 764, 910, 967, 973, 975, and 1199.back to note source
252jueler. MS: juelere. I have emended so that the spelling corresponds with the other end-words of stanzas in this fitt.back to note source
262nee. G emends to ne.back to note source
nere. MS: here. H and V retain here. I follow A, AW, G, and Gor in emending for logic.back to note source
286broght. MS: broȝ. Editors, except V, emend.back to note source
blysse. MS: blys. G also emends.back to note source
288joyfol. Gor reads ioyful.back to note source
302loves. Most editors emend to leves (“believes”) here and in line 308. I agree with V in retaining MS loueȝ. The dreamer’s love of the visible world is central to the story. As V notes, loves also builds effective word-play with the two uses of leve in the stanza.back to note source
319counsayle. MS: coūsayl (counsayl). G’s emendation, followed by Gor.back to note source
323man. MS: ma. G, H, and V do not emend.back to note source
331gares. G emends to gare.back to note source
335perle. MS: perleȝ. Editors, except H, emend.back to note source
342in wele and wo. MS: & wele & wo. Editors, except V, emend.back to note source
353Stynst. A, AW, G, and Gor emend to stynt. As G notes, the scribe also used a similar form in Cleanness, line 359. V cites H. L. Savage’s review of Gordon’s edition of Pearl (MLN 71 [1956], 127), who argues that stynst is a correct form.back to note source
358And thy. G emends to that alle thy.back to note source
fleme. MS: leme. Along with A, C, and AW, I follow Gor’s emendation to fleme, “banish.” Other editors retain leme, “And through thy losses gently gleam” (H).back to note source
359marre. G emends to marred.back to note source
363rapely I rave. MS: rapely raue. Editors, except V, emend.back to note source
369kythes. MS: lyþeȝ. Following G, editors, except H and V, emend.back to note source
381carpe. MS: carp. G also emends.back to note source
382maneres. MS: marereȝ. G emends to maneres, “manners,” and is followed by A, AW, and Gor. H derives mareres from mare res, “great eloquence”; V retains mareres, “vitality,” as variant spelling of marrow.back to note source
396in. A emends to and.back to note source
399byde. V reads as uyde, “wade.”back to note source
418Hys lef is. For logic there must be a stop, however unusual the mid-line caesura, following is.back to note source
426vyrgyn flour. H emends to vyrgynflor.back to note source
433sayde. MS: syde. Editors, except V, emend.back to note source
441hevens. H emends to hevenes.back to note source
460tryste. MS: tyste. Editors, except V, emend.back to note source
461sawle. MS: sawhe. Editors emend, though V claims that MS indicates correction to sawle.back to note source
469Cortaysé. G emends to cortaysye.back to note source
472Line missing in MS. G supplies, Me thynk thou spekes now ful wronge, and V suggests, To speke of a new note I long.back to note source
479he. MS: ho. Editors, except V, emend.back to note source
480cortaysé. G emends to cortaysye. AW and H read cortayse as a noun, “courteous one.”back to note source
486fyrste. MS: fyrst. G also emends.back to note source
499In sample. G and V join words as insample for ensample, “parable.”back to note source
505thys. G emends to hys.back to note source
510pené on a day. G omits on.back to note source
523resonabele. G emends to resnabele.back to note source
524pay. MS: pray. Editors, except H and V, emend.back to note source
527nw. G emends to new.back to note source
529date of day. MS: day of date. Editors, except V, emend.back to note source
532hem. MS: hen. Editors, except V, emend.back to note source
535yemen. Editors, except V (ye men), write as one word.back to note source
538and. MS: & &. H and V retain and and, “and when.”back to note source
542meyny. G emends to meny.back to note source
543owe. G emends to awe.back to note source
544reprené. G emends to repreny.back to note source
547lowe. G emends to lawe.back to note source
550hade. H emends to had.back to note source
557on. MS: om, with the third minim crossed out.back to note source
558waning. MS: wanig. Editors, except H, emend.back to note source
564aske. MS: ask. G also emends.back to note source
565louyly. G emends to leuyly.back to note source
572called. MS: calle. Editors, except H and V, emend.back to note source
574wore. I follow V’s reading of MS wore as variant of ware, “expend.” Other editors have translated as past of verb “to be,” i.e., “were.”back to note source
586longe. MS: long. G also emends.back to note source
596pertermynable. G, Gor, and H expand the abbreviation to read pretermynable.back to note source
615com. A and H emend to come.back to note source
616fere. MS: lere. G emends to here (“wage”); H and V retain MS lere (“lure, compensation” — usually a term from hunting). My reading accords with A, AW, and Gor, reading fere which carries meanings in Middle English of “company,” or “rank” or “reward.”back to note source
630niyght. G and H read as myght, which makes good sense; niyght is more consistent with the pattern of imagery.back to note source
635hym. A, C, G, and Gor emend to hem. V points out that hym is occasionally used as the plural form in this MS.back to note source
fyrste. MS: fyrst. G also emends.back to note source
645theron com. MS: þer on com. G joins the verbal: ther oncom.back to note source
astyt. MS: as tyt. H and G write as two words; other editors, and myself, as one, “immediately.”back to note source
649out. MS: out out. Editors emend.back to note source
656inne. G emends to in.back to note source
665con not. A emends to con noght.back to note source
672As. MS: at. G retains and emends: At inoscence, is saf by ryghte, “In innocence, is saved by right”; Gor emends to And. My emendation accords with H, C, A, and AW.back to note source
673thus. MS: þ9 þ9 (thus thus). Editors emend.back to note source
675face. As V notes, in MS t and c are often difficult to distinguish. Editors have read face. See also line 672 for editors’ uncertainties over “inoscent[c]e,” and also “fyrce,” line 54, where MS may read “fyrte.”back to note source
678hyghe. MS: hyȝ. G also emends.back to note source
hylle. MS: hylleȝ. Editors emend.back to note source
683stepe. MS: step. G also emends.back to note source
688nieghbor. G emends to neghbor.back to note source
690How kyntly oure Koyntyse hym con aquyle. MS: how kyntly oure con aquyle. Although V retains line as written in MS, most editors agree that there is clearly a scribal error. AW emend: Hym Koyntyse oure con aquyle. A and Gor emend: How Koyntise onoure con aquyle. H emends: How kyntly onore con aquyle. My emendation follows the suggestion by G that the scribe dropped two words, koyntyse hym, from the middle of the line. The source of the passage is Wisdom 10:10: Haec profugum irae fratris iustum deduxit per vias rectas, et ostendit illi regnum Dei (“She [Wisdom] conducted the just, when he fled from his brother’s wrath, through the right ways, and showed him the kingdom of God”).back to note source
698sey. G and Gor emend to syz.back to note source
700For. MS: sor. All editors emend.back to note source
701com. G emends to come.back to note source
702tryed. AW and G emend to cryed, in part to further alliteration and in part to avoid use of two repeating end-words in the same stanza. Yet the stanza is striking for its lack of alliteration; and, as V notes, occasionally end-words are repeated within stanzas, as in the repetition of “clere” in lines 735 and 737. C also follows the MS.back to note source
714touch. Some editors read touth, then emend. But see note to line 675.back to note source
715hym. A, G, and Gor emend to hem. Most editors read hym as legitimate variant spelling for “them,” i.e., the people bringing their children to be healed by Christ’s touch. My reading of syntax and punctuation in this line accords with AW. Other editors translate the line with indirect speech, “asked them to let (Christ) be.”back to note source
739ryghtwys. MS: ryȝ tywys. Editors emend.back to note source
752carpe. A, AW, G, and Gor emend to carped. The use of present tense, retained by H and V, is consistent with the movement from past to present in the stanza as a whole.back to note source
propertes. G emends to propertys.back to note source
768And pyght me. G emends to He pyght me.back to note source
775anunnder. AW, G, and Gor read first letter as o, on-uunder (AW: onuunder). H emends to onunder. My reading accords with A and V.back to note source
778maryag. G emends to maryage.back to note source
785Lambes. Gor emends to lambeȝ.back to note source
786A hondred and forty thowsande flot. G and Gor emend the number to a hondred and forty fowre thowsande for consistency with Revelation 14:1, 3. In lines 869–70 the number of brides is given as 144,000.back to note source
802lande nem. MS: lande men, though l can easily be read as h, as Gor has noted. A, AW, and Gor emend to hande nem, “took hold of.” V leaves as is, translating “as a lamb that the shearers appraise in fields.” My emendation accords with G and H, “takes hold of in the field,” emending minimally for logic and rhyme while preserving alliteration. The prophecy of Christ as a lamb silent before the shearers derives from Isaiah 53:7.back to note source
803query. G emends to quere.back to note source
815lomp. G emends to lomb. As Gor notes, Appendix 2, p. 93, lomp is a legitimate West Midland variant spelling for lomb. The poet uses both spellings in the MS, perhaps to play as well on the metonymy between lamb and light.back to note source
817Most editors add In: In Jerusalem, etc. H and V retain the line as in MS, as do I for metrical reasons.back to note source
825wroghte. MS: wroȝt. G also emends.back to note source
829swete. MS: swatte. Editors, except H and V, emend for rhyme.back to note source
836John. MS: iohn̄. MS abbreviates John variously in the many appearances of the word. V expands, unaccountably, to Johan here and in following appearances. I follow practices of former editors in rendering according to modern usage.back to note source
saw. MS: saytȝ. Editors, except H and V, emend.back to note source
838in seme. G joins inseme, “together.”back to note source
843masklle. G emends to maskelle.back to note source
848nouther. MS: non oþ9 (non other). G emends as nother; V writes as no nother; H retains MS. My emendation accords with A, AW, and Gor.back to note source
856tha. A, AW, C, G, and Gor emend to that. Tha is similarly used in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, line 877, as V notes; it also makes a more musical line.back to note source
861Lombe. MS: lonbe. G reads loumbe.back to note source
865tale. MS: talle. Editors, except AW and V, emend. Tale would be glossed as “story.” Talle might mean “account,” as in “tally.” The catch phrase at the bottom of the previous page reads: “leste les þow leue my tale farā,” which supports the emendation.back to note source
867the. H emends to tha.back to note source
873fro. Gor emends to from.back to note source
874laden. G emends to leden.back to note source
892that1. MS: þay. Editors, except H and V, emend.back to note source
905among. G emends to amonc.back to note source
911blose. Blose is a hapax logomenon. I agree with most editors in translating as “churl.” G emends to wose, “wild man of the woods”; AW emend to bose, “boss” or “a lump of a man”; V reads blose as an alteration of blas, “gust of wind.”back to note source
912vayle. MS: vayl. G also emends.back to note source
918won. G emends to wone.back to note source
932I se. MS: & I se, retained by H and V. Other editors emend.back to note source
934gracious. MS: g9co9 (gracous). Editors, except V, emend.back to note source
935bygynges. Whether the first letter of the word is a b or l is uncertain. G and H read MS: lygynges, “lodgings”; A, AW, and Gor read as lygynges and emend to bygynges, a common Middle English word meaning “a large house.” V argues convincingly that MS reads bygyngeȝ.back to note source
945Lompe. G emends to lombe. As in line 1046, the pun links light and the Lamb that is Christ.back to note source
958flesch. MS: fresth or fresch. Editors, except V, have emended to flesch, “flesh.” V argues for retaining MS fresch, “young bodies,” but the line then becomes a tongue twister.back to note source
977I. Added by editors, except V. G emends to wolde I ther.back to note source
992bauteles. Editors read banteles. Michael Thompson, “Castles,” in Brewer and Gibson, p. 121, argues that banteles should properly be read bauteles and describe small arched machicolations, a tiered feature of castle fortification that would date the poem after 1360. Thompson’s argument also applies to bauteles in Cleanness, lines 1458–59.back to note source
995ilke. MS: ilk. G also emends.back to note source
997John. Supplied by editors.back to note source
998name. G emends to names.back to note source
999fyrste. MS: fyrst. G also emends.back to note source
1004thrydde. MS: thryd. G also emends.back to note source
1007rybé. G emends to sarde, after Revelation.back to note source
1014jacyngh. A, AW, G, and Gor emend to jacynght. I accord with H and V, who note that the scribe dropped final -t before words beginning with th — likely a practice that reflected pronunciation.back to note source
1015tryeste. MS: gentyleste. Along with AW, I follow G’s emendation, which attempts to correct for what G labels an obvious scribal error, repeating gent from the preceding line.back to note source
1017bautels. See note to line 992.back to note source
bent. G emends to brent, “steep.” Other editors have retained and translated as “attached,” but bautels would logically be bent or “curved”; see note to line 992.back to note source
1018Of. Editors, except V, read o. A small f is inserted above the line between o and j. Osgood argued the f is in a later hand, but V notes it is in the same brown ink, a reading with which I concur.back to note source
1026glayre. Egg-white fixative used in manuscript illumination.back to note source
1028perre. A, AW, Gor, and V write perré. I retain as perre for metrical regularity.back to note source
1035poursent. H reads n as u: pourseut, “in succession.”back to note source
1036ryche. MS: rych. G also emends.back to note source
1046selfe. MS: self. G also emends.back to note source
lambe-lyght. Lombe or lambe is unclear in the MS, but looks more like lambe. A and V read lambe; other editors read lombe. G emends to lompe.back to note source
1050syght. MS: lyȝt. With AW, I follow G’s emendation, on the grounds that the poet is unlikely to have repeated the same rhyming word in one stanza. These lines may pun on lamb and lamp.back to note source
1058As. MS: a. Editors, except H and V, emend.back to note source
1063mynster. MS: mynyster. AW, Gor, H, and V also emend.back to note source
1064refet. MS: reget. I accord with A, AW, and Gor in emending to refet, “refresh.”back to note source
1076selfe. MS: self. G also emends.back to note source
1081gret. Gor emends to great.back to note source
1083bayle. MS: baly. G, Gor, and H also emend to bayle. V argues emendation is unnecessary, since y varies with e, but in this case bayle is preferable for rhyme.back to note source
1086freuch. A and AW emend to frech; Gor to frelich.back to note source
1092wer. Gor emends to were.back to note source
1097enpryse. MS: enpresse. I accord with A, G, Gor, and H in emendation for rhyme.back to note source
1104with gret. MS: wtouten. Emendation for logic accords with A, AW, C, G, and Gor. V follows MS.back to note source
1112wedes. G emends to wede.back to note source
1117that. G emends to that ther.back to note source
1125thurgh the urthe. H emends to thurgh urthe.back to note source
1133Hys. G emends to hyse.back to note source
1170brathe. MS appears to have þ written over h, but it is uncertain. G, H, and V write brathe; A, AW, and Gor write braththe. Both spellings were in use in the fourteenth century.back to note source
1179quyke. MS: quykeȝ. Editors emend.back to note source
1185If. MS: īf. Editors emend.back to note source
1186stykes. AW and G emend to strykes, “who come,” i.e., “you who come in a fair crown.”back to note source
1190gyven. MS: geven. I accord with A, G, and Gor in emending for the sake of rhyme.back to note source
1196moghten. A, AW, G, and Gor emend to moghte. I retain MS reading for metrical reasons.back to note source