Monday, November 5, 2007

Erþe toc of erþe

Here is just an amazing Middle English poem I had to put up. Copied in c. 1307, dating assuredly from earlier, I'm writing on its resonance with Heidegger and repetition--I'll post that too once I'm done with it.

Erþe toc of erþe erþe wyþ woh,
Erþe oþer erþe to þe erþe droh,
Erþe leyde erþe in erþene þroh,
Þo heude erþe of erþe erþe ynoh.

-MS. Harleian

Translation:

Earth took of earth earth with woe,
Earth drew [other?] earth over [to?] the earth,
Earth laid earth in an earthen pit,
Then earth of earth had earth enough.


However, there are many other ways to interpret it, since the poem avoids being clear about its prepositions: "oþer" means both beyond or other as well as over, while "Þo" can mean then or at that time as well as though, however, etc. The use of "þroh" is odd too, and it can mean pretty much anything: it is a pit that is like a tomb but is a pit in the earth not distinct from the earth, like a trough, or a ditch.

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