For the sources of the Tale of Melibeus, see vol. iii. p. 426. It may
suffice to say here that Chaucer's Tale is translated from the French
version entitled _Le Livre de Mellibee et Prudence_, ascribed by M. Paul
Meyer to Jean de Meung. Of this text there are two MS. copies in the
British Museum, viz. MS. Reg. 19 C. vii. and MS. Reg. 19 C. xi, both of the
fifteenth century; the former is said by Mr. T. Wright to be the more
correct. It is also printed, as forming part of _Le Menagier de Paris_, the
author of which embodied it in his book, written about 1393; the title of
the printed book being--'Le Menagier de Paris; publié pour la première fois
par la Société des Bibliophiles François; a Paris M.D. CCC. XLVI'; (tome i.
p. 186); ed. J. Pichon. In the following notes, this is alluded to as _the
French text_.
This French version was, in its turn, translated from the _Liber
Consolationis et Consilii_ of Albertano of Brescia, excellently edited for
the Chaucer Society in 1873 by Thor Sundby, with the title 'Albertani
Brixiensis Liber Consolationis et Consilii.' This is alluded to, in the
following notes, as _the Latin text_. Thor Sundby's edition is most
helpful, as the editor has taken great pains to trace the sources of the
[202] very numerous quotations with which the Tale abounds; and I am thus
enabled to give the references in most cases. I warn the reader that
Albertano's quotations are frequently _inexact_.
Besides this, the Tale of Melibeus has been admirably edited, as a specimen
of English prose, in Mätzner's Altenglische Sprachproben, ii. 375, with
numerous notes, of which I here make considerable use. Owing to the great
care taken by Sundby and Mätzner, the task of explaining the difficulties
in this Tale has been made easy. The more important notes from Mätzner are
marked 'Mr.'
The first line or clause (numbered 2157) ends with the word 'Sophie,' as
shewn by the slanting stroke. The whole Tale is thus divided into clauses,
for the purpose of ready reference, precisely as in the Six-text edition; I
refer to these _clauses_ as if they were _lines_. The 'paragraphs' are the
same as in Tyrwhitt's edition.
2157. _Melibeus._ The meaning of the name is given below (note to l. 2600).
_Prudence._ 'It is from a passage of Cassiodorus, quoted by Albertano in
cap. vi., that he [Albertano] has taken the name of his heroine, if we may
call her so, and the general idea of her character:--"Superauit cuncta
infatigabilis et expedita _prudentia_"; Cass. Variarum lib. ii. epist.
15.'--Sundby.
_Sophie_, i. e. wisdom, [Greek: sophia]. Neither the Latin nor the French
text gives the daughter's name.
2159. _Inwith_, within; a common form in Chaucer; see note to B. 1794.
_Y-shette_, pl. of _y-shet_, shut; as in B. 560.
2160. _Thre_; Lat. text, _tres_; Fr. text, _trois_. Tyrwhitt has _foure_,
as in MSS. Cp. Ln.; yet in l. 2562, he prints 'thin enemies ben three,' and
in l. 2615, he again prints 'thy three enemies.' Again, in l. 2612, it is
explained that these three enemies signify, allegorically, the flesh, the
world, and the devil.
2164. _As ferforth_, as far; as in B. 19, 1099, &c. Mätzner also quotes
from Troilus, ii. 1106--'How ferforth be ye put in loves daunce.'
2165. Mätzner would read--'ever _the_ lenger the more'; but see E. 687, F.
404.