Medieval Lyrics: 1350-1485

"Lyric poetry gets its name from the lyre, a harplike musical instrument used to accompany the singing of verse in the ancient world; it was associated in Greek and Roman culture with the god Apollo, and connected in Jewish and Islamic culture with King David, supposed poet of the Psalms" (315). In the Christian world, lyrics were sung to honor the Virgin Mary, the Christ child, or the Messiah:


I Sing of a Maiden
MS Sloane 2593. c. 1430.

I sing of a maiden

That is makelees:

King of alle kinges

To her sone she chees.

He cam also stille

Ther his moder was

As dewe in Aprille

That falleth on the gras.

He cam also stille

To his modres bowr

As dewe in Aprille

That falleth on the flowr.

He cam also stille

Ther his moder lay

As dewe in Aprille

That falleth on the spray.

Moder and maiden

Was nevere noon but she:

Wel may swich a lady

Godes moder be.

*matchless, mateless; as/chose; as; where/mother;such
(From: http://www.luminarium.org/medlit/lyrics.htm)


The above poem transcribed and published at luminarium.org is one example of the lyric poetry sung by bards during the Middle Ages. It describes, of course, the Madonna and child. Religious themes represented a portion of the lyric poetry that was composed during that time. The editors of our text point out that the lyrics selected for our text "betray a fundamental ambivalence about the passion of love. On the surface level, there would seem to be a clear distinction between the love of one person for another, which is expressed physically, and the love directed toward God, which is expressed spiritually;" however, in the Near Eastern and European worlds of Persia, Spain, and Arabia, erotic, or "courtly" love was believed by some to be the means by which the Holy Spirit might be revealed to the individual. "The poems of Ibn Arabi, Rumi, and Hafez," the editors remark "evoke this mediating quality possessed by the 'beloved' or the 'freind,' an object of love that can equally be read as a human being adored by the poet or as the transcendent presence of God becoming fully immanent in this world" (315-6). The text also raises an opposition in terms of 'courtly love' as the means through which one gazes the divine through the adoration of a lover. Orpheus, the musician of Greek myth, commits a tragic mistake (according to the poet Boethius), but turning his eyes from the nobler good to rest on his beloved Eurydice (315). Conversely, Dante's Beatrice is the beacon by whom Dante is led to Christ (316).  

Boethius (480-524):

Ancius Malius Severinus Boethius was a sixth-century Roman poet and philosopher who became a senator and political consul, but 'fell into disfavor' and was imprisoned by the Roman government. While in prison, he penned his famous Consolation of Philosophy. His work was favored by two English monarchs whose reigns were separated by nearly 500 years: Alfred the Great, who reigned in the 9th century, and Queen Elizabeth I, who reigned during the 16th century. In the selection from our text, the poet aligns himself with Orpheus, when he realizes that he must return his focus to loftier concerns than earthly love (317). 

"Lady Philosophy leads Boethius towards his enlightenment" (echoesfromthegnosis.blogspot.com)