Poems and Vocab for "Ivanhoe" and "Wulf the Saxon"

A Reconnoitre* of the Battle of Hastings (from Wulf the Saxon)

By Tova Biesinger

The Armies clash! Infantry left,

Infantry Right

But, on the right, also--

Horses! Bows!   

(the 1st War-time that someone used those.)

The left had been marching with much celerity*

To get to this place where they had to be.

The left is the Saxons, Normans the right.

Both fighting for England, and boy! What a fight!

The Saxon-ese sheild wall, old but effective,

Kept back the Normans, 'n' their horses defective.

At last the left flank of the Norman troops -weak-

Fled from the battle, of cowardice reaked.

The fall of the saxons comes from their next action-

For they broke their lines, though only a fraction.

Then someone called out that William had fallen

But he got back up, and wow! he was callin'

"Get back to the fight, dogs! England is ours!

"All cowards deserve to by put behind bars!"

The flank then returned, and stayed to the finish.

The Saxons (without king) began to diminish.

Broken line- left.

Victory- right.

The bells are chiming.

England has died.

Chivalry (Ivanhoe)

By Tova Biesinger

The ladies! and horses! Men in shining plates!

Swords are crashing! Knights are clashing! 

Some with schismed* pates.*

Yes, knights are full of glory! 

And covered all with armor.

They have codes and laws with them

For love of their honor.

A knight must be largesse*

Lack not dexterity*

Large surfeit* of doughtity*

And jocularity*

Must mitigate* rapacity*, 

Make orisons* evanescent*,

Forgive every vituperate*,

And stop virulent* peasants.

Some caitiff* knights might gormandize*,

Lock good men in the gyves*

They erroneously* profligate,*

The worst of them that lives.

And captious* men find foibles*

In these knights of mine.

But they're just licentious*,

And chary* of the times.

I would make outrecuidence*

That they're an anchorite*

Than say these knights are gimcrack*,

Or that they are benight*.

Even roguish outlaws-

In forests dark and green-

Give honor to their captives,

And split their profits e'en:

1 part for fam of fallen,

A tithe is set apart,

A section for the tax'd poor, too,

Then for the robber's heart.

(this part is also from "Wulf)

The theives have their own hostges

But so do noble knights.

It's fine to take some prisoners.

Be sure to treat them right,

Or else two daring page boys-

Former of your foe-

Will run to tell your overlord

That you had done 'no-no'!

This things is interesting-

This honor all hold dear-

Of knights and thieves and poor alike

For it they persevere.

They have their accepted rules-

They have their own laws,

They have their own little quirks

To gain or lose applause.

*Vocab

From "Ivanhoe" and "Wulf"; compiled by Tova Biesinger

reconnoitre=military observation
celerity= quickness of numbers (ie of an army)
schism= split
pate=head
largesse= public generosity of giving presents/money
dexterity=skill
sufeit=surplus/excessive amount of something.
doughtity=bravery
jocularity= playfulness/humor
mitigate= make less severe/less painful
rapacity=agressive greed
orisons= prayers
evanescant= quickly disappearing
vituperate=insult
virulent= extremely harmlful in its effects/hostile
caitiff= contemptable/cowardly person
gormandize= eat good food
gyves= shackle
erroneously=wrongly
profligate= recklessly extravagant
captious=tending to find fault/find petty errors
foibles=minor weakness.
licentious=disregarding accepted conventions
chary= cautious/suspiciously reluctant
outrecuidance=presumption
anchorite=religious recluse (ie. a lone monk)
gimcrack=showy, but cheap
benight= a state of pitiful/contemptable/intellectual/moral ignorance.