And there's that lovely guildhall you took me to, built in Chaucer's
lifetime, and claimed to be the site of a Shakespeare production when
the bard et al were out of London for the duration of a bout of
plague. Hard to imagine all this not influencing the imaginations of
growing girls and boys, whether positively or as a focus for
resentment. Hell, the crenellations of the apartment house I grew up
in plugged right into Ivanhoe and such for us kids, a decidedly
ambiguous landscape for a bunch of postwar jews.
Mark
At 04:24 PM 2/22/2006, you wrote:
> > Chaucer's wife was not John of Gaunt's daughter, David, but his eventual
> > sister-in-law.
>
>I think you're right, Joanna, tired somewhat after a long hard busy day
>here. To be really correct one should say it is +believed+ (and usually
>accepted) that Chaucer married in St Mary de Castro.
>
>As for Chaucer being in Leicester: more probably to do with Leicester being
>important in Gaunt's power network (there's a little, VERY little Leics
>village called simply 'John o'Gaunt'). Leicester, like Norwich, was a much
>more important town in the mediaeval economy than in the present day.
>
>Best
>
>Dave
>
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "Joanna Boulter" <[log in to unmask]>
>To: <[log in to unmask]>
>Sent: Wednesday, February 22, 2006 9:08 PM
>Subject: Re: A Berkeley Reading - Geraldine Monk & A Halsey
>
>
> > Chaucer's wife was not John of Gaunt's daughter, David, but his eventual
> > sister-in-law.
> >
> > What on earth was he doing in Leicester, apart from getting married?
> >
> > best joanna
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "David Bircumshaw" <[log in to unmask]>
> > To: <[log in to unmask]>
> > Sent: Wednesday, February 22, 2006 8:48 PM
> > Subject: Re: A Berkeley Reading - Geraldine Monk & A Halsey
> >
> >
> > > Stephen
> > >
> > >> This transparency and dialog between past and present I find quite
>rich -
> > >> perhaps influenced but different than the Olson take.
> > >
> > > I doubt if Olson is a particular influence. It's hard not to notice the
> > > past
> > > here: from where I sit now, in a not especially historical provincial
> > > English city, Richard tthe IIIrd's bones lie buried unmarked within a
> > > quarter-mile's walk, while Chaucer was married to a daughter of John of
> > > Gaunt in the local church. And the forbiding faced social housing tower
> > > block I live is named after a mediaeval baron.
> > >
> > >>Maybe because English
> > >> history is so much longer and with more depth than chez here - these
> > >> folks
> > >> (tho their English neighbors might ignore their works) are genuinely
> > > infused
> > >
> > > I'm lost among the pronouns here.
> > >
> > > Yes, btw, Geraldine +does+ read exceedingly well.
> > >
> > > Best
> > >
> > > Dave
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > ----- Original Message -----
> > > From: "Stephen Vincent" <[log in to unmask]>
> > > To: <[log in to unmask]>
> > > Sent: Wednesday, February 22, 2006 7:53 PM
> > > Subject: A Berkeley Reading - Geraldine Monk & A Halsey
> > >
> > >
> > >> Geraldine Halsey and Alan Halsey's reading last at Moe's Bookstore in
> > >> Berkeley (CA) did not disappoint. Geraldine has a great
> > >> reading voice - particularly in reviving the body & voice behind the
> > >> Ghost
> > >> of Mary Queen of Scots (imprisoned in Escafeld/Sheffield for 14 years -
>a
> > >> fact apparently ignored these days by the locals). Geraldine really
> > > 'rolls'
> > >> with it with lots of curious, inflected surprises along the way.
> > >> Alan is equally, but different, in his historical 'made present
> > >> 'investigations, including a rather wonderful account of Guttenberg's
> > > ghost,
> > >> the printed book confronting the digital virtal mode - using Google to
> > >> search, and an automatic translation device to get at G's history,
>mostly
> > > in
> > >> German. Guttenberg's original name apparently translates into English
>as
> > >> "Goose Flesh", and Guttenberg translates into "Good Mountain." Alan
> > > combines
> > >> a wonderful sense of serious, research, intellection and imaginative
> > > passion
> > >> to make the work quite present, compelling.
> > >> This transparency and dialog between past and present I find quite
>rich -
> > >> perhaps influenced but different than the Olson take. Maybe because
> > > English
> > >> history is so much longer and with more depth than chez here - these
> > >> folks
> > >> (tho their English neighbors might ignore their works) are genuinely
> > > infused
> > >> - tho not at all oblivious to contemporary ironies, borderline flarfy
> > >> (Blair, Google et al).
> > >>
> > >> - SPD carries their West House Books imprint - quite beautifully
> > > produced.
> > >>
> > >> They will be coming to NY/St. Marks sometime soon
> > >>
> > >> Stephen Vincent
> > >> http://stephenvincent.net/blog/
> > >
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