Caxton's Blanchardyn and Eglantine, c. 1489 : from Lord Spencer's unique imperfect copy, completed by the original French and the second English version of 1595

§ 40. Noun Clauses.

(A.) The Subject Clause, which, in Modern English, is introduced by that, turns up very frequently in the shape of an Accusative in connection with an Infinitive. 'It is better a man wysely to be stille, than folysshly to speke,' Charles the Grete, 93/5. See § 30.

(B.) Much more interesting is the difference in the construction of the Object Clause. Compare the following two sentences: 'And God saw the light that it was good' (Genesis, i. 4); 'You see that I am composed' (Dickens, Dombey and Son, iii. 9).

Logically speaking, the two constructions are equivalent; but psychologically, how different is the idea which they represent! In the first case the sentence expresses an abstract result; in the second, the verb see has a concrete object, in which a certain attribute is perceived.

The former way of expression is the older as well as the more intuitive, and it crops up very often in Early English, though the more modern one seems to have crept in at a very early period:—

• ...

  Old English: Ic þœt gehre, þœt þis is hold wëorod, Beowulf, 290; We þœt gehrdon þurh hálige héc, þæt éow dryhten geaf dóm unscyndne, Elene, 364. Cf. 853.

• ...

  Middle English: Gif þu hine iseȝe þet he wulle asottie to þes deofles hond send to his werkes. þet þu hine lettest, Old English Homilies, I. 17; he scal soðfeste men setten him to irefen. and for godes eie libban his lif rightliche and beon on erfeðnesse anred and edmod on stilnesse. and his ofspringe ne iþauie þet hi beon unrightwise

• ...

  (and shall not suffer his offspring to be unrighteous), ibid. I. 115;

  • ...

    'ful wel þu me iseie þauh þu stille were.Hwar ich was and hwat i dude þauh þu me uorbere.'

    —On God Ureisun of ure Lefdi, 105/106;

  • ...

    'He wayned me vpon þis wyse to your wynne halle,for to assay þe surquidre, ȝif hit soth were,þat rennes of þe grete renoun of þe Rounde Table.'

    —Sir Gawayne and the Green Knight, 2457;

  • ...

    '(They) louen more here folye avowis to fulfille hem þan to fulfille goddis hestis.'

    —Wyclif, Unprinted Engl. Works, ed. Matthew, p. 103;

  • ...

    'When the emperowre harde telleAll þat case, how hyt felle,That Saddok was so slayne,Therof was he nothyng fayne.'

    —Guy of Warwick, ed. Zupitza, 1498;

  • ...

    'When he sawe dewke RaynereAnd the constabull Waldynere,How þer men were broght to growndeWyth grete yre yn a stownde,Gye beganne to crye in hye.'

    —ibid. 1967.

    For other instances in the same work, see Zupitza's note to l. 1497.

• ...

  I aske þe ien of alle the men . . . þat þei be pikid oute,—Gesta Romanorum, p. 154; knowist thow not me, what I am?—ibid. 208; he weht to the sheldes where they lay, ibid. 235; and he had grete envie of þis childe þat þe emperour loved him so moche, ibid. 322.

Caxton and Malory are well acquainted with the old use. The following instances are equivalent in their structure to those quoted above:—

Syre, I knowe not your persone, what ye be, nor to whom I speke, Blanchardyn, 183/26; whan sadoyne, that was the same tyme lokyng out at a wyndowe wythin his castell of Cassydonye, and his wyf the fayr Beatryx by hym sawe the two oostes that they wold Ioyne togyder to batayl, he gaf hymselfe gret meruayl, ibid. 193/29; the lady, that was shette wythin, was full sore and wroth for her frende blanchardyn, that he was soo ferre from her, ibid. 197/30; (he) went to the ryuage of the water, and byhelde it that it ranne lyke a quarel out of a crosbowe, Charles the Grete, 157/26; byholde me how I am obedyent to the commaundements of the chyrche, ibid. 238/25; (he) came to the bataille and sawe his knyghtes how they had vaynquysshed the bataylle, Morte Darthur, 171/35; and we here knowe the wel that thou arte syre Launcelot du laake, ibid. 186/38;

and therfor alle the myssayenge that ye myssayed me fordered me in my bataill, and caused me to thynke to shewe and preue my self at the ende what I was,—ibid. 229/35; that shalle cause me that I shall not be knowen, ibid. 258/1; he knewe sir Blamor de ganys that he was a noble knyght, ibid. 303/17; syr Danadan knewe the knyght wel that he was a noble Knyght, ibid. 429/4; but euer sir Dynadan thought he shold knowe hym by his shelde that it shold be sir Tor, ibid. 429/18; he euermore desyred her to wedde her,—ibid. 575/34; anon the good man knewe hym that he was one of the knyȝtes erraunt, ibid. 671/33.

But the real meaning of this old construction seems already drawing to decay in Malory and Caxton; for in many instances that is no longer understood as a conjunction, but as a relative pronoun; consequently the personal pronoun is dropped, and the noun clause becomes an adjective one:—

Whan the kynge herde the prouoste, that soo grete offre made for to haue ageyne blanchardyn, He gaff hym self grete merueylle, Blanchardyn, 91/29; but ouer moche dysplaysed her to see her feyth-full frende Blanchardyn that wolde goo ayen out of the lande, Blanchardyn, 172/14; of that other part, he sawe his only doughter, that denyed and defended hym his comynge in to his cyte, ibid. 184/7; (Alymodes) sawe hym self bannyshed and chassed out of his towne and royalme, and also his doughter that was wedded to his mortayll enmye, ibid. 191/30; the kynge Alymodes, seeng his folke that fled . . . cam and yelded hym self in to the handes of blanchardyn, ibid. 195/16; he sawe his cheff banner ouer thrawen, and hym self enclosed of al sydes, his men that fled, and awayte non other but after the stroke of deth, ibid. 203/17; thenne whan Charlemagne saw his peres that were soo sore moved wyth angre agenste hym, he sayd to theym, Aymon, 485/21; and whan reynawd saw mawgis that dyde so well, he was glad, ibid. 516/19; neuertheles, Rychard beyng on a lytel montayn, and byhelde the hoost of the paynyms came ageynst hym with grete courage, ye may wel ymagyne in what estat his hert was, ibid. 150/29; feragus, beyng euyl contente for hys hors that was dede, took hys swerde for to smyte Rolland, ibid. 222/28.

(C.) Whenever the object noun-clause is at the same time an adjectival one, Caxton uses the old construction. Take for instance this sentence, 'He saw a shield that he knew to be his brother's.' Instead of using our accusative with the infinitive, Caxton says (as we also often do now): 'He saw a shield that he knew was his brother's':—

She commaunded that they sholde goo and arme them self for to resiste ayenst her enmyes at their commyng on lande, whiche she sawe approched alredy right nyghe, Blanchardyn, 56/19; and also for of the grete dysplesure that he had of the quene his wyffe, that suche a sorowe made for her entyerli beloued sone blanchardin whiche she wyste not where he was becom . . . ibid. 112/1; the fayr pucelle and proude in amours myght not seasse nor leue her sorowe ther fore, that she contynually made for her right dere frende blanchardyn; that for the loue of her she trowed that he had other be lost or ded,—ibid. 120/11; the pouere folke of prusse, that is to wyte, the barons and knyghtes that Sadoyne had brought wyth hym were sore dyscomfyted and full of sorowe for thabsence of their maystre, that they sawe was brought prysonner of the paynems, ibid. 171/30; I am he that thou knowe that dyd doo destroye rome your cyte, and slewe the Pope and many other, and bare awaye the relyques that I there founde, Charles the Grete, 52/30; fals creature that thou arte (whome I byseche god confounde), thou wendest to haue made me to muse in thy folyes, ibid. 119/8; and amonge them he sawe his broders sheld syr Lyonel, and many moo that he knewe that were his felawes,—Morte Darthur, 185/7; and so shull ye haue wel rewarded me of all that ye say that my brother and I haue doo for you and for your realme, Melusine, 153/1; and thanne all they that were there byan to sorowe and wepe for the pyte they had of the kyng, And also of the sorow that they sawe the virgyne, his daughter, made so pitously, ibid. 154/22.