The vision of William concerning Piers the Plowman, together with Vita de Dowel, Dobet, et Dobest, secundum Wit et Resoun, by William Langland (about 1362-1393 A. D.)

                                
                                  And [not] to rewle as reremys · and rest on þe daies,
                                
                                  And spende of þe spicerie · more þan it nedid,
                                  Line 273 
                                
                                  Bothe wexe and wyn · in wast all aboute, [aboute; MS. abouȝte.] 
                                
                                  With deyntes y-doublid · and daunsinge to pipis,
                                
                                  In myrthe with moppis · myrrours of synne.
                                  Line 276 
                                
                                  Ȝit fforbede I no burne · to be blithe sum while;
                                
                                  But all thinge hath tyme · ffor to tempre glees: [folio 117] 
                                
                                  ffor caste all þe countis · þat þe kyng holdith,
                                
                                  And loke how þese lordis · loggen hem-self,
                                  Line 280 
                                
                                  And euere shall þou ffynde · as ffer as þou walkiste,
                                
                                  That wisdom and ouere-wacche · wonneth ffer asundre; [That; MS. What, probably by mistake. In the margin is "nota, nota, nota" in the same hand-writing as the text; another hand has added —"Over-watchynge."] 
                                
                                  But whane þe gouernaunce goth þus · with þo þe hous gie shulde,
                                
                                  And letith lyghte of þe lawe · and lesse of þe peple, [Cf. And let lyght of þe lawe · and lasse of þe knyght; C. 9. 165.] 
                                
                                  And herkeneth all to honour · and to ese eke,
                                  Line 285 
                                
                                  And þat ich wyght with his witte · waite on him euere,
                                
                                  To do hem reuerence aright · þouȝ þe rigge brest,
                                
                                  Þis warmnesse in welth · with wy vppon erthe [wy; glossed by man; cor|rectly. So also in l. 297.] 
                                  Line 288 
                                
                                  Myȝte not longe dure · as doctourz us tellith.
                                
                                  ffor ho so þus leued · his lyff to the ende, [leued; MS. leued, altered to lyved.] 
                                
                                  Euere wrappid in welle · and with no wo mette,
                                
                                  Myȝte seie þat he sawe · þat seie was neuere,
                                  Line 292 
                                
                                  Þat heuene were vnhonge · out of þe hookis,
                                
                                  And were boun at his bidding · ȝif it be myȝte!
                                
                                  But clerkis kne[w] I non ȝete · þat so coude rede [knew; MS. kne. coude; MS. couude.] 
                                
                                  In bokis y-bounde · þouȝ ȝe brouȝte alle
                                  Line 296 
                                
                                  Þat ony wy welldith · wonnynge vppon erthe;
                                
                                  ffor in well and in woo · þe werld euere turneth,
                                
                                  Ȝit þer is kew-kaw · þouȝ he come late, [In the margin—"kew kaw;" to which substantive he obviously refers.]

Pages

Index

About this Item

Title: The vision of William concerning Piers the Plowman, together with Vita de Dowel, Dobet, et Dobest, secundum Wit et Resoun, by William Langland (about 1362-1393 A. D.)
Author: Langland, William, 1330?-1400?
Canvas: Page 496
Publication: London,: Pub. for the Early English text society, by N. Trübner & co.,; 1867-85.

Technical Details

Collection: Corpus of Middle English Prose and Verse
Link to this Item: https://name.umdl.umich.edu/ajt8124.0001.001
Link to this scan: https://quod.lib.umich.edu/c/cme/ajt8124.0001.001/1334:13

Rights and Permissions

The University of Michigan Library provides access to these materials for educational and research purposes. These materials are in the public domain. If you have questions about the collection, please contact [email protected]. If you have concerns about the inclusion of an item in this collection, please contact [email protected].

DPLA Rights Statement: No Copyright - United States

IIIF

Manifest: https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/api/manifest/cme:ajt8124.0001.001

Cite this Item

Full citation: "The vision of William concerning Piers the Plowman, together with Vita de Dowel, Dobet, et Dobest, secundum Wit et Resoun, by William Langland (about 1362-1393 A. D.)." In the digital collection Corpus of Middle English Prose and Verse. https://name.umdl.umich.edu/ajt8124.0001.001. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed June 13, 2025.

The vision of William concerning Piers the Plowman, together with Vita de Dowel, Dobet, et Dobest, secundum Wit et Resoun, by William Langland (about 1362-1393 A. D.)

Annotations Tools

Actions

About this Item

Technical Details

Rights and Permissions

Related Links

IIIF

Cite this Item