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1882
Volume 30, Issue 1
  • ISSN: 0890-2917
  • E-ISSN: 2031-0242

Abstract

Abstract

This essay returns to the uses of the in , in order to show the unusual depth of Langland’s engagement with that poem and ’s close association with Isabella of France, Edward II’s much-maligned widow - and in turn to claim that the figure of Meed begins in part as a topical satire on Isabella herself. In this and other ways, Meed epitomizes ‘topicality’. Yet the process of revising (the essay argues) included increasing distance from any one topical meaning. The essay traces the literary and historical reputation of Isabella, and measures that against more immediate evidence of her resolutely pro-French patronage and cultural agenda in the realm of Essex and London to which the poet was probably connected. This context helps explain Langland’s response to the topical , a surprising spur for his own assessments of literary value and his production of a unique selfreflective and philosophical satire.

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2016-01-01
2025-12-06

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