Latinate-based Origins in English Medieval Metaphor

Abstract

An argument we shall pursue here is that literary texts in the past can demonstrate how each period of history networks its metaphor heritage to preceding time zones. Poetry or narrative expressed through the medium of metaphor draws on other contemporary or preceding works of literature. The metaphors of love we have seen in Chaucer are a clear example of drawing on contemporary sources which have, in turn, drawn on other sources at an earlier period. Of course, Chaucer was not the first author to convey courtly ideals in England. They were sung and talked about by troubadours in many different European countries, such as Spain, Portugal, Germany and Italy, as well as in England from the twelfth century on (de Rougemont, 1972: 78). Chaucer was, however, one of the main poets in Middle English and represents a major landmark in the history of English. He is therefore an important starting-point in researching into the sources of medieval English metaphor. We also have considerable knowledge of his contacts at the time and it is possible to trace back his ideas and forms of language to other sources: thus we shall trace the metaphors chronologically to their sources around Europe.