Modern Language Notes Volume 18 (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1903 edition. Excerpt: ...designation of time measured from the foregoing limit of the 'forty days, ' inasmuch as the poet is clearly following the record of the beginning of the Acts. He puts appropriate stress upon such details as the date of the gift of the Spirit (Acts n, 1: " And when the day of Pentecost was now come"); the restored number of the disciples, --restored to twelve by the election of Matthias; the deflection of Judas, of which so much is said in the same connection (Acts i, 16 f.); and the great number of souls (sawla unrim) established in the new faith (vid. JDlfric, Horn, i, 316). Moreover, to confirm this interpretation in a striking manner, it will be noticed that the poet, according to his original, Acts i, 26, here names the disciples 'apostolas' (cf. the only other occurrence of this name in the poetry, Men. 122: Petrus and Paulus: hwod, pa apostolas). We must therefore conclude to read the line, according to sense, in this manner: --ixzt he xz- ymb tyn niht Iwelf apostolus. There remains, of course, a defect in the rhythm of the first half-line. This might be corrected by the substitution for tyn of a dissyllabic form such as the Anglian tena; But I prefer to classify the line with 11, 23, 83, 148, 163, and 181 of the Menologium and to correct all in the same manner. The formula for this correction is furnished in Mm. 41, 131, 137, 144,154, and 174. In these lines the rhythm is observed by transposing the adverbial Jhrs to the emphatic position so that it may receive an ictus; for example, 131, emb twa niht Jxes (x 2x1), with which should be compared 37, Domne se halga xes (xxx-x4 and also the following two lines in which the csesura occasions the special stress of e$: Ne M5 anig txes earfoftscelig. ixtt anig eft Jxes earm geweorfte....