Inordinate Love- 15th Century poem

Subject: Inordinate Love- 15th Century poem
From: Paul Burke
Date: 05 Aug 05 - 06:57 AM

I've modernised the spelling a bit.

I shall say what inordinate love is:
The furiosity and frenzy of mind,
An inextinguishable burning lacking bliss,
A great hunger, insatiable to find,
A dulcet ill, an evil sweetness blind,
A right wonderful, sugared, sweet error,
Labour without rest, contrary to kind,
And without peace to have great labour.

Subject: RE: Inordinate Love- 15th Century poem
From: Le Scaramouche
Date: 05 Aug 05 - 07:03 AM

Who wrote it?

Subject: RE: Inordinate Love- 15th Century poem
From: Paul Burke
Date: 05 Aug 05 - 08:50 AM

Anon. From R.T. Davies, 'Mediaeval English Lyrics"

Originally a Latin poem:

Dicam quid sit amor:
Amor est insania mentis
Ardor inextinctus, insaciata fames,
Dulce malum, mala dulcedo,dulcissimus error,
Absque labor quies, absque quiete labor.

Apparently there's a distinction between lawful and inordinate, or intemperate, love.

I wish I could stick to the lawful sort.

Subject: RE: Inordinate Love- 15th Century poem
From: CapriUni
Date: 06 Aug 05 - 02:29 AM

That Anon. was sure prolific! And good!

I suspect, Mr. Burke, that in order to get to lawful love, you have to go through inordinate love first...

You must go through the tangled forest in order to emerge from the tangled forest!

Subject: RE: Inordinate Love- 15th Century poem
From: GUEST,tim cook
Date: 14 Jan 11 - 06:11 AM

i think my mum is well fit

Subject: RE: Inordinate Love- 15th Century poem
From: Joe_F
Date: 14 Jan 11 - 09:03 PM

Probably "kind" there means nature.