[Bards] Prose Tales

Katherine of Scarborough katofscarborough at yahoo.com
Tue May 1 19:37:13 PDT 2007


On Tuesday, May 1, 2007, at 06:14 PM, Ken Theriot
wrote:

<<Is a clergyman an bard?  I don't think so.>>

Just to be silly and nitpicky, you previously gave
Bede's story of Caedmon as your example of a period
bardic circle.  You've also asked for examples of
"professional bards" performing in prose in such
situations.  But the people involved in the story of
Caedmon weren't professional entertainers or
bards--they were common men, and Caedmon himself
joined the monastery immediately upon being blessed
with his "divine gift" of poetry.  Not to say that
clergymen were bards, no; but prior to that day,
Caedmon was certainly no professional bard, and I'll
wager the others in that setting weren't, either.  One
translation of Bede's story includes the passage:

"The man was established in worldly life until the
time when he was of advanced age, and he had never
learned any songs. And consequently, often at a
drinking gathering, when there was deemed to be
occasion of joy, that they all must in turn sing with
a harp, when he saw the harp nearing him, he then
arose for shame from that feast and went home to his
house."

So basically we've got some folks hanging around in a
pub (or a feast hall, or a house), singing songs. 
This doesn't sound like a formal bardic venue, or
anything too far removed from the alternate definition
of bardic circle as, well... some folks hanging around
in a pub, singing songs and swapping stories.  The
discussion about "professional bards" seems like it
should be a separate idea; the expectations for those
who are court poets, bards or entertainers by trade
would certainly be different.

As far as prose tales that were feasibly performed in
period Western Europe by real bards: I would offer the
Mabinogi.  The earliest written compilation of these
tales is to be found, in prose, in the Red Book of
Hergest and the White Book of Rhydderch, dating to the
14th century.  Previous fragments of the tales also
seem to be written exclusively in prose.  

I don't know of solid written documentation that these
tales were intended for performance, or previously
passed down orally by the Welsh bards (but now I've
got a challenge!)  It does seem like a very logical
conclusion, as they comprise a major part of Welsh
mythology.

-Catrin


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