KEY
ABABCC - Rhyme Scheme & Syllable count is noted before the Rhyme scheme
Higher or lower syllable count
6A Cornelia van der Brugghe
8B One of all trades, adept of none
8A Journeyman level we will not begrudge
8B On the many projects she's spun
8C They are what is done, and done well
12C For her skills fit the Maunche, with talent none can quell
6A A most impressive list
8B and, no doubt, incomplete at that
8A Sews for folk: a true altruist
8B leather and steel: armor and hats
8C Weaving trim, tailors garb and tents
12C Forging, Carving, Chef, and builds targets for events
Their Royal Majesties of the august Kingdom East: Ryouko'jin Demon King of the Three Heavens and Rani Indrakshi in the Year of the Tyger
6A AS Fifty Seven 7
8B The 27th day, so clear
8A At Iberian Reception
8B in this, the 8th month of the year
8C Have today made the Maunche increased
12C In the Barony of Ruantallan, of the East! 13
Argent, a Catherine's wheel sable, a bordure rayonny gules
It's fun.
Roll, roll, roll in ze BLOG!
~Inga, Young Frankenstein
I found New High German. I Rapidly decided that was not the area to pursue as, Syntax and Discourse Factors in Early New High German: Evidence for Verb-Final Word Order had this to say about poetry: “Poetry was not included as it is known frequently to be unrepresentative of the common language, retaining archaic features and employing innovative (ungrammatical to the prose speaker) syntax.”
I went back and reexamined the Minnesang and discovered the Meistersinger.
And fell straight into the same problem I had with the Minnesang, a lack of information about it available in English
From my first laurel scroll, and I have used this same format any time I use this poetry form - used a Sixains or a Stanza of 6 lines with an ABABCC rhyming scheme.
Syllable Count/Rhyme Scheme:
8B
8A
8B
8C
12C
8B One of all trades, adept of none
8A Journeyman level we will not begrudge
The sheer amount of the various arts that the recipient was known to create immediately drew to mind the phrase "Jack of All Trades, Master of none." My first task was researching the origins of the phrase.
Much to my delight, I learned Through the Phrase Finder that it has its origins in 14th century and an example is found in Confessio Amantis; Or, Tales of the Seven Deadly Sins by John Gower
"Therwhile he hath his fulle packe,
They seie, 'A good felawe is Jacke'."
John Gower was a contemporary of Chaucer.
While there is some argument that the term has a derogatory tenor, that is a modern interpretation of the phrase. As far as I found, in that period, it was not used negatively at all. With that in mind I chose to use it. My emphasis was that they were not acknowledged by a mastery or peerage (as far as SCAdians rank the arts) in any one subject but a journeyman level of many. Journeyman level in the medieval sense of someone who can go out and earn a living at a high level of quality and workmanship. That of an excellence worthy of a Maunche in a variety of different arts.
As an aside, when researching the phrase, I discovered a line that quoted Shakespeare and Robert Greene use that begins with “O, Tiger’s heart…” Of which I am most definitely filing that phrase away for future use!
8 C They are what is done, and done well
12C For her skills fit the Maunche, with talent none can quell
6A A most impressive list
8 B and, no doubt, incomplete at that
8A Sews for folk: a true altruist
8B leather and steel: armor and hats
8C Weaving trim, tailors garb and tents
12C Forging, Carving, Chef, and builds targets for eventsNot only did I want to convey the magnitude of the works the recipient accomplished, but the service they embody while doing so. They create for other folks on an individual basis, with sewing and armoring, but events at large by cooking and creating accouterments for events.
It should be noted that I wrote the line, “leather and steel: armor and hats” many, many times and almost deleted it twice before I came up with the right combination of words that suited the narrative, syllable and rhyme scheme that I was looking for. In the end I am glad that I put as much time and effort into it as I did, I think the resulting section flows beautifully.
I ended up putting some of the required information into the scroll separately from the Minnesang rhyme scheme. I used this same technique at the end with the recipient's arms. With these particular Royals and their preferred requirements for their titles, I felt this was the best solution. I may have broken the rhyme and meter , but it fits into the flow of the scroll.
6A AS Fifty Seven 7
8B The 27th day, so clear
8A At Iberian Reception
8B in this, the 8th month of the year
8C Have today made the Maunche increased
12C In the Barony of Ruantallan, of the East! 13
As with many scrolls, I wrote this paragraph very early on in the composition process. The required information of a scroll can be incredibly frustrating in composing period poetry. Conversely it can also serve as excellent practice for diving back into a style that you haven’t addressed in a while. Which is how I used it here.
There were 2 moments in the first line and the last, where I ended up having one extra syllable than required. Since this was the information that I absolutely had to include, I kept them in. And lay my errors bare in this blog for all to observe.
Argent, a Catherine's wheel sable, a bordure rayonny gules
I chose to end the scroll with the recipient's arms written out. I never change the heraldic latin for the sake of a scroll. As I had broken the poetry in the verse above,with other scroll-pertinent information I felt this was a safe place to do so, and it made for a nice little endcap to the scroll.
I definitely enjoyed the little research dive into the “Jack of all trades” phrase. It has given me several other routes to explore for future scrolls.
East Kingdom Gazette: Iberian Reception Court Report
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