Specimens of English literature from the 'Ploughmans crede' to the ...

INTROD UCTION.XXIteenth century. But, setting these Sections aside, the languagecalls for but little explanation. The prose pieces inparticular, such as those in Sections V, VIII, IX, XV, XVI,XVII, XVIII, XXI, XXV, XXVII, areperspicuous enough,and can be understood with but a very sparing use of theglossary. About the end of the fourteenth century, Frenchwords ceased to be introduced into the language in suchnumbers as before, and the question as to which of themshould be accepted and which rejected, was soon more orless settled. Very shortly after this, the introduction ofprinting did very much to Jix the language, and the resulthas been that the language of the fifteenth century differsless from that of the nineteenth than the language of thefourteenth from that of the thirteenth. Hence, the perusalof the pieceshere printed forms an easy introduction to thestudy of English of a stillearlier period.§ lo. Glossarial Index. As to the meanings of the vvords,the Glossarial Index is so copious that little more needhere be added. Further information about many of themmay easily be obtained from such works as Nares' Glossary,or the glossaries to Dr. Morris's edition of Chaucer's•Prologue' and Knightes ' Tale,' my own (smaller) editionof ' Piers the Plowman,' Mr. Kitchin's edition of Spenser's'Faerie Queene,' books i and ii (all in the Clarendon PressSeries). See also Dyce's Shakespeare, Staunton's Shakespeare,Dyce's Skelton, Morris's or Tyrwhitt's Chaucer, &c.for further illustrations.The references in the Glossarial Index may be readilyunderstood. The first figure refers to the Section, and the