Abstract
Concerns about the dangers of scriptural interpretation (and misinterpretation) were widespread in Lydgate’s time. Mary Wellesley’s discussion focuses on his Seying of the Nightingale, a dream vision offering dire warnings concerning the misinterpretation and misuse of Scripture, which simultaneously restates the authority of the Latin Vulgate. Building on the well-known ludic and phantasmagorical works of the dream vision tradition and that of nightingale literature, Lydgate presents a complex allegory which takes advantage of readers’ expectations, inviting us to second-guess the text in such a way that the orthodox conclusions which follow are in themselves surprising. In this way, Lydgate’s dream vision becomes a powerful didactic and exegetical vessel, revealing the unwavering divine authority that lies beyond a mundane appreciation of the text.
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Wellesley, M. (2017). Static “Menyng” and Transitory “Melodye” in Lydgate’s Seying of the Nightingale . In: Bintley, M., Locker, M., Symons, V., Wellesley, M. (eds) Stasis in the Medieval West?. The New Middle Ages. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-56199-2_12
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