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Gnoman posted:Dyes and colors were a big thing in Ye Olden Times, because dying was expensive. I just find the focus on this one interesting because (as far as I can tell) it was one of the cheaper ones. Yes, but is it tights? (Sorry, I mean "hose.") Ah, I love this book. Still one of my favorites after...nearly a quarter-century. drat, I'm old. I love his prose; nice and flowing, but not too flowery. Could never get into reading Shakespeare. After I read this, I always find myself talking (or at least thinking) in this style. (Verily.) And the food. Pyle can make anything seem delicious.
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Aug 3, 2020 04:07
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Woke up with this in my head: We're men We're men in hose We roam around the forest shooting our bows We're men We're men in hose We rob from the rich and give to the poor, who knows We may look like sissies, But watch what you say, or else we'll rip off your nose We're men We're men in hose Always on guard, defending the rights of shmoes Apologies to...whoever. Back on topic: I like the setting, too. We're vaguely aware of inequalities and injustices done in the background, but in this part of Merrie England (or rather, Fancy England), the sun is shining and great adventures are at hand. Mark Twain posted:The boys dressed themselves, hid their accoutrements, and went off grieving that there were no outlaws any more, and wondering what modern civilization could claim to have done to compensate for their loss. They said they would rather be outlaws a year in Sherwood Forest than President of the United States forever. I didn't realize that Tom Sawyer and his friends were quoting a contemporary book in their play.
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Aug 3, 2020 21:29
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Dareon posted:The evolution of language is a pet subject of mine, and reading through this it's interesting to note things like "an" and "gin" which have all fallen under the umbrella of "if" these days. "Lusty" and "humming" are also adjectives that no longer apply to the subjects they're attached to. Well, lusty can be attached to a man, but not in the sense that is meant here, and I honestly have no idea what is meant by humming ale. I always thought that it was an ale that made your head hum; a reference to the glow of mild inebriation. Reading up on medieval brewing, I found out something else interesting. Ales (from barley) were made regularly and had to be served within a few days, or they'd go bad; beer (barley with hops) lasted longer. "In 1333--34, the household of Elizabeth de Burgh, Lady of Clare, brewed about 8 quarters of barley and dredge each week, each quarter yielding about 60 gallons of ale. Brewing varied by the season of the year, with vast amounts produced in December (when more than 3,500 gallons were brewed) and quite restricted production in February (only 810 gallons). The members of the Clare household drank strong ale throughout the year, imbibing with particular gusto during the celebrations of Christmas and the New Year. " I wish "lustily" was still used in that context; the closest you get is a "lust for life."
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Aug 8, 2020 01:22
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:
I think it adds to the setting; noblebright Merrie England, where humming ale, good cheese, and fresh baked bread are always available, the lasses are fair, the men are stout, everyone has a tune on their lips to sing for each other, and a good fair fight leads to lifelong friendship. Brian Jacques totally read Pyle too. Also, "Now stand thou back thine own self," is a GREAT line, and I will find a way to use it in some RPG.
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Aug 10, 2020 21:07
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What exactly does Little John do in the Sheriff's service? Since the historical Sheriff was an extortionate jerk, I'd think any principled man would avoid working for him; let alone one who's supposed to be on the other side. And what was Robin's response? Did Little John run into some of his old colleagues at the blue Boar and they go "Man, WTF?" Also, why did the Sheriff follow Robin Hood into Sherwood Forest alone, carrying a lot of money? Even if he was greedy enough to go into his enemies' territory, I'd think he'd have brought an escort. (Not that it would have done him much good.)
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Aug 11, 2020 22:32
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:
quote:The Steward is a wimpy little bureaucrat who keeps good men from their breakfast -- the worst sin. quote:Sack, Malmsey, and Canary were wines from the Canary Islands; they don't start being imported to Europe until the 1500's or so from what I can tell. "Sack" specifically is fortified wine, like modern sherry -- think Amontillado, or Courvoisier. quote:"Capons" are castrated male chickens specifically fattened for eating: quote:The venison "pasty" is a meat pie. Americans don't really eat meat pies any more, except for the Chicken Pot Pie, but here's a recipe for a venison pasty (that's "paaah-sty" with a long a). My mother makes awesome chicken pasties/turnovers/pies, although her crust is more biscuit than pastry. I should make those. For someone who claims to hate Robin Hood, the Sheriff keeps going into Sherwood Forest alone quite often.
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Aug 12, 2020 17:18
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anilEhilated posted:Well, he likes hunting and hawking. Also, he's not exactly smart which really isn't a surprise for a character that exists just so he can be pranked by the Merry Men. I wonder if that's why the Errol Flynn movie shoves the Sheriff into the background and gives all the (competent) sneering evil to Basil Rathbone's Guy of Gisbourne.
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Aug 13, 2020 02:24
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Robin Hood and Little John walking through the forest Scooping up the field mice and bopping them on the head Was Will Gamwell/Scarlett walking along wearing fine clothing, or was he dressed like this all the time?  Robin is wearing Lincoln green, there.
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Aug 14, 2020 03:58
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Well, I know what I'm having for lunch.
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Aug 14, 2020 17:17
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:Robin defending London from Turkish giants This I must know more about.
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Aug 16, 2020 02:21
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It is sort of odd that he was peacefully eating lunch, while armed an armored. Then again, this setting has established there are a number of thieves who love to pick on clergymen... I wonder if a more "historical" Robin Hood would make him a Knight Templar (or other martial order), since the Crusades come up. And a reason for why he's alone (hardly living the eremitic life, though).
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Aug 17, 2020 19:57
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Ah, my favorite arc.quote:SO PASSED the gentle springtime away in budding beauty; its silver showers and sunshine, its green meadows and its flowers. So, likewise, passed the summer with its yellow sunlight, its quivering heat and deep, bosky foliage, its long twilights and its mellow nights, through which the frogs croaked and fairy folk were said to be out on the hillsides. All this had passed and the time of fall had come, bringing with it its own pleasures and joyousness; for now, when the harvest was gathered home, merry bands of gleaners roamed the country about, singing along the roads in the daytime, and sleeping beneath the hedgerows and the hay-ricks at night. Now the hips burned red in the tangled thickets and the hews waxed black in the hedgerows, the stubble lay all crisp and naked to the sky, and the green leaves were fast turning russet and brown. Also, at this merry season, good things of the year are gathered in in great store. Brown ale lies ripening in the cellar, hams and bacon hang in the smoke-shed, and crabs are stowed away in the straw for roasting in the wintertime, when the north wind piles the snow in drifts around the gables and the fire crackles warm upon the hearth. One of my favorite passages from any book. Thought about getting it done in calligraphy for wall hanging, but they charge by the line and it's a bit long. quote:For in truth hope, be it never so faint, bringeth a gleam into darkness, like a little rushlight that costeth but a groat. Another great line. Was their reference (here and elsewhere) to "fat priests" a common attitude at the time? Since the Church was on its way (or arriving) at being the largest landowner in England by this time, and monks had strayed somewhat from their eremitic roots. The Little John joke does seem familiar, but I have no idea where else I've seen it, or what type of joke it is.
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Aug 23, 2020 16:04
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I know there were bans on crossbows (at least in warfare; don't know if people carried them around normally), but were there any restrictions of longbows?
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Sep 2, 2020 23:19
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I've read the whole book multiple times, but I've been going through and re-reading parts.
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Sep 7, 2020 03:45
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quote:Nought was left but a little pool of gravy in the center of the platter, not large enow to keep the life in a starving mouse. This whole arc, with the Queen, the archery match, and the escape, always seemed out of place to me. Maybe it's because the tone is different?
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Sep 27, 2020 08:23
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:Oh, oh, oh, I’ve been there. You go back, and you’re there, but no one else is there, and it’s not the same, and neither are you any more, and you can’t ever go back again, not really. There should be a German word for that;going back to a once-familiar place and wondering if it's changed or you have. Fortunately, good books are still enjoyable regardless of the time passed. This was always one of my favorite books, and I appreciate it even more now. I wish all BotM discussions were this interesting. Thank you for your work; should we meet, I owe you a good stout ale. Grenrow posted:
As much as I like the grand throwdown at the end of the Errol Flynn movie (or the one in Ivanhoe), this is much more in tone with the rest of the book. Especially for a Quaker. quote:I wonder whether any of those men were at Crecy or Poitiers with the Black Prince, and whether, upon coming back to England, they found that "where once was the bustle of many busy fellows was now the quietness of solitude" ? "Killing was our business, and business is...slow." Another way the war comes home.
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Jan 28, 2021 06:38
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For dinner: Fresh chicken pasties and a good humming ale. Here's to your healths, and may all stout-hearted men and women be of good cheer, wherever you be.
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Feb 5, 2021 22:14
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