A History of English Versification. J. Schipper
other poems.
The simplest modification of this type arises from the resolution of one or two long accented syllables. Examples of resolution of the first arsis are very numerous, cýninga wúldor El. 5, scéaðena þrḗatum Beow. 4, séofon niht swúncon Beow. 517,[72] níðer gewī́teð Beow. 1361. Examples of the resolution of the second arsis are less numerous, as wúldor cýninge El. 291, éllen frémedon Beow. 3, Scýldes éaferan Beow. 19, óft gefrémede Beow. 165; resolution of both in the same hemistich is rare, but is found, as gúmena géogoðe An. 1617, mǽgenes Déniga Beow. 155, gúmum ætgǽdere Beow. 1321.
The chief type is further modified by making the thesis after the first arsis disyllabic (rarely trisyllabic); the formula is then –́××|–×. This modification is frequent, as ríhta gehwýlces El. 910, gṓde gewýrcean Beow. 20, swéordum āswébban An. 72, súnnan ond mṓnan Beow. 94, fṓlce tō frṓfre Beow. 14, wḗox under wólcnum Beow. 8.
Resolution of the arsis may be combined with this disyllabic thesis, as (in the first arsis) wérum on þām wónge An. 22, éotenas ond ýlfe Beow. 112, or (in the second arsis) hā́lig of héofenum An. 89, hélpe gefrémede Beow. 551, or (in both) dúguðe ond géoguðe Beow. 160, hǽleð under héofenum Beow. 52.
The first thesis rarely exceeds two syllables; a thesis of three syllables is occasionally found, as sǽgde se þe cū́ðe Beow. 90, hwī́lum hie gehḗton Beow. 175, and this can be combined with resolution of the first arsis, as swéotulra ond gesȳ́nra An. 565, bítere ond gebólgne Beow. 1431; or with resolution of the second arsis, as ū́tan ymbe ǽðelne An. 873, wī́ge under wǽtere Beow. 1657; or with resolution of both, as réceda under róderum Beow. 310. Examples of thesis of four syllables are (in the first thesis) séalde þām þe hē wólde Beow. 3056, sécge ic þē tō sṓðe Beow. 591. A thesis with five syllables is still less common, as lǣ́ddon hine þā of lýfte Gū. 398, stṓpon þā tō þǣre stṓwe El. 716.
The cases in which the second thesis has two syllables are rare and to some extent doubtful, as wúndor scḗawian Beow. 841 and 3033.[73]
The anacrusis before the type –́×(×)|–́× is also of rare occurrence: examples are swā sǣ́ bebū́geð Beow. 1224, or, with resolution of the first arsis, swā wǽter bebū́geð Beow. 93. Most of the instances occur in the first hemistich; in this position the anacrusis may be polysyllabic (extending sometimes to four syllables), sometimes with resolution of the arsis, or with polysyllabic thesis. Examples: forcṓm æt cámpe An. 1327, gewāt æt wī́ge Beow. 2630; with resolution, ābóden in búrgum An. 78; genéred wið nī́ðe Beow. 828; disyllabic anacrusis ic wæs éndesǣ́ta Beow. 241; with resolution, þǣr wæs hǽleða hléahtor Beow. 612; trisyllabic anacrusis, oððe him Óngenþḗowes Beow. 2475; four-syllable anacrusis, þæt we him þā gū́ðgeatwa Beow. 2637; monosyllabic anacrusis with disyllabic thesis, as in mǣ́gðe gehwǣ́re Beow. 25, āblénded in búrgum An. 78; disyllabic anacrusis with disyllabic thesis, ge æt hā́m ge on hérge Beow. 1249; trisyllabic anacrusis with disyllabic thesis, þū scealt þā fṓre gefḗran An. 216; monosyllabic anacrusis with trisyllabic thesis, gemúnde þā sē gṓda Beow. 759; monosyllabic anacrusis with resolution of first arsis and trisyllabic thesis, ne mágon hie ond ne mṓton An. 1217; with resolution of second arsis, gewā́t him þā tō wároðe Beow. 234; disyllabic anacrusis, ne geféah he þǣre fǣ́hðe Beow. 109; combined with thesis of four syllables, ofslṓh þā æt þǣre sǽcce Beow. 1666.
The sub-type A2 is type A with strengthened thesis (i.e. a thesis with secondary accent) and with alliteration on the first arsis only. This sub-type has several varieties:
(i) A2a, with the first thesis strengthened (–́×̀|–́×); frequent in the second hemistich. The second arsis may be either long or short (–́×̀|–́×, or –́×̀|⏑́×). We denote –́×̀|–́× by A2al and –́×̀|⏑́× by A2ash, or, for brevity, A2l, A2sh. Examples of A2l are, gódspèl ǣ́rest An. 12, wī́sfæ̀st wórdum Beow. 626, hríngnèt bǣ́ron Beow. 1890; with resolution of the first arsis, médusèld bū́an Beow. 3066; with resolution of the second arsis, gā́rsècg hlýnede An. 238, hórdbùrh hǽleða Beow. 467; with resolution of both, fréoðobùrh fǽgere Beow. 522; with resolution of the strengthened thesis, súndwùdu sṓhte Beow. 208; resolution of the first arsis and thesis, mǽgenwùdu múndum Beow. 236; resolution of the first thesis and the second arsis, gū́ðsèaro gúmena Beow. 328.
Examples of A2sh are numerous, as wǣ́rfæ̀st cýning An. 416, gū́ðrìnc mónig Beow. 839, þrḗanȳ̀d þólað Beow. 284; it is exceptional to find the second arsis short when the thesis which precedes has no secondary accent, as Hrḗðel cýning Beow. 2436, Hrúnting náma Beow. 1458, ǽðeling bóren Beow. 2431; with resolution of the first arsis, séaronèt séowað An. 64, snótor cèorl mónig Beow. 909, sígerṑf cyning Beow. 619, mágodrìht micel Beow. 67, &c. Most of the hemistichs which fall under this head have double alliteration.
(ii) A2b, with the second thesis strengthened (–́×|–́×̀). Most of the cases of this type occur in the first hemistich; when they occur in the second hemistich the measure –́×̀ is usually a proper name, not a real compound. Examples: Gréndles gū́ðcræ̀ft Beow. 127, lḗofa Bḗowùlf Beow. 855; with resolution of the first arsis, gámol ond gūðrḕow Beow. 58; with resolution of the second arsis, béorna béaducræ̀ft An. 219; with resolution of both, séfa swā séarogrìm Beow. 595; with resolution of the strengthened thesis, lónd ond lḗodbỳrig Beow. 2472; with resolution of both the second arsis and thesis mǣ́g ond mágoþègn Beow. 408.[74]
This type may still further be varied by a first thesis of two or more syllables, ū́t on þæt ī́glànd An. 15, fólc oððe frḗobùrh Beow. 694, réste hine þā rū́mhèort Beow. 1800; by resolution of the first arsis, glídon ofer gārsècg Beow. 515, of the second, lā́d ofer lágustrḕam An. 423, sýmbel on sélefùl Beow. 620; by resolution of the thesis with secondary accent, éahtodon éorlscìpe Beow. 3173; the anacrusis is rarely found, as gesā́won séledrḕam Beow. 2253, and double alliteration (in the first hemistich) is the rule in this form of type A.
(iii) A2ab, with both theses strengthened –́×̀|–́×̀, bā́nhū̀s blṓdfā̀g An. 1407, gū́ðrìnc góldwlànc Beow. 1882, ǣ́nlī̀c ánsȳ̀n Beow. 251; with resolution of first arsis, wlítesḕon wrǽtlī̀c Beow. 1651, and of the second arsis, glḗawmṑd góde lḕof An. 1581, gū̀ðswèord géatolī̀c Beow. 2155, and of both first and second arsis, héorowèarh hételī̀c Beow. 1268; with resolution of the first (strengthened) thesis, nȳ́dwràcu nī́ðgrìm Beow. 193; with resolution of both the first arsis and the first thesis, býrelàde brȳ́d gèong Gū. 842; with resolution of the second strengthened thesis, égeslī̀c éorðdràca Beow. 2826; with resolution of the first and second thesis, fýrdsèaru fūslìcu Beow. 232. This form of the type has also as a rule double alliteration.
The sub-type A3 is type A with alliteration on the second arsis only and is limited almost entirely to the first hemistich. A strengthened thesis occurs only after the second arsis; this sub-type might therefore be designated A3b.
Verses falling under this head, with their alliteration always on the last syllable but one, or (in the case of resolution) on the last syllable but two, are distinguished by the frequent occurrence of polysyllabic theses extending to five syllables, in marked contrast to types A1 and