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Pearls of Wisdom:

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Pearls of Wisdom: Empty Pearls of Wisdom:

Post by RobynduPreez Fri Aug 03, 2018 8:18 am

Pearls of Wisdom:


The poem Pearl by the Gawain Poet is, according to A.C. Spearing, complex and open to multiple, plausible interpretations as to what the reference of the “pearl” could represent. In this essay, the pearl and the association thereof will be considered as the possible allegorical presence of spiritual wisdom. First taking into account A.C Spearing’s critical study of the poem, various interpretations will be focused upon and integrated into the discussion. This will include Spearing’s own interpretation thereof. Drawing from his depiction of the pure and valuable, descriptions of pearls from both the text of Purity and of Pearl will be critiqued in line with biblical passages that similarly depict worth, wisdom and pearls. Particular passages of interest are Proverbs chapter 1-8, and Matthew chapter 13 verses 44-46. The essay aims to argue for this particular interpretation, with the acknowledgement of alternative existing interpretations alongside it.


Keywords:
Pearl, Allegory, Metaphor, Purity, Wisdom, Christian Theology


Texts:
Pearl, by the Gawain Poet (Primary Text).
The Gawain Poet: A Critical Study, by A.C. Spearing.
The Cambridge Companion to Medieval English Literature 1100-1500, edited by Larry Scanlon.
• “The Thematic Use of Biblical Allegory in the Poems of the M.S Cotton Nero A.X.4”, by Susan Welstead.
Proverbs
Matthew

RobynduPreez

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Join date : 2018-07-02

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