The Anathemata
Rite and Fore-time (continued)
There’s conspiracy here:
Here is birthday and anniversary, if there’s continuity here, there’s a new beginning.
By intercalation of weeks
(since the pigeons were unfledged
and the lambs still young)
they’ve adjusted the term
till this appointed night
(Sherthursdaye bright).2
David Jones notes
2 See Le Morte d’Arthur, xvii, 20, ‘Everyman’ edition; modernized spelling:
‘the holy dish wherein I ate the lamb on Sher-Thursday’.
The textual authority on Malory’s works, Professor Vinaver, gives ‘on Estir Day’ for Caxton's ‘on sherthursdaye’ and notes the latter as a corrupt variant. A French source is given as le jour de Pasques.
But as the words ‘Thursday’ and ‘the holy dish’ are, by gospel, rite, calendar and cultus, indissulubly connected, I regard Caxton’s variant as most fortunate. Hence the use of ‘sherthursdaye’ here and in the title of Section 8 of this book.
additional notes
An earlier meaning of ‘conspiracy’ was ‘breathing together ’ or concord, which could well be applied to the remainder of the disciples as well as (in a different sense) to the behaviour of Judas.
‘birthday’ because this Last Supper is the start of the institution of the Mass; and ‘anniversary’ because it is also the celebration of the Passover. Similarly ‘continuity’ and ‘new beginning’.
According to the OED, an alternative (and older) meaning of ‘Easter’ equates it to the Jewish passover (i.e. the Thursday), which is probably what Malory intended.
The night is ‘appointed’ because it is a stage in the pre-ordained plan of redemption.
see also
See the notes to the next page, which explain the intercalation.
comments