“MAIDEN IN THE MOR LAY” ANONYMOUS
(14th century) This enigmatic 14th-century Middle
English lyric has delighted and perplexed critics for
years. Its opening STANZA quickly establishes a pattern
of repetition that is followed throughout the lyric. The
maiden is introduced, and the reader learns that she
lay on the moor for a full week. The phrase “in the mor
lay” appears in four of the six lines (ll. 1, 2, 4, 5). Tech-
nically, then, these lines rhyme only because they end
with the same word. The fi nal line of the stanza, how-
ever, ends with “day,” which rhymes with “lay.” This
fi rst stanza is the only one that is six lines long; the
others are seven.
The remainder of the lyric focuses on how she lived
in the wilderness, addressing, in turn, her food, drink,
and residence. This information is imparted as if the
curious reader were inquiring into the maiden’s habits.
Each stanza begins with an announcement concerning
the subject: “Welle was hire mete [good was her food]”
(l. 7); “Welle was hire dring [good was her drink]” (l.
14); “Welle was hire bour [good was her bower]” (l.
21). This statement is followed by an echoic question
effectively asking, “In the wilderness of the moors, what
items could furnish the necessary comforts of life?” In
turn, these questions are followed by aborted answers,
all of which break off with “the,” which lead into a
repeat of both statement and question, fi nally followed
by a “complete” answer. Through this rhythmic linguis-
tic dance, where statements are made, questions are
asked, and answers are hesitantly supplied, tentatively
withdrawn, and then reproffered, the reader learns that
the maiden eats “primeroles” (primroses) and violets,
drinks “chelde” (cold) water from the wellspring, and
sleeps in a bed made from red roses and lilies. As in the
fi rst stanza, the only true rhyme links the repeated
phrase with the fi nal word of each stanza.
No matter their approach, most critics agree that the
poem is hauntingly beautiful. The majority of critical
inquiries attempt to answer the question, “Who is this
maiden?” These investigations end up falling into two
basic categories. One camp believes that the lyric can
and should be interpreted using a Christian perspec-
tive; the other holds out for “popular” sources of the
poem. Christian readings usually focus on the maiden
as representative of Jesus’ mother, the Virgin Mary. A
few, however, have suggested either Mary Magdalene
or Mary of Egypt as the template for the maiden in the
poem. In this case, the maiden’s exile to the moor is a
self-imposed ascetic practice, undertaken to expurgate
her sins of the fl esh. Cultural readings generally insist
on folkloric sources for the text, although at least one
has suggested that the lyric was a drinking song, and
another has posited its importance as a ritual dance.
Whatever the origins, the multiplicity of meanings
found within and around it serve only to make it a
more valuable poem to read.
The most common Christian reading of this lyric
aligns the maiden with the Virgin Mary. This interpre-
tation relies on conventional symbolism and biblical
EXEGESIS. Seven, the number of nights that the maiden
lay on the moor, represents life on earth, which was
shrouded in darkness before the light of Christ dawned.
The moor, a wild and untamed place, represents earth
under the old law (Old Testament). The world awaits
the coming of the new law (New Testament). The time
span also suggests the seven days of creation, with the
greatest creation of all, Jesus, promised to arrive when
needed the most. In the meantime, the maiden is pre-
pared for her role by consuming violets (the sign of
humility) and primroses (which represent human
beauty), and drinking from the cool well waters (God’s
grace). Moreover, eating primroses, a fl ower as com-
mon as it is beautiful, recalls God’s generosity to
humanity, and the maiden is a part of his gifts of grace
and bearer of his ultimate generosity (Christ). The
maiden reclines on a bed of lilies and roses, which
symbolize purity and martyrdom (and/or charity),
respectively. Again, this is evocative of the Virgin Mary.
In pre-Reformation theology, the mother of Jesus is
eternally virginal, the supreme example of purity. By
welcoming her son’s disciples into her home and car-
ing for them as her own children, she embodies char-
ity. Mary also suffered a “bloodless” martyrdom as she
watched her son being arrested, beaten, and crucifi ed.
The folkloric interpretation suggests that the maiden
is either a human involved in magic rituals or a fairy.
This analysis relies on the tone of the poem as well as its
words. The lyric is suggestive of a trance-inducing
chanted ritual (it has often been called a characteristic
lilt). This effect is achieved through the constant repeti-260 “MAIDEN IN THE MOR LAY”