VIRELAI (VIRELAY) The virelai is a fi xed
verse form established by the 14th century in French
poetry, and often set to music. The poem begins with
the REFRAIN, followed by three STANZAs, with the refrain
occurring between each stanza and at the end. Each
stanza also has three sections: Sections one and two
share the same rhyme (and music), and section three
shares its rhyme sound with the refrain. The structure
is similar to other fi xed forms such as the CAROL(E),
BALLADE, and cantiga (monomorphic song). Among
those English poets infl uenced by the pattern was SIR
THOMAS WYATT.
FURTHER READING
Françon, Marcel. “On the Nature of the Virelai.” Symposium
9 (1955): 348–352.
Carol E. Harding
VIRGIL (PUBLIUS VIRGILIUS MARO)
(70 B.C.E.–19 B.C.E.) Virgil was born on October
25, 70 B.C.E. into a wealthy farming family. He was an
adept student. Although he leaned towards medicine
and mathematics at fi rst, his pursuit of rhetoric, Greek,
and literary arts led him to the Academy of Epidius in
Rome, ca. 54 B.C.E., where he studied law. While there,
he became friends with a classmate, Octavian, later
Emperor Augustus and Virgil’s patron (see PATRONAGE).
Virgil graduated and practiced law, but he soon gave
that up in pursuit of philosophy. Civil disturbances led
him to fl ee Rome in 49 B.C.E. Arriving in Naples, Virgil
continued his studies and began writing poetry. He
remained primarily in Naples for the remainder of his
life, occasionally traveling to Rome or Greece. It was
on one such trip, in 19 B.C.E., that he grew ill and
died.
Contemporary accounts describe Virgil as intelli-
gent, pleasant, friendly, and somewhat sickly. He never
married. Many scholars believe he was predominantly
same-sex oriented, as he frequently wrote about a rela-
tionship with a man named Alexander (“Alexis”).
Virgil produced only three works: the Eclogues
(sometimes called the Bucolics), the Georgics, and the
Aeneid. Though Virgil was greatly admired during his
lifetime, his infl uence on later poetry was tremendous.
He is directly referenced by Chaucer in numerous
poems, including “THE HOUSE OF FAME,” The BOOK OF
THE DUCHESS, and TROILUS AND CRISEYDE. The Aeneid,
translated fully by GAVIN DOUGLAS, immortalized Rome
as an ideal of perfection, a theme that pervaded works
ranging from ARTHURIAN LITERATURE to WILLIAM SHAKE-
SPEARE’s plays. A later partial translation by HENRY
HOWARD, EARLY OF SURREY, led to the development of
English BLANK VERSE. Virgil’s work also directly inspired
almost every poetic genre, especially the PASTORAL and
the EPIC. EDMUND SPENSER, for instance, cited him as a
direct predecessor for THE SHEPHEARDES CALDENDER. It
also became fashionable during the Tudor era to write
in the style of his Eclogues in spite of their homosexual
themes (see, for example, RICHARD BARNFIELD’s THE
AFFECTIONATE SHEPHERD).
See also ECLOGUE, TRANSLATION TRADITION.
FURTHER READING
Levi, Peter. Virgil: His Life and Times. New York: St. Martin’s
Press, 1999.
Reed, J. D. Virgil’s Gaze: Nation and Poetry in the Aeneid.
Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 2007.VIRGIN LYRICS Lyric is a broad term whose
defi nition has changed over time. When modern read-
ers encounter “lyric poetry,” they tend to expect intense
personal emotion. However, medieval lyrics are usu-
ally rather conventional and lack the individual voice
of a personal speaker. As a result, critics are sometimes
apologetic of the form. Lyrics to the Virgin are no
exception.
Devotion to Mary was an extremely popular form of
piety throughout the Middle Ages. Medieval legends
and artwork demonstrate an interest in the life of Vir-
gin; they create and draw upon the Apocrypha (nonca-
nonical biblical texts) to fi ll in the blanks of the sparse
Gospel narratives. However, the lyrics diverge from
such legends in that they usually either describe bibli-
cal events from Mary’s point of view or they praise and
revere the Virgin as the mother of Christ, the mother of
all humanity, the queen of heaven, and the second Eve,
who redeems original sin and through whom all of
humanity is redeemed. Many lyrics are anonymous,
but we also fi nd lyrics written by such illustrious writ-
ers as GEOFFREY CHAUCER and, later, JOHN LYDGATE.450 VIRELAI