Saint Ursula Academy - Scroll Yearbook (Toledo, OH)

Page 11 text:

that he was imprisoned for the duration of Edward's reign. It was during this period that he wrote lllorle d' xlrthur, which marked the beginning of printing in England. The first history source book written in English was also compiled in prison. It is Sir Waltei' Raleigh's llistory of the World, started when he was already fifty years old. This was quite an ac- complishment. for history as a branch of literature had not as yet been thought of. But Raleigh's brilliant education and the extensive traveling he had done before he fell into disfavor with the court had perfectly equipped him for such a task. Haughty and relentless, Raleigh had much of the nature of a monarch him- self and not enough of a subject. In The Cambridge History of English Literature he has been likened to Ha king without a kingdomfl With the accession of James l, he barely escaped the block to be sentenced to imprison- ment in the famous Tower. It was here that he wrote the History of the PVorld and saw it published during a lifetime which was soon to end under the execu- tionerls axe in 1618. The Pilgriufs Progress was begun by John Bunyan when he was in his second term of confinement at the Bedford goal. It is the comparison of Christian progress with a pilgrimage. It describes the battle between the forces of good and evil with the various virtues and vices depicting allegorical characters, It was finally published in 1678. At first only moderately received by the public, it has now become, with the exception of the Bible, the most widely read book extant in the English language. John Bunyan had the most mediocre of educations and began to study the Bible so closely that it became the whole center of his life. Indeed it was for the crime of preaching his religious tenets that he was committed to the gaol in Bedford for twelve years, during which time he produced no less than nine books. According to Nlacauley, if The Pilgfllllli' Progress had not been written, The Holy War would have been the greatest allegory in English literature. Although Daniel Defoe's greatest work, Robinson Crusoe, was not written in his two terms of imprisonment, he did produce so many masterpieces during those periods that it would take a vol- ume to recount them all. Most note- worthy of these publications are Hymn to the Pillory and the establishment of the Review, an outstanding model of journalism. Born on the eve of the Restoration, Defoe grew to be a man of such fiery spirit and boundless energy that it is a small wonder that imprisonment result- ed from the fearless attacks he made against the Tories and the irony in his never ending stream of pamphlets. Only his death in 1731 could halt the reams of literary works which were products of his genius. For a moment before concluding, let us now wander to American shores. From the pen of Williaiii Sydney Porter, or O. Henry as he is better known, came such productions as The Four Illillion and Options, both very enter- taining and humorous volumes of short stories depicting, for the most part, life in and around New York City, These and many other noteworthy pieces were written in the federal prison at Colum- bus, Ohio, where Porter was serving a five-year sentence for embezzlement. This was just the impetus that he need- ed to launch him on a career that was to bring him international fame as a short story writer. These brief sketches of but a chosen few of the countless prose masterpieces that owe their origin to the environment of prison walls bring out more clearly a fact that is self-evident: nothing, not even chains of iron, can shackle the well trained mind. How appropriate to quote here a verse, itself written in prison, by Richard Lovelace, the courtliest of the Cavaliers: Stone walls do not a prison make, Nor iron bars a ragey lllinds innocent and quiet tahe That for an hermitagej If I have freedom in my love Ana' in my soul am free, Angels alone, that soar above, Enjoy such liberty. THE SCROLL 9

Page 10 text:

Within T hose Prison Walls -SALLY OTCONNELL '45 More often than f W I '1 would be at liber- not, the' instant we ' --l-f 'CY to Spelld .his hear the word Vffgif,-V time as he mlg t ' ' - i-L wish free from prison , our. im 'Y , h . agination carries us l financial worries. to a massive, bar- .La . E -gli .These men of ren-looking struc- ' f flu .Las L-E' 2 brilliant minds and ture, cut off from all society by a formidable wall of stone pillars and iron bars. Within the walls of this gloomy den of iniquity we are confronted with every conceivable form of humanity wallowing in the mire of despair, VVhile this idea is not entirely an illusion, for institutions of such a dank and dismal nature did exist in England and elsewhere as late as the twentieth century, there really was another kind of prison-that with which we are con- cerned in this article. lt was a sort of comfortable and spacious stopping-off place for courtiers and men in the com- paratively high places between court functions or hazardous scavenger hunts of the Sea Dog variety during the Tudor dynasty, when Henry VIII and Elizabeth held the sceptre in England. This tradition of keeping men guessing as to their fate continued for centuries in English diplomacy when mercy and justice were not above the sceptred sway. Q Many of the most highly educated and cultured nobles of the day were often made political prisoners. When the monarch of the time would tire of some nobleman's presence around the court, he would dispatch a guard to prevent the unfortunate disfavored one from leaving the bounds of his home. Or, on the other hand, the king might confiscate an estate in a newly con- quered distant province and send the man there for safe keeping. But, if the king were too busy to render any per- sonal attention to the case, the offender would be moved, often with his servants, to some secluded apartments, where he classical educations were not wastrels, but made use of their opportunities in this enforced idleness to compose some of the immortal master- pieces which even now serve as inspira- tion to the learned of our modern era. To those men of impetuous and ad- venturous natures, this life of compara- tive ease was intense cruelty. Probably many oi them would never have dreamed ol' a literary career had not this opportunity been forced upon them. Many a genius would undoubtedly have pursued a daring existence of blood and thunder to die a hero, renowned for his valor and courage. ln this respect we are indebted to the circumstances which gave birth to these outstanding literary contributions, Sir Thomas lN'lalory's Jllorirf 11' Arthur was the source of inspiration to such writers as Tennyson, Spenser, Nlil- ton, Arnold, iyiorris, and Swinburne. Rosetti, Watts, and Burne recorded some of its most stirring scenes on their canvasesg and hints of it are detected in the lyric dramas of Wagiier. Among the earliest of English prose, Marte d' Arthur relates the adventures of King Arthur, the prototype of the ideal English King Alfred, and his Round Table. The triumph of Arthur's virtues over the temporal vices is pre- dominant. In the war of the Roses, hlalory fought with the defeated Lancasters at the siege of Rouen in 1418 and may have been a member of Parliament in 1444 and 1445. So that in 1468 when the Yorks, in the person of Edward IV, came into power, Malory's name was so well known as an enemy to the party 8 THE SCROLL

Page 12 text:

H . , b : I X X N 1 'I x 1' X Wm. I Lf , I, m'xfT'U I it , '51 ' 'l NK , 3' x f fl m Hr .562 evo --- iaao---- iaao --- soo Ya at I 9 Godeyfs Ladyis Book Www in 'ull--I Dear Beth: Today was a Hfreel' day. What plans I had made for a real holiday, but you know the old proverb about the 'ibest laid plans of mice and menf, VVell, this was no exception. I did carry out my threat to sleep late and luxuriously- but from there on, Blom took over. To begin with, the Weatherman was on her side, as the first thing that greeted me upon awakening was a tor- rential downpour against my window. But, to get back to NIom-She definite- ly had a brainstorm, and decided that this was the perfect day for straighten- ing up the attic. So up we trudged. But it was a dis- mal business-so dark that we had to use two lamps, which caused shadows to creep along the spidery walls, and the rain, falling on the roof, only added to the eerie atmosphere. llother attacked her old trunk and suggested that I start on Gram's. About an hour later I came across a heavy, thick book, warped and yellow with age. It had no cover so I peeked inside to find the title-HGodey's Lady's Book and lllagazinen, Philadelphia, January, 1862. 1862! Let me think. What was hap- pening then? Our Southern states had just seceded from the Union. The Civil VVar had begun. Abe Lincoln was Pres- ident. Besides, it was the world of Louisa INI. Alcott's Little Women. I was about to ask mother what the significance of the book wasg but she was smiling to herself over some old picture albums and letters. It seemed cruel to interrupt her reveries, so I de- cided it probably would be more fun to -PATRICIA STALDER 45 find out for myself, which I proceeded to do. On the very first page was an en- graving of two little girls, one sitting in a chair hearing the prayers of her smaller sister. Under the picture were the words: Our Father Who Art in Heaven. Can you imagine, Beth, find- ing a religious picture like that in one of our magazines today! Why, some of our so-called eminent litterateurs even apologize for using Godys name, as if they had said something to be ashamed of. This book of more than eighty years ago gave first place to God. The next page revealed f'Godey's Fashions For januaryf, Here were five full-length figures and a small boy and girl. The dresses were truly beautiful- big hoop skirts and drop shoulders, trimmed with Flowers, lace, and velvet ribbons. One mannequin had a bright blue feather in her hair, exactly like those we are wearing today. The little boy wore crimson trousers, very full, with braid on the pockets, a wide blue sash, a white vest, blue jacket braided with gold, and a turban of crimson, blue and gold. He looked as though he had just stepped out of 'AArabian Nights , but when I turned the page, I discov- ered he was dressed as a Greek boy for a costume party. Engaging is the word for the short stories-so much more interesting than those in our popular women,s magazines, I think that is because most of our stories have the same theme: love at first sight, hasty marriage, divorce, or the 'fhappily ever aftery' sequence, while the romances of Godey's day were de- lightfully diversified. Surprisingly enough, there were serials. How I would 10 THE SCROLL