The Teaching and Cultivation of the French Language in England Part 16

_Alice._ Un peu, madame.

_Kath._ Je te prie, m'enseignez; il fault que j'apprenne a parler. Comment appellez-vous la main en Anglois?

_Alice._ La main? elle est appellee de hand.

_Kath._ De hand. Et les doigts?

_Alice._ Les doigts? ma foy, j'oublie les doigts; mais je me soubviendra. Les doigts? je pense y qu'ils sont appellez de fingres; ouy, de fingres.

_Kath._ La main, de hand; les doigts, de fingres. Je pense que je suis le bon escholier. J'ay gagne deux mots d'Anglois vistement.

Comment appellez-vous les ongles?

_Alice._ Les ongles? nous les appellons, de nails.

_Kath._ De nails. Escoutez: dites-moy, si ie parle bien: de hand, de fingres, et de nails.

_Alice._ C'est bien dict, madame; il est fort bon Anglois.

_Kath._ Dites-moi l'anglois pour le bras.

_Alice._ De arm, madame.

_Kath._ Et le coude.

_Alice._ D'elbow.

_Kath._ D'elbow. Je m'en fais la repet.i.tion de tous les mots que vous m'avez appris des a present.

_Alice._ Il est trop difficile, madame, comme je pense.

_Kath._ Excusez-moy, Alice; escoutez: de hand, de fingre, de nails, de arm, de bilbow.

_Alice._ De elbow, madame.

_Kath._ O Seigneur Dieu! je m'en oublie; de elbow. Comment appelez-vous le col?

_Alice._ De nick, madame.

_Kath._ De nick: et le menton?

_Alice._ De chin.

_Kath._ De sin. Le col, de nick: le menton, de sin.

_Alice._ Ouy. Saulve vostre honneur, en verite vous p.r.o.noncez les mots aussi droict que les natifs d'Angleterre.

_Kath._ Je ne doubte poinct d'apprendre, par la grace Dieu, et en peu de temps.

_Alice._ N'avez vous pas desja oublie ce que je vous ay enseigne?

_Kath._ Non, je reciteray a vous promptement. De hand, de fingre, de mails--

_Alice._ De nails, madame.

_Kath._ De nails, de arme, de ilbow.

_Alice._ Saulve vostre honneur, de elbow.

_Kath._ Ainsi dis-je; de elbow, de nick, et de sin: comment appelez-vous le pied and la robbe?

_Alice._ De foot, madame; et de coun.

_Kath._ De foot, et de coun? O Seigneur Dieu! ce sont mots de son maulvais, corruptible, gros, et impudique, et non pour les dames d'honneur d'user. Je ne vouldrois p.r.o.noncer cez mots devant les Seigneurs de France, pour tout le monde. Il fault de foot, et de coun, neant-moins. Je reciteray une aultre fois ma lecon ensemble: de hand, de fingre, de nails, de nick, de sin, de foot, de coun.

_Alice._ Excellent, madame!

_Kath._ C'est a.s.sez pour une fois; allons-nous a disner.

It is not surprising, remembering Shakespeare's friends.h.i.+p with the Huguenots, to find him quoting from the Genevan Bible in the same play.[333] [Header: FRENCH NEGLECTED IN GRAMMAR SCHOOLS] When he composed it, he must have had a strong inclination to write French, as he sometimes uses the language rather inconsistently, making the Dauphin, for instance, speak French one moment and English the next.

On the whole, Shakespeare's French seems to have been fairly correct grammatically, if not quite idiomatic.[334] It contains just enough mistakes and anglicisms to make it extremely unlikely that he received help from any Frenchman; for example, we find the Princess Katharine of France saying, "Je suis semblable _a les_ anges." On other occasions, when Englishmen are speaking, Shakespeare purposely makes their French incorrect and clumsy. That he could read French is shown by the fact that some of the originals on which he based his plays were not translated into English.[335] Moreover, he probably read Montaigne in the original, unless, like Cornwallis, Florio allowed him to see his translation in ma.n.u.script--a rather remote possibility, as the French would be easier of access. No doubt many others besides Shakespeare owed a good deal of their knowledge of French to direct intercourse with Frenchmen, a means of improvement strongly advocated by the professional teachers of the time. "Get you acquainted with some Frenchman" is their cry.

In addition to the refugees, students or men belonging to no particular craft or profession who took up the teaching of their language on their arrival in England, there were also professional schoolmasters--French, Flemish, and Walloon. Many of the latter, we may surmise, were no doubt driven from their country by the edict issued by Margaret, d.u.c.h.ess of Parma, in 1567. One clause was particularly directed against schoolmasters who might teach any error or false doctrine. None of these teachers, however, would find any opening in the grammar schools, which were then "little nurseries of the Latin tongue." The memorizing of Latin grammar, with the study of rhetoric in the Latin writers, both in verse and prose, formed almost the whole of the curriculum.[336] In the books on education of the time the study of French was equally ignored.

These works, however, are mainly from the pen of pedants, and have but little bearing on practical education.[337] For them French was not a 'learned' tongue, in spite of the efforts of Palsgrave to secure its recognition as such.

But it is not difficult to reconcile the general prevalence of the study of French with its absence from the grammar schools. At this time, and throughout the seventeenth century, there was a great division between scholastic education and social requirements.[338] The school and educational writers, in refusing to recognize French, held aloof from the social needs of the day: "non vitae sed scholae discimus"; and in retaining the cosmopolitan atmosphere of the Middle Ages they ignored the new spirit of nationalism which called modern languages into prominence. The school had little, if any, effect in r.e.t.a.r.ding the progress of French, which came to be looked upon in the light of an 'extra,' to be studied privately and with the help of tutors. Many scholars of the public or grammar schools had a private tutor who would teach them French when occasion served. Such, for instance, was the case with Sir Philip Sidney. Fulke Grenville and Sidney both entered Shrewsbury School at the age of ten, in the year 1564. Two years later a letter of Sir Henry Sidney informs us that he had received two letters from his son, one in Latin and the other in French, "whiche I take in good parte, and will you to exercise that Practice and Learning often: For that will stand you in most steade, in that profession of lyf that you are born to live in."[339] Apparently, then, Sidney had received lessons in French either at home or out of school hours. He had also, in all probability, had a French tutor before he went to Shrewsbury.

French, however, was not entirely neglected in all schools. As the grammar schools were "Latin" schools, there arose in the second half of the sixteenth century a considerable number of private "French"

schools, where this language received special attention. [Header: PRIVATE FRENCH SCHOOLS] The earliest of these owed their origin to the refugees, both professional schoolmasters and others. St. Paul's Churchyard, the busy centre of city life, was the quarter round which many of these schools were grouped. There they were most likely to get a good clientele, partly, it may be, among those boys attending St. Paul's School who desired, like Sir Philip Sidney, to extend their studies. In St. Paul's Churchyard, also, lived the chief booksellers, who generally seem to have cultivated friendly relations with French teachers, especially those whose books they were commissioned to sell. Frequently they acted as agents for the teachers, who in their grammars advise prospective pupils to "inquire" at the bookseller's. And, at this time, when indications of address were given by reference to the nearest place of importance, printers' signs are frequently used to locate the situation of French schools. At least one of these schools seems to have been very well known, for in 1590 the printer W. Wright, senior, gave as his address, "neare to the French School."[340]

All of them, however, did not owe their origin to the French refugees.

We hear, for instance, of a certain John Love, an Englishman, son of the steward of the Jesuit college founded by the English Catholics at Douay, who had a French school near St. Paul's, at the end of the century. But he was suspect, as it was feared he might be an "intelligenceer."[341]

Among the earliest, however, if not the first of these French schools, was that of Peter Du Ploich, a Frenchman, and no doubt a refugee; at any rate the text-book for teaching French which he published shows his strong sympathy with the Protestants. This was ent.i.tled _A Treatise in English and Frenche right necessary and profitable for al young children_, and was first issued in about 1553 from the press of Richard Grafton, who had "privilege de l'imprimer seul."[342] Of this schoolmaster's life little is known.[343] From his little French text-book, "right necessary to come to the knowledge of the same," we learn that he kept his school at the sign of the Rose in Trinity Street; that he was married, and probably received some of his pupils into his house; and that he taught French, Latin, and writing. Probably religious instruction also formed part of the curriculum, as it did in the other schools of the time; both Henry VIII. and Edward VI. issued orders that the Paternoster, the Ten Commandments, and the Apostles'

Creed should be taught to children.[344] Not only Du Ploich but other French teachers of the time provided religious formularies in their books for teaching the language, and in 1559-1560 the printer William Griffith received a licence to print a Catechism in Latin, French, and English.[345]

The Catechism, Litany, Suffrages, and prayers occupy a large part of Du Ploich's _Treatise_, which is of quarto size, and consists of about fifty leaves.[346] All these formularies are given in both French and English, arranged in two columns on each page.[347] Then come three familiar dialogues which const.i.tute the third, fourth, and fifth chapters of the book. The first of these gives us a lively picture of family life at the time. From the street, where we meet friends and are taught how to greet and address them, we pa.s.s into the house, where we are spectators of the family repast and of the arrival of the guests, and hear conversation on many subjects in which Du Ploich finds an opportunity for self-advertis.e.m.e.nt by mentioning his school and address.

A child reads a pa.s.sage from the New Testament, and the meal is preceded and followed by lengthy thanksgivings, which, however, do not interfere with the joviality and conviviality of the host.

Sir, you make no good chere. Mons., vous ne faictes pas bonne chere.

You say nothing. Vous ne dictes rien.

What sholde I say? Que diroys-ie?

I cannot speake frenche. Je ne sais pas parler francois.

I understande you not. Je ne vous entens pas.

O G.o.d, what say you? O Dieu, que dictes-vous?

You speake as well as I doo Vous parlez aussy bien que je fais and better. et mieus aussy.

Pardon me. Pardonnez moy.

It pleaseth you to say so. Il vous plaist de dire ainsy ... etc.

[Header: PETER DU PLOICH]