Notes on "In Parenthesis" pt. 2

Notes on David Jones' In Parenthesis, pts 5-6

Jones, David. In Parenthesis: seinnyessit e gledyf ym pen mameu. New York: Chilmark Press, Print.

Part Five, title page:

• "He has brought us... floor-hide"
• LXXXVI.
  "When the host of Pryder arrives,
  I anxiously count the bands, 
  Eleven complete battalions;
  There is now a precipitate fight
  Along the road of lamentation.
  Affectionately I have deplored,
  Dearly have I loved,
  The illustrious dweller of the wood,
  And the men of Argoed,
  Accustomed, in the open plain,
  To marshal their troops.
  For the benefit of the chiefs, the lord of the war
  Laid upon rough boards,
  Midst a deluge of grief,
  The viands for the banquet,
  Where they caroused together; - he conducted us to a bright fire,
  And to a carpet of white and fresh hide"
  (text from Project Gutenberg).
  
  
  As in this section of Y Gododdin, Part Five of Jones' work focuses on food, but the reminder of war is never far from anyone.

V. 118:

• "the worshipful Beaumains"
• Beaumains is the name that Sir Gareth is given when he works as the kitchen boy in King Arthur's court. The connection is, I think, that Private  Miles is a knight among the kitchen gear. 

V. 128: 

• "hairy Herne"
• I think this is a reference to Herne the Hunter, the hornéd huntsman from the South Eastern part of England.

V. 131:

• "Gwaelod"
• Yet another reference to Cantref Gwaelod

Part Six, title page:

• "Men went to Catraeth...the goal of their marching"
• this passage is an extremely patched together quote from many different verses.

VI. 135:

• "bade him...garnish him"
• From Malory I.i.  - the chapter in which Uther orders the Duke of Tintagil and his wife Igraine to host him at Tintagil. He ends up laying siege to Tintagil, and marries Igraine.
• "and...siege about"
• Malory XXI. ii. - Mordred lays siege to the Tower of London because Guenever will not marry him 
• "and great purveyance... parties" 
• Malory XX. xii. - Gawain and Arthur have laid siege to Joyous Guard, Lancelot's castle, because Lancelot retreated there after having an affair with Guenever.  All three passages have a desired woman and a siege as a result. The siege part is easy - they're camped out as if the part of an army in a siege. Not sure where the other part comes in.

VI. 136:

• "So on the morn... came"
• Malory X. xxix. - Elias challenges King Mark to come out and fight Tristram. 

VI. 138:

• "he said there was a hell"
• Malory XX. i (among others) - Mordred and Agrivain work on Gawain to convince him of Guenevere's infidelity with Lancelot. All the Malory in this section involves love triangles and eventual sieges. I think maybe this is referring to the women who were with the soldiers, but I am not entirely sure.