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The ''Ayenbite of Inwyt'' —also ; literally, the 'again-biting of inner wit', or the ''Remorse'' (''Prick'') ''of Conscience''—is the title of a confessional prose work written in a Kentish dialect of Middle English. Rendered from the French original, one supposes by a "very incompetent translator" (Thomson 1907: 396), it is generally considered more valuable as a record of Kentish pronunciation in the mid-14th century than exalted as a work of literature. ==Origins and content== The ''Ayenbite'' is a translation of the French ''Somme le Roi'' (also known as the ''Book of Vices and Virtues''), a late 13th century treatise on Christian morality; the popularity of this latter text is demonstrated by the large number of surviving copies. The subject-matter is treated primarily allegorically; for example, the seven deadly sins are identified with the seven heads of the Beast of the Apocalypse. The surviving copy of the work was completed on 27 October 1340, by a Benedictine monk, Michael of Northgate. This can be stated with rare certainty, for the author specifies all these details himself, writing in the preface, : And in a postscript, : It is usually assumed that Michael of Northgate was himself the translator, not merely a copyist; the library of St Augustine's contained two copies of the French work at this time (Gradon 1979). 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Ayenbite of Inwyt」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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