dipper@utastro.UUCP (Debbie Byrd) (05/12/85)
Jupiter, Saturn and the moon made a guest appearance in the first English novel. More on literature and astronomy -- after this. May 12 Chaucer's Conjunction On this date in the year 1385 a crescent moon was near the planets Jupiter and Saturn on the dome of the sky. The three worlds appeared against the background of stars in the constellation Cancer the Crab. The early English poet, Geoffrey Chaucer, must have seen this celestial grouping. Chaucer mentioned it in a long narrative poem that's been called the first true English novel. Chaucer lived at a time when most literature was written in Latin. He chose to write in the language of the common people -- what we today call English. This was also during a time when superstitious people still believed that the movements of celestial objects affected people or things happening on Earth. In Chaucer's story, a prince of Troy and a young widow are in love. They're trapped together overnight in the same house due to a raging thunderstorm -- which medieval astrology attributed to Saturn, Jupiter and the moon appearing together in the constellation Cancer. Chaucer really could have seen this pattern in the night sky on today's date in the year 1385 -- around the time that Chaucerian scholars believe he wrote his novel. It's known that Chaucer was familiar with the movements of celestial objects. He later wrote an instructional manual -- also in English -- for the astrolabe -- a device used for sighting and predicting the positions of heavenly bodies. During Chaucer's time, astrological superstition still dominated people's views of the heavens. But curiosity as to why things move in the sky as they do eventually led -- a century and a half later -- to the birth of modern astronomy. Script by Diana Hadley. (c) Copyright 1984, 1985 McDonald Observatory, University of Texas at Austin
jeff@rtech.ARPA (Jeff Lichtman) (05/13/85)
> > Chaucer lived at a time when most literature was written in Latin. He > chose to write in the language of the common people -- what we today > call English. This was also during a time when superstitious people > still believed that the movements of celestial objects affected people > or things happening on Earth. > > (c) Copyright 1984, 1985 McDonald Observatory, University of Texas at Austin Unfortunately, some people still believe that the lives of people on earth are affected by the movements of celestial objects. Ever heard of astrology? -- Jeff Lichtman at rtech (Relational Technology, Inc.) aka Swazoo Koolak {amdahl, sun}!rtech!jeff {ucbvax, decvax}!mtxinu!rtech!jeff
riks@teklds.UUCP (Rik Smoody) (05/16/85)
> call English. This was also during a time when superstitious people > still believed that the movements of celestial objects affected people > or things happening on Earth. > Gee, I still believe that movement (relative though it may be) of celestial objects affects us: when the sun is high in the sky, I see people all around stripping their clothes off, for instance. Some of these same people go out into the wilderness, climb mountains even, depending on where the moon is! 8-) Rik Smoody - they disclaim me around here, too. uucp: {ucbvax,decvax,pur-ee,cbosg,ihnss}!tektronix!teklds!riks CSnet: riks@tek ARPAnet: riks.tek@rand-relay US: 2400 NE 25th, Portland, OR 97212 or: MS 94-442, PO Box 4600, Beaverton, OR, 97075 AT&T: (503) 249-8300, 629-1237