Attention class! Settle down, boys! Everybody
sit in you proper rows and take out your horn books. We will start
today with a new song on the organ called Greensleeves.
Oh, who are you? You must be new here. Oh, my name is James, but
you must call me head-master Robinson. I'll show you around and
explain what we do here in the Mount Joy Schoole of boys founded
70 years ago by my grandfather.
As you probably
know, schools are only for boys now-a-days, and girls are rarely
accepted. A young ladies' and women's place is in the kitchen
and the home, taking care of the children and serving food.
As you know, our alphabet has only 24 letters
with the capital I and J interchangeable. The J
is often used as the capitiol form of I. The letters U
and V are similarly equivalent, with I being used
at the beginning of a word and U used toward the middle.
For instance, your "I have an uncle" is written as "J
haue an vncle."
There is a special character to represent your th that
resembles a y. It actually comes from an ancient runic
letter called 'Thorn'. When you see "Ye Olde Tea Shoppe",
the "ye " should be pronounced as the.
There are no dictionaries, so our spelling is largely built on
custom, and we write words phonetically, or by the way they sound.
Still, the normal way of spelling is very similar to the way you
spell. The most obvious difference is that we often add a final
"e" to words that we don't necessarily need them. For
example "school" is often written as "schoole".
In printed books, there are two principle typefaces: Blackletter
type and Roman. The Blackletter type, like the secretary hand,
is derived from medieval writing; it looks like what we sometimes
like to call "Old English". Roman type, like italics,
is associated with classic learning and is currently replacing
Blackletter type entirely. Your writing is based on Roman type.
Italics are also used especially to set important words
off from surrounding Roman text.
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The Mount Joy Schoole for boys is an example
of a petty school. If a family is rich or the boy shows enough
talent to earn a scholarship, he might go to a grammar school.
This stage of school lasts five to ten years, typically to age
12 or so. A child can sometimes get in at 7 or 8, but either he
has to be wealthy or the father must have a clever way to get
the money from someone else. The "grammar" taught at
grammar school was Latin language and literature. I'm debating
about including French or Greek; Latin is our main emphasis. A
boy who learns Latin can not only absorb the wisdom of ancient
authors, but can also read the works of some contemporary scholars,
for Latin is the international language. Older students at my
schoole are expected to speak Latin at all times in the classroom
and will be punished for speaking English. Grammar schoole teachers
like myself are mostly likely University graduates. Since it is
very rare for a girl to be admitted to a petty school, you can
only imagine how hard it is for one to be admitted to a grammar
school. However, there are special boarding schools for girls.
I won't accept them here!
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If you plan on attending Mount Joy, be prepared
to work hard! I adhere to the typical school hours: 6:00 a.m.
to 5:00 p.m., with Breakfast and Dinner served. There is a break
during the day. You must eat supper at your own home. You will
have Thursday and Saturday afternoons off, with two week holidays
for Christmas and Easter. School is never in session on Sundays,
because it is a day of rest, and you're expected to go to mass.
Some grammar schools board their students, but mine, since we
are located in towne, is a day school.
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You don't have to go to school, and if your
family lacks the funds or they need you to work, you will stay
home and help out with the family business. Most people I know
cannot read or write, unfortunately, and can do little else besides
their particular jobs.
I've seen where a man has to sign a deed or a contract and must
draw a symbol that recognizes him because he can't write. Most
girls do not go to school, unless they show a talent that surpasses
that of most boys. They instead stay at home and learn to sew,
spin, cook and run the house. Even in the smallest of houses,
there is so much to be done that they keep busy. Wealthy girls
are also taught reading and writing, but they still do not get
the same schooling as boys.
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Etiquette is taught and will be enforced throughout
all of your schooling, but will mainly be taught at home. You
are required at all times to be well-mannered and polite and cannot
speak to any adult unless you are spoken to first. (Emergencies
are an exception, though). Don't interrupt or argue with an adult.
You should be grateful for any kindness at all given by an adult.
Stand when an adult enters a room, take off your hat, and bow
or curtsy, even if you hate that particular adult.
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In Petty schools,
you learn the alphabet from a horn book, not at all like the book
you have in your pocket, but rather like a little wooden bat like
the kind you would use in cricket. The alphabet and the Lord's
prayer are written on a piece of paper. The paper is stuck on
the wooden bat and a thin, transparent piece of deer or elk horn
is fixed over it. Since the horn is transparent, you will be able
to see the alphabet underneath. The books are to be shared between
yourself and several students during class because books are extremely
expensive. Wealthy families can afford their own horn book, and
sometimes the families crest, code of arms, or symbol is inscribed
on the back.
All schools are paid for by rich men who want
their own children to have an education. Unlike yours, none of
our schools are paid for by public money. If you are caught being
naughty or you come in late to my classroom, be forewarned! I
have a birch rod handy to dole out any punishment or I may have
to hit you on the hand with a ferula, (a flat piece of wood, similar
to a ruler with a circular knob on one end), to make my point!
One school master I know used to beat his pupils on a cold morning
to keep himself warm. You should be glad you aren't thinking of
going to HIS school!
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Credits:
Picture by Bonnie Panagakis, Virtual
Renaissance Team
References:
Harrison, Molly and Shiela Maguire (illustrator). Children
in History: Sixteenth and
Seventeenth Centuries . University Printing House. Cambridge,
G.B., 1978.
Singman, Jeffrey L. Daily Life in Elizabethan England.
Greenwood Press
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