Norman, you say: >I'm sure you're right in all you say but the problem with >forescore/fourscore remains. May I suggest that as with several other words >(e.g. bare and bear, here and hear), we have to look at the sense and make >our best judgements in many of the documents we look at. Are you suggesting that Shakespeare really meant that the event in Winter's Tale occurred on the 80th April? Even if you 'carry over' the superfluous days, you still get 19th - the 19th of June. It seems more likely to me that he meant 'forescore', but deliberately spelled it 'fourscore'; or that the text got so altered. Garrick's spelling of the same word in his text 'forescore' clinches the matter; it is a nonce-word meaning 19 which didn't get picked up by the OED. Deliberate confusion to conceal a hidden meaning. The birth of William Shaksper at Stratford, 40,000 fathoms from the sea, on Wednesday the 19th April 1564, which date is very likely to be the correct (but hitherto unknown) one. To intend us to think the date was the 80th would be uncharacteristic of Shakespeare; without either meaning or humour. It is obviously a clue to look further. John Barton

No, I am not suggesting that - quite the opposite. What I was saying, or thought I was, is that we have to use our sense in each case. In some cases forescore/fourscore may be 19 but in others it may be 80. We just have to work out the probabilities. I thought that was what you were saying too, or have I got it wrong? Audrey ----- Original Message ----- From: "John Barton" <bartonlander@free.net.nz> To: <OLD-ENGLISH-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Thursday, August 05, 2004 10:32 AM Subject: [OEL] Forescore > Norman, you say: > >I'm sure you're right in all you say but the problem with > >forescore/fourscore remains. May I suggest that as with several other words > >(e.g. bare and bear, here and hear), we have to look at the sense and make > >our best judgements in many of the documents we look at. > > Are you suggesting that Shakespeare really meant that the event in Winter's > Tale occurred on the 80th April? Even if you 'carry over' the superfluous > days, you still get 19th - the 19th of June. It seems more likely to me that > he meant 'forescore', but deliberately spelled it 'fourscore'; or that the > text got so altered. Garrick's spelling of the same word in his text > 'forescore' clinches the matter; it is a nonce-word meaning 19 which didn't > get picked up by the OED. Deliberate confusion to conceal a hidden meaning. > The birth of William Shaksper at Stratford, 40,000 fathoms from the sea, on > Wednesday the 19th April 1564, which date is very likely to be the correct > (but hitherto unknown) one. > To intend us to think the date was the 80th would be uncharacteristic of > Shakespeare; without either meaning or humour. It is obviously a clue to > look further. > John Barton > > > > > ==== OLD-ENGLISH Mailing List ==== > OLD-ENGLISH Web Page > http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~oel/ > >