GOWER, JOHN

English poet; b. probably in Kent, c. 1330; d. 1408. It is untenable that he was a member of the clergy, a lawyer, or a physician; records would indicate, rather, that he must be identified with the merchant class. He was a friend of Chaucer, and was known to Richard II and Henry IV. He became blind seven years before his death, and was buried in the chapel of St. John the Baptist in St. Savior's Church (Southwark Cathedral), originally the church of the Priory of St. Mary Overey, of which he had been a substantial benefactor. The effigy on his tomb represents him resting his head on three large volumes entitled Vox Clamatis, Speculum Meditantis, and Confessio Amantis. Each is a major work in a different language, and in each he is a moralist concerned with the ills of contemporary society, particularly in England, brought on by man's departure from virtue, reason, and good order.

Speculum Meditantis or Mirour de l'Omme, the earliest work, consists of about 30,000 octosyllabic lines of French verse. Through allegory it treats the vices and virtues, reviews the state of society since the time of Rome, and finds all classes corrupt because of man himself; it urges repentance and amendment through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary and concludes with a life of her and a series of praises to her under various titles.

Vox Clamantis, in Latin elegiacs, consists of more than 10,000 lines. Introducing his subject with a dream allegory picturing the Peasants' Revolt of 1381, Gower pointedly exposes corruption on the various levels of society, and laments the loss of ideals and the evils of the country.

Confessio Amantis, written in English and comprising more than 34,000 lines in short couplets, also advocates a moral order preserved by wisdom and virtue, but the book is intended for pleasure as well as instruction. The poet, or lover, is told by Venus to confess to Genius, her priest, who instructs him concerning the Deadly Sins as applied to love. There is a profusion of illustrative stories drawn from classical and medieval sources. Gower was a poet, not of revolt, but of reform within the existing framework of society. His talent was notable, but he lacked genius; he did not transcend his own time and his reputation has waned.

Bibliography: Complete Works, ed. g. c. macaulay, 4 v. (London 1899–1902); The Major Latin Works of John Gower, tr. e. w. stockton (Seattle 1962). g. r. coffmann, "John Gower in His Most Significant Role," University of Colorado Studies Series B 2.4 (1945) 52–61.

[p. e. beichner]