Transformation Symbolism and the Liturgy of the Mass in "Pearl"

Abstract

Although commentators have often recognized the pervasive presence of liturgical allusions and correspondences in Pearl, these ritualistic resonances have never, to my knowledge, been taken together as an essential index of the poem's meaning or used as a major interpretive device. To be sure, one early critic sought to define the entire substance of the work by seeing in it a hidden allegorical representation of, and tribute to, the Eucharist. But this attempt by R. M. Garrett was more of a supposition leading to a simple assertion than a genuine interpretation.' Understandably, critics and reviewers either discounted or ignored Garrett's thesis, which lacked convincing evidence while failing to account for most of the actual details in the Pearl poet's presentation.2 Moreover, A. C. Spearing's excellent study, Symbolic and Dramatic Development in Pearl,3 has since demonstrated the virtual necessity of viewing the poem's symbols-and the pearl symbol especially-in flexible, dynamic terms. Unlike Garrett's static, one-to-one equation between pearl symbol and Communion wafer, Spearing's transformational-process approach relates developing patterns of symbolism to the interior dramatic development of the narrator. By stressing the less mechanical how as well as the what of symbolism, Spearing has defined the probable course of future discussion on the topic. And yet, despite the possibly misguided substance of Garrett's thesis, his idea of applying research in liturgical backgrounds to a critical reading appears to be essentially viable. Where his treatment falls short is in its attempt to connect the pearl symbol in isolation with but one aspect of the eucharistic liturgy, the visible moment of elevation. Much too narrow in scope, Garrett's effort concerns itself neither with the mystery-action of the liturgy as a whole, nor with the transformational implications of specific elements such as the offertory procession and its accompanying notion of sacrifice. Had the essay done so, I believe it might have extended our appreciation of how the poet applied a gradually developing symbolism, and would have provided a deeper basis for understanding the possible elegiac construction of the poem. One of my purposes here, therefore, is to indicate, by identifying liturgical resonances, the extent to which the Pearl poet drew upon and might have been inspired by several aspects of the medieval Mass liturgy in composing his elegiac narrative.4 I also hope to reveal particular ways in which this