Middleton undertakes describe essential spirit of Ricardian Poetry. By means of survey that includes Chaucer, Langland, Gower, Thomas Usk, and Lollard Knights, Middleton suggests that essential feature of this late-fourteenth century literature aim to be 'common voice' serve 'common good' (95). This public poetry not topical nature, but rather defined by a constant relation of speaker audience within ideally conceived worldly community, relation which has become poetic subject (95). This secular poetry, and its central pieties are worldly felicity and peaceful, harmonious communal existence (95). It speaks for bourgeois moderation, course rigorous absolutes of religious rule on one hand, and, on other, rhetorical hyperboles and emotional vanities of courtly (95). As result, even topic of love has clearly public dimension. Thomas Usk, his Testament of Love presents himself as a vernacular philosopher of love, but his more immediate concern with trials of his public career. Gower's Testament of Love, CA, likewise written out of understanding that love above all a communal and historical bond (97) rather than transcendental force or merely erotic drive. The notion of public poetry also reveals similarities Gower and Langland. Both are essentially 'one-poem' writers (98) who revised their work keep current. addition, their poetry addresses entire community rather than coterie or patron. Even when Gower writes Richard II, king is not main imagined audience, but occasion for gathering and formulating what on mind (107). This understanding of audience may also have occasioned Gower's cancellation of his reference Chaucer CA, for such reference, while accessible coterie audience, would not suit commune at large. The attempt speak for all citizens, also evident Gower's In Praise of Peace, brings with unique style. Middleton calls that socially and psychologically well suited presentation of lay morality and large experiential truths (98). For instance, Chaucer's Canterbury Tales represents attempt let each pilgrim present his own experience of his own speech, and so narratorial I stretches itself to point of transparency by occupying the whole field of moral (99). Another word that describes this plain style common, whether adjectival form (for instance, Ciceronian common profit, or res publica) or as noun (either denote commonwealth as whole, or specifically third estate, commons). All of these forms demonstrate its uniformly non-abstract, non-speculative cast (101) as well as fact that word hardly ever used pejorative sense. The style of public poetry well suited vision of poetry as a mediating activity (101). Ricardian poets invariably seek out (101), ernest and game, and of lust, sumwhat of lore (qtd on 101-02). For Gower this medial course implies a perspective less exclusively detached and cosmic, more implicated in, and circumscribed by, mortal world (102). This perspective evident character of Gower-as-Amans, which Middleton calls an implicated speaking presence (102). Moreover, whole enterprise of telling old exempla presents a 'middle weie' past and future, truth and our need for it (102). Latin colophon CA this middle way associated with notion of labour, for Gower locates his enterprise between work and leisure (inter labores et ocia; qtd on 101). The view that poetic composition for instruction of others fully legitimate way of doing one's share of world's work lends surprising dignity otherwise fairly modest claims of poetry. Gower claims speak for common vois and what this voice seeks above all peace and social harmony. This explains why Gower writes In Praise of Peace, as well as why Amans opposes Genius' argument that war confers glory which wins love. relation Amans, Middleton suggests that we should not dismiss figure of persona (Chaucer-the-Pilgrim, Gower-the-lover, Will-the-truthseeker) as merely fictive character and therefore dramatically circumscribed. Even though persona might not precisely represent opinions of author, we should nevertheless take him seriously (108), for suggestion he offers that this life we will never transcend worldly experience. As such, persona represents heroic effort achieve vantage point, effort that finally not treated satirically (incidentally, here and Appendix Middleton interacts with John Peter's work on satire and complaint). Indeed, this reality of living experientially demonstrated by fact that figures of instruction (Genius as well as Will's teachers) are a remarkably inept lot and not especially well disposed help seeker (110). The limits knowledge and perfection here and now are also evident lack of poetic closure Piers Plowman and CA, for these works do not end in world-transcendence, but some form of return world (111). her own form of closure, Middleton leaves for others speculate as historical causes for public poetry that flourished Ricardian England. [CvD]