Welcome to bibliophile.net

en Français auf Deutsch in Italiano

What's New

Search for Books

Bibliophile Registration

Bibliophile Login

Bookseller Homepages

Private Presses

Book Arts

Reference

Sell Books

Bookseller Login

Links

ammonet Web Sites

 Contact bibliophile.net

The Ship of Fools

In dunce's dance I take the lead,
Books useless, numerous my creed,
Which I can't understand or read.

Book fool

By Sebastian Brant
First published in Basel, 1494
Woodcut, maybe Dürer
trans. E.H. Zeydel

 

If on this ship I'm number one
For special reasons that was done,
Yes, I'm the first one here you see
Because I like my library.
Of splendid books I own no end,
But few that I can comprehend;
I cherish books of various ages
And keep the flies from off the pages.
Where art and science be professed
I say: At home I'm happiest,
I'm never better satisfied
Than when my books are by my side.
King Ptolemy did once decree
That he have all the books there be,
And thought he owned a treasure-trove,
But oh, he needed Christian love,
Could not profess the proper creed.
I, too, have many books indeed
But don't peruse them very much;
Why should I plague myself with such?
My head in booklore I'll not bury,
Who studies hard grows visionary;
A Dominie I well could be
And pay someone to learn for me;
Though I may be a vulgar lout
I can when scholars walk about
Say "ita" when I might say "yes".
The man of German tongue I bless;
Although my Latin isn't fine
I know than "vinum" stands for wine,
"Gluckus" a cuckold, "stultus" fool,
And I am "doctor", that's my rule;
My ears are covered up for me,
If they were not, an ass I'd be.


Take me back to buy more books!

All Original Material, Translations and HTML Coding Copyright © Jack A. Benson (ammonet) 1999 - 2000. All rights reserved.