Character Sketches of Romance, Fiction and the Drama Part 63

_Parthenope_ (4 _syl._), the damsel beloved by Prince Volscius.--Duke of Buckingham, _The Rehearsal_ (1671).

=Parthen'ope of Naples=, Sannazora, the Neapolitan poet called "The Christian Virgil." Most of his poems were published under the a.s.sumed name of _Actius Sincerus_ (1458-1530).

At last the Muses ... scattered ...

Their blooming wreaths from fair Valclusa's bowers [_Petrarch_]

To Arno [_Dante and Boccaccio_] ... and the sh.o.r.e Of soft Parthenope.

Akenside, _Pleasures of Imagination_, ii. (1744).

=Partington= (_Mrs._), an old lady of amusing affectations and ridiculous blunders of speech. Sheridan's "_Mrs. Malaprop_" and Smollett's "_Tabitha Bramble_" are similar characters.--B. P. s.h.i.+llaber (an American humorist).

I do not mean to be disrespectful; but the attempt of the lords to stop the progress of reform reminds me very forcibly of the great storm of Sidmouth, and the conduct of the excellent Mrs. Partington on that occasion. In the winter of 1824, there set in a great flood upon that town; the tide rose to an incredible height; the waves rushed in upon the houses; and everything was threatened with destruction. In the midst of this sublime storm, Dame Partington, who lived upon the beach, was seen at the door of her house with mop and pattens, trundling her mop, squeezing out the sea-water, and vigorously pus.h.i.+ng away the Atlantic Ocean. The Atlantic was roused, Mrs. Partington's spirit was up; but I need not tell you that the contest was unequal. The Atlantic beat Mrs. Partington.

She was excellent at a slop or puddle, but should never have meddled with a tempest.--Sydney Smith (speech at Taunton, 1831).

=Partlet=, the hen, in "The Nun's Priest's Tale," and in the famous beast-epic of _Reynard the Fox_ (1498).--Chaucer, _Canterbury Tales_ (1388).

_Sister Partlet with her hooded head_, the cloistered community of nuns; the Roman Catholic clergy being the "barn-door fowls."--Dryden, _Hind and Panther_ (1687).

=Partridge.= Talus was changed into a partridge.

_Partridge_, cobbler, quack, astrologer, and almanac-maker (died 1708).

Dean Swift wrote an elegy on him.

Here five feet deep, lies on his back, A cobbler, starmonger, and quack, Who, to the stars in pure gold will, Does to his best look upward still, Weep all you customers that use His pills, his almanacs, or shoes.

_Partridge_, the attendant of Tom Jones, as Strap, is of Smollett's "Roderick Random." Faithful, shrewd, and of child-like simplicity. He is half-barber and half-schoolmaster. His excitement in the play-house when he went to see Garrick in "Hamlet" is charming.--Fielding, _The History of Tom Jones_ (1749).

The humor of Smollett, although genuine and hearty, is coa.r.s.e and vulgar. He was superficial where Fielding showed deep insight; but he had a rude conception of generosity of which Fielding seems incapable. It is owing to this that "Strap" is superior to "Partridge."--Hazlitt, _Comic Writers_.

=Parvenue.= One of the O'Neals, being told that Barrett of Castlemone had only been 400 years in Ireland, replied, "I hate the upstart, which can only look back to yesterday."

=Parviz= ("_victorious_"), surname of Khosrou II. of Persia. He kept 15,000 female musicians, 6000 household officers, 20,500 saddle-mules, 960 elephants, 200 slaves to scatter perfumes when he went abroad, and 1000 sekabers to water the roads before him. His horse, s.h.i.+bdiz, was called "the Persian Bucephalus."

The reigns of Khosrou I. and II. were the golden period of Persian history.

=Parzival=, the hero and t.i.tle of a metrical romance, by Wolfram v.

Eschenbach. Parzival was brought up by a widowed mother, in solitude, but when grown to manhood, two wandering knights persuaded him to go to the court of King Arthur. His mother, hoping to deter him, consented to his going if he would wear the dress of a common jester. This he did, but soon achieved such n.o.ble deeds that Arthur made him a knight of the Round Table. Sir Parzival went in quest of the Holy Graal, which was kept in a magnificent castle called Graalburg, in Spain, built by the royal priest t.i.turel. He reached the castle, but having neglected certain conditions, was shut out, and, on his return, the priestess of Graalburg insisted on his being expelled the court and degraded from knighthood. Parzival then led a new life of abstinence and self-abnegation, and a wise hermit became his instructor. At length he reached such a state of purity and sanct.i.ty that the priestess of Graalburg declared him worthy to become lord of the castle (1205).

? This, of course, is an allegory of a Christian giving up everything in order to be admitted a priest and king in the city of G.o.d, and becoming a fool in order to learn true wisdom (see 1 _Cor._ iii. 18).

=Pasquin=, a Roman cobbler of the latter half of the fifteenth century, whose shop stood in the neighborhood of the Braschi palace near the Piazza Navoni. He was noted for his caustic remarks and bitter sayings.

After his death, a mutilated statue near the shop was called by his name, and made the repository of all the bitter epigrams and satirical verses of the city; hence called _pasquinades_ (3 _syl._).

=Pa.s.samonte= (_Gines de_), the galley-slave set free by Don Quixote. He returned the favor by stealing Sancho's wallet and a.s.s. Subsequently he reappeared as a puppet-showman.--Cervantes, _Don Quixote_.

=Pa.s.satore= (_Il_), a t.i.tle a.s.sumed by Belli'no, an Italian bandit chief who died 1851.

=Pa.s.sel'yon=, a young foundling brought up by Morgan la Fee. He was detected in an intrigue with Morgan's daughter. The adventures of this amorous youth are related in the romance called _Perceforest_, iii.

=Pa.s.se Rose=, fair orphan girl, warm of heart and single of purpose.

Ingenuous as a babe, and made strong by love. Her adventures are the theme of the novel bearing her name.--Arthur Sherburne Hardy, _Pa.s.se Rose_ (1889).

=Pa.s.setreul=, the name of Sir Tristram's horse.

=Pa.s.se-tyme of Plesure=, an allegorical poem in forty-six capitulos and in seven-line stanzas, by Stephen Hawes (1506)[TN-66] The poet supposes that while Graunde Amoure was walking in a meadow he encountered Fame, "enuyroned with tongues of fyre," who told him about La bell Pucell, a ladye fair, living in the Tower of Musike, and then departed, leaving him under the charge of Gouernaunce and Grace, who conducted him to the Tower of Doctrine. Countenaunce, the portress, showed him over the tower, and Lady Science sent him to Gramer. Afterwards he was sent to Logyke, Rethorike, Inuention, Arismetrike and Musike. In the Tower of Musike he met La bell Pucell, pleaded his love, and was kindly entreated; but they were obliged to part for the time being, while Graunde Amoure continued his "pa.s.se-tyme of plesure." On quitting La bell Pucell he went to Geometrye and then to Dame Astronomy. Then, leaving the Tower of Science, he entered that of Chyualry. Here Mynerue introduced him to Kyng Melyzyus, after which he went to the temple of Venus, who sent a letter on his behalf to La bell Pucell. Meanwhile the giant False Report (or G.o.dfrey Gobilyue) met him, and put him to great distress in the house of Correction, but Perceueraunce at length conducted him to the manor-house of Dame Comfort. After sundry trials Graunde Amoure married La bell Pucell, and, after many a long day of happiness and love, was arrested by Age, who took him before Policye and Auarice. Death in time came for him, and Remembraunce wrote his epitaph.

=Pastor Fi'do= (_Il_), a pastoral by Giovanni Battista Guari'ni of Ferrara (1585).

=Pastoral Romance= (_The Father of_), Honore d'Urfe (1567-1625).

=Pastorella=, the fair shepherdess (bk. vi. 9), beloved by Corydon, but "neither for him nor any other did she care a whit." She was a foundling, brought up by the shepherd Melibee. When Sir Calidore (3 _syl._) was the shepherd's guest, he fell in love with the fair foundling, who returned his love. During the absence of Sir Calidore in a hunting expedition, Pastorella, with Melibee and Corydon, were carried off by brigands. Melibee was killed, Corydon effected his escape, and Pastorella was wounded. Sir Calidore went to rescue his shepherdess, killed the brigand chief, and brought back the captive in safety (bk.

vi. 11). He took her to Belgard Castle, and it turned out that the beautiful foundling was the daughter of Lady Claribel and Sir Bellamour (bk, vi. 12).--Spenser, _Faery Queen_, vi. 9-12 (1596).

"Pastorella" is meant for Frances Walsingham, daughter of Sir Francis Walsingham, whom Sir Philip Sidney ("Sir Calidore") married. After Sidney's death the widow married the earl of Ess.e.x (the queen's favorite). Sir Philip being the author of a romance called _Arcadia_ suggested to the poet the name Pastorella.

=Patch=, the clever, intriguing waiting-woman of Isabinda, daughter of Sir Jealous Traffick. As she was handing a love-letter in cipher to her mistress, she let it fall, and Sir Jealous picked it up. He could not read it, but insisted on knowing what it meant. "O," cried the ready wit, "it is a charm for the toothache!" and the suspicions of Sir Jealous were diverted (act iv. 2).--Mrs. Centlivre, _The Busy Body_ (1709).

_Patch_ (_Clause_), king of the beggars. He died in 1730, and was succeeded by Bampfylde Moore Carew.

=Patche= (1 _syl._), Cardinal Wolsey's jester. When the cardinal felt his favor giving way, he sent Patche as a gift to the king, and Henry VIII.

considered the gift a most acceptable one.

We call one Patche or Cowlson, whom we see to do a thing foolishly, because these two in their time were notable fools.--Wilson, _Art of Rhetorique_ (1553).

=Patelin= (2 _syl._), the hero of an ancient French comedy. He contrives to obtain on credit six ells of cloth from William Josseaume, by artfully praising the tradesman's father. Any subtle, crafty fellow, who entices by flattery and insinuating arts, is called a Patelin.--P.

Blanchet, _L'Avocat Patelin_ (1459-1519).

On lui attribue, mais a tort, la farce de _L'Avocat Patelin_, qui est plus ancienne que lui.--Bouillet, _Dictionary Universel d'Histoire, etc._, art. "Blanchet."