[Sidenote: How weak an error is it to believe that anything
foreign to your nature can be an
ornament
to it.
Chaucer - Boethius
?e knowyng of it self. ?an it is
brou?t byne?en alle beestes.
[Sidenote: Ignorance is natural to beasts, but in men it is
unnatural and criminal.]
? For-why alle o?er
[leuynge] beestes han of kynde to knowe not hem 1296
self. but whan ?at men leten ?e knowyng of hem self.
it come? hem of vice.
[Sidenote: How weak an error is it to believe that anything
foreign to your nature can be an
ornament
to it.
]
but how brode shewe? ?e erro{ur}
{and} ?e folie of ?ow men ?at wenen ?at ony ?ing may
ben apparailled wi? straunge apparaillement? ? but 1300
for-so?e ?at may nat be don.
[Sidenote: If a thing appear beautiful on account of its external
embellishments, we admire and praise those embellishments alone.]
