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For the purposes of the new edition, every poem has been assigned a unique short title. The original short titles, taken eclectically from a number of sources, are retained as alternative short titles.
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| CSM Number : 399 | |||
| Short name: | The Mother who Tried to Kill her Baby | Alternative: | Mother attempts to kill infant |
| Incipit: | Quen usar na de Deus Madre | ||
| Refrain: | Quen usar na de Deus Madre/ falar e amiga/ non lle falirán razões/ mui bõas que diga. | ||
| Summary of narrative | |||
| Setting: | Elvas | Protagonist(s): | a poor woman [almost certainly a prostitute] |
|
A poor woman gave birth to a lovely son. Because she was vain and wanted to keep leading an immoral life, she decided to get rid of the child. She thought no more of killing him than she would an ant. She placed the baby on her lap and looked for a stone. Instead, she found a long needle and was about to plunge it through his head. She said didn’t gain anything by wasting her time on him. But the Virgin suddenly appeared to her and begged her not to kill the child. She told her to make her confession to a monk and promised to help her in her misfortune. The woman did what the Virgin had instructed and entered a religious order. Everyone gave thanks for the miracle and they had that little boy raised properly. |
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| Metrical data | |||
| Stanza: | 13' 13' 13' 13' | Refrain: | 13' 13' |
| No. of Stanzas: | 11 | ||
| Rhyme scheme: | AA | bbba | Zejel: | Yes |
| MS locations: | |||
| E399 | |||
| Poncelet reference | |||
| None | |||
| Keywords | |||
| apparition, children, confession (see also repentance), infanticide, murder, needle, church (construction of) , dice, fig, habit (monastic), hanging, holy orders | |||
| Discography | |||
| Click HERE for a list of recordings of this poem | |||
| BITAGAP ID | |||
| 4017 | |||
| Bibliography | |||
| Entre Ave y Eva: las mujeres de las Cantigas de Santa María. II. Las trabajadoras. III. Las Evas Fidalgo, Elvira | |||
| Milagres e romarias portuguesas nas Cantigas de Santa Maria Martins, Mário | |||
| Lendas portuguesas de apariçoes de Nossa Senhora nas Cantigas de Santa Maria Martins, Mário | |||
| Aberturas e finais: rubricas, refrães, estrofes iniciais e estrofes terminais nas Cantigas de Santa Maria Parkinson, Stephen | |||
| La pecadora penitente en el teatro español: Sus fuentes y evolución Sánchez Castañer y Mena, Francisco | |||