Benford's G&S Lexicon Entries for Iolanthe

Discipline it. Kill it!

The term "amorous dove" seems obvious enough, but why relate it to Ovid two lines later? Some say that Ovid likened himself to a dove. Others say the allusion is to Ovid's amorous poetry. A third view is that in ancient times the dove was looked upon as a sensuous and fickle creature, sacred to Venus and hence something of a sex symbol. You are free to accept any or all of these hypotheses.

One meaning of the word, which applies here, is "a perfect example" (97).

Pronunciation: oh-VID-ius NAY-so

The water main leading to a fire hydrant.

In Gilbert's day Captain Eyre Massey Shaw (1830-1908) was the well-known and popular leader of the London Fire Brigade. Gilbert knew the good man would be in the Savoy on opening night and the contralto could look right at him. Do you suppose he blushed?

Note: The next five entries are from the De Belville song, which is usually omitted in performance. The words may be found in Reference (126) under "The Reward of Merit," as well as in Allen's First Night Gilbert and Sullivan (3). There are in the overture to Iolanthe some musical phrases that do not reappear in the body of the opera. This is unique in a Savoy opera overture and suggests that the music may have been composed for the De Belville song. It was nicely applied to those words on one occasion by the University of Michigan Gilbert & Sullivan Society.]

The imaginary protagonist of the song mentioned above. He was a man of many talents and virtues, which were ignored until a distant cousin died and he inherited great wealth. In one book (126) he is referred to as "Dr. Bellville," whereas in the other (3) he is "De Belville," perhaps at Sullivan's suggestion; or perhaps the "De" is right and the "Dr." is a typographical error.

Pronunciation: CRY-tun

The reference is to James Crichton ("the admirable Crichton"), a young Scottish scholar, adventurer, linguist, and chosen companion of nobility. He was widely admired for his intellectual capacity, beauty, and physical prowess. He lived from 1560 to 1583, going to an early death in an altercation that could have formed the theme of a tragic opera (105).

The "line" is where the supposedly best paintings were hung at Royal Academy shows (273).

John Ruskin was an English author, art critic, and social reformer (1819-1900). He was a highly regarded critic and a professor of fine arts at Oxford (105).

These were cheap journals of little acclaim. When Gilbert used the poem in Reference (126), he changed the words to "Quarterly Reviews." These were of high intellectual standard and influential (245).

Of highest importance.

Unreturned.

Burdens.

A bed coverlet.

Strong cotton or linen covering for mattresses or pillows.

Pronunciation: Rhymes with carriage.

The carriage referred to here was a railroad coach. There were actually three classes of cars in those days.

Prestige (243) assures us this is "a quantity of ice cream purchased for a penny from a street vendor."

These are adjacent stations in the London transit system near where Gilbert lived in South Kensington. He claimed, incidentally, that the plot for his short story and, later, play Comedy and Tragedy came to him while riding between the two stations (140).

A shire (county) in the southwest of England, just east of Cornwall.

Prestige (243) explains that this is a horse-drawn hackney carriage, that is, a vehicle that you could hire. The word hackney is apparently derived from the French haquenée, an ambling nag (41).

Card games in which each player takes his turn in sequence around the table, playing for himself, without a partner.

Ornamental stitchings on socks, on each side of the ankle.

Common sailors. See HMS Pinafore for derivation.

Heavy ropes such as those used to anchor ships.