MILKMAID (excerpt) — Thomas Hardy
Under a daisied bank
There stands a rich red ruminating cow,
And hard against her flank
A cotton-hooded milkmaid bends her brow.
The flowery river-ooze
Upheaves and falls; the milk purrs in the pail;
Few pilgrims but would choose
The peace of such a life in such a vale.
The maid breathes words–to vent,
It seems, her sense of Nature’s scenery,
Of whose life, sentiment,
And essence, very part itself is she…
SONGS about MILKMAIDS:
- The Milkmaid by The Longest Johns (sea chanty):https://youtu.be/uyGmTFOkKnk
- Nellie the Milkmaid performed by Corinne Coles (British folk song): https://youtu.be/XlIYnFn41Co
- The Milkmaid’s Song performed by Storybook of Children’s Songs (childrens music): https://youtu.be/2fyZGk_qK08
- The Milkmaid’s Song performed by Delia Zalinska (opera): https://youtu.be/_FuE0x1YVWk
- The Little Milkmaid performed by Ian Partordge (opera – tenor): https://youtu.be/1r9KnzBX5kQ
- Milkmaid Song performed by Classical Clarinet Quartet (folk): https://youtu.be/y7_AeqVVeVg
SYMBOLISM THEORIES for Eight Milkmaids
On the Eighth Day of Christmas…Eight Maids A-Milking — Chuck Nugent, ttps://discover.hubpages.com/holidays/On_the_Eighth_Day_of_Christmas
The eight maids a-milking addresses two of the major themes of fifteenth and sixteenth century English celebrations and parties during the Christmas holidays – food and romance. What is a feast or party without food? Especially foods that are not common and are reserved for special occasions.
Until the advent of refrigeration, milk was not a common drink because it spoiled quickly. However, milk based products that did not spoil, such as cheese, sour milk (which is actually a cultured milk much like yogurt and is neither sour tasting nor spoiled) and custards were prized treats. Cheese and sour milk are the result of processes that expose milk to so called friendly bacteria which convert the milk to a state where it can be preserved for a longer period and is also tasty. Custard is similar but this involves the cooking of the milk, which kills the harmful bacteria thereby extending the period during which it can be safely consumed.
The maids, of course, refer to the women who would milk the cows to obtain the milk in the first place. In times past milking of cows or goats was typically a job for women. However, the term maid is also the shortened form of maiden which is a young, unmarried, woman. By combining the images of maiden and milk (which can also bring to mind a woman’s breasts), it is easy to get the idea that this particular gift has more to do with sex and romance than with cows.
“Maids A-Milking” Can Refer to Both Dining or a Sexual Encounter
The term eight maids a-milking evokes images of the food, especially the special holiday foods, to be enjoyed at this festive time of year as well as the possibilities for romance, both licit and illicit.
While the people of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries were not as prudish as the nineteenth century Victorians, there was still pressure, especially for women, to maintain a somewhat chaste image in public. Young upper class (both merchant class and nobility) women were usually chaperoned when in public and when being courted by young men.
However, during the Twelfth Night celebrations not only were many of the rules of behavior relaxed but the environment in which the parties were held provided opportunities to escape the watchful eyes of the public. In the midst of a large group of people, many of them strangers, who were busy drinking, dancing and having a good time, it was easy to slip away from one’s chaperon or spouse.
Masked and costumed balls increased the opportunities for secret liaisons as well as providing additional means of denying your actions the next day. With candles and torches the sole source of lighting, it was often difficult to identify people across the room let alone in the numerous rooms and darkened alcoves found in the castles and large manor houses where the parties were held. The opportunities offered for some passionate time alone with a lover or a quick one night stand with a stranger were a major attraction of these parties.
Further evidence of the sexual connotations of this stanza is the fact that during this time period in England the term to go a-milking had strong romantic and sexual connotations. It was a term that men used when they wanted to ask a woman to marry them or to have a simple sexual encounter.
Like similar expressions people use today, asking a woman to go a-milking was a code used by men to test a woman’s response to their intentions. Words have meaning and they carry emotional impact. Requests also require a response. Will you marry me and will you go a-milking with me may convey the same message but the nonsense phrase go a-milking does not carry the emotional impact of marry me or come to bed with me.
Coded phrases like this allow people to converse more freely while at the same time allowing them to retract a statement more easily. When a man asks a woman to marry him and she says no what can he respond back with without looking desperate and/or foolish? But, when he asks a woman to go a-milking with him and she replies with a no he can easily come back with something like “well, I just thought you would like to help me with the cows.” In this case his proposal was received and understood but rejected, at least temporarily. However both are able to dismiss it as a misunderstanding of what he really meant. Both laugh and can proceed without loss of dignity on either side.
Healthful Living – MidPhase: full aarticle: https://www.midphase.com/blog/twelve-days-of-christmas-eight-maids-a-milking/
On the eighth day a true love gifts eight maids a-milking to his one and only. A somewhat strange gift, we know, but we have formed a hypothesis for exactly how this strange present could have been a lifesaver from the phrase “smooth as a milkmaid’s skin.”
This story actually harks back to the days before vaccinations were invented in the late 18th century. Some began to notice that milkmaids always had vibrant skin, clear of any dangerous pox that plagued the era. During this time, the country had been afflicted from the deadly disease known as smallpox. An English physician by the name of Edward Jenner took notice of the milkmaids’ beautiful skin and began to research this strange occurrence.
The answer amounted to another disease called cowpox. Milkmaids were exposed to cowpox during the milking process when the cows’ udders became infected. Jenner discovered that milkmaids who had been infected with cowpox didn’t show symptoms of smallpox. Although very similar to smallpox, cowpox was much milder and rarely resulted in death.
Jenner experimented with the relationship with the two diseases by extracting fluid from a cowpox sore and injected the fluid into an eight-year-old boy (not very ethical by today’s standards, but we will let it slide). A week later Jenner exposed the boy to smallpox and waited for a result. Amazingly, the boy didn’t get sick and was completely resistant to smallpox for the rest of his life. Jenner had succeeded in his fight against smallpox. Through this process a cure was discovered and countless lives were saved.
Medicine over the years has built upon Jenner’s early experimentation with diseases. You could safely say that without his somewhat risky research we might not have the life-saving vaccinations we do today. Through Jenner’s work smallpox was eradicated from the world.
So, the next time your true love offers you eight milkmaids to show you that he cares – be glad, for you never know the secrets that milkmaids hold!
ALTERNATE IDEAS about Eight Maids A-Milking
Servant Leadership
Representing the common man whom Christ had come to serve and save. When the song was written, no job in England was lower than working in a barn, and for a female servant to be used in this way indicated that she was worth little to her master. Christ was the true servant, even giving His life for His people. The number eight also represents the beatitudes listed in Matthew 5: 3-10 Blessed are the poor in spirit, those who mourn, the meek, the hungry, the merciful, the pure of heart, the peacemaker, and the righteous. — Hampshire Pewter
The 8 Maids-a-milking & the 8 Beatitudes— Carolyn Cornell Holland, full article: https://carolyncholland.wordpress.com/2014/12/18/the-8-maids-a-milking-the-8-beatitudes/
The eight maids a-milking addresses two of the major themes of fifteenth and sixteenth century English celebrations and parties during the Christmas holidays – food and romance.
Typically, the work of milking cows (and goats) was a woman’s job. Although milk was not a common beverage during this pre-refrigeration time (it spoiled too quickly), milk based products did not spoil so rapidly. Cheese, sour milk, and custards—which were prized treats for celebrations.
And the word maid? It’s a shortened form of maiden, a young, unmarried woman.
This combination of milking and maid lends itself to the idea that a gift of eight maids-a-milking might have more to do with romance than with cows.
During this time period the term go a-milking did have strong romantic connotations. Men used the term when they wanted to propose marriage (or a sexual encounter) with a woman. It was a kind of a code word to test a woman’s response—if she reacts negatively, he can always say he thought she might like to help him with the cows, and they could laugh.
Remember, the gifts in the popular Christmas song The Twelve Days of Christmas each signify a Christian message.
So what do the maids-a-milking signify in the popular Christmas song The Twelve Days of Christmas?
Interestingly enough, it is a code word for the eight Beatitudes that introduce the greatest sermon ever preached: the Sermon on the Mount—Matthew 5:1-12.
The Sermon on the Mount, preached by Jesus, starts with a list of eight Beatitudes:
- v. 3 Blessed are the poor in spirit.
- v. 4 Blessed are those who mourn.
- v. 5.Blessed are the meek.
- v.6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.
- v. 7 Blessed are the merciful.
- v. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart.
- v. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers.
- v.10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake. (And v.11 Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.)**