THE FIRST VIAL Cover Art

The cover art for The First Vial was taken from this painting by Pieter Bruegel the Elder. Called The Triumph of Death, Bruegel painted it in the mid 1500's to be a reflection of the social upheaval and terror following the devastation of the medieval plague.  Our cover can be found in the lower left corner of the painting. The top right hand corner has an almost futuristic feel about it. Perhaps it may even be considered a little prophetic as the plague was thought by most to be a scourge of the past yet still materializes from time to time. Today, with early detection and treatment, antibiotics can kill the bacteria that causes plague, saving its victims.

The artist did not focus only on macabre scenes like this one. He was given the name 'Bruegel the Peasant' for allegedly dressing up like a peasant. This disguise allowed him to mingle at weddings and other peasant celebrations in order to gain inspiration and authentic details for paintings such as the one below, The Peasant Dance.

STUDENTS HAVING FURTHER QUESTIONS NOT ANSWERED PREVIOUSLY MAY ASK THEIR QUESTIONS IN THE COMMENTS SECTION BELOW THIS POST.

SO, IS THERE A MOVIE?

Not in the theatre but some creative students made a youtube video a couple of years ago parodying a few scenes. You can watch it here.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U2s_Mm6ROJM

The students have taken some liberties with the storyline. After all, there were corpses in the death pit not stuffed toys and Benjamin wasn't a teddy bear. No really, he wasn't.

SELFISHNESS OR SACRIFICE

Anonymous asked - "What do you consider more important regarding the social context of the book - Selfishness or Sacrifice?"

The plague years were a time of extreme social stress. Whole towns could die overnight and no one really knew why. In a social environment of fear and hysteria people will react differently depending on their immediate environment.

For example, Katherine had a different social context than Father Simon. She was the leader of her immediate social group and lived in harmony with a large number of servants and tenants. It was a supportive community and so she more easily felt a sense of moral responsibility toward her people and would make the sacrifices necessary to keep thenm safe.

Father Simon on the other hand, lived in virtual isolation with a few servants who feared and hated him. Albeit of his own making, his social context was one of loneliness, hostility and mistrust. Feeling excluded from general society it was much easier for him to react selfishly and vindictively.

I don't think one response is more important than the other. Both are significant and act like a mirror to reflect the realities of human nature within immediate social context. I personally value sacrifice over selfishness so sacrifice played a larger role in the book.

Why book is called "The First Vial"

Recently a student asked why my novel was called 'First Vial'.

Immediately beneath CHAPTER 1 I have quoted a verse from the Bible. "And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore."

In the middle ages a frightened populace referred to the plague as 'noisome' and this biblical passage seemed to fit that description. The verse spoke of the first of seven vials being poured out on the earth and carrying an awful sore similar to the black plague. As much of what happens in the novel is as a result of the plague sweeping over England, I thought it was an appropriate title.

MEDIEVAL MEDICINE

Medieval medicine was practiced by university trained physicians, monks who copied out medical manuscripts and so gained medical knowledge and folk healers who administered remedies passed down by elders.

The all-male university trained physicians generally looked after the wealthy, their services being too expensive for the average person. Folk healers made use of herbal remedies, healings stones and charms. They also used spells and incantations which eventually led to witch hunting and the execution of thousands of folk healers so skilled they were accused of being in league with the devil, much like Hester and Nettie in The First Vial.
Angelica (wild celery) was thought to protect against witchcraft and to be the only herb witches never used. Wise folk healers took advantage of this superstition and grew the herb in their gardens or left some in their homes to prevent possible charges of witchcraft being raised against them.

The physicians, who distrusted and disdained folk healers, weren't so very much different. They held to an idea that the color of flowers indicated a plant's effectiveness in treating disease. The yellow flowers of dandelions might be used to treat jaundice, a disease of the liver that turns skin a yellowish tinge - a kind of color healing derived from the principles of sympathetic magic.

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Welcome Students - Fall 2009

Welcome to another year of reading. I hope you will enjoy THE FIRST VIAL. As always, if you have any questions with regard to the novel or the medieval period, please feel free to ask.

For additional reading see my related articles for online magazine Suite 101.

Medieval Knights and Tournaments Jousting in the Middle Ages Mimicked Medieval Warfare
Knights in combat embody our modern view of Medieval life

Food in Medieval Times What People Ate in the Middle Ages
The staple diet of medieval man was bread, meat and fish. What was eaten and how it was served varied considerably depending on social station.

Fashion and Dress in the Middle Ages What People Wore in Medieval England
Sumptuary laws established in the middle ages restricted clothing expenditures to maintain class structure.

STORY APPLICATION

Anonymous asked: How can I relate this book to the real world?

Simply put, people in every age face the challenges of daily living. How we respond to those challenges and make choices defines our character.

When Katherine was faced with the plague, what did she do?

Katherine endeavored to bring her entire household to safety, knowing that a large caravan of people and goods was sure to attract the attention of highway robbers. She put her own life in danger to protect others and continued to do so when they were attacked on the road.

What did the priest do?

The priest sent men to steal from those who lay helpless and dying in their beds and confiscated Katherine's castle.

In a crisis, what will you do?

For many people the horrors of New Orleans have not faded. Some saved themselves and attacked and stole from their friends and neighbors. Some helped others despite personal peril.

Now as then, choice defines character.

Answers to Student Questions

Who is the meat turner of the castle?

Old Henry is the meat turner. He's introduced when Katherine goes to the kitchen before the feast on the night their room is set on fire.

What is the river that surrounds Katherine's castle?

Its name is the Wyvern.

MEDIEVAL CHIVALRY

How did the 'Order of the Garter' come about?
Medieval knighhood is today associated with horsemanship and jousting tournaments but its beginnings boasted a code of honor that idealized such things as courage, strength, mercy and courtly love.

When Edward III returned to England from his triumph at Crecy and Calais, the enthusiastic welcome of the people encouraged him to establish a great and mysterious new order to succeed Arthur's Round Table.

Bound in black velvet, the official register of the Order was called the Black Book. The register was completed near the end of the reign of Henry VII although much of the facts of the order are vague and rely for the most part on heresay.

Members of the Order
Edward III announced his intention of establishing the Order at a feast held shortly after his victory in France. He planned to call the Order the Knights of the Blue Garter. It was once thought that the original members were some forty guests at the feast where the statement was made and all of the king's sons were included. However, it is now accepted that the original enrolment was twenty-five and included only one of the king's sons, the Black Prince.

Selecting a Name for the Order
Many explanations for the selection of the name of the Order have arisen but in THE FIRST VIAL I have used the legend that gained the most favor - the story of the Countess of Salisbury and the king.

A handsome man, Edward III had a roving eye and when he chanced to spend the night in Wark Castle, he succumbed to the charms of its lovely chatelaine, Countess of Salisbury. The countess was alone, her husband a prisoner in France at the time, and the king was inclined to take advantage of his absence. Gently but firmly, the countess refused him and begged him to consider her honor. The king respected her decision and left early the next morning.
On the night of the great ball held at Windsor Castle to inaugurate the order, the countess lost a garter during the dancing. The king retrieved the jewel-encrusted silken piece and put it on his own sleeve, saying loudly enough for all to hear, "Evil to him who evil thinks." This phrase became the motto of the Order.

The Order of the Garter remains a British tradition. The Garter is a dark blue velvet ribband buckled and edged with gold with the motto of the Order in gold letters, decorated with gold embroidered roses and gold chains.

STONEHENGE

Photo taken in 1877 before reconstruction of the stones.

Stonehenge is the stuff of legends. Presumed to have been built in three phases beginning around 3000 BC with completion in about 1400 BC, the megalithic site was used for several hundred years and then abandoned.
But how and why was it constructed? Those questions have given rise to some pretty bizarre speculations. As poor Ciscilla ran amok among the giant rocks of Stonehenge in THE FIRST VIAL, I thought it might be fun to have a look at some of them.

How did the stones get there?

One theory had it that the stones were erected during the days of Adam, the antediluvians being much taller and stronger, and were knocked down by the Flood.
According to folklore, the Devil bought the stones from a woman in Ireland, wrapped them up and brought them to Salisbury Plain.
Another theory is that the Druids erected the structure by means of magic when they arrived in Britain in the 6th century BC.
The theory most prevalent in the medieval period of THE FIRST VIAL was this.
The rocks of Stonehenge were brought from Africa to Ireland by giants. Wishing to erect a memorial to 3,000 nobles who died in battle with the Saxons, the king sent Merlin and 15,000 knights to Ireland to retrieve the rocks. When the knights found it impossible to move them, Merlin 'sent' the stones to Britain where they were dedicated as The Giants' Ring.
Although such speculation is fun, the most likely 'how' is that they were put on rafts, transported by water, then dragged on rollers. If men moved the stones it is estimated that five hundred men working with ropes, would be needed to pull just one of the enormous stones.

And why?

The Devil did it so men would forever ask, "How did those stones get there?"
The Druids dedicated Stonehenge as a place for human sacrifices and other horrific rituals presided over by white-robbed, bloody-handed priests.
A less grisly use proposed was that of an observatory to predict the sun and moon's position to the earth to determine the seasons.
Merlin's Stonehenge was a place of memorial, also used as a healing centre owing to the idea that the stones had healing properties.
Another medieval theory is that what they called 'the hanging stones' was not a reference to the stones themselves, which appeared to hang in midair, but to criminals who may have hung from them.

In the end, Stonehenge remains a mystery but in August of this year, one hundred fifty archaeologists worked on excavations at the site. Perhaps their findings will lead to less fanciful theories!

DEATH OF A KING

How did Edward II meet his end?
What was the ghastly murder?

Edward II had a weak character and always needed someone to lean on. He was a disorganized man, a poor ruler.

When his son (who became Edward III) was fifteen years old, Edward II was deposed with these scathing words from Parliament's proctor - 'I do make this protestation in the name of all those that will not, for the future, be in your fealty or allegiance; nor claim to hold anything of you as king but account you as a private person, without any manner of royal dignity.'

A deposed monarch is considered a menace and a rallying point for all discontent and a violent solution is often found for a defeated ruler. Poor Edward II fared no better.

Eventually confined to a little cell in Berkeley Castle, a night came when the other inmates of the castle were awakened from sleep by shrieks emenating from the king's cell. The horror and agony in his cries were so loud that they reached the ears of the village nearby. Knowing full well what it meant, the people hid their heads under the bedclothes.

In the morning it was told that Edward had expired in the night from natural causes and the guards and domestic staff were permitted to view his body. It was laid out on a disordered bed in his cell and all saw that the features of the dead man were still contorted with violence and pain. And for good reason. The assassins waited until their victim was sound asleep then flung a table on top of him. While two men held down the table, a third proceeded to burn out his inside organs with a red-hot bar of iron. Inserted through a horn, no marks were made on the surface of the body.

So ended the life of this unfortunate king.

QUESTION FOR STUDENTS

A sentence from THE FIRST VIAL reads -

"He was a popular king for he had hung, drawn and quartered the hated and vicious cuckold Mortimer, who had seduced his mother, Isabella, and contrived the ghastly murder of his father, Edward II."

How did Edward II meet his end?
What was "the ghastly murder"?

I will send a FIRST VIAL bookmark to the first five readers to submit the right answer. You answer should include the source of your information.

Post you answer in 'Comments'.

Good luck to all!

THEME

Posted in comments, Anonymous asked what, in my opinion, were the themes in The First Vial.

The principal theme in The First Vial is one of resilience - the resilience of the human spirit - accompanied at several junctures by a motif of fire.
Katherine's resilience is tested in connection with fire at three points - the burning bed, the burning field and the burning stake. At any one of those points Katherine's spirit could have been crushed, but each time although discouraged, she regained inner strength and did not give in to hopelessness or fear.
It also seemed fitting to me that the one attempting to use fire as a tool against her should himself be overcome by fire.

How did villagers live?

What were their houses like?

Most villagers, regardless of status, lived in poorly built houses that had to be completely renewed nearly every generation. That means if your father built the family home then you'd likely have to rebuild it to house your own family.
The commonest type of home was called a three-bay house with a single high-ceiling hall and three, fifteen foot square framed sections or bays. Dwellings lodged animals as well as human beings but the byre was usually partitioned off from the rest of the house. Thank goodness!
Light came in from a few small shuttered windows, although the poorest had no shutters, simply old sacking. Doors were left open during the day and children and animals wandered in and out.
Floors were of dirt, covered with straw or rushes. The home was heated and meals cooked on a central fire raised slightly on a stone hearth. Venting for the fire was through a hole in the roof and lacking a hole, the only escape for smoke was through windows and doors. The hall was usually black with smoke and the cat sitting by the fire frequently singed her fur!
The family ate their meals seated on benches or stools drawn up to a trestle table. They seldom had chairs.
When they bathed, which wasn't often, they used a barrel with the top removed. Carrying and heating water for the barrel was such a huge task that the family took turns bathing in the same water.
At night they slept on straw pallets. We've certainly come a long way from those days!

For those of you looking for books to read, TeensReadToo.com is an online site developed especially for young adult and teen readers. Check it out for book reviews, author interviews and contests for readers.
TeensReadToo.com has kindly reviewed The First Vial and posted their review on amazon.com and amazon.ca.

ANY MORE QUESTIONS?

As the school reading programs are now in full swing, I'd like to remind students to feel free to ask any questions that haven't been covered on this page.
Do you want to know more about the medieval period?
Do you want to know more about the novel?
Do you like to write stories and are you interested in learning more about the writing life and getting published?
Fire Away! I'm ready!

COPING WITH FEAR

How did people react when they found out they had the plague?
Some accepted their fate with calm resignation and simply crawled into bed and waited to die. Others turned to drink and stayed drunk until the end. Many became mentally unhinged, threw themselves out of high windows, chased after the carts collecting bodies of plague victims and climbed up to lie with the dead or jumped into the giant burial pits. Women might take as many lovers as would have them so as not to be alone when they died. There was even a notion put about that a cheerful mind, obtained mainly through gaiety and dissolute living, was an effective preventative and even a cure against the Black Plague. Benvenuto Cellini of Rome embraced the idea wholeheartedly and made a conscious effort to promote such cheerfulness by shooting pigeons among ancient monuments and chasing after the city's serving girls. The latter indulgence appears to have brought him the infection and he was struck with a crushing headache, black boils and one hideously large carbuncle. His household fled in panic, leaving him alone. Frightened at first, Cellini rallied and went out riding on a little wild pony, the only source of amusement left to him. He recovered and he and other survivors formed a club of all the leading painters, sculptors and goldsmiths of Rome. Not surprisingly, the club was devoted more to merrymaking than to artistic discussion.

Plague Mortality

Did all plague victims die?



There were two forms of the Black Death - bubonic plague and pneumonic plague.

Those with bubonic plague exhibited the tell-tale mark of the bubo, or tumor, under the armpits or in the groin area; a tumor which could be as large as an apple and indicated an inflammation of the lymphatic glands. Some victims recovered after extended suffering. Many were restored to health if the tumors could be lanced. Lancing proved a difficult procedure as the skin covering the bubo was thick and tough.

The pneumonic plague was more virulent, as sufferers also contracted pneumonia, surviving no more than two days.

Some people displayed small black pustules scattered all over their bodies. These poor wretches all died. There are no recorded recoveries.

Women's Freedom

Isn't it historically inaccurate for Katherine to have so much freedom?

Not really. One has to keep in mind that the common sources of information on medieval women came from the writings of church fathers, theologians and preachers as well as literary works - romances, poems, moral essays and tales. These have been taken literally with no allowance made for artistic exaggeration or satiric intent.
It is worthwhile to note the book, "Memoirs of a Medieval Woman" by Louise Collis. The book is about a woman who deserted her husband and fourteen children to journey across Europe meeting famous people and getting into all kinds of trouble. Margery Kempe was a real medieval woman, strong willed and free to do as she pleased. Armed with this kind of information I thought it was well within the realm of possibility for Katherine to exercise her own freedom.

Research & Resources

Where did you find your information on the topic?

My research material came from a variety of sources - the public library, my book club, book stores and flea markets. Anywhere I found anything on the medieval period I snatched it up. I picked up costume books, books on building castles, books on knights, armour and jousting. I even found a terrific picture of the cross section of a castle showing ususal room layouts. Most of the descriptions of the plague were drawn from "A Journal of the Plague Year" by Daniel Dafoe and "The Black Death" by George Deaux. The battle scene was based on what I read in "The Hundred Years War" by Desmond Seward.