Mirour de l'Omme

Mirour de l'Omme ("the mirror of mankind") (also Speculum Hominis), which has the Latin title Speculum Meditantis ("mirror of meditation"), is an Anglo-Norman poem of 29,945 lines written in iambic octosyllables by John Gower (c. 1330 – October 1408).

The union of the Devil and Sin produces the seven daughters: Pride, Envy, Ire, Sloth, Avarice, Gluttony and Lechery.

Much of the final third is an "extensive examination of the corruption of the Three Estates of society -- Church, State and Workers.

[2]: 140–141 Macaulay starts with: "it would be absurd to claim for it a high degree of literary merit, but it is nevertheless a somewhat noticeable and interesting performance".

The magnitude of vision and Gower's creative eclecticism make the Mirour unique.

"Gower could well have felt himself moved to provide for his new associates with a pen as well as pounds sterling.

Chaucer "left it to Gower to invent the iambic tetrameter, and to later centuries of poets to solve the problems of its potential monotony; he himself merely polished the traditional Middle English short line.

Detail from tomb of John Gower in Southwark Cathedral, Southwark, London, England. The head of the effigy rests on three books. Gower wrote Vox Clamantis in Latin, Speculum Meditantis in French and Confessio Amantis in English. Photographed by Karen Townsend in 2006.