Wooing Group

The Wooing Group (or Wohunge Group) is a term coined by W. Meredith Thompson to identify the common provenance of four early Middle English prayers and meditations, written in rhythmical, alliterative prose. The particular variety of Middle English in which the group is written is AB language, a written standard of the West Midlands which also characterises the Ancrene Wisse and the Katherine Group.

The group comprises:

'As with the works of the Katherine Group their dissemination seems to have been relatively limited; but the fourteenth-century rhythmical prose treatise A Talkyng of the Loue of God reflects the influence of two Wooing Group works, the Ureisun of God Almihti and the Wohunge.'

In the assessment of Michelle M. Sauer,

The pieces are written in lyrical prose, and combine COURTLY LOVE imagery of Christ as the perfect lover-knight with more earthy eroticism. Similarly, the texts combine nuptial metaphors with crucifixion imagery, blending divine marriage with shared divine pain. Jesus is at once the desired spouse and the suffering savior. In particular, the title piece outlines all the qualities that Christ has that make him the perfect spouse, and these are all defined in human terms. Christ is handsome, kind, noble, wealthy, generous, and loving. The other members of the Trinity make only rare appearances. For instance, God the Father is referred to only in the context of providing Jesus with a kingdom. Similarly, the Virgin Mary is invoked as a pure, unstained advocate for the female speaker’s cause, but not fleshed out as an individual figure.

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