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January

Literary Character
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

The husband in the tale, personified as a character rather than the month alone.

Detailed Definition
In this poem, January is the old knight who marries May and is deceived by her. The name also echoes the month, but here it functions as a character name in a retelling of a traditional tale.
Example
Example in poetry:
Old January is the aged knight in Chaucer’s “The Merchant’s Tale,” who marries the young May despite warnings about marriage and age; January’s name links him to winter, old age, and decline, while May’s name evokes spring and youth; In Chaucer’s tale, January’s blindness becomes both literal plot event and symbol of self-deception; A modern adaptation might write, “January bought May roses,” preserving the seasonal irony while examining power, desire, and unequal marriage
Additional Notes
The evidence shows "January" used as a named character, which readers may need to identify rather than read as the ordinary month.; Found in the poem, The Merchant's Tale by Richard
Also Known As
Midwinter Depths of Winter Heart of Winter Winter's Embrace
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