Parlement of the Thre Ages, The

The Parlement of the Thre Ages is an anonymous, late-medieval Middle English alliterative poem, in which a poacher kills and conceals a deer, and then dreams of a debate between allegorized Youth, Middle Age, and Old Age. After Youth praises a romantic life of action and Middle Age advocates acquiring land, Elde delivers an extremely long speech featuring descriptions of various famous dead people, culminating in his conclusion that one needs to prepare spiritually for death. Scholars variously interpret the allegorical significance of the Ages, and also come to differing conclusions as to whether the dreamer is spiritually moved by Elde's speech.