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JOHN LYLY AND THE SEVEN YEAR ITCH
ENDYMION is Greek for THE MAN IN THE MOON, as John Lyly tells us in the Prologue "Why here is a tale of the Man in the Moon". In Act II, scene 1, that he is madly in love wuth Cynthia, the Woman in the Moon, by stating in part as follows:
"Woudst thou have me vowed only to thy beauty? And consume avery minute of my time in thy service? Remember my solitary life, almost these SEVEN YEARS! Whom have I entertained but mine own thoughts and virtues?
Later on, In Act III, Scene 4, EUMENIDES expresses the same sentiments for his beloved:
"Call to mind the beauty of thy sweet mistress, and the depth of thy never dying affections! How often have you honored her, not only without spot, but without suspicion of falsehood. And how has she hardly rewarded you, without cause or color of despight! How secret have you been these SEVEN YEARS, that has not, nor once dared not to name her for discontenting her".
Subsequently, GERON explains the predicament of EUMENIDES:
"Love is but an EYE-WORM, which only tickles the head with hopes and wishes! Friendship is the image of eternity, in which there is nothing moveable, nothing mischievous."
Then he goes on to describe LOVE:
"LOVE is a CAMELION, which draws nothing in the mouth but air, and nourishes nothing in the body but lungs. Desire dies in the same moment that Beauty sickens, and Beauty fades in the same instant that it flourishes.
At the end of ACT III, Scene 3, DARES sums up the situation by saying:
"A watch, quoth you? A man may watch SEVEN YEARS for a wise word, and yet go without it."
In the song that follows, "THE WATCH" is described as "A PATCH". While he does not use the word "ITCH", the three words are very close and could be quite easily mispronounced, as after drinking too much wine in a bar, as stated in the song:
" Oh Gentlemen hold!
Your gowns freeze with cold,
And your rotten teeth dance in your head"
No doubt this is caused by eye-worms which flourish in cockroaches. After Seven Years, these men are convinced that they must find other mates, as sung by the FAIRIES:
Pinch him blue.
And Pinch him black.
Let him not lack
Sharp nails to pinch him blue and red,
'Till sleep has rocked his addle head.
John Lyly described the concept of "THE SEVEN YEAR ITCH" in
the Play "ENDYMION" , written about 1580. Following that play, He wrote
a play entitled "MIDAS", which is the story of the King of Phrygia, whom Bacchus grants his sole wish, that everything he touches be turned to gold, as set out in Book XI of Ovid's Metamorphosis.
In ACT II, Scene 1, Part of what SOPHRONIA says is as follows:
"And thou, Caelia, and all you ladies learn this that beauty in a minute is both a blossom and a blast: LOVE IS A WORM , WHICH, SEEMING TO LIVE IN THE EYE, DIES IN THE HEART. You, being all young, and fair, endeavour all to be wise and virtuous, so that, when, like roses you shall fall from the stalk, you may be gathered and put to the still."
CAELIA answers: "Madam, I am free from love and unfortunate to be beloved."
ERISTUS answers with no doubt a little wrist action: "To be free from love is strange, but to think it scorn to be beloved! Monstrous!"
SOPHRONIA answeres the man:
ERISTUS, thy tongue doth ITCH to talk of love, and my ears tingle to hear it". 
SEND your comments to GERALD GOMMERMAN at johnlyly@yahoo.com
Email GERALD GOMMERMAN here: jlyly80@hotmail.com
JOHN LYLY at MAGDALEN COLLEGE, OXFORD
Briefly, WHO WAS JOHN LYLY
Who was CAMPASPE?
What about JOHN LYLY'S origin
Who really wrote the play, CORIOLANUS?
Did JOE SOBRAN really write about JOHN LYLY?
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