The Simonie: The Case for a Parallel-Text Edition.

As opposed to PPl and other poems, the three versions of The Simonie demonstrate that the scribes assumed license to rewrite the poem according to their own tastes and biases. Each version has unique inclusions and unique omissions, with only 178 lines (37 per cent of the longest version) common to all three (cf. 53 per cent of C. 1-2 shared by the A and B texts). Each of the versions of The Simonte is probably an independent rewriting of the lost original.