Canterbury Tales and Other Poems, Geoffrey Chaucer [good fiction books to read txt] 📗

Tale 1. Among the evidences that Chaucer’s great work was left incomplete, is the absence of any link of connexion between the Wife of Bath’s Prologue and Tale, and what goes before. This deficiency has in some editions caused the Squire’s and the Merchant’s Tales to be interposed between those of the Man of Law and the Wife of Bath; but in the Merchant’s Tale there is internal proof that it was told after the jolly Dame’s. Several manuscripts contain verses designed to serve as a connexion; but they are evidently not Chaucer’s, and it is unnecessary to give them here. Of this Prologue, which may fairly be regarded as a distinct autobiographical tale, Tyrwhitt says: “The extraordinary length of it, as well as the vein of pleasantry that runs through it, is very suitable to the character of the speaker.

The greatest part must have been of Chaucer’s own invention, though one may plainly see that he had been reading the popular invectives against marriage and women in general; such as the ‘Roman de la Rose,’ ‘Valerius ad Rufinum, De non Ducenda Uxore,’ (‘Valerius to Rufinus, on not being ruled by one’s wife’) and particularly ‘Hieronymus contra Jovinianum.’ (‘Jerome against Jovinianus’) St Jerome, among other things designed to discourage marriage, has inserted in his treatise a long passage from ‘Liber Aureolus Theophrasti de Nuptiis.’ (‘Theophrastus’s Golden Book of Marriage’).”

 

2. A great part of the marriage service used to be performed in the church-porch.

 

3. Jesus and the Samaritan woman: John iv. 13.

 

4. Dan: Lord; Latin, “dominus.” Another reading is “the wise man, King Solomon.”

 

5. Defended: forbade; French, “defendre,” to prohibit.

 

6. Dart: the goal; a spear or dart was set up to mark the point of victory.

 

7. “But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour.” — 2 Tim. ii 20.

 

8. Jesus feeding the multitude with barley bread: Mark vi. 41, 42.

 

9. At Dunmow prevailed the custom of giving, amid much merry making, a flitch of bacon to the married pair who had lived together for a year without quarrel or regret. The same custom prevailed of old in Bretagne.

 

10. “Cagnard,” or “Caignard,” a French term of reproach, originally derived from “canis,” a dog.

 

11. Parage: birth, kindred; from Latin, “pario,” I beget.

 

12. Norice: nurse; French, “nourrice.”

 

13. This and the previous quotation from Ptolemy are due to the Dame’s own fancy.

 

14. (Transcriber’s note: Some Victorian censorship here. The word given in [brackets] should be “queint” i.e. “cunt”.) 15. Women should not adorn themselves: see I Tim. ii. 9.

 

16. Cherte: affection; from French, “cher,” dear.

 

17. Nicety: folly; French, “niaiserie.”

 

18. Ba: kiss; from French, “baiser.”

 

19. Peter!: by Saint Peter! a common adjuration, like Marie!

from the Virgin’s name.

 

20. St. Joce: or Judocus, a saint of Ponthieu, in France.

 

21. “An allusion,” says Mr Wright, “to the story of the Roman sage who, when blamed for divorcing his wife, said that a shoe might appear outwardly to fit well, but no one but the wearer knew where it pinched.”

 

22. Vigilies: festival-eves; see note 33 to the Prologue to the Tales.

 

23. Bobance: boasting; Ben Jonson’s braggart, in “Every Man in his Humour,” is named Bobadil.

 

24. “I hold a mouse’s wit not worth a leek, That hath but one hole for to starte to”

A very old proverb in French, German, and Latin.

 

25. The lines in brackets are only in some of the manuscripts.

 

26. Gat-toothed: gap-toothed; goat-toothed; or cat-or separate toothed. See note 41 to the prologue to the Tales.

 

27. Sempronius Sophus, of whom Valerius Maximus tells in his sixth book.

 

28. The tract of Walter Mapes against marriage, published under the title of “Epistola Valerii ad Rufinum.”

 

29. “Ars Amoris.”

 

30. All the mark of Adam: all who bear the mark of Adam i.e.

all men.

 

31. The Children of Mercury and Venus: those born under the influence of the respective planets.

 

32. A planet, according to the old astrologers, was in “exaltation” when in the sign of the Zodiac in which it exerted its strongest influence; the opposite sign, in which it was weakest, was called its “dejection.” Venus being strongest in Pisces, was weakest in Virgo; but in Virgo Mercury was in “exaltation.”

 

33. Intermete: interpose; French, “entremettre.”

 

THE TALE. <1>

 

In olde dayes of the king Arthour,

Of which that Britons speake great honour, All was this land full fill’d of faerie; fairies The Elf-queen, with her jolly company, Danced full oft in many a green mead

This was the old opinion, as I read;

I speak of many hundred years ago;

But now can no man see none elves mo’, For now the great charity and prayeres Of limitours,* and other holy freres, *begging friars <2>

That search every land and ev’ry stream As thick as motes in the sunne-beam,

Blessing halls, chambers, kitchenes, and bowers, Cities and burghes, castles high and towers, Thorpes* and barnes, shepens** and dairies, villages <3> *stables This makes that there be now no faeries: For there as wont to walke was an elf, where

There walketh now the limitour himself, In undermeles* and in morrowings*, evenings <4> **mornings And saith his matins and his holy things, As he goes in his limitatioun. begging district Women may now go safely up and down,

In every bush, and under every tree;

There is none other incubus <5> but he; And he will do to them no dishonour.

 

And so befell it, that this king Arthour Had in his house a lusty bacheler,

That on a day came riding from river: <6>

And happen’d, that, alone as she was born, He saw a maiden walking him beforn,

Of which maiden anon, maugre* her head, *in spite of By very force he reft her maidenhead:

For which oppression was such clamour, And such pursuit unto the king Arthour, That damned* was this knight for to be dead *condemned By course of law, and should have lost his head; (Paraventure such was the statute tho), then But that the queen and other ladies mo’

So long they prayed the king of his grace, Till he his life him granted in the place, And gave him to the queen, all at her will To choose whether she would him save or spill destroy The queen thanked the king with all her might; And, after this, thus spake she to the knight, When that she saw her time upon a day.

“Thou standest yet,” quoth she, “in such array, a position That of thy life yet hast thou no surety; I grant thee life, if thou canst tell to me What thing is it that women most desiren: Beware, and keep thy neck-bone from the iron executioner’s axe And if thou canst not tell it me anon, Yet will I give thee leave for to gon

A twelvemonth and a day, to seek and lear learn An answer suffisant* in this mattere. *satisfactory And surety will I have, ere that thou pace, go Thy body for to yielden in this place.”

Woe was the knight, and sorrowfully siked; sighed But what? he might not do all as him liked.

And at the last he chose him for to wend, depart And come again, right at the yeare’s end, With such answer as God would him purvey: provide And took his leave, and wended forth his way.

 

He sought in ev’ry house and ev’ry place, Where as he hoped for to finde grace,

To learne what thing women love the most: But he could not arrive in any coast,

Where as he mighte find in this mattere Two creatures *according in fere. agreeing together*

Some said that women loved best richess, Some said honour, and some said jolliness, Some rich array, and some said lust* a-bed, *pleasure And oft time to be widow and be wed.

Some said, that we are in our heart most eased When that we are y-flatter’d and y-praised.

He *went full nigh the sooth,* I will not lie; came very near A man shall win us best with flattery; the truth

And with attendance, and with business Be we y-limed,* bothe more and less. caught with bird-lime And some men said that we do love the best For to be free, and do right as us lest, whatever we please*

And that no man reprove us of our vice, But say that we are wise, and nothing nice, foolish <7>

For truly there is none among us all,

If any wight will *claw us on the gall, see note <8>*

That will not kick, for that he saith us sooth: Assay,* and he shall find it, that so do’th. *try For be we never so vicious within,

We will be held both wise and clean of sin.

And some men said, that great delight have we For to be held stable and eke secre, discreet And in one purpose steadfastly to dwell, And not bewray* a thing that men us tell. *give away But that tale is not worth a rake-stele. rake-handle Pardie, we women canne nothing hele, hide <9>

Witness on Midas; will ye hear the tale?

Ovid, amonges other thinges smale small Saith, Midas had, under his longe hairs, Growing upon his head two ass’s ears;

The whiche vice he hid, as best he might, Full subtlely from every man’s sight,

That, save his wife, there knew of it no mo’; He lov’d her most, and trusted her also; He prayed her, that to no creature

She woulde tellen of his disfigure.

She swore him, nay, for all the world to win, She would not do that villainy or sin, To make her husband have so foul a name: She would not tell it for her owen shame.

But natheless her thoughte that she died, That she so longe should a counsel hide; Her thought it swell’d so sore about her heart That needes must some word from her astart And, since she durst not tell it unto man Down to a marish fast thereby she ran, Till she came there, her heart was all afire: And, as a bittern bumbles* in the mire, *makes a humming noise She laid her mouth unto the water down “Bewray me not, thou water, with thy soun’”

Quoth she, “to thee I tell it, and no mo’, Mine husband hath long ass’s eares two!

Now is mine heart all whole; now is it out; I might no longer keep it, out of doubt.”

Here may ye see, though we a time abide, Yet out it must, we can no counsel hide.

The remnant of the tale, if ye will hear, Read in Ovid, and there ye may it lear. learn This knight, of whom my tale is specially, When that he saw he might not come thereby, That is to say, what women love the most, Within his breast full sorrowful was his ghost. spirit But home he went, for he might not sojourn, The day was come, that homeward he must turn.

And in his way it happen’d him to ride, In all his care,* under a forest side, *trouble, anxiety Where as he saw upon a dance go

Of ladies four-and-twenty, and yet mo’, Toward this ilke* dance he drew full yern,* same **eagerly <10>

The hope that he some wisdom there should learn; But certainly, ere he came fully there, Y-vanish’d was this dance, he knew not where; No