a ballad of gentleness THE firste stock-father of gentleness, / What man desireth gentle for to be, / Must follow his trace, and all his wittes dress,* *apply / Virtue to love, and english
a ballad sent to king richard SOMETIME this world was so steadfast and stable, / That man's word was held obligation; / And now it is so false and deceivable,* *deceitful / That word and work, english
a goodly ballad of chaucer MOTHER of nurture, best belov'd of all, / And freshe flow'r, to whom good thrift God send / Your child, if it lust* you me so to call, *please / *All be I* unable english
chaucer's a. b. c. A. / ALMIGHTY and all-merciable* Queen, *all-merciful / To whom all this world fleeth for succour, / To have release of sin, of sorrow, of teen!* *affliction / Glor english
chaucer's dream [This pretty allegory, or rather conceit, containing one or two passages that for vividness and for delicacy yield to nothing in the whole range of Chaucer' english
chaucer's prophecy WHEN priestes *failen in their saws,* *come short of their / And lordes turne Godde's laws profession* / Against the right; / And lechery is holden as *privy sola english
chaucer's tale of sir thopas CHAUCER'S TALE OF SIR THOPAS. / THE PROLOGUE. / WHEN said was this miracle, every man / As sober* was, that wonder was to see, *serious / Till that our Host to j english
chaucer's words to his scrivener ADAM Scrivener, if ever it thee befall / Boece or Troilus for to write anew, / Under thy long locks thou may'st have the scall* *scab / But *after my making* thou english
good counsel of chaucer FLEE from the press, and dwell with soothfastness; / Suffice thee thy good, though it be small; / For hoard hath hate, and climbing tickleness,* *instability / Pr english
proverbs of chaucer WHAT should these clothes thus manifold, / Lo! this hot summer's day? / After great heate cometh cold; / No man cast his pilche* away. *pelisse, furred cloak / Of a english
since i from love SINCE I from Love escaped am so fat, / I ne'er think to be in his prison ta'en; / Since I am free, I count him not a bean. / He may answer, and saye this and that english
the assembly of fowls [In "The Assembly of Fowls" — which Chaucer's "Retractation" describes as "The Book of Saint Valentine's Day, or of the Parliament of Birds" — we are presen english
the canon's yeoman's tale THE PROLOGUE. / WHEN ended was the life of Saint Cecile, / Ere we had ridden fully five mile, / At Boughton-under-Blee us gan o'ertake / A man, that clothed was english
the clerk's tale THE PROLOGUE. / "SIR Clerk of Oxenford," our Hoste said, / "Ye ride as still and coy, as doth a maid / That were new spoused, sitting at the board: / This day I hea english
the complaint of chaucer to his purse To you, my purse, and to none other wight, / Complain I, for ye be my lady dear! / I am sorry now that ye be so light, / For certes ye now make me heavy cheer; / Me english
the court of love "The Court Of Love" was probably Chaucer's first poem of any consequence. It is believed to have been written at the age, and under the circumstances, of wh english
the cuckoo and the nightingale [THE noble vindication of true love, as an exalting, purifying, and honour-conferring power, which Chaucer has made in "The Court of Love," is repeated in " english
the doctor's tale THE PROLOGUE. / ["YEA, let that passe," quoth our Host, "as now. / Sir Doctor of Physik, I praye you, / Tell us a tale of some honest mattere." / "It shall be d english
the flower and the leaf ["The Flower and the Leaf" is pre-eminently one of those poems by which Chaucer may be triumphantly defended against the charge of licentious coarseness, th english
the franklin's tale THE PROLOGUE. / "IN faith, Squier, thou hast thee well acquit, / And gentilly; I praise well thy wit," / Quoth the Franklin; "considering thy youthe / So feelin english
the friar's tale THE PROLOGUE. / This worthy limitour, this noble Frere, / He made always a manner louring cheer* *countenance / Upon the Sompnour; but for honesty* *courtesy / N english
the house of fame [Thanks partly to Pope's brief and elegant paraphrase, in his "Temple of Fame," and partly to the familiar force of the style and the satirical significance english
the knight's tale WHILOM*, as olde stories tellen us, *formerly / There was a duke that highte* Theseus. *was called / Of Athens he was lord and governor, / And in his time suc english
the man of law's tale THE PROLOGUE. / Our Hoste saw well that the brighte sun / Th' arc of his artificial day had run / The fourthe part, and half an houre more; / And, though he were no english
the manciple's tale THE PROLOGUE. / WEET* ye not where there stands a little town, *know / Which that y-called is Bob-up-and-down, / Under the Blee, in Canterbury way? / There gan english
the merchant's tale THE PROLOGUE. / "Weeping and wailing, care and other sorrow, / I have enough, on even and on morrow," / Quoth the Merchant, "and so have other mo', / That wedded english
the miller's tale THE PROLOGUE. / When that the Knight had thus his tale told / In all the rout was neither young nor old, / That he not said it was a noble story, / And worthy to be english
the monk's tale THE PROLOGUE / WHEN ended was my tale of Melibee, / And of Prudence and her benignity, / Our Hoste said, "As I am faithful man, / And by the precious corpus Madrian english
the nun's priest's tale THE PROLOGUE. / "Ho!" quoth the Knight, "good sir, no more of this; / That ye have said is right enough, y-wis,* *of a surety / And muche more; for little heavine english
the pardoner's tale THE PROLOGUE. / OUR Hoste gan to swear as he were wood; / "Harow!" quoth he, "by nailes and by blood, / This was a cursed thief, a false justice. / As shameful english
the prioress's tale THE PROLOGUE. / "WELL said, by *corpus Domini,"* quoth our Host; *the Lord's body* / "Now longe may'st thou saile by the coast, / Thou gentle Master, gentle Marin english
the prologue to the legend of good women [SOME difference of opinion exists as to the date at which Chaucer wrote "The Legend of Good Women." Those who would fix that date at a period not long befo english
the reeve's tale THE PROLOGUE. / WHEN folk had laughed all at this nice case / Of Absolon and Hendy Nicholas, / Diverse folk diversely they said, / But for the more part they laugh' english
the shipman's tale THE PROLOGUE / Our Host upon his stirrups stood anon, / And saide; "Good men, hearken every one, / This was a thrifty* tale for the nones. *discreet, profitable / S english
the sompnour's tale THE PROLOGUE. / The Sompnour in his stirrups high he stood, / Upon this Friar his hearte was so wood,* *furious / That like an aspen leaf he quoke* for ire: *quak english
the squire's tale THE PROLOGUE. / "HEY! Godde's mercy!" said our Hoste tho,* *then / "Now such a wife I pray God keep me fro'. / Lo, suche sleightes and subtilities / In women be; fo english
the wife of bath's tale THE PROLOGUE. / Experience, though none authority* *authoritative texts / Were in this world, is right enough for me / To speak of woe that is in marriage: / Fo english
troilus and cressida [In several respects, the story of "Troilus and Cressida" may be regarded as Chaucer's noblest poem. Larger in scale than any other of his individual works english
virelay ALONE walking / In thought plaining, / And sore sighing; / All desolate, / Me rememb'ring / Of my living; / My death wishing / Both early and late. / Infortunate / Is so my f english