The Canterbury Tales With Other Poems

The Canterbury Tales and Other Poems Geoffrey Chaucer - An oddly diverse group of twenty-nine people meet at an inn. Each of them is on a pilgrimage to a martyr's shrine in Canterbury. The Host suggests the strange bunch journey together and tell stories to pass the time. The group heads off, including a Knight, a Miller, a Wife, a Cook, a Shipman, and a Nun, among others, telling stories that range from bawdy exploits to foolish workers to the lives of saints. A classic of English literature, this unabridged version of Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales was first published in the early 1400s and edited into modern English by D. Laing Purves in 1879. Purves's collection of Chaucer's works also contains Troilus and Cressida and additional poems and prose.

THE object of this volume is to place before the general reader our two early poetic masterpieces — The Canterbury Tales and The Faerie Queen; to do so in a way that will render their "popular perusal" easy in a time of little leisure and unbounded temptations to intellectual languor; and, on the same conditions, to present a liberal and fairly representative selection from the less important and familiar poems of Chaucer and Spenser. There is, it may be said at the outset, peculiar advantage and propriety in placing the two poets side by side in the manner now attempted for the first time. Although two centuries divide them, yet Spenser is the direct and really the immediate successor to the poetical inheritance of Chaucer. Those two hundred years, eventful as they were, produced no poet at all worthy to take up the mantle that fell from Chaucer's shoulders; and Spenser does not need his affected archaisms, nor his frequent and reverent appeals to "Dan Geffrey," to vindicate for himself a place very close to his great predecessor in the literary history of England. If Chaucer is the "Well of English undefiled," Spenser is the broad and stately river that yet holds the tenure of its very life from the fountain far away in other and ruder scenes. The Canterbury Tales, so far as they are in verse, have been printed without any abridgement or designed change in the sense. But the two Tales in prose — Chaucer's Tale of Meliboeus, and the Parson's long Sermon on Penitence — have been contracted, so as to exclude thirty pages of unattractive prose, and to admit the same amount of interesting and characteristic poetry. The gaps thus made in the prose Tales, however, are supplied by careful outlines of the omitted matter, so that the reader need be at no loss to comprehend the whole scope and sequence of the original. With The Faerie Queen a bolder course has been pursued.

"The Canterbury Tales and Other Poems" by Geoffrey Chaucer stands as a cornerstone in English literature, offering a captivating glimpse into the social fabric of medieval England. Written in the late 14th century, Chaucer's magnum opus is a collection of stories narrated by a diverse group of pilgrims en route to the shrine of Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral. At the heart of "The Canterbury Tales" is Chaucer's keen observational wit, as he paints vivid portraits of individuals from various walks of life. Through the tales told by knights, clerics, merchants, and more, Chaucer explores themes of love, morality, and human nature, providing a rich tapestry of medieval society. The General Prologue sets the stage for the pilgrimage, introducing readers to the colorful cast of characters and their unique personalities. Each pilgrim's tale reflects their worldview, creating a dynamic mosaic that encompasses romance, tragedy, comedy, and moral allegory. Beyond "The Canterbury Tales," Chaucer's collection includes a variety of shorter poems, such as the dream vision "The Parliament of Fowls" and the elegiac "The Book of the Duchess." These poems showcase Chaucer's poetic range and depth of expression. "The Canterbury Tales and Other Poems" is a literary treasure that not only entertains with its narrative flair but also provides profound insights into the complexities of human experience. Immerse yourself in the linguistic richness and cultural panorama of Chaucer's work, where each tale unfolds as a masterpiece in the mosaic of medieval storytelling.

Geoffrey Chaucer , known as the Father of English literature, is widely considered the greatest English poet of the Middle Ages. He was the first poet to be buried in Poets' Corner of Westminster Abbey.While he achieved fame during his lifetime as an author, philosopher, and astronomer, composing a scientific treatise on the astrolabe for his ten-year-old son Lewis, Chaucer also maintained an active career in the civil service as a bureaucrat, courtier and diplomat. Among his many works are The Book of the Duchess, The House of Fame, The Legend of Good Women and Troilus and Criseyde. He is best known today for The Canterbury Tales.Chaucer's work was crucial in legitimizing the literary use of the Middle English vernacular at a time when the dominant literary languages in England were French and Latin.

This introductory guide places the Canterbury Tales in the context of the crisis in English society in the fourteenth century. It examines the social diversity of Chaucer's pilgrims, the stylistic range of their tales and the psychological richness of their interaction. The volume offers students a clear image of the powerful representation of the social reality that makes the Canterbury Tales one of the most important texts in English literature. Emphasis is placed on the language of the poem, the place of Chaucer in subsequent literary tradition, and an entire chapter is devoted to the General Prologue which is widely studied on undergraduate courses. Finally, the volume offers a helpful chronology of the period and an invaluable guide to further reading.

"The Canterbury Tales and Other Poems" by Geoffrey Chaucer stands as a cornerstone in English literature, offering a captivating glimpse into the social fabric of medieval England. Written in the late 14th century, Chaucer's magnum opus is a collection of stories narrated by a diverse group of pilgrims en route to the shrine of Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral. At the heart of "The Canterbury Tales" is Chaucer's keen observational wit, as he paints vivid portraits of individuals from various walks of life. Through the tales told by knights, clerics, merchants, and more, Chaucer explores themes of love, morality, and human nature, providing a rich tapestry of medieval society. The General Prologue sets the stage for the pilgrimage, introducing readers to the colorful cast of characters and their unique personalities. Each pilgrim's tale reflects their worldview, creating a dynamic mosaic that encompasses romance, tragedy, comedy, and moral allegory. Beyond "The Canterbury Tales," Chaucer's collection includes a variety of shorter poems, such as the dream vision "The Parliament of Fowls" and the elegiac "The Book of the Duchess." These poems showcase Chaucer's poetic range and depth of expression. "The Canterbury Tales and Other Poems" is a literary treasure that not only entertains with its narrative flair but also provides profound insights into the complexities of human experience. Immerse yourself in the linguistic richness and cultural panorama of Chaucer's work, where each tale unfolds as a masterpiece in the mosaic of medieval storytelling.

This is an annotated version of the book1. contains an updated biography of the author at the end of the book for a better understanding of the text.2. This book has been checked and corrected for spelling errorsTHE object of this volume is to place before the general readerour two early poetic masterpieces -- The Canterbury Tales andThe Faerie Queen; to do so in a way that will render their"popular perusal" easy in a time of little leisure and unboundedtemptations to intellectual languor; and, on the same conditions,to present a liberal and fairly representative selection from theless important and familiar poems of Chaucer and Spenser.There is, it may be said at the outset, peculiar advantage andpropriety in placing the two poets side by side in the mannernow attempted for the first time. Although two centuries dividethem, yet Spenser is the direct and really the immediatesuccessor to the poetical inheritance of Chaucer. Those twohundred years, eventful as they were, produced no poet at allworthy to take up the mantle that fell from Chaucer's shoulders;and Spenser does not need his affected archaisms, nor hisfrequent and reverent appeals to "Dan Geffrey," to vindicate forhimself a place very close to his great predecessor in the literaryhistory of England. If Chaucer is the "Well of Englishundefiled," Spenser is the broad and stately river that yet holdsthe tenure of its very life from the fountain far away in otherand ruder scenes.The Canterbury Tales, so far as they are in verse, have beenprinted without any abridgement or designed change in thesense. But the two Tales in prose -- Chaucer's Tale ofMeliboeus, and the Parson's long Sermon on Penitence -- havebeen contracted, so as to exclude thirty pages of unattractiveprose, and to admit the same amount of interesting andcharacteristic poetry. The gaps thus made in the prose Tales,however, are supplied by careful outlines of the omitted matter,so that the reader need be at no loss to comprehend the wholescope and sequence of the original. With The Faerie Queen abolder course has been pursued. The great obstacle to thepopularity of Spencer's splendid work has lain less in itslanguage than in its length. If we add together the three greatpoems of antiquity -- the twenty-four books of the Iliad, thetwenty-four books of the Odyssey, and the twelve books of theAeneid -- we get at the dimensions of only one-half of TheFaerie Queen. The six books, and the fragment of a seventh,which alone exist of the author's contemplated twelve, numberabout 35,000 verses; the sixty books of Homer and Virgilnumber no more than 37,000. The mere bulk of the poem, then,has opposed a formidable barrier to its popularity; to saynothing of the distracting effect produced by the numberlessepisodes, the tedious narrations, and the constant repetitions,which have largely swelled that bulk. In this volume the poemis compressed into two-thirds of its original space, through theexpedient of representing the less interesting and moremechanical passages by a condensed prose outline, in which ithas been sought as far as possible to preserve the very words ofthe poet. While deprecating a too critical judgement on thebare and constrained precis standing in such tryingjuxtaposition, it is hoped that the labour bestowed in saving thereader the trouble of wading through much that is not essentialfor the enjoyment of Spencer's marvellous allegory, will not beunappreciated.As regards the manner in which the text of the two great works,especially of The Canterbury Tales, is presented, the Editor isaware that some whose judgement is weighty will differ fromhim. This volume has been prepared "for popular perusal;" andits very raison d'etre would have failed, if the ancientorthography had been retained. It has often been affirmed