Synopses & Reviews
One of the greatest and most ambitious works in English literature, in the original Middle English
The Canterbury Tales depicts a storytelling competition between pilgrims drawn from all ranks of society. The tales are as various as the pilgrims themselves, encompassing comedy, pathos, tragedy, and cynicism. The Miller and the Reeve express their mutual antagonism in a pair of comic stories combining sex and trickery; in The Shipmans Tale,” a wife sells her favors to a monk. Others draw on courtly romance and fantasy: the Knight tells of rivals competing for the love of the same woman, and the Squire describes a princess who can speak to birds. In these twenty-four tales, Chaucer displays a dazzling range of literary styles and conjures up a wonderfully vivid picture of medieval life. This is a
- Freshly established Middle English text with standardized spelling and punctuation and on-page glossing
- Features an introduction by Jill Mann, a chronology of Chaucer's life and works, detailed explanatory notes, suggestions for further reading, a full glossary, and a bibliography
- Companion to the Penguin Classics original-spelling edition of Troilus and Criseyde
For more than sixty-five years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,500 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
Synopsis
The Canterbury Tales is a collection of stories in a frame story, between 1387 and 1400. It is a story of a group of travelers on their way to England. The Pligrims, from all levels of society, tell each other stories, which make up the contents of this fabulous book. . Please Note: This book is easy to read in true text, not scanned images that can sometimes be difficult to decipher. The Microsoft eBook has a contents page linked to the chapter headings for easy navigation. The Adobe eBook has bookmarks at chapter headings and is printable up to two full copies per year.
Synopsis
At the Tabard Inn in Southwark, a jovial group of pilgrims assembles, including an unscrupulous Pardoner, a noble-minded Knight, a ribald Miller, the lusty Wife of Bath, and Chaucer himself. As they set out on their journey towards the shrine of Thomas a Becket in Canterbury, each character agrees to tell a tale. The twenty-four tales that follow are by turns learned, fantastic, pious, melancholy and lewd, and together offer an unrivalled glimpse into the mind and spirit of medieval England.
Synopsis
A new original-spelling edition of a landmark work of English literature.
"From every shires ende Of Engelond to Caunterbury they wende"
One of the greatest and most ambitious works in English literature, The Canterbury Tales depicts a storytelling competition between pilgrims drawn from all ranks of society. The tales are as various as the pilgrims themselves, encompassing comedy, pathos, tragedy, and cynicism. The Miller and the Reeve express their mutual antagonism in a pair of comic stories combining sex and trickery; in "The Shipman's Tale," a wife sells her favors to a monk. Others draw on courtly romance and fantasy: the Knight tells of rivals competing for the love of the same woman, and the Squire describes a princess who can speak to birds. In these twenty-four tales, Chaucer displays a dazzling range of literary styles and conjures up a wonderfully vivid picture of medieval life.
In her introduction to this original-spelling edition, Jill Mann discusses the recurring themes that link these richly varied narratives, and the central role of Chaucer as both narrator and pilgrim. This edition also includes on-page glosses, a chronology, further reading, a section on "Chaucer's language," freshly researched explanatory notes, and a full glossary.
About the Author
Geoffrey Chaucer was born in London, the son of a wine-merchant, in about 1342, and as he spent his life in royal government service his career happens to be unusually well documented. By 1357 Chaucer was a page to the wife of Prince Lionel, second son of Edward III, and it was while in the prince's service that Chaucer was ransomed when captured during the English campaign in France in 135960. Chaucer's wife Philippa, whom he married c. 1365, was the sister of Katherine Swynford, the mistress (c. 1370) and third wife (1396) of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, whose first wife Blanche (d. 1368) is commemorated in Chaucer's earliest major poem, "The Book of the Duchess."
In 1386 Chaucer was member of parliament for Kent, but in the same year he resigned his customs post, although in 1389 he was appointed Clerk of the King's Works (resigning in 1391). In the 1390s he worked on his most ambitious project, The Canterbury Tales, which remained unfinished at his death. In 1399 Chaucer leased a house in the precincts of Westminster Abbey but died in 1400 and was buried in the Abbey.
Jill Mann is a fellow of the British Academy, an Honorary Fellow of St. Anne's College, Oxford, and a Life Fellow of Girton College, Cambridge.
Table of Contents
The Canterbury Tales Acknowledgments
Editor's Note
Chronolgy
Introduction
Further Reading
Chaucer's Language
A Note on the Tect
Abbreviations of the Canterbury Tales
The Canterbury Tales
Fragment I (Group A)
The General Prologue
The Knight's Tale
The Miller's Prologue and Tale
The Reeve's Prologue and Tale
The Cook's Prologue and Tale
Fragment II (Group B)
The Man of Law's Prologue, Tale and Epilogue
Fragment III (Group D)
The Wife of Bath's Prologue and Tale
The Friar's Prologue and Tale
The Summoner's Prologue and Tale
Fragment IV (Group E)
The Clerk's Prologue and Tale
The Merchant's Prologue, Tale and Epilogue
Fragment V (Group F)
The Squire's Prologue and Tale
The Squire-Franklin Link, the Franklin's Prologue and Tale
Fragment VI (Group C)
The Physician's Tale
The Physicia-Pardoner Link, The Pardoner's Prologue and Tale
Fragment VII (Group B)
The Shipman's Tale
The Shipman-Prioress Link, The Prioress's Prologue and Tale
The Prioress-Sir Thopas Link and Sir Thopas
The Thopas-Melibee Link and the Tale of Melibee
The Monk's Prologue and Tale
The Nun's Priest's Prologue, Tale and Epilogue
Fragment VIII (Group G)
The Second Nun's Prologue and Tale
The Canon's Yeoman's Prologue and Tale
Fragment IX (Group H)
The Manciple's Prologue and Tale
Fragment X (Group I)
The Parson's Prologue and Tale
Chaucer's Retractions
Abbrviated References
Notes
Glossary