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THE  KNIGHT'S  TALE 


CHAUCER'S 
CANTERBURY    TALES 

THE  KNIGHT'S  TALE 


EDITED 
WITH  INTRODUCTION  AND  NOTES  BY 

ALFRED  W.  POLLARD 


MACMILLAN    AND    CO.,    LIMITED 

NEW   YORK  :   THE   MACMILLAN   COMPANY 
1903 

All  rights  reserved 


GLASGOW  :    PRINTED    AT  THE   UNIVERSITY    PRKSS 
BY    ROBERT   MACLKHOSE  AND  CO. 


PREFACE. 

IN  my  edition  of  the  Prologue  to  the  Canterbury  Tales 
I  paid  especial  attention  to  annotating  those  of  its 
allusions  which  touch  on  English  life  in  the  i4th  century. 
In  these  notes  and  introduction  to  the  Knight's  Tale  I 
have  tried  to  illustrate  Chaucer's  methods  as  a  story 
teller  at  a  particularly  interesting  stage  of  his  career, 
and  in  doing  this  to  show  in  some  detail  what  was  the 
degree  of  his  indebtedness  to  Boccaccio's  Teseide.  The 
differences  which  Chaucer  introduces  alike  in  the  plot 
and  the  characters  seem  to  me  to  be  of  a  kind  in  which 
readers,  both  young  and  old,  may  profitably  be  interested, 
and  they  offer  an  easy  introduction  to  poetical  criticism. 

As  regards  the  identity  of  the  Knight's  Tale  with  the 
story  of  '  al  the  love  of  Palamon  and  Arcite '  referred  to 
in  the  Legend  of  Good  Women,  I  have  necessarily 
written  at  some  length  in  the  Introduction,  but  a 
shorter  treatment  is  provided  as  an  alternative  for 
young  students.  Those  who  wish  for  further  argument 
on  (substantially)  the  same  side  should  consult  an  able 
paper  by  Mr.  Jewett  Mather  in  the  Fnglish  Miscellany 
presented  to  Dr.  Furnivall  (Oxford,  1901). 

For  help  in  compiling  the  Glossary  I  have  to  thank 
Mr.  George  England  and  Miss  Mary  A.  Trimen, 
M.A.  Lond.,  of  Bedford  College.  The  Appendix  of 
'  Illustrations  of  Chaucer's  Grammar  from  the  Knight's 
Tale '  is  the  work  of  Miss  Trimen  alone. 

A.  W.  POLLARD. 

August,    1903. 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

INTRODUCTION,  -  i 

THE  KNIGHT'S  TALE,        ...  i 

NOTES, 77 

ILLUSTRATIONS    OF    CHAUCER'S    GRAMMAR    FROM   THE 

KNIGHT'S  TALE, 121 

APPENDIX — CHAUCER'S  USE  OF  THE  TESEIDE  IN  OTHER 

POEMS,                126 

GLOSSARY, 138 


INTRODUCTION. 


§  i.  THE  tale  of  the  contention  of  Palamon  and  Arcite 
for  the  hand  of  the  fair  Emily  is  undisguisedly  a  love 
story,  and  that,  despite  the  death  and  burial  of  one  of 
the  heroes,  by  no  means  a  tragic  one.  It  is,  moreover, 
notwithstanding  one  or  two  classical  touches,  essentially 
medieval  in  tone  and  thought.  The  lovers  argue  as  to 
their  respective  rights  as  suitors  according  to  the  medi- 

,  eval  ideas  of  love  and  friendship,  and  eventually  try 
their  pretensions  by  the  arbitrament,  first  of  single  com 
bat,  afterwards  of  a  tournament  of  a  hundred  knights 
on  each  side.  In  all  this,  it  is  needless  to  say  there 
is  nothing  at  all  Greek.  Yet  when  we  come  to  enjoy 
.  ourselves  in  this  gay  1 4th  century  garden,  so  full  of  the 

*•  rich,  bright  colours  in  which  the  medieval  poets  delighted 
no  less  than  the  illuminators  of  medieval  manuscripts, 
we  find  that  it  is  laid  out  amid  the  ruins  of  the  very 
oldest  Greek  legends.  Chaucer  was  not  the  man  to 
trouble  himself  greatly  about  chronology  but  if  he  had 
looked  up  authorities  on  the  subject  he  would  have  told 
us  that  his  story  begins  some  thirty  years  before  the 
Siege  of  Troy,  a  sufficient  compliance  with  that  instinct 


ii  INTRODUCTION 

to  write  about  "  old  unhappy  far  off  things  "  which  poets 
in  what  seems  to  us  the  world's  youth  felt  no  less  than 
those  of  our  own  day.  Unhappy  is,  indeed,  too  weak 
a  word  to  apply  to  that  terrible  tale  of  Thebes  on  to  which 
this  delightful  love-story  had  been  tacked  by  Boccaccio, 
whom  Chaucer  followed  and  improved  upon.  There  is 
no  need  to  tell  it  here  at  length,  since  our  poets  used 
so  little  of  it.  The  two  founders  of  the  city  were  Cadmus 
and  Amphion,  to  whom  Arcite  alludes  in  his  lament 
(11.  687-92): 

Alias,  y-broght  is  to  confusioun 
The  blood  roial  of  Cadme  and  Amphioun, — 
Of  Cadmus,  which  that  was  the  firste  man 
That  Thebes  bulte,  or  first  the  toun  bigan, 
And  of  the  citee  first  was  crouned  kyng. 
Of  his  lynage  am  I  and  his  ofspryng. 

Cadmus,  to  whom  the  Greeks  assigned  the  invention 
of  the  alphabet,  was  supposed  to  have  built  the  citadel, 
of  Thebes.  At  his  marriage  he  gave  his  wife  Harmonia 
a  necklace,  which  he  had  received  from  the  goddess 
Aphrodite,  and  which  proved  a  source  of  strife  and 
bloodshed  to  every  owner  of  it.  Amphion,  the  second 
founder  of  Thebes,  who  built  its  walls  by  the  magic 
music  which  caused  the  stones  to  lay  themselves  .in  their 
places,  married  Niobe,  whose  boasting  of  the  beauty  of 
her  children  caused  the  gods  to  slay  them  and  turn  her 
into  stone.  Laius,  the  great-grandson  of  Cadmus,  who 
regained  the  throne  after  the  death  of  Amphion,  in 
herited  the  Cadmean  curse.  When  his  son  CEdipus  is 
born,  an  oracle  foretells  that  he  will  slay  his  father.  So 
Laius  orders  the  babe  to  be  left  to  die  on  a  mountain, 


INTRODUCTION  iii 

but  he  is  saved  by  a  shepherd,  brought  up  at  the  court 
of  Corinth,  and  one  day  meeting  his  father  accidentally, 
slays  him  in  a  wayside  quarrel,  without  knowing  who  he 
is.  Then  he  comes  to  Thebes,  which  he  rescues  from 
the  ravages  of  the  Sphinx,  the  monster  who  had  put  to 
every  passer-by  the  riddle  :  c  What  is  that  which  goes  on 
four  legs  in  the  morning,  on  two  at  noon,  and  three  in 
the  evening?'  and  had  slain  them  for  not  answering  it. 
When  CEdipus  replied  that  it  was  Man,  who  crawls  on 
all  fours  as  a  babe,  walks  erect  in  his  vigour,  and  uses  a 
stick  in  age,  the  Sphinx  slew  herself,  and  the  Thebans 
made  their  deliverer  king,  and  gave  him  his  own  mother 
for  wife.  The  gods  withheld  their  vengeance,  but  it 
fell  at  last.  CEdipus  became  a  sightless  wanderer,  and 
Eteocles  and  Polynices,  the  sons  of  his  unholy  marriage, 
who  had  shown  him  no  mercy,  inherited  hatred  and 
strife.  When  Eteocles  held  the  city  against  him,  Poly 
nices  and  his  allies,  the  Seven  against  Thebes  ('  Kyng 
Cappaneus,'  1.  74,  was  one  of  them),  began  a  great 
siege,  in  the  course  of  which  the  two  brothers  slew  each 
other,  and  all  but  one  of  the  other  chiefs  were  killed. 
Then  Creon,  the  uncle  of  Eteocles  and  Polynices, 
seized  the  city,  and  (according  to  the  legend  which 
Chaucer  follows)  denied  burial  to  the  bodies  of  Polynices 
and  his  friends.  Whereupon  their  wives  appealed  to 
Theseus,  the  king  of  the  not  far  distant  city  of  Athens, 
and  we  reach  the  point  at  which  Chaucer's  story 
begins. 

With  the  legends  which  centre  round  Theseus  as  the 
slayer  of  the  Minotaur  of  Crete  (besides  other  monsters), 
and  the  faithless  lover  of  Ariadne,  Chaucer  here  does 
not  concern  himself,  though  he  wrote  of  them,  from 


iv  INTRODUCTION 


the  point  of  view  of  Ariadne,  in  his  Legend  of  Good 
Women.  In  the  present  story  (save  for  a  passing  allusion 
to  Theseus'  friend  Pirithous,  whom  he  helped  in  an 
unsuccessful  attempt  to  deprive  Hades  of  its  queen 
Persephone)  we  hear  only  of  the  expedition  against  the 
Amazons  and  their  queen  Hippolyta.  In  the  Greek 
legends  Hippolyta  is  slain  in  battle  by  Hercules  and 
Theseus  is  rewarded  with  the  hand  of  her  sister  Antiope, 
but  it  is  Hippolyta  herself  who  is  brought  to  Athens  as 
her  conqueror's  willing  wife  in  the  poem  which  Chaucer 
doubtless  regarded  as  the  ultimate  authority  on  the 
legend  of  Thebes,  the  Thebais  of  Publius  Papinius 
Statins,  a  Roman  poet  of  the  first  century  A.D.  The 
Thebais  (published  A.D.  92)  is  an  epic  written  in  hexa 
meter  verse  in  the  usual  twelve  books,  spoilt  by  its 
prolix  rhetoric  and  tiresome  over-emphasis,  but  not 
without  picturesque  points.  The  rendering  funeral  rites 
to  the  warriors  from  whom  Creon  had  withheld  them 
is  its  final  episode,  and  in  11.  464-519  of  the  twelfth 
book  Statius  describes  how  the  forlorn  widows  came  to 
Athens  to  await  the  return  of  Theseus,  and  were  kindly 
entertained  by  the  Athenians,  who  brought  them  to 
the  middle  of  the  town,  to  an  altar  of  the  Goddess 
Clemency,  at  which  no  sacrifice  was  offered  save  the 
tears  of  the  wretched.  As  soon  as  they  are  placed  here, 
Theseus  and  Hippolyta  are  seen  approaching  in  all  the 
splendour  which  the  Romans  associated  with  a  triumph. 
While  the  crowd  stare  at  Hippolyta,  the  Theban  women 
advance  from  the  altar,  and  when  the  royal  chariot  is 
brought  to  a  halt  and  Theseus  asks  kindly  what  is  their 
prayer,  the  widow  of  King  Capaneus,  one  of  the  seven 
besiegers,  unfolds  it  with  the  rhetoric  which  Statius 


™,v 


INTRODUCTION  V 

loved.  Theseus  is  soon  stirred  with  righteous  anger, 
bids  a  herald  hasten  to  Creon  to  offer  him  the  choice 
between  burying  the  dead  bodies  and  war,  and  musters 
his  forces  for  a  new  campaign.  Hippolyta  (a  pleasant 
touch)  would  fain  lead  her  Amazons  in  the  same  cause, 
but  Theseus  forbids  it.  His  men  hurriedly  greet  their 
children,  and  then  the  march  to  Thebes  is  begun. 
Creon  is  slain,  the  dead  receive  due  burial,  and  the 
Thebans  find  in  Theseus  a  kindly  conqueror,  whom  they 
welcome  to  their  houses. 

§  2.  Statius  was  born  and  died  at  Naples,  and  it  was 
when  fresh  from  a  long  residence  at  Naples,  and  to 
please  a  Neapolitan  lady,  that  Giovanni  Boccaccio  wrote 
the  Teseide,  the  poem  which  formed  Chaucer's  immediate 
authority.  Born  about  1313,  of  a  Florentine  father, 
Boccaccio  was  sent  to  Naples  at  seventeen  to  work 
in  a  counting-house,  and  two  years  later  was  set  to 
study  law.  But  his  ten  years'  stay  at  Naples  seems 
to  have  been  mainly  occupied  with  making  love.  In 
1339  he  rewrote  (under  the  title  Filocopo)  the  old 
story  of  Floris  and  Blanchefleur  for  his  lady's  enter 
tainment,  and  when  an  unsympathizing  father  recalled 
him  to  Florence  in  1340  the  Teseide  was  composed 
there  ;vith  the  same  object.  In  writing  it  Boccaccio 
almost  certainly  had  before  him,  in  addition  to  Statius, 
some  original,  which  is  now  lost,  or,  at  least,  has  re 
mained  unidentified.  Had  he  performed  the  very 
considerable  feat  of  evolving  the  whole  love-story  out  of 
his  own  imagination,  it  is  inconceivable  that  he  should 
at  the  same  time  have  minimized  the  importance  of 
this  element  by  naming  the  poem  the  Teseide  and 
overweighting  it  at  the  outset  by  the  long  account  of 


vi  INTRODUCTION 

Theseus'  campaign  against  the  Amazons.  On  the  other 
hand,  if  he  found  the  love-story  ready  made,  it  would 
be  extremely  likely  that  he  should  try  to  'dignify'  it, 
as  he  may  have  thought,  by  increasing  the  classical 
element  and  giving  it  an  epic  flavour.  As  to  this, 
however,  it  is  impossible  to  dogmatize  until  the  hypo 
thetical  lost  romance  has  been  recovered.  In  what 
ever  way  they  were  arrived  at,  the  contents  of  the 
twelve  cantos  of  the  Teseide  are  as  follows,  the  epitome 
being  one  of  many  debts  which  Chaucer  students  owe 
to  that  excellent  scholar  Thomas  Tyrwhitt : 

'  Book  i.  Contains  the  War  of  Theseus  with  the  Amazons,  their 
submission  to  him,  and  his  marriage  with  Hippolyta. 

Book  ii.  Theseus,  having  spent  two  years  in  Scythia,  is  re 
proached  by  Perithous  in  a  vision,  and  immediately  returns  to 
Athens  with  Hippolyta  and  her  sister  Emilia.  He  enters  the  city 
in  triumph  ;  finds  the  Grecian  ladies  in  the  temple  of  Clemenzia  ; 
marches  to  Thebes;  kills  Creon,  etc.,  and  brings  home  Palemone 
and  Arcita,  who  are  "  Damnati — ad  eterna  presone." 

Book  iii.  Emilia,  walking  in  a  garden  and  singing,  is  heard 
and  seen  first  by  Arcita,  who  calls  Palemone.  They  are  both 
equally  enamoured  of  her,  but  without  any  jealousy  or  rivalship. 
Emilia  is  supposed  to  see  them  at  the  window,  and  to  be  not 
displeased  with  their  admiration.  Arcita  is  released  at  the 
request  of  Perithous  ;  takes  his  leave  of  Palemone,  with  embraces, 
etc. 

Book   iv.    Arcita,    having   changed   his   name   to  Pentheo,   got 
into  the  service  of  Menelaus  at  Mycenae,  and  afterwards  of  Peleu 
at  Aegina.     From    thence  he  returns   to   Athens   and   becomes  ? 
favourite  servant  of  Theseus,  being  known  to  Emilia,  though  t< 
nobody    else  ;    till   after   some  time  he   is   overheard   making   his 
complaint    in    a   wood,    to   which    he    usually   resorted    for    that 
purpose,  by  Pamphilo,  a  servant  of  Palemone. 

Book  v.  Upon  the  report  of  Pamphilo,  Palemone  begins  to  be 
jealous  of  Arcita,  and  is  desirous  to  get  out  of  prison  in  order 


INTRODUCTION  vii 

to  fight  with  him.  This  be  accomplishes  with  the  assistance  of 
Pamphilo,  by  changing  clothes  with  Alimento,  a  physician.  He 
goes  armed  to  the  wood  in  quest  of  Arcita,  whom  he  finds  sleep 
ing.  At  first,  they  are  very  civil  and  friendly  to  each  other. 
Then  Palemone  calls  upon  Arcita  to  renounce  his  pretensions  to 
Emilia,  or  to  fight  with  him.  After  many  long  expostulations  on 
the  part  of  Arcita,  they  fight,  and  are  discovered  first  by  Emilia, 
who  sends  for  Theseus.  When  he  finds  who  they  are,  and  the 
cause  of  their  difference,  he  forgives  them,  and  proposes  the 
method  of  deciding  their  claim  to  Emilia  by  a  combat  of  a 
hundred  on  each  side,  to  which  they  gladly  agree. 

Book  vi.  Palemone  and  Arcita  live  splendidly  at  Athens,  and 
send  out  messengers  to  summon  their  friends,  who  arrive  ;  and 
the  principal  of  them  are  severally  described,  viz.  Lycurgus, 
Peleus,  Phocus,  Telamon,  etc.;  Agamemnon,  Menelaus,  Castor 
and  Pollux,  etc. ;  Nestor,  Evander,  Perithous,  Ulysses,  Dio- 
medes,  etc.  ;  with  a  great  display  of  ancient  history  and 
mythology. 

Book  vii.  Theseus  declares  the  laws  of  the  combat,  and  the 
two  parties  of  a  hundred  on  each  side  are  formed.  The  day 
before  the  combat,  Arcita,  after  having  visited  the  temples  of 
all  the  gods,  makes  a  formal  prayer  to  Mars.  The  prayer,  being 
personified,  is  said  to  go  and  find  Mars  in  his  Temple  in  Thrace, 
which  is  described  ;  and  Mars,  upon  understanding  the  message, 
causes  favourable  signs  to  be  given  to  Arcita.  In  the  same  manner 
Palemone  closes  his  religious  observances  with  a  prayer  to  Venus. 
His  prayer,  being  also  personified,  sets  out  for  the  temple  ot 
Venus  on  Mount  Citherone,  which  is  also  described ;  and  the 
petition  is  granted.  Then  the  sacrifice  of  Emilia  to  Diana  is 
described,  her  prayer,  the  appearance  of  the  goddess,  and  the 
signs  of  the  two  fires.  In  the  morning  they  proceed  to  the  theatre 
with  their  respective  troops,  and  prepare  for  the  action.  Arcita 
puts  up  a  private  prayer  to  Emilia,  and  harangues  his  troop  publicly, 
and  Palemone  does  the  same. 

Book  viii.  Contains  a  description  of  the  battle,  in  which  Pale 
mone  is  taken  prisoner. 

Book  ix.  The  horse  of  Arcita,  being  frighted  by  a  Fury,  sent 
from  Hell  at  the  desire  of  Venus,  throws  him.  However,  he  is 

b 

/\     (    f 


viii  INTRODUCTION 

carried  to  Athens  in  a  triumphal  chariot  with  Emilia  by  his  side ; 
is  put  to  bed  dangerously  ill ;  and  there  by  his  own  desire  espouses 
Emilia. 

Book  x.  The  funeral  of  the  persons  killed  in  the  combat. 
Arcita,  being  given  over  by  his  physicians,  makes  his  will,  in 
discourse  with  Theseus,  and  desires  that  Palemone  may  inherit 
all  his  possessions  and  also  Emilia.  He  then  takes  leave  of 
Palemone  and  Emilia,  to  whom  he  repeats  the  same  request. 
Their  lamentations.  Arcita  orders  a  sacrifice  to  Mercury,  which 
Palemone  performs  for  him,  and  dies. 

Book  xi.  Opens  with  the  passage  of  Arcita's  soul  to  heaven, 
imitated  from  the  ninth  book  of  Lucan.  The  funeral  of  Arcita. 
Description  of  the  wood  felled  takes  up  six  stanzas.  Palemone 
builds  a  temple  in  honour  of  him,  in  which  his  whole  history  is 
painted.  The  description  of  this  painting  is  an  abridgment  of  the 
preceding  part  of  the  poem. 

Book  xii.  Theseus  proposes  to  carry  into  execution  Arcita's 
will  by  the  marriage  of  Palemone  and  Emilia.  This  they  both 
decline  for  some  time  in  formal  speeches,  but  at  last  are  persuaded 
and  married.  The  Kings,  etc.,  take  their  leave,  and  Palemone 
remains — in  gioia  ed  in  diporto  colla  sua  donna  nobile  e  cortese.' l 

§  3.2  Such  was  the  story  of  which  the  influence  is  first 
apparent  in  Chaucer's  work  in  the  poems  which  for  other 

1  The  Canterbury  Tales  of  Chaucer,  to  which  are  added  An 
Essay  on  his  language  and  versification,  together  with  notes 
and  glossary.  By  the  late  Thomas  Tyrwhitt.  Second  Edition. 
1798. 

a  This  and  the  succeeding  three  sections  are  devoted  to  arguments 
as  to  the  date  of  the  Knightes  Tale  and  the  position  it  occupies 
in  Chaucer's  works,  rather  too  special  to  interest  junior  students. 
For  these  it  will  suffice  to  know  that  (i)  Before  writing  the  Knightes 
Tale  Chaucer  made  use  of  the  Teseide  as  an  element  in  a  story 
of  Queen  Anelida  and  Fals  Arcyte,  which  he  left  as  a  mere  frag 
ment  ;  (2)  the  Knightes  Tale  and  the  Legend  of  Good  Women  were 
both  written  soon  after  the  completion  of  Troilus  and  Criseyde,  i.e. 
between  about  1383  and  1386,  but  that  there  is  a  controversy  as  to 


INTRODUCTION 

reasons  we  assign  to  the  six  years  which  followed  his 
return,  in  September  1378,  from  his  second  diplomatic 
visit  to  Italy.  Whether,  as  I  have  elsewhere,  perhaps 
rashly,  conjectured,  he  then  brought  back  with  him  not 
only  Boccaccio's  Teseide,  but  his  Filostrato  (the  basis  of 
Troilus  and  Criseyde)  and  Dante's  Divina  Commedia 
or  whether  he  procured  these  books  through  Italian 
merchants  in  London,  matters  little.  What  is  certain 
is  that  in  the  poems  written  during  the  next  six  years 
the  influence  of  these  three  books  is  predominant.  As 
far  as  we  can  judge,  it  was  with  the  Teseide  that  Chaucer 
first  busied  himself,  intending  apparently  to  combine  it 
with  other  material  in  the  poem  known  as  Queen  Anelida 
and  False  Arcyte.  With  the  exception  of  a  long  'com 
plaint,'  which  (though  very  interesting  metrically)  has 
been  omitted  as  not  relevant  to  our  purpose,  all  that 
remains  of  this  poem,  and  presumably  all  that  was  ever 
written,  is  quoted  in  our  Appendix.  Reference  to  it 
will  show  that  it  begins  with  a  due  poetic  apostrophe, 
paraphrased  from  the  beginning  of  the  Teseide,  and  then 
introduces  Theseus,  Hippolyta,  and  Emily,  much  as  in 
the  Knightes  Tale.  At  1.  45  Chaucer  leaves  this  noble 


which  came  first ;  (3)  in  the  Legend  of  Good  Women  there  is  a 
reference  to  a  story  of  '  Palamon  and  Arcyte  of  Thebes,'  and  that 
some  students  take  this  to  refer  to  the  Knightes  Tale  very  much  in 
its  present  form,  others  to  a  supposed  earlier  version  in  seven-line 
stanzas ;  (4)  it  is  usually  said  that  Chaucer  first  employed  deca 
syllabic  couplets  in  the  Legend  oj  Good  Women,  but  we  have  no 
evidence  as  to  this  beyond  opinions  as  to  the  order  of  the  various 
poems,  and  there  is  no  reason  why  he  should  not  have  used  it  pre 
viously,  not  only  in  the  Knightes  Tale,  but  also  in  those  of  the 
Doctor  and  Manciple. 


x  INTRODUCTION 

prince  Theseus  'toward  Athenes  in  his  wey  ridinge,' 
and  professes  that  he  will  contrive  '  slyly '  and  concisely 
to  '  bring  in '  Anelida  and  Arcyte.  To  do  this  he  takes 
us  to  Thebes,  and  having  introduced  Creon  to  us,  drops 
him  almost  as  abruptly  as  he  had  dropped  Theseus,  and 
plunges  into  a  story  of  how  the  Theban  knight  Arcyte 
had  won  the  heart  of  Anelida,  Queen  of  Armenia,  at 
that  time  living  in  Thebes  (as  to  how  she  got  there  no 
hint  is  given),  how  he  deserted  her,  and  how  he  was 
appropriately  punished  by  falling  under  the  sway  of 
another  lady,  who  treated  him  with  cruel  caprice.  We 
are  next  bidden  to  turn  to  Anelida  again,  in  order 
to  listen  to  a  long  complaint,  and  then,  when  she  has 
committed  herself  to  sacrifice  to  Mars,  an  unusual  course 
for  a  lady  to  take,  and  so  calculated  to  raise  our 
curiosity,  the  poem  breaks  off. 

Chaucer  is  undoubtedly  the  best  teller  of  a  story 
among  English  poets,  but  this  ill-laid  foundation,  on  which 
he  could  hardly  have  raised  even  a  ground  floor,  is  not 
the  only  proof  that  has  come  down  to  us  that  his  genius 
did  not  lie  in  the  direction  of  inventing  or  compounding 
a  plot.  In  his  Hous  of  Fame  an  eagle  soars  aloft  with 
him,  and  he  beholds  and  describes  Fame's  temple  and 
her  suitors,  but  in  doing  this  he  loses  his  sense  of  pro 
portion,  and  finally  is  quite  unable  to  round  off  his 
vision.  In  the  Squires  Tale  he  shows  us  at  the  outset, 
just  as  he  does  here,  the  threads  which  he  proposed  to 
weave  together,  but  the  skill  to  do  this  failed  him,  and 
that  story  also  remained  a  fragment.  What  he  could  do 
with  extraordinary  success  was  to  take  a  ready-made 
plot,  and  improve  on  his  original  all  the  way  along, 
cutting  down  prolixities,  embellishing  it  with  his  own 


INTRODUCTION  xi 

comments  or  with  the  fruit  of  his  reading,  and,  above  all, 
giving  personality  and  life  to  every  character  with  whom 
he  concerns  himself.  When  he  laid  aside  Auelida  and 
False  Arcyte  he  took  up  Filostrato  and  taught  (we  may 
fairly  say)  by  his  recent  failure,  was  content  in  his  Troilus 
and  Criseyde  to  follow  Boccaccio's  outlines  from  start  to 
finish,  while  immeasurably  enriching  the  characterization. 
A  few  lines  at  the  beginning  of  the  fifth  book  show  that 
phrases  in  the  Teseide  were  still  haunting  his  memory,  and 
in  revising  the  poem  he  introduced  from  the  Teseide  the 
three  very  fine  stanzas  quoted  in  our  Appendix,  on  the 
smallness  of  human  ambitions  and  troubles  when  viewed 
from  the  standpoint  of  immortality.  In  thus  transferring 
them  from  the  one  poem  to  the  other  he  showed  true 
poetic  instinct,  for  in  the  Teseide  it  was  no  business  of 
Boccaccio's  to  discount  the  happiness  of  Palamon  by 
dwelling  on  such  a  thought,  while  its  appropriateness  in 
the  tale  of  the  deceived  and  hapless  Troilus  is  evident, 
and  leads  directly  to  the  apostrophe  beginning,  '  O  yonge 
fresshe  folkes,'  which  sounds  the  deepest  religious  note 
of  which  Chaucer  was  capable. 

The  Troilus  is  Chaucer's  longest  single  poem,  and 
there  is  evidence  that  while  he  was  writing  it,  he  had  to 
break  off  to  compose  The  Parlement  of  Fonles  in  honour 
of  the  betrothal  of  Richard  II.  to  Anne  of  Bohemia. 
In  this  charming  poem  also  we  find  traces  of  the  Teseide 
in  the  sixteen  stanzas,  quoted  in  our  Appendix,  describ 
ing  the  fair  garden  in  which  the  birds  assembled  for  their 
St.  Valentine's  parliament.  When  the  Troilus,  and  the 
Parlement  of  Foules  which  interrupted  it,  were  finished, 
I  ask  my  readers  to  believe  that  Chaucer  was  left  with 
the  plot  of  t-he  Teseide  still  unused.  There  is  another 


xii  INTRODUCTION 

hypothesis  as  to  this,  which  shall  be  noted  later,  but  for 
the  present  I  would  tell  my  tale  right  on. — What  could 
be  more  natural  than  that,  encouraged  by  what  he  must 
have  known  was  his  great  artistic  success  in  converting 
the  Filostrato  into  the  Troilus,  he  should  at  once  have 
determined  to  follow  the  same  course  with  the  Teseide, 
taking  his  story  bodily  from  Boccaccio,  and  only  altering 
details  in  order  to  make  his  narrative  more  rapid  and 
passionate,  and  his  characters  more  human  and  indi 
vidual  ?  We  have  every  artistic  reason  for  placing  the 
two  poems  as  near  together  as  may  be.  They  are  alike 
in  temper,  and  in  some  respects  in  handling.  Though 
Theseus  is  Boccaccio's  nominal  hero  and  not  Chaucer's, 
Chaucer  gives  him  a  vigour  and  humour  which  recalls 
his  masterly  transformation  of  the  character  of  Pandarus. 
Secondly,  we  know  that  while  Chaucer  was  writing 
Troilus  and  the  Parlement  he  had  also  in  hand,  as  an 
occupation  for  his  less  inspired  leisure,  his  translation  of 
the  De  Consolatione  Philosophiae  of  Boethius,  and  traces 
of  the  De  Consolatione  abound  in  the  Knightes  Tale  just 
as  they  do  in  Troilus.  Thirdly,  I  borrow  from  Professor 
Skeat  the  observation  :  "  it  is  remarkable  how  many 
expressions  that  occur  in  the  Knightes  Tale  are  repeated 
from  Troilus"  and  I  fully  agree  with  him  that  "this 
tends  to  shew  that  the  Knightes  Tale  was  written  not 
very  long  after  Troilus"  though  when  he  assigns  it  to 
'  1386  or  1387'  I  think  he  does  injustice  to  the  weight  of 
his  own  argument.  When  he  also  notes  similar  but 
fewer  resemblances  between  the  Knightes  Tale  and  the 
Legend  of  Good  Women,  I  think  we  have  a  further  argu 
ment  for  placing  the  Knightes  Tale  between  the  two, 
otherwise  we  shall  have  to  carry  the  more  numerous 


INTRODUCTION  xiii 

resemblances  to  Troilus  over  the  head  of  an  inter 
mediate  poem.1 

1 A  fourth  argument  which  has  occurred  to  me  raises  so  con 
troversial  a  question  that  I  relegate  it  to  a  footnote.  Towards  the 
end  of  Troilus  (v.  1786-88)  Chaucer  writes 

Go,  litel  book  !   Go,  litel  myn  tragedie  ! 
Ther  God  thy  maker  yit,  or  that  he  dye, 
So  sende  might  to  make  in  som  comedie. 

What  is  this  comedy  which  Chaucer  asks  that  the  maker  of  the 
Troilus  might  have  power  given  him  to  write  ?  Professor  Skeat 
answers  the  Hous  of  Fame,  and  when  the  answer  is  carefully  con 
sidered,  it  cannot  be  lightly  put  aside.  Of  course  the  Hous  of  Fame 
is  as  unlike  our  notion  of  a  comedy  as  anything  can  well  be — except 
that  other  Commedia,  to  which  Dante  gave  its  (to  us)  surprising  title. 
Chaucer  had  been  reading  the  Divina  Commedia,  the  Hous  of 
Fame  contains  reminiscences  of  it.  Moreover,  the  poem  is  a  vision 
and  one  in  which  the  poet  is  borne  aloft  by  a  heavenly  messenger. 
Almost  ludicrous  as  the  comparison  of  the  two  works  seems  now, 
Chaucer  may  have  set  out  in  the  Hous  of  Fame  to  write  a  '  comedy  ' 
in  the  style  of  Dante,  and  if  so  we  may  presume  that  it  is  to 
the  Hous  that  he  alludes  at  the  end  of  Troilus.  But  to  anyone 
who  cannot  accept  this  theory  I  would  submit  that  to  balance  the 
'  tragedye '  of  Troilus  and  Criseyde,  which  is  tragic  only  by  virtue 
of  its  unhappy  ending,  we  could  hardly  have  a  better  '  comedy ' 
than  the  '  Knightes  Tale,'  with  the  happy  marriage  of  Palamon 
and  Emily  as  a  climax.  It  is  certainly  much  easier  to  see  the 
points  of  resemblance  which  make  the  Divina  Commedia  and  the 
Hous  of  Fame  both  comedies,  than  to  believe  that  Chaucer  having 
finished  his  Troilus  set  it  up  against  the  Divina  Commedia  as  a 
tragedy,  and  proposed  to  imitate  the  Divina  Commedia  to  match  it. 
Moreover,  the  authority  of  Lydgate  and  of  Dante  himself  is  against 
the  identification  of  the  promised  comedy  with  the  Hous  of  Fame, 
for  in  his  Chronicle  of  Troy,  n.  xi.  Lydgate  gives  the  definition  : 

A  comedy  hath  in  his  gynnynge 

A  prime  face  a  maner  complaynynge 

And  afterwarde  endeth  in  gladnesse, 


xiv  INTRODUCTION 

§4.  These  points  considered,  what  are  we  to  say 
when  we  read  in  the  list  of  his  own  works  which 
Chaucer  puts  into  the  mouth  of  Queen  Alcestis  in  the 
second  version  of  the  Prologue  to  the  Legend  of  Good 
Women  : 

He  made  the  book  that  hight  the  Hous  of  Fame, 

And  eke  the  Deeth  of  Blaunche  the  Duchesse, 

And  the  Parlement  of  Foules,  as  I  gesse, 

And  al  the  Love  of  Palamoun  and  Arcite 

Of  Thebes,  thogh  the  storye-1  ys  knowen  lyte ? 


which  is  practically  an  echo  of  Dante's  '  Comoedia  vero  inchoat 
asperitatem  alicujus  rei :  sed  ejus  materia  prospere  terminatur ' 
(Epist.  x.  10).  Now  in  the  Hous  of  Fame  there  is  no  hoteworthy 
'  complaynynge,'  or  preliminary  'asperitas,'  while  in  the  Knightes 
Tale  Palamon  comes  through  much  misfortune  to  the  happiness  he 
desires.  Moreover  Lydgate  in  his  Bochas  (Prol.  v.  i)  speaks  of 
Chaucer's  '  fresh  comedies '  as  if  all  his  stories  with  happy  endings 
deserved  to  be  so  called.  Putting  together  Chaucer's  definition  of 
Tragedy  in  the  Monk's  Tale  (B.  3163  sqq.)  with  Lydgate's  and 
Dante's  of  Comedy  as  just  quoted,  we  see  that  neither  with  the  one 
nor  the  other  must  we  associate  any  thought  of  the  drama.  The 
essential  ideas  are  those  contained  in  the  two  halves  of  the  verse  : 
"  He  hath  put  down  the  mighty  from  their  seat  and  hath  exalted 
the  humble  and  meek."  Tragedy  begins  happily  and  ends  un 
happily,  Comedy  begins  unhappily  and  ends  happily.  For  calling 
his  poem  a  Commedia  Dante  himself  assigns  as  his  reason  that  it 
begins  in  Hell  and  ends  in  Heaven  (a  principio  horribilis  et  foetida 
est,  quia  Infernus,  in  fine  prospera,  desiderabilis  et  grata,  quia 
Paradisus).  The  whole  matter  is  much  too  obscure  to  dogmatize 
about,  but  I  think  that  the  current  theory  that  Chaucer's  promised 
'  comedy '  must  necessarily  be  identified  with  the  Hous  ef  Fame 
may  profitably  be  reconsidered.  It  is  quite  probable  that  he  meant 
no  more  than  '  I  have  here  written  a  sad  story,  I  hope  soon  to 
write  a  merrier  one.' 

1  It  is  to   be  regretted  that   despite   the   careful   note   of   Prof. 
Skeat,   several  times  repeated,   scholars  who  should   know  better 


INTRODUCTION  XV 

We  may  think  for  a  moment  that  the  reference  cannot 
be  to  the  Knightes  Tale,  because  the  Canterbury  Tales 
as  a  whole  are  later  than  the  Legend  of  Good  Women, 
to  which  Chaucer  makes  his  Man  of  Law  allude.  But 
when  a  few  lines  later  on  we  find  a  reference  to  "the 
Lyf  also  of  Saynt  Cecile,"  incorporated  in  the  cycle 
as  the  Tale  of  the  Second  Nun,  we  are  reminded  of 
what  is  now  universally  admitted,  namely  that  Chaucer 
used  old  work  as  well  as  new  in  the  Canterbury  Series, 
and  that  the  date  of  each  tale  must  therefore  be  con 
sidered  on  its  own  merits.  Next  we  may  find  a  diffi 
culty  in  the  fact  that  the  present  text  of  the  Knightes 
Tale  (despite  some  few  phrases  which  tell  the  other  way) 
corresponds  to  its  position  as  a  part  of  the  cycle.  Thus 
in  11.  27-33  the  Knight  excuses  himself  for  omitting 
details  by  saying : 

But  al  that  thyng  I  moot  as  now  forbere. 
I  have,  God  woot,  a  large  feeld  to  ere, 
And  wayke  been  the  oxen  in  my  plough, 
The  remenant  of  the  tale  is  long  ynough, 
I  wol  nat  letten  eek  none  of  this  route. 
Lat  every  felawe  telle  his  tale  aboute, 
And  lat  se  now  who  shal  the  soper  wynne. 

Clearly  Chaucer  could  not  have  written  thus  before 
the  plan  of  the  Canterbury  Tales  was  fully  in  his  mind. 
Our  theory  does  not  require  us  to  suppose  that  he  did. 
Out  of  the  splendid  work  which  has  been  done  for 
our  1 4th  century  literature  during  the  last  thirty  years 
no  fact  emerges  more  clearly  than  that  the  poets  of 


still  sometimes  interpret  '  the  storye '  here  as  if  the  words  referred 
to  Chaucer's  version  of  it.  The  allusion  to  the  obscurity  of  the 
tale  is  taken  over  from  Boccaccio,  and  refers  to  his  own  original, 
whatever  that  may  have  been.  See  note  to  1.  I. 


xvi  INTRODUCTION 

Chaucer's  day  constantly  revised  their  work.  Dr.  Skeat 
has  traced  the  successive  recensions  of  Langland's 
Piers  Plowman,  and  Dr.  Macaulay  those  of  Gower's 
Confessio  Amantis,  while  Prof.  M'Cormick  has  shown 
that  Chaucer  made  insertions  and  alterations  in  later 
texts  of  his  Troilus.  We  know  also  that  we  possess  two 
quite  distinct  versions  of  the  Prologue  to  the  Legend  of 
Good  Women,  and  there  is  a  practical  agreement  among 
Chaucer  scholars  that  the  Clerkes  Tale  was  written 
about  1374  and  inserted  in  the  Canterbury  Tales  with 
interpolations,  and  that  the  Tragedies  put  into  the 
mouth  of  the  jolly  Monk  contain  a  mixture  of  old  and 
new  work.  There  is  thus  not  the  smallest  difficulty 
in  believing  that  Chaucer  wrote  the  story  of  Palamon 
and  Arcite,  which  is  now  the  Knightes  Tale,  im 
mediately  after  the  completion  of  Troilus,  i.e.  in  1383 
or  1384,  and  inserted  it  in  the  Canterbury  series  with 
a  moderate  amount  of  revision.1 

§  5.  In  an  earlier  paragraph  I  warned  my  readers 
that  the  theory  I  was  putting  before  them  was  not  the 
one  generally  accepted.  I  will  now  state  that  which 
has  to  be  set  against  it  by  quoting  what  is  said  by  Prof. 
Skeat.  In  his  introduction  to  Anelida  he  writes  : 

"It  is  also  probable  that  Chaucer  actually  wrote  an  earlier 
draught  of  the  Knightes  Tale,  with  the  title  of  Palamon  and 
Arcite,  which  he  afterwards  partially  rejected  ;  for  he  mentions 
'  The  Love  of  Palamon  and  Arcite '  in  the  prologue  to  the  Legend 
of  Good  Women  as  if  it  were  an  independent  work.  However  this 
may  be,  it  is  clear  that,  in  constructing  or  rewriting  the  Knightes 
Tale,  he  did  not  lose  sight  of  '  Anelida,'  for  he  has  used  some 
of  the  lines  over  again ;  moreover,  it  is  not  a  little  remarkable 

1  The  use  of  the  word  '  write  '  (instead  of  '  telle ')  in  1.  343  corro 
borates  this  view. 


INTRODUCTION  xvfi 

that  the  very  lines  from  Statius  which  are  quoted  at  the  beginning 
of  the  fourth  stanza  of  Anelida  are  also  quoted  in  some  of  the 
MSS.  at  the  beginning  of  the  Knightes  Tale.1 

But  this  is  not  all.  For  Dr.  Koch  has  pointed  out  the  close 
agreement  between  the  opening  stanzas  of  this  poem  and  those 
of  Boccaccio's  Teseide,  which  is  the  very  work  from  which 
Palamon  and  Arcite  was,  of  course,  derived,  as  it  is  the  chief 
source  of  the  Knightes  Tale  also.  Besides  this,  there  are  several 
stanzas  from  the  Teseide  in  the  Parliament  of  Foules ;  and  even 
three  near  the  end  of  Troilus,  viz.  the  seventh,  eighth,  and  ninth 
from  the  end  of  the  last  book.  Hence  we  should  be  inclined 
to  suppose  that  Chaucer  originally  translated  the  Teseide  rather 
closely,  substituting  a  seven-line  stanza  for  the  ottava  rima  of 
the  original ;  this  formed  the  original  Palamon  and  Arcite,  a 
poem  which  he  probably  never  finished  (as  his  manner  was).  Not 
wishing,  however,  to  abandon  it  altogether,  he  probably  used 
some  of  the  lines  in  the  present  poem,  and  introduced  others 
into  his  Parliament  of  Foules.  At  a  later  period,  he  rewrote,  in 
a  complete  form,  the  whole  story  in  his  own  fashion,  which  has 
come  down  to  us  as  the  Knightes  Tale.  Whatever  the  right 
explanation  may  be,  we  are  at  any  rate  certain  that  the  Teseide 
is  the  source  of  (i)  sixteen  stanzas  in  the  Parliament  of  Foules; 
(2)  of  part  of  the  first  ten  stanzas  in  the  present  poem  ;  (3)  of  the 
original  Palamon  and  Arcite  :  (4)  of  the  Knightes  Tale  ;  and  (5)  of 
three  stanzas  near  the  end  of  Troilus,  bk.  v.  1807-27  (Tes. 
xi.  1-3). 

In  the  introduction  to  the  Knightes  Tale  Prof.  Skeat, 
after  referring  his  readers  to  these  remarks,  sums  up : 

We  thus  see  (as  was  duly  noted  by  Ten  Brink)  that  the  original 
Palemon  and  Arcite  was  written  in  seven-line  stanzas,  and  that 
some  fragments  that  once  belonged  to  it  have  found  their  way 
into  other  poems.  The  opening  stanzas  of  Palemon  and  Arcite 
are  preserved  in  the  poem  of  Anelida,  11.  22-46 ;  and  we  can 
easily  see  how  they  were  rewritten  so  as  to  form  11.  A.  859-873 
of  the  Knightes  Tale.  .  .  .  Sixteen  stanzas  which  probably 
belonged  to  Palemon  and  Arcite  are  preserved  in  the  Parl.  Foules, 

1  See  first  note  in  commentary. 


xviii  INTRODUCTION 

183-294.  These  lines  were  entirely  recast  and  condensed,  with 
additions  of  Chaucer's  own,  and  answer  to  Kn.  Ta.,  A.  1918-1935. 
.  .  .  These  specimens  furnish  good  examples  of  Chaucer's  method. 
Palemon  and  Arcite  was  at  first  a  reasonably  close  imitation  of 
Boccaccio's  poem  of  the  Teseide,  which  took  its  name  from  the 
hero  Theseus.  But  in  its  second  form,  it  was  so  much  altered 
as  to  become,  to  all  intents,  a  truly  original  poem. 

With  this  last  assertion,  that  the  Knightes  Tale  is  'to 
all  intents,  a  truly  original  poem '  I  am  in  most  cordial 
agreement  and  will  give  the  reasons  for  my  faith  later 
on.  But,  with  this  exception,  the  whole  drift  of  the 
argument  here  put  forward,  appears  to  me  unfortunate. 
|  §  6.  Whether  the  Knightes  Tale  was  written  in 
1384  or  in  1386, — or  before  or  after  the  Legend  of  Good 
Women, — is  of  course  merely  the  kind  of  point  in 
which  editors  become  profoundly  interested  to  the 
quite  legitimate  annoyance  of  their  readers.  Even 
the  fact  that  there  is  some  interest  in  knowing  in  which 
of  Chaucer's  works  the  heroic  couplet  first  made  its 
appearance  in  English  poetry,  would  not  raise  the 
question  to  one  of  any  great  literary  importance.  But 
the  picture  of  Chaucer's  'method'  which  Ten  Brink 
and  Dr.  Koch  and  Prof.  Skeat  here  unite  in  drawing 
seems  to  me  so  untrue  to  the  facts  and  so  unworthy 
of  him  that  one  may  humbly  protest  against  such 
statements  being  made  by  scholars  of  such  reputation. 
The  whole  hypothesis  of  the  existence  of  a  seven-line 
stanza  version  of  the  Teseide  is  absolutely  unnecessary, 
and  the  suggestion  that  we  can  only  account  for  the 
presence  of  passages  from  the  Teseide  interpolated  into 
other  poems  by  supposing  that  Chaucer  had  a  rejected 
manuscript  by  him  from  which  he  economically  cut 
them  out,  is  almost  funny.  Dr.  Skeat  does  not  help 


INTRODUCTION  xix 

his  case  by  suggesting,  as  if  to  minimize  Chaucer's 
trouble,  that  perhaps  the  hypothetical  version  was 
never  finished.  Inasmuch  as  the  Teseide  stanzas  in 
the  Troilus  relate  to  the  death  of  Arcyte,  the  poet's 
patience  seems  to  have  failed  him  very  near  the  end. 
Considering,  moreover,  how  admirable  are  the  Teseide 
stanzas  in  the  Parlement  of  Foules  and  Troilus,  it  seems 
strange  that  Chaucer  should  have  destroyed  the  long 
poem  which  contained  them,  and  then  have  tried  his  hand 
at  a  totally  different  story  about  Arcyte,  into  which 
he  incorporated  some  more  fragments.  The  reader, 
however,  must  judge  for  himself  between  the  two 
theories.  As  the  best  mark  of  respect  I  can  pay  to 
a  scholar  from  whom  it  is  dangerous  to  disagree,  I 
have  quoted  that  of  Prof.  Skeat  in  his  own  words.  In 
contradiction  to  it  my  personal  belief  is  firm  : 

(i)  that  the  first  use  which  Chaucer  made  of  the 
Teseide  was  to  try  to  combine  the  story  of  it 
with  other  material  in  Anelida  and  Arcyte; 

(ii)  that  when  he  failed  in  this  he  laid  it  aside,  while 
using  passages  from  the  Teseide,  according  to 
his  custom  with  other  books,  to  enrich  the 
Parlement  of  Foules  and  (perhaps)  Troilus ; x 

(iii)  that  when  he  had  finished  the  Troilus  he 
returned  to  the  Teseide  and  treated  that  on  the 
same  lines  as  he  had  treated  the  Filostrato, 
using  the  heroic  couplet ; 

1 1  think  it  is  most  probable  that  when  Chaucer  reached  the 
death  of  Arcyte  in  the  Knightes  Tale  the  much  greater  appro 
priateness  of  the  stanzas  to  Troilus  then  first  struck  him,  and 
he  inserted  them  at  once  in  Troiltts  and  Crtseyde,  substituting 
in  the  Knightes  Tale  his  very  light-hearted  comment. 


xx  INTRODUCTION 

(iv)  that  the  Knightes  Tale  is  thus  substantially  the 
same  poem  as  that  alluded  to  in  the  Legend 
of  Good  Women  as  treating  of  '  all  the  love 
of  Palamon  and  Arcyte,'  but  that  slight  altera 
tions  were  subsequently  made  to  fit  it  for  its 
place  in  the  Canterbury  Tales. 

§7.  Some  day,  perhaps,  some  scholar  with  the  neces 
sary  leisure  may  make  an  exhaustive  study  of  the 
technical  peculiarities  of  Chaucer's  heroic  couplets  in 
the  different  poems  in  which  they  occur,  with  a  view 
of  discovering  whether  they  give  any  such  clues  to  the 
chronological  sequence  as  have  been  obtained  from  the 
decrease  of  rhyme  and  end-stopped  lines  in  the  case 
of  Shakespeare's  plays.  Difficulties  will  doubtless  arise 
in  applying  such  tests  to  Chaucer  owing  to  our  un 
certainty  as  to  the  amount  of  revision  which  the  texts 
which  have  come  down  to  us  may  have  received.  There 
is  also  the  further  difficulty  that  the  progress  which  we 
can  undoubtedly  trace  in  Chaucer's  verse  towards  more 
free  and  conversational  rhythms  is  closely  connected 
with  changes  in  his  subject  matter.  We  must  remember 
also  that  if  Chaucer  did  not  begin  to  use  the  heroic 
couplet  until  after  he  had  written  Troilus  he  was  by 
that  time  already  a  master  of  his  art.  The  combination 
of  the  length  of  line  with  which  he  was  familiar  in  his 
stanzas  with  the  rhyming  system  of  his  octosyllabic 
verse  can  have  presented  no  obstacle  to  him  in  the 
eighties,  and  it  is  even  possible  that  in  the  delight  of 
finding  a  new  verse  form  he  started  at  once  at  his 
best.  But  if  anyone  contends  that  the  verse  of  the 
Knightes  Tale  is  too  good  to  be  Chaucer's  first  essay 
in  heroic  couplets  I  would  point  out  that  there  is 


INTRODUCTION  xxi 

nothing  whatever  to  prevent  our  believing  that  the 
Doctor's  tale  of  Appius  and  Virginia  and  the  Manciple's 
tale  of  Phoebus  and  the  Crow  with  some  interpolations 
(e.g.  in  the  Manciple's  Tale,  11.  205-238,  and  1.  309  to 
end)  were  not  written  in  those  years  in  the  'seventies 
(1374-1378)  to  which  at  present  it  is  so  difficult  to 
find  anything  to  assign.  The  'canon'  has  been  laid 
down  that  all  Chaucer's  earlier  work  is  in  octosyllabics 
or  stanzas  and  all  his  later  work  in  heroic  couplets. 
But  it  has  had  to  be  admitted  that  the  Prioress's  Tale 
which  is  in  stanzas  is  quite  late  work,  and  there  is  no 
reason  whatever  why  Chaucer  should  not  have  begun 
writing  in  decasyllabic  couplets  ten  years  before  1385, 
the  date  proposed  for  the  Legend  of  Good  Women, 
in  which  he  is  usually  said  first  to  have  used  them. 

§8.  I  have  already  expressed  my  cordial  agreement 
with  Dr.  Skeat's  assertion  that  the  Knightes  Tale  is 
'  to  all  intents,  a  truly  original  poem.'  Like  Shakespeare, 
Chaucer  required  to  be  put  in  possession  of  a  ready- 
made  plot,  but  no  one  has  ventured  to  deny  that 
Shakespeare's  historical  plays  are  original  because  he 
built  them  up  on  Holinshed  or  on  North's  Plutarch, 
or  to  claim  for  earlier  playwrights  any  more  than  an 
infinitesimal  share  in  the  success  of  Hamlet  or  the 
Merchant  of  Venice.  Although  ambitious  enough  in 
some  respects  the  Teseide  is  far  from  being  Boccaccio's 
strongest  or  most  representative  work,  and  we  must 
not  for  a  moment  think  of  the  Knightes  Tale  as  simply 
a  translation  of  it.  We  may  look  at  the  matter  first 
of  all  arithmetically.  In  the  Teseide  there  are  9054 
lines,  in  the  Knightes  Tale  only  2250,  so  that,  even  if 
all  these  were  taken  from  Boccaccio,  Chaucer  would 


xxii  INTRODUCTION 

have  displayed  his  individuality  by  the  rather  drastic 
course  of  omitting  three  lines  out  of  every  four  of  his 
original.  But  so  far  from  all  the  2250  lines  being 
translated  from  the  Teseide  this  can  be  said  of  only 
270  of  them,  while  in  374  others  a  general  likeness 
can  be  traced  and  in  132  more  a  slight  likeness,  leaving 
1374  lines  wholly  free  from  any  verbal  influence  from 
Boccaccio.  So  much  for  Chaucer's  obligations  in  the 
letter  of  his  poem ;  as  to  the  changes  he  made  in  its 
spirit,  I  may  be  allowed  to  quote,  with  a  few  new 
touches  from  what  I  wrote  in  the  introduction  to  the 
Eversley  Edition  of  the  Canterbury  Tales  in  1894. 

Like  Shakespeare's  Julius  Caesar  the  Teseide  is  called, 
not  after  the  persons  in  whom  we  are  mainly  interested, 
but  after  a  striking  figure  whose  influence  dominates 
the  plot,  though  he  is  not  its  hero.  Boccaccio,  like  a 
true  chronicler,  devotes  a  whole  canto  to  describing 
the  war  of  Theseus  with  the  Amazons,  sees  him  on 
board  ship  homeward  bound,  digresses  to  explain  to 
us  what  has  been  happening  at  Thebes,  and  then 
returns  to  Theseus  to  bring  him  to  the  encounter  with 
the  Theban  ladies  who,  we  know,  are  awaiting  him. 
In  Queen  Anelida  Chaucer  must  have  intended  to 
follow  the  same  plan,  with  a  digression  of  much  greater 
length.  When  he  attacked  the  Teseide  a  second  time 
he  was  a  better  poet.  We  ride  with  Theseus  towards 
Athens,  we  share  his  wonder  at  the  throng  of  women 
mourning  amid  his  triumph,  and  they,  without  our 
having  had  the  freshness  of  the  tale  taken  off  by  the 
chronicler,  explain  to  us,  as  to  Theseus,  the  cause  of 
their  weeping.  The  poem  is  shortened  by  a  good  many 
lines  and  the  effect  is  incomparably  more  dramatic. 


INTRODUCTION  xxiii 

This  little  point  as  to  the  opening  of  the  Knightes 
Tale  is  typical  of  Chaucer's  whole  treatment  of  the 
Teseide.  He  is  continually  abridging,  and  in  almost 
every  incident  of  the  poem,  his  dramatic  instinct  en 
ables  him  to  improve  on  his  original.  This  heightening 
of  the  dramatic  interest  of  the  story  is  especially  evident 
in  all  that  relates  to  the  rivalry  between  the  two  cousins. 
In  the  Teseide  it  is  Arcyte  who  first  sees  Emily;  he 
calls  Palamon  to  the  window,  they  discuss  together  as 
to  whether  she  is  goddess  or  mortal  woman,  and  there 
is  no  question  of  jealousy  between  them,  a  tame  contrast 
to  Palamon's  bitter — 

And  now  thou  woldest  falsly  been  aboute 
To  love  my  lady,  whom  I  love  and  serve 
And  evere  shal,  til  that  myn  herte  sterve. 
Nay  certes,  fals  Arcyte,  thou  shalt  not  so — 

and  the  cousin's  fierce  answer : 

'Thow  shalt,'  quod  he,   'be  rather  fals  than  I, 
And  thou  art  fals,   I  telle  thee,  outrely.' 

When  Arcyte  is  set  free,  after  going  first  to  Thebes 
he  visits  Corinth,  Mycenae,  and  Aegina  before  love 
drives  him  to  risk  his  head  in  Athens.  When  he 
arrives  there  Palamon  hears  of  it  from  a  servant,  and 
we  are  told  elaborately  how  he  escapes  from  prison 
provided  with  a  sword  and  horse.  He  chances  upon 
Arcyte  asleep  and  points  out  to  him  that  as  Emily 
can  only  be  the  wife  of  one  of  them  it  will  be  an  act 
of  friendship  if  Arcyte  surrenders  his  claim.  Arcyte 
cannot  bring  himself  to  this,  but  is  very  reluctant  to 
decide  the  question  by  combat,  and  regards  this  as 
the  culminating  cruelty  of  fate  towards  the  house  of 
Thebes.  But  there  is  no  other  way  of  settling  the 

c 


xxiv  INTRODUCTION 

matter,  so  both  knights  having  their  swords  and  horses 
they  set  to.  Theseus  arrives  and  politely  asks  to  be 
informed  who  they  are  and  what  they  are  fighting  for. 
Arcyte  replies  that  he  is  Theseus'  servant,  and  is  fighting 
this  valiant  knight  on  a  question  of  love.  Palamon, 
in  his  turn,  prefaces  his  confession  of  prison-breaking 
by  the  remark  that  the  nobility  of  Theseus  gives  him 
confidence  to  make  it.  Theseus  is  a  little  annoyed, 
but  readily  owns  that  love  is  an  excuse  for  any  folly 
and  proceeds  to  arrange  matters  to  their  satisfaction. 
Contrast  with  this  Chaucer's  treatment  of  the  story. 
He  begins  by  allowing  Palamon  to  see  Emily  first, 
and  thus,  despite  Arcyte's  ingenious  quibble,  gives  poetic 
justice  an  interest  in  his  success.  The  rest  of  the 
story  is  a  series  of  dramatic  pictures — the  fierce  quarrel 
in  the  prison,  the  vision  of  Mercury  that  sends  Arcyte 
back  from  Thebes  to  Athens,  the  soliloquy  overheard 
in  the  wood,  and  Palamon's  cry  of  wrath — 

Arcite,  false  traytour  wikke  ! 
Now  artow  hent,  that  lovest  my  lady  so — 

Arcyte's  sword  unsheathed  on  the  instant,  and  his  hand 
only  stayed  by  the  sight  of  his  friend  weaponless,  and 
then  the  noble  lines — 

Have  heer  my  trouthe,  tomorwe  I  wol  nat  faile 
Withoute  wityng  of  any  other  wight, 
That  heere  I  wol  be  founden  as  a  knyght, 
And  bryngen  harneys  right  ynough  for  thee, 
And  chese  the  beste  and  leve  the  worste  for  me — 

It  is  Chaucer  who  imagines  all  this,  and  when  the 
morrow  comes  his  invention  does  not  fail  him.  Arcyte 
arrives  "allone  as  he  was  born,"  carrying  the  two  sets 


INTRODUCTION  xxv 

of  arms  and  armour  with  him.  There  is  the  fine  simile 
of  the  hunter  changing  colour  as  he  sets  himself  to 
withstand  the  wild  boar's  rush,  and  then 

Ther  was  no  'good  day,'  ne  no  saluyng, 
But  straight,  withouten  word  or  rehersyng, 
Everich  of  hem  heelpe  for  to  armen  other, 

and  they  fall  to  with  their  weapons.  When  Theseus 
arrives,  he  does  not  content  himself  with  a  polite 
question,  but  spurs  his  horse 

And  at  a  stert  he  was  bitwix  hem  two, 
And  pulled  out  a  swerd,  and  cride  "  Hoo ! 
Na  more,  up  peyne  of  lesyng  of  youre  heed  ! 
By  myghty  Mars,  he  shal  anon  be  deed 
That  smyteth  any  strook,  that  I  may  seen." 

There  is  no  faltering  in  answer  to  his  question  who 
these  are  who  dare  fight  without  his  leave ;  Palamon 
blurts  the  whole  story  out,  and  asks  death  for  himself, 
so  that  his  fellow  may  not  live  to  triumph  over  him. 
Death  he  has  asked,  and  Death  they  shall  have,  says 
Theseus,  and  it  is  only  when  Hippolyta  and  Emily 
are  on  their  knees  before  him  that  his  anger  at  these 
breakers  of  troth  and  prison  subsides,  and  he  sees  the 
humour  of  the  situation  of  the  poor  desperate  lovers 
fighting  to  the  death  about  their  rights  in  a  lady  who 
knows  naught  of  their  devotion  to  her.  What  a  series 
of  pictures,  and  not  one  of  them  to  be  found  in 
Boccaccio  ! 

In  the  treatment  of  Emily  the  Teseide  is  not  so  in 
ferior,  though  Boccaccio  is  not  always  polite  to  her. 
When  the  cousins  are  gazing  at  her  from  their  prison 
window  she  catches  sight  of  them,  and  continues  to 


xxvi  INTRODUCTION 

desport   herself,   not,    we  are  told,   with   the   deliberate 
object  of  entrapping  their  affections,  but  from  that 

Vanitate, 
Che  innate  e  alle  femmine  nel  core. 

Again,  when  Arcyte  is  banished  from  Athens,  he  prays 
to  heaven  that  he  may  see  his  lady  once  more,  and 
his  prayer  is  heard.  As  he  passes  Emily  is  leaning  on 
her  balcony,  and  notes  with  some  compassion  this 
handsome  youth,  departing  so  sorrowfully  from  Athens. 
His  face  lingers  in  her  memory,  for  when  he  returns 
in  disguise  she  recognizes  him  at  once,  and  wonders 
what  has  brought  him  back  at  the  risk  of  freedom,  if 
not  of  life.  All  this  Chaucer  omits,  partly,  perhaps, 
to  lead  up  to  Theseus'  pleasant  chaff  of  the  lovers, 
who  fought  for  a  lady  who  knew  nothing  about  them, 
but  more  probably  because  it  all  tends  to  raise  the 
importance  of  Arcyte,  whose  claims  he  deliberately 
minimizes,  though  no  longer,  as  in  Queen  Anelida,  re 
presenting  him  as  forfeiting  sympathy  by  his  "  falseness." 
Two  other  details  of  the  changes  which  Chaucer  made 
are  worth  noting,  although,  as  not  affecting  character, 
they  are  less  important.  It  is  characteristic  at  once  of  a 
certain  profusion  in  his  dealing  with  things  (cf.  note  to 
1.  175)  and  at  the  same  time  of  his  real  dramatic  gift 
that,  while  Boccaccio  drags  in  his  descriptions  of  the 
temples  of  Mars,  Venus  and  Diana  by  imagining  the 
prayers  of  the  three  suppliants  to  have  winged  their 
flight  to  far-away  shrines,  Chaucer  tells  us  that  Theseus 
built  these  magnificent  temples  as  annexes  to  his  lists. 
This  is  indeed  profuse,  but  there  is  the  solid  gain  in 
it,  that  the  descriptions  of  the  temples  are  no  longer 
interpolated  between  the  prayers,  but  come  as  part  of 


INTRODUCTION  xxvii 

Ithe  general  description  of  the  lists.  Thus  here  again 
Chaucer  shows  his  sense  of  the  value  of  swift  move 
ment  as  we  come  near  a  crisis.  On  the  other  hand, 
we  may  well  doubt  if  he  was  well  advised  in  overloading 
the  scenes  depicted  in  the  temples  with  so  much 
astrological  love,  and  the  doubt  may  be  extended  to 
all  the  planetary  influences  which  he  has  introduced 
with  such  skill  and  neatness  into  the  tale  as  a  whole. 
There  is  an  absence  of  economy  in  it  all  which  is  very 
unusual  with  Chaucer.  Venus  as  the  goddess  of  love, 
Mars  as  the  god  of  arms,  Diana  as  the  goddess  of 
virginity,  supplied  with  their  ordinary  classical  attributes 
everything  that  was  needed  for  the  progress  of  the  story. 
But  it  is  clear  that  Chaucer  was  keenly  interested  in 
astrology,  and  it  is  only  fair  to  remember  that  its  poetical 
value  was  immensely  increased  by  the  general  belief  in 
it.  Mars,  Venus  and  Diana  as  Greek  and  Roman 
deities  were  only  so  many  '  mawmets '  or  '  demons,'  or 
whatever  else  medieval  theology  may  have  reckoned  them. 
But  the  influence  of  Mars,  Venus  and  Diana  as  planets 
was  to  most  i4th  century  Englishmen  a  real  thing,  and 
by  making  use  of  it  Chaucer  may  have  imparted  a 
suggestion  of  mystery  to  his  story  greater  than  we  can 
easily  conceive. 

§  9.  The  following  is  a  fairly  complete  list  of  the 
instances  in  which  the  reading  of  the  Ellesmere  manu 
script  has  been  abandoned  for  that  of  one  or  more  other 
manuscripts.  In  the  majority  of  cases  the  disregarded 
readings  of  E.  are  mere  slips  of  the  scribe  corrected 
in  all  the  other  manuscripts.  Attention  is  called  to 
important  variants  in  the  notes,  the  present  list  being 
given  only  in  justification  of  the  text  adopted. 


xxviii  INTRODUCTION 

13  [  871].   E.  faiiefor  yonge. 

39  [  897].  heighe,  om.  E. 

73  [  931]-  E.  criefor  waille. 

86  [  944].   E.  He  hath  for  Hath. 
147  [1005].  bodyes,  H.  C.  Hn. ;  E.4  the  bodyes. 
168  [1026].   E.  rood  for  ryt  (rideth). 
171  [1029].   E.  C.  om.  his. 
205  [1063].   E.  this  Palamon,/<?r  Palamon. 
233  [IQ91]-   E.  om.  it. 

249  [1107].   E.  scapenfor  scape. 

250  [1108].  E.  shapenfor  shape. 
257  ["IS]-   E.  om.  was. 

264  [1122].  E.  is  for  rys. 

280  [1138].   E.  as  for  and. 

287  [1145].   E.  Nay  for  Now. 

289  [1147].   E.  Cm.  to  my  brother  for  my  brother. 

308  [1166].   E.  of  any  for  to  any. 

317  [1175].   E.  be  for  ben  (been). 

319  [1177].  stryve,  H.  Hn.  Cm.  ;  E.4  stryven. 

321  [1179].   E.  om.  that;  E.  weren/0r  were. 

334  [1192].  unto,  Hn.8;  E.  to,  H.  to  the. 

354  [1212].   E.7  Gt  for  oo. 

365  [1123].   E.  I  for  he. 

368  [1226].   E.  nat  in  my  for  Noght  in. 

384  [1242].   E.  om.  by. 

390  [1248].   E.  heele/0/-  helpe. 

402  [1260].   E.  om.  thing. 

404  [1262].  E.  Cm.  that  he  for  he. 

412  [1270].   E.  escapeny^r  scapen. 

414  [1272].  E.  that/o/-  ther. 

420  [1278].   E.  Resouned  for  resouneth. 

421  [1279].   E.  on  for  of. 

479  [I337]-  E.  sonnefor  sommer. 
489  [1347].   E.  Now/0rYow. 
504  [1362].   E.  Pt.  wexethfor  wex. 
518  [1376].  all  but  H.  om.  in. 

530  [1388].   E.  up  for  upon. 

531  [1389].   E.  I  for  he. 


INTRODUCTION  xxix 

596  [1454].  E.  om.  and. 

614  [1472].  E.  Of/wwith. 

656  [1514].  E.  a/w-  the. 

672  [i53o]-  E.  al  sodeynlyy^r  sodeynly. 

702  [1560].  E.  kynrede/0r  lynage. 

737  [!595]-  all  but  H.  or  for  for. 

768  [1626].  E.  \\irfor  his. 

776  [1634].  E.  the/or  this  (Cp.  P.  L.  his). 

782  [1640].  E.  and  for  or. 

837  [1695].  E.  H.  Cm.  L.  om.  that. 

849  [1707].  E.  Hn.  L.  upon/?;-  up. 

865  [1723].  E.5  knowest/w  knowe  (H.  Hn.). 

974  [1832],  E.  (repeats)  doutelees/0r  but  natheless. 

980  [1838].  E.  om.  go. 

1019  [1877].  E.  after  for  ofte. 

1041  [1899].  E.  Cm.  portreitour/0r  purtreyour. 

1042  [1900].  E.  om   hym,  H.  hem.,  MSS.  confused. 

1048  [1906].  E.  Hn.  C.  ;  and  on  the  westward  in  memorye.     Text 

from  H. 
IO75  [T933]-   E.   rekned  have  for  reken.      Text  from  Cm.    MSS. 

confused. 

1084  [1942].  E.  Cm.  And  for  yet. 

1085  [1943].  E.  Cm.  And  eek/or  Ne  yet. 
1107  [1965].   E.  it  was/0r  it  is. 

1 121  [1979].   E.  and  a  s\vough/or  in  a  swough. 
1123  [1981].   E.5  from/<?/'on  (H.  Hn.). 
1138  [1996].   E.  Cm.  om.  al. 
1140  [1998].   E.  Cm.  om.  eke. 
1156  [2014].    E.  nat  oonfor  nat. 
1167  [2025].   E.  Cm.  laborer  for  harbour. 
1191  [2049].   E.B  was  depeynted,  H.  depeynted  was. 
1 21 1  [2069].   E.  om.  was. 
1217  [2075].   E-  Cp.  Pt.  ful  wel/w-  ful. 
1231  [2089].    E.  the /or  thise. 

1262  [2120].   E.  And  in,  Hn.4.  And  in  a,  Pt.  And  a., /or  In  a  (H.). 
1333  [2192].   E.  in/or  at ;  Pt.  after. 

1361-2  [2219-20].   E.  with  ful  humble  cheer — and  seyde  as  ye  shal 
heere. 


xxx  INTRODUCTION 

1364  [2222].   E.  Cm.  to. ..of,  Cp.  P.  L.  to... to/0;- of... to  (H.  HnA 
1405-6  [2263-4].   E.  Cm.   circumstaunce,   observaunce  for  circum 

stances . . .  observaunces. 
1418  [2276].   E.  (repeats)  laddefor  hadde. 
'459  [23I7]-   E.6  And/or  As  (Hn.). 
1465  [2323].   E.  And  for  Or. 
1498  [2356].   E.  H.  Cp.  declare  for  declaren. 
1507  [2366].   E.4is/?rnys  (H.  Hn.  Cp.). 
1569  [2427].   E.4  And  for  A  (H.  Hn.  Cm.)  ;  E3  the  ground  anon 

for  anon  the  ground  (H.  Hn.  Cm.  Pt.). 
1587  [2445].   E.  Pt.  andean. 
1604  [2462].   E.  om.  the. 
1635  [2493].   E.  in  the/?r  in. 
1669  [2527].   E.  were/v-  weren. 
1676  [2534].  E.  om.  the. 
1687  [2545].   E.  Cm.  nefor  or. 
1735  [2593]-   E.  om.  they. 
1750  [2608].   E.  sooth/?;-  soon. 
1823-4  [2681-82].   E.  Hn.  Cm.  om.  these  two  lines. 
J&79  [2737].  E.  convoyed  for  conveyed. 
1941  [2799].  E.  H.  Cm.  herte/v-  feet. 
20 1 1  [2869].   E.  ryden/>r  ryde. 
2062  [2920].   E.  that,  Cm.  what/?;  how. 
2076  [2934].   E.  Cp.  stokkes/v-  stikkes. 
2085  [2943].   E.  om.  the. 
2094  [2952].   E.  place  for  fyr. 
2125  [2983].    E.  fram/>rfrom. 
2142  [3000].   E.  Cp.  nedeth  noght/v-  nedeth. 
2150  [3008].   E.  Hn.  Pt.  or  of,  Cm.  or  of  a,  Cp.  L.  noi  of/orne  (II.). 
2158  [3016].   E.  it  for  at. 
2167  [3025].   E.  toures/?r  tounes. 
2176  [3034].   E.  Cm.  om.  that. 
2178  [3036].   E.6  That  is  for  The  which  is  (H.). 
2213  [3071].   E.6  om.  that  (H.). 
2242  [3100].   E.  om.  hath. 
2247  [3105].   E.6  so  for  al-so  (H.). 


THE    CANTERBURY   TALES 


KNIGHT'S   TALE 

Heere  bigynneth   The  Knyghtes  Tale 

WHILOM,  as  olde  stories  tellen  us,  [869] 

There  was  a  due  that  highte  Theseus ; 
Of  Atthenes  he  was  lord  and  governour, 
And  in  his  tyme  swich  a  conquerour, 
That  gretter  was  ther  noon  under  the  sonne.  5 

Ful  many  a  riche  contree  hadde  he  wonne; 
That  with  his  wysdom  and  his  chivalrie 
He  conquered  al  the  regne  of  Femenye, 
That  whilom  was  y-cleped  Scithia  j 
And  weddede  the  queene  Ypolita,  10 

And  broghte  hire  hoom  with  hym  in  his  contree 
With  muchel  glorie  and  greet  solempnytee, 
And  eek  hir  yonge  suster  Emelye. 
And  thus  with  victorie  and  with  melodye 
Lete  I  this  noble  due  to  Atthenes  ryde,  15 

And  al  his  hoost  in  armes  hym  bisyde. 

And  certes,  if  it  nere  to  long  to  heere, 

<5  A 


KNIGHT'S  TALE  [GROUP  A 

I  wolde  ban  told  yow  fully -the  manere 

How  wonnen  was  the  regne  of  Femenye 

By  Theseus  and  by  his  chivalrye ;  /\/\/  20 

And  of  the  grete  bataille  for  the  nones 

Bitwixen  Atthenes  and  Amazones ; 

And  how  asseged  was  Ypolita, 

The  faire,  hardy  queene  of  Scithia ; 

And  of  the  feste  that  was  at  hir  weddynge,  25 

And  of  the  tempest  at  hir  hoom-comynge ; 

But  al  that  thyng  I  moot  as  now  forbere. 

I  have,  God  woot,  a  large  feeld  to  ere, 

And  wayke  been  the  oxen  in  my  plough. 

The  remenant  of  the  tale  is  long  ynough,  30 

I  wol  nat  letten  eek  noon  of  this  route. 

Lat  every  felawe  telle  his  tale  aboute, 

And  lat  se  now  who  shal  the  soper  wynne; 

And  ther  I  lefte  I  wol  ayeyn  bigynne. 

This  due,  of  whom  I  make  mencioun,  35 

Whan  he  was  come  almost  unto  the  toun, 
In  al  his  wele,  and  in  his  mooste  pride, 
He  was  war,  as  he  caste  his  eye  aside, 
Where  that  ther  kneled  in  the  heighe  weye 
A  compaignye  of  ladyes,  tweye  and  tweye,  40 

Ech  after  oother,  clad  in  clothes  blake; 
But  swich  a  cry  and  swich  a  wo  they  make, 
That  in  this  world  nys  creature  lyvynge, 
That  herde  swich  another  waymentynge  : 
And  of  this  cry  they  nolde  nevere  stenten,  45 

Til  they  the  reynes  of  his  brydel  henten. 

•What  folk  been  ye,  that  at  myn  hom-comynge 


876-935]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  3 

Perturben  so  my  feste  with  criynge?' 

Quod  Theseus.     '  Have  ye  so  greet  envye 

Of  myn  honoui,  that  thus  compleyne  and  crye?    50 

Or  who  hath  yow  mysboden  or  offended  ? 

And  telleth  me  if  it  may  been  amended, 

And  why  that  ye  been  clothed  thus  in  blak?' 

The  eldeste  lady  of  hem  alle  spak 
Whan  she  hadde  swowned  with  a  deedly  cheere,   55 
That  it  was  routhe  for  to  seen  and  heere, 
And  seyde,  'Lord,  to  whom  fortune  hath  yeven       < 
Victorie,  and_asjt  conqueror  to  lyven,  ~~  ^ 

Nat  greveth  us  youre  p^lnrie  and  youre  hon6ur; 
But  we  biseken  mercy  and  soc6ur.  60 

Have  mercy  on  cure  wo  and  oure  distresse : 
Som  drope  of  pitee,  thurgh  thy  gentillesse, 
Upon  us  wrecched  wommen  lat  thou  falle : 
For  certes,  lord,  ther  is  noon  of  us  alle 
That  she  ne  hath  been  a  duchesse  or  a  queene.   65 
Now  be  we  caytyves,  as  it  is  wel  scene : 
Thanked  be  Fortune  and  hire  false  wheel, 
That  noon  estat  assureth  to  be  weel. 
And  certes,  lord,  to  abyden  youre  presence, 
Heere  in  the  temple  of  the  goddesse  Clemence      70 
We  han  ben  waitynge  al  this  fourtenyght; 
Now  help  us,  lord,  sith  it  is  in  thy  myght. 

'  I  wrecche,  which  that  wepe  and  waille  thus, 
Was  whilom  wyf  to  kyng  Cappaneus, 
That  starf  at  Thebes ;   cursed  be  that  day !  75 

And  alle  we  that  been  in  this  array, 
And  maken  al  this  lamentacioun, 


KNIGHT'S   TALE  [GROUP  A 

We  losten  alle  oure  housbondes  at  that  toun, 

Whil  that  the  seege  ther-aboute  lay, 

And  yet  now  the  olde  Creon,  weylaway !  80 

That  lord  is  now  of  Thebes,  the  citee, 

Fulfild  of  ire  and  of  iniquitee, 

He,  for  despit  and  for  his  tirannye, 

To  do  the  dede  bodyes  vileynye 

Of  alle  oure  lordes,  whiche  that  been  slawe,  85 

Hath  alle  the  bodyes  on  an  heepe  y-drawe, 

And  wol  nat  suffren  hem,  by  noon  assent, 

Neither  to  been  y-buryed  nor  y-brent, 

But  maketh  houndes  ete  hem  in  despit.' 

And  with  that  word,  withouten  moore  respit,      90 
They  fillen  gruf,  and  criden  pitously, 
'  Have  on  us  wrecched  wommen  som  mercy, 
And  lat  oure  sorwe  synken  in  thyn  herte.' 

This  gentil  due  doun  from  his  courser  sterte 
With  herte  pitous,  whan  he  herde  hem  speke.        95 
Hym  thoughte  that  his  herte  wolde  breke 
Whan  he  saugh  hem,  so  pitous  and  so  maat, 
That  whilom  weren  of  so  greet  estaat ; 
And  in  his  armes  he  hem  alle  up  hente, 
And  hem  conforteth  in  ful  good  entente,  100 

And  swoor  his  ooth,  as  he  was  trewe  knyght, 
He  wolde  doon  so  ferforthly  his  myght 
Upon  the  tiraunt  Creon  hem  to  wreke, 
That  all  the  peple  of  Grece  sholde  speke 
How  Creon  was  of  Theseus  y-served  105 

As  he  that  hadde  his  deeth  ful  wel  deserved. 
And  right  anoon,  withouten  moore  abood, 


936-95]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  5 

His  baner  he  desplayeth  and  forth  rood 

To  Thebesward,  and  al  his  hoost  biside. 

No  neer  Atthenes  wolde  he  go  ne  ride,  no 

Ne  take  his  ese  fully  half  a  day, 

But  onward  on  his  wey  that  nyght  he  lay ; 

And  sente  anon  Ypolita  the  queene, 

And  Emelye,  hir  yonge  suster  sheene, 

Unto  the  toun  of  Atthenes  to  dwelle;  115 

And  forth  he  rit ;    ther  is  namoore  to  telle. 

The  rede  statue  of  Mars  with  spere  and  targe 
So  shyneth  in  his  white  baner  large, 
That  alle  the  feeldes  glyteren  up  and  doun ; 
And  by  his  baner  born  is  his  penoun  120 

Of  gold  ful  riche,  in  which  ther  was  y-bete 
The  Mynotaur,  which  that  he  slough  in  Crete. 
Thus  rit  this  due,  thus  rit  this  conquerour, 
And  in  his  hoost  of  chivalrie  the  flour, 
Til  that  he  cam  to  Thebes,  and  alighte  125 

Faire  in  a  feeld,  ther  as  he  thoughte  fighte. 
But,  shortly  for  to  speken  of  this  thyng, 
With  Creon,  which  that  was  of  Thebes  kyng, 
He  faught,  and  slough  hym  manly  as  a  knyght, 
In  pleyn  bataille,  and  putte  the  folk  to  flyght ;     130 
And  by  assaut  he  wan  the  citee  after, 
And  rente  adoun  bothe  wall   and  sparre  and  rafter ; 
And  to  the  ladyes  he  restored  agayn 
The  bones  of  hir  housbondes  that  were  slayn, 
To  doon  obsequies  as  was  tho  the  gyse.  135 

But  it  were  al  to  longe  for  to  devyse 
The  grete  clamour  and  the  waymentynge 


KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  996- 

That  the  ladyes  made  at  the  brennynge 

Of  the  bodies,  and  the  grete  hon6ur 

That  Theseus,  the  noble  conquerour,  140 

Dooth  to  the  ladyes  whan  they  from  hym  wente ; 

But  shortly  for  to  telle  is  myn  entente. 

Whan  that  this  worthy  due,  this  Theseus, 
Hath  Creon  slayn,  and  wonne  Thebes  thus, 
Stille  in  that  feeld  he  took  al  nyght  his  reste,       145 
And  dide  with  al  the  contree  as  hym  leste. 

To  ransake  in  the  taas  of  bodyes  dede, 
Hem  for  to  strepe  of  harneys  and  of  wede, 
The  pilours  diden  bisynesse  and  cure 
After  the  bataille  and  disconfiture.  150 

And  so  bifel  that  in  the  taas  they  founde, 
Thurgh-girt  with  many  a  grevous,  blody  wounde, 
Two  yonge  knyghtes,  liggynge  by  and  by, 
Bothe  in  oon  armes,  wroght  ful  richely; 
Of  whiche  two  Arcita  highte  that  oon,  155 

And  that  oother  knyght  highte  Palamon. 
Nat  fully  quyke,  ne  fully  dede  they  were, 
But  by  here  cote-armures  and  by  hir  gere 
The  heraudes  knewe  hem  best  in  special, 
As  they  that  weren  of  the  blood  roial  160 

Of  Thebes,  and  of  sustren  two  y-born. 
Out  of  the  taas  the  pilours  han  hem  torn 
And  han  hem  caried  softe  unto  the  tente 
Of  Theseus,  and  ful  soone  he  hem  sente 
To  Atthenes,  to  dwellen  in  prisoun  165 

Perpetuelly,  he  nolde  no  raunsoun. 
And  whan  this  worthy  due  hath  thus  y-don, 


1055]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  7 

He  took  his  boost  and  hoom  he  ryt  anon, 

With  laurer  crowned  as  a  conquerdur; 

And  ther  he  lyveth  in  joye  and  in  hon6ur  170 

Terme  of  his  lyf;   what  nedeth  wordes  mo? 

And  in  a  tour,  in  angwissh  and  in  wo, 

This  Palamon  and  his  felawe  Arcite 

For  everemoore ;   ther  may  no  gold  hem  quite. 

This  passeth  yeer  by  yeer  and  day  by  day,        175* 
Till  it  fil  ones,  in  a  morwe  of  May, 
That  Emelye,  that  fairer  was  to  sene 
Than  is  the  lylie  upon  his  stalke  grene, 
And  fressher  than  the  May  with  floures  newe, — 
For  with  the  rose  colour  stroof  hire  hewe,  180 

I  noot  which  was  the  fyner  of  hem  two, — 
Er  it  were  day,  as  was  hir  wone  to  do, 
She  was  arisen  and  al  redy  dight : 
For  May  wol  have  no  slogardie  a-nyght. 
The  sesoun  priketh  every  gentil  herte  185 

And  maketh  hym  out  of  his  slepe  to  sterte, 
And  seith,  'Arys,  and  do  thyn  6bservaunce.' 
This  maked  Emelye  have  remembraunce 
To  doon  hon6ur  to  May,  and  for  to  ryse. 
Y-clothed  was  she  fresshe,  for  to  devyse ;  190 

Hir  yelow  heer  was  broyded  in  a  tresse 
Bihynde  hir  bak,  a  yerde  long,  I  gesse ; 
And  in  the  gardyn,  at  the  sonne  up-riste, 
She  walketh  up  and  doun,  and  as  hire  liste  ' 
She  gadereth  floures,  party  white  and  rede,  195 

To  make  a  subtil  gerund  for  hire  hede, 
And  as  an  aungel  hevenysshly  she  soong. 


b    TALJS  [A    1050- 

The  grete  tour,  that  was  so  thikke  and  stroong, 
Which  of  the  castel  was  the  cjiie£  donge6un 
(Ther  as  the  knyghtes  wejen  in  prisdun,  200 

Of  whiche  I  tolde  yow  and  tellen  shal), 
Was  evene  joynant  to  the  gardyn  wal, 
Ther  as  this  Emelye  hadde  hir  pleyynge. 
Bright  was  the  sonne,  and  cleer  that  morwenynge, 
And  Palamon,  this  woful  prisoner,  205 

As  was  his  wone,  bi  leve  of  his  gayler, 
Was  risen,  and  romed  in  a  chambre  on  heigh, 
In  which  he  al  the  noble  citee  seigh, 
And  eek  the  gardyn,  ful  of  braunches  grene, 
Ther  as  this  fresshe  Emelye  the  sheene  210 

Was  in  hire  walk  and  romed  up  and  doun. 
This  sorweful  prisoner,  this  Palamoun, 
Goth  in  the  chambre  romynge  to  and  fro, 
And  to  hymself  compleynynge  of  his  wo ; 
That  he  was  born,  ful  ofte  he  seyde,  'alias!'       215 
And  so  bifel,  by  aventure  or  cas, 
That  thurgh  a  wyndow,  thikke  of  many  a  barre 
Of  iren,  greet  and  square  as  any  sparre, 
He  cast  his  eyen  upon  Emelya, 
And  therwithal  he  bleynte,  and  cride  '  A  ! '  220 

As  though  he  stongen  were  unto  the  herte. 
And  with  that  cry  Arcite  anon  up  sterte, 
And  seyde,  '  Cosyn  myn,  what  eyleth  thee, 
That  art  so  pale  and  deedly  on  to  see? 
Why  cridestow?   who  hath  thee  doon  offence?      225 
For  Goddes  love,  taak  al  in  pacience 
Oure  prisoun,  for  it  may  noon  oother  be; 


1 1 15]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  9 

Fortune  hath  yeven  us  this  adversitee, 

Som  wikke  aspect  or  disposicioun 

Of  Saturne,  by  sum  constellacioun,  230 

Hath  yeven  us  this,  although  we  hadde  it  sworn ; 

So  stood  the  hevene  whan  that  we  were  born ; 

We  moste  endure  it :   this  is  the  short  and  playn.' 

This  Palamon  answerde,  and  seyde  agayn, 
'Cosyn,  for  sothe  of  this  opinioun  235 

Thow  hast  a  veyn  ymaginacioun  ; 
This  prison  caused  me  nat  for  to  crye, 
But  I  was  hurt  right  now  thurghout  myn  eye 
Into  myn  herte,  that  wol  my  bane  be. 
The  fairnesse  of  that  lady  that  I  see  240 

Yond  in  the  gardyn  romen  to  and  fro, 
Is  cause  of  al  my  criyng  and  my  wo. 
I  noot  wher  she  be  womman  or  goddesse; 
But  Venus  is  it,  soothly,  as  I  gesse.' 
And  therwithal  on  knees  doun  he  fil,  245 

And  seyde :    '  Venus,  if  it  be  thy  wil 
Yow  in  this  gardyn  thus  to  transfigure 
Bifore  me,  sorweful,  wreQche  creature, 
Out  of  this  prisoun  tielp£?  that  we  may  scape. 
And  if  so  be  my  destynee  be  shape,  250 

By  eterne  word,  to  dyen  in  prisdun, 
Of  oure  lynage  have  som  compassioun, 
That  is  so  lowe  y-broght  by  tirannye.' 

And  with  that  word  Arcite  gan  espye 
Wher  as  this  lady  romed  to  and  fro ;  255 

And  with  that  sighte  hir  beautee  hurte  hym  so, 
That  if  that  Palamon  was  wounded  sore, 


io  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  1116- 

Arcite  is  hurt  as  mqche  as  he,  or  moore; 

And  with  a  sigh  he  seyde  pitously : 

'The  fresshe  beautee  sleeth  me  sodeynly  260 

Of  hire  that  rometh  in  the  yonder  place, 

And  but  I  have  hir  mercy  and  hir  grace, 

That  I  may  seen  hire  atte  leeste  weye, 

I  nam  but  deed ;   ther  nys  namoore  to  seye.' 

This  Palamon,  whan  he  tho  wordes  herde,        265 
Dispitously  he  looked,  and  answerde, 
'Wheither  seistow  this  in  ernest  or  in  pley?' 

'  Nay,'  quod  Arcite,  '  in  ernest,  by  my  fey ! 
God  helpe  me  so,  me  list  ful  yvele  pleye.' 

This  Palamon  gan  knytte  his  browes  tweye,       270 
'  It  nere,'  quod  he,  '  to  thee  no  greet  hon6ur, 
For  to  be  fals,  ne  for  to  be  trait6ur 
To  me,  that  am  thy  cosyn  and  thy  brother 
Y-sworn  ful  depe,  and  ech  of  us  til  oother, 
That  nevere,  for  to  dyen  in  the  peyne,  275 

Til  that  deeth  departe  shal  us  tweyne, 
Neither  of  us  in  love  to  hyndre  oother, 
Ne  in  noon  oother  cas,  my  leeve  brother, 
But  that  thou  sholdest  trewely  forthren  me 
In  every  cas,  and  I  shal  forthren  thee.  280 

This  was  thyn  ooth,  and  myn  also  certeyn ; 
I  woot  right  wel  thou  darst  it  nat  withseyn. 
Thus  artow  of  my  conseil,  out  of  doute  : 
And  now  thow  woldest  falsly  been  aboute 
To  love  my  lady,  whom  I  love  and  serve,  285 

And  ever  shal,  til  that  myn  herte  sterve. 
Now  certes,  false  Arcite,  thow  shalt  nat  so; 


1 175]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  II 

I  loved  hire  first,  and  tolde  thee  my  wo, 

As  to  my  conseil,  and  my  brother  sworn 

To  forthre  me,  as  I  have  toold  biforn.  290 

For  which  thou  art  y-bounden  as  a  knyght 

To  helpen  me,  if  it  lay  in  thy  myght ; 

Or  elles  artow  fals,  I  dar  wel  seyn.' 

This  Arcite  ful  proudly  spak  ageyn ; 
'  Thow  shalt,'  quod  he,   '  be  rather  fals  than  I  ;     295 
And  thou  art  fals,  I  telle  thee,  outrely, 
For  par  amour  I  loved  hire  first  er  thow. 
What  wiltow  seyn?   thou  wistest  nat  yet  now 
Wheither  she  be  a  womman  or  goddesse ! 
Thyn  is  affeccidun  of  hoolynesse,  300 

And  myn  is  love,  as  to  a  creature ; 
For  which  I  tolde  thee  myn  aventure, 
As  to  my  cosyn  and  my  brother  sworn. 
I  pose  that  thow  lovedest  hire  biforn, 
Wostow  nat  wel  the  olde  clerkes  sawe,  305 

That  who  shal  yeve  a  lovere  any  lawe  ? 
Love  is  a  gretter  lawe,  by  my  pan, 
Than  may  be  yeve  to  any  erthely  man. 
And  therfore  positif  lawe  and  swich  decree 
Is  broken  al  day  for  love,  in  ech  degree.  310 

A  man  moot  nedes  love,  maugree  his  heed ; 
He  may  nat  flee  it,  thogh  he  sholde  be  deed, 
Al  be  she  mayde,  or  wydwe,  or  elles  wyf. 
And  eek  it  is  nat  likly,  al  thy  lyf, 
To  stonden  in  hir  grace;   namoore  shal  I;  315 

For  wel  thou  woost  thy-selven,  verraily, 
That  thou  and  I  ben  dampned  to  prisoun 


12  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  1176. 

Perpetually;   us  gayneth  no  raunsoun. 

We  stryven  as  dide  the  houndes  for  the  boon,     319 

They  foughte  al  day,  and  yet  hir  part  was  noon ; 

Ther  cam  a  kyte,  whil  that  they  were  so  wrothe, 

And  baar  awey  the  boon  bitwixe  hem  bothe ; 

And  therfore,  at  the  kynges  court,  my  brother, 

Ech  man  for  hymself,  ther  is  noon  oother. 

Love,  if  thee  list,  for  I  love  and  ay  shal;  325 

And  soothly,  leeve  brother,  this  is  al — 

Heere  in  this  prisoun  moote  we  endure 

And  everich  of  us  take  his  aventure.' 

Greet  was  the  strif,  and  long,  bitwix  hem  tweye, 
If  that  I  hadde  leyser  for  to  seye ;  330 

But  to  theffect.     It  happed  on  a  day, — 
To  telle  it  yow  as  shortly  as  I  may, — 
A  worthy  due,  that  highte  Perotheus, 
That  felawe  was  unto  due  Theseus, 
Syn  thilke  day  that  they  were  children  lite,  335 

Was  come  to  Atthenes,  his  felawe  to  visite, 
And  for  to  pleye,  as  he  was  wont  to  do ; 
For  in  this  world  he  loved  no  man  so, 
And  he  loved  hym  as  tendrely  agayn. 
So  wel  they  lovede,  as  olde  bookes  sayn,  340 

That  whan  that  oon  was  deed,  soothly  to  telle, 
His  felawe  wente  and  soughte  hym  doun  in  helle, — 
But  of  that  storie  list  me  nat  to  write. 
Due  Perotheus  loved  wel  Arcite,  344 

And  hadde  hym  knowe  at  Thebes,  yeer  by  yere ; 
And  finally,  at  request  and  preyere 
Of  Perotheus,  withouten  any  raunsoun, 


1235]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  !3 

Due  Theseus  hym  leet  out  of  prisoun 

Frely  to  goon  wher  that  hym  liste  over-al, 

In  svvich  a  gyse  as  I  you  tellen  shal.  350 

This  was  the  forward,  pleynly  for  tendite, 
Bitwixen  Theseus  and  hym  Arcite; 
That  if  so  were  that  Arcite  were  y-founde, 
Evere  in  his  lif,  by  day  or  nyght,  oo  stounde, 
In  any  contree  of  this  Theseus,  355 

And  he  were  caught,  it  was  acorded  thus, 
That  with  a  swerd  he  sholde  lese  his  heed : 
Ther  nas  noon  oother  remedie,  ne  reed, 
But  taketh  his  leve  and  homward  he  him  spedde  : 
Lat  hym  be  war,  his  nekke  lith  to  wedde.  360 

How  greet  a  sorwe  suffreth  now  Arcite ! 
The  deeth  he  feeleth  thurgh  his  herte  smyte; 
He  wepeth,  wayleth,  crieth  pitously; 
To  sleen  hym  self  he  waiteth  prively. 
He  seyde,  '  Alias  that  day  that  I  was  born !         365 
Now  is  my  prisoun  worse  than  biforn ; 
Now  is  me  shape  eternally  to  dwelle, 
Nought  in  purgat6rie,  but  in  helle. 
Alias  that  evere  knew  I  Perotheus ! 
For  elles  hadde  I  dwelled  with  Theseus,  370 

Y-fetered  in  his  prisoun  evermo. 
Thanne  hadde  I  been  in  blisse,  and  nat  in  wo, 
Oonly  the  sighte  of  hire,  whom  that  I  serve, — 
Though  that  I  nevere  hir  grace  may  deserve, — 
Wolde  han  suffised  right  ynough  for  me.  375 

O  deere  cosyn  Palamon,'  quod  he, 
'  Thyn  is  the  victorie  of  this  aventure  ! 


14  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  1236- 

Ful  blisfully  in  prison  maistow  dure, — 
In  prisoun  ?   certes  nay,  but  in  paradys ! 
Wei  hath  Fortiine  y-turned  thee  the  dys,  380 

That  hast  the  sighte  of  hire  and  I  thabsence. 
For  possible  is,  syn  thou  hast  hire  presence, 
And  art  a  knyght,  a  worthy  and  an  able, 
That  by  som  cas,  syn  Fortune  is  chaungeable, 
Thow  maist  to  thy  desir  some  tyme  atteyne,         385 
But  I,  that  am  exiled  and  bareyne 
Of  alle  grace  and  in  so  greet  dispeir, 
That  ther  nys  erthe,  water,  fir,  ne  eir, 
Ne  creature,  that  of  hem  maked  is, 
That  may  me  hele,  or  doon,  confort  in  this —      390 
Wei  oughte  I  sterve  in  wanhope  and  distresse; 
Farwel,  my  lif,  my  lust,  and  my  gladnesse ! 
'Alias,  why  pleynen  folk  so  in  comrmine 
Of  purvieaunce  of  God,  or  of  Fortune, 
That  yeveth  hem  ful  ofte  in  many  a  gyse  395 

Wei  bettre  than  they  kan  hem  self  devyse? 
Som  man  desireth  for  to  han  richesse, 
That  cause  is  of  his  moerdre,  or  greet  siknesse 
And  som  man  wolde  out  of  his  prisoun  fayn, 
That  in  his  hous  is  of  his  meynee  slayn.  400 

Infinite  harmes  been  in  this  mateere, 
We  witen  nat  what  thing  we  preyen  heere. 
We  faren  as  he  that  dronke  is  as  a  mous. 
A  dronke  man  woot  wel  he  hath  an  hous, 
But  he  noot  which  the  righte  wey  is  thider,          405 
And  to  a  dronke  man  the  wey  is  slider; 
And  certes  in  this  world  so  faren  we, — 


1295]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  15 

We  seken  faste  after  felicitee, 

But  we  goon  wrong  ful  often,  trewely. 

Thus  may  we  seyen  alle,  and  namely  I,  410 

That  wende  and  hadde  a  greet  opinioun 

That  if  I  myghte  scapen  from  prisoun, 

Thanne  hadde  I  been  in  joye  and   perfit  heele, 

Ther  now  I  am  exiled  fro  my  wele. 

Syn  that  I  may  nat  seen  you,  Emelye  415 

I  nam  but  deed,  there  nys  no  remedye.' 

Upon  that  oother  syde,  Palamon, 
Whan  that  he  wiste  Arcite  was  agon, 
Swich  sorwe  he  maketh  that  the  grete  tour 
Resouneth  of  his  youlyng  and  clam6ur;  420 

The  pure  fettres  of  his  shynes  grete 
Weren  of  his  bittre,  salte  teeres  wete. 
'  Alias  ! '  quod  he,  '  Arcita,  cosyn  myn, 
Of  al  oure  strif,  God  woot,  the  fruyt  is  thyn ; 
Thow  walkest  now  in  Thebes  at  thy  large,  425 

And  of  my  wo  thow  yevest  litel  charge. 
Thou  mayst,  syn  thou  hast  wysdom  and  manhede, 
Assemblen  alle  the  folk  of  oure  kynrede, 
And  make  a  werre  so  sharpe  on  this  citee, 
That  by  som  aventure,  or  som  tretee,  430 

Thow  mayst  have  hire  to  lady  and  to  wyf, 
For  whom  that  I  moste  nedes  lese  my  lyf. 
For,  as  by  wey  of  possibilitee, 
Sith  thou  art  at  thy  large,  of  prisoun  free, 
And  art  a  lord,  greet  is  thyn  avauntage,  435 

Moore  than  is  myn  that  sterve  here  in  a  cage ; 
For  I  moot  wepe  and  wayle  while  I  lyve, 


1 6  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  1296 

With  al  the  wo  that  prison  may  me  yeve, 

And  eek  with  peyne  that  love  me  yeveth  also, 

That  doubleth  al  my  torment  and  my  wo.'  440 

Therwith  the  fyr  of  jalousie  up-sterte 

Withinne  his  brest,  and  hente  him  by  the  herte 

So  woodly,  that  he  lyk  was  to  biholde 

The  boxtree,  or  the  asshen,  dede  and  colde.         444 

Thanne  seyde  he,  'O  crueel  goddes  that  governe 
This  world  with  byndyng  of  youre  word  eterne, 
And  writen  in  the  table  of  atthamaunt 
Youre  parlement  and  youre  eterne  graunt, 
What  is  mankynde  moore  unto  you  holde 
Than  is  the  sheepe  that  rouketh  in  the  folde?     450 
For  slayn  is  man,  right  as  another  beest, 
And  dwelleth  eek  in  prison  and  arreest, 
And  hath  siknesse  and  greet  adversitee, 
And  ofte  tymes  giltelees,  pardee. 

'What  governance  is  in  this  prescience,  455 

That  giltelees  tormenteth  innocence? 
And  yet  encresseth  this  al  my  penaunce, 
That  man  is  bounden  to  his  dbservaunce 
For  Goddes  sake  to  letten  of  his  wille, 
I  Ther  as  a  beest  may  al  his  lust  fulfille ;  460 

/  And  whan  a  beest  is  deed  he  hath  no  peyne, 
V^ But  after  his  deeth  man  moot  wepe  and  pleyne, 
Though  in  this  world  he  have  care  and  wo; 
Withouten  doute  it  may  stonden  so. 
The  answere  of  this  lete  I  to  dyvynys,  465 

But  well  I  woot  that  in  this  world  greet  pyne  ys. 
Alias  !    I  se  a  serpent  or  a  theef, 


1354]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  I? 

That  many  a  trewe  man  hath  doon  mescheef, 
Goon  at  his  large,  and  where  hym  list  may  turne ; 
But  I  moot  been  in  prisoun  thurgh  Saturne,         470 
And  eek  thurgh  Juno,  jalous  and  eek  wood, 
That  hath  destroyed  wel  ny  al  the  blood 
Of  Thebes,  with  ^hise  waste  walles  wyde ; 
And  Venus  sleeth  me  on  that  oother  syde 
For  jalousie  and  fere  of  hym  Arcite.'  475 

Now  wol  I  stynte  of  Palamon  a  lite 
And  lete  hym  in  his  prisoun  stille  dwelle, 
And  of  Arcita  forth  I  wol  yow  telle. 

The  sommer  passeth,  and  the  nyghtes  longe 
Encressen  double  wise  the  peynes  stronge  480 

Bothe  of  the  lovere  and  the  prisoner. 
I  noot  which  hath  the  wofuller  mester ; 
For  shortly  for  to  seyn  this  Palamoun 
Perpetuelly  is  dampned  to  prisoun, 
In  cheynes  and  in  fettres  to  been  deed,  485 

And  Arcite  is  exiled  upon  his  heed 
For  evere-mo,  as  out  of  that  contree,. 
Ne  nevere-mo  he  shal  his  lady  see. 

Yow  loveres  axe  I  now  this  questioun, 
Who  hath  the  worse,  Arcite  or  Palamoun  ?  490 

That  oon  may  seen  his  lady  day  by  day, 
But  in  prison  he  moot  dwelle  alway; 
That  oother  wher  hym  list  may  ride  or  go, 
But  seen  his  lady  shal  he  never  mo. 
Now  demeth  as  yow  liste,  ye  that  kan,  495 

For  I  wol  telle  forth  as  I  bigan. 


T8  KNIGHT'S  TALE  [A  1355- 

PART    II 

Whan  that  Arcite  to  Thebes  comen  was, 
Ful  ofte  a  day  he  swelte  and  seyde,  '  Alias  ! ' 
For  seen  his  lady  shal  he  nevere  mo. 
And,  shortly  to  concluden  al  his  wo,  500 

So  muche  sorwe  hadde  nevere  creature 
That  is,  or  shal,  whil  that  the  world  may  dure. 
His  slepe,  his  mete,  his  drynke,  is  hym  biraft, 
That  lene  he  wexe  and  drye  as  is  a  shaft ; 
His  eyen  holwe,  and  grisly  to  biholde,  505 

His  hewe  falow,  and  pale  as  asshen  colde, 
And  solitarie  he  was  and  evere  allone, 
And  waillynge  al  the  nyght,  makynge  his  mone  : 
And  if  he  herde  song  or  instrument 
Thanne  wolde  he  wepe,  he  myghte  nat  be  stent.  510 
So  feble  eek  were  his  spiritz  and  so  lowe, 
And  chaunged  so  that  no  man  koude  knowe 
His  speche  nor  his  voys,  though  men  it  herde : 
And  in  his  geere  for  al  the  world  he  ferde, 
Nat  oonly  like  the  loveris  maladye  515 

Of  Hereos,  but  rather  lyk  manye, 
Engendred  of  hum6ur  malencolik, 
Biforn,  in  his  owene  celle  fantastik. 
And,  shortly,  turned  was  al  up-so-doun 
Bothe  habit  and  eek  disposicioun  520 

Of  hym,  this  woful  lovere  daun  Arcite. 

What  sholde  I  al  day  of  his  wo  endite? 
Whan  he  endured  hadde  a  yeer  or  two 
This  crueel  torment  and  this  peyne  and  woo, 


I4i2]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  !9 

At  Thebes,  in  his  contree,  as  I  seyde,  525 

Upon  a  nyght,  in  sleepe  as  he  hym  leyde, 

Hym  thoughte  how  that  the  wynged  god  Mercuric 

Biforn  hym  stood  and  bad  hym  to  be  murie ; 

His  slepy  yerde  in  hond  he  bar  uprighte, 

An  hat  he  werede  upon  his  heris  brighte.  530 

Arrayed  was  this  god,  as  he  took  keepe, 

As  he  was  whan  that  Argus  took  his  sleepe, 

And  seyde  hym  thus,  '  To  Atthenes  shaltou  wende ; 

Ther  is  thee  shapen  of  thy  wo  an  ende.' 

And  with  that  word  Arcite  wook  and  sterte, —     535 

'  Now  trewely,  hou  soore  that  me  smerte,' 

Quod  he,   '  to  Atthenes  right  now  wol  I  fare, 

Ne  for  the  drede  of  deeth  shal  I  nat  spare, 

To  se  my  lady  that  I  love  and  serve ; 

In  hire  presence  I  recche  nat  to  sterve.'  540 

And  with  that  word  he  caughte  a  greet  mir6ur 
And  saugh  that  chaunged  was  al  his  co!6ur 
And  saugh  his  visage  al  in  another  kynde ; 
And  right  anon  it  ran  hym  in  his  mynde, 
That  sith  his  face  was  so  disfigiired  545 

Of  maladye  the  which  he  hadde  endured, 
He  myghte  wel,  if  that  he  bar  hym  lowe, 
Lyve  in  Atthenes  everemore  unknowe, 
And  seen  his  lady  wel  ny  day  by  day. 
And  right  anon  he  chaunged  his  array  550 

And  cladde  hym  as  a  poure  laborer, 
And  al  allone, — save  oonly  a  squier 
That  knew  his  privetee  and  al  his  cas, 
Which  was  disgised  pourely  as  he  was, — 


20  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  1413- 

To  Atthenes  is  he  goon  the  nexte  way,  555 

And  to  the  court  he  wente  upon  a  day, 

And  at  the  gate  he  profreth  his  servyse 

To  drugge  and  drawe,  what  so  men  wol  devyse. 

And,  shortly  of  this  matere  for  to  seyn, 

He  fil  in  office  with  a  chamberleyn  560 

The  which  that  dwellynge  was  with  Emelye; 

For  he  was  wys  and  koude  soone  espye 

Of  every  servaunt  which  that  serveth  here. 

Wei  koude  he  hewen  wode  and  water  bere, 

For  he  was  yong,  and  myghty  for  the  nones,        565 

And  therto  he  was  long  and  big  of  bones, 

To  doon  that  any  wight  kan  hym  devyse. 

A  yeer  or  two  he  was  in  this  servyse, 

Page  of  the  chambre  of  Emelye  the  brighte, 

And  Philostrate  he  seyde  that  he  highte.  570 

But  half  so  wel  biloved  a  man  as  he 

Ne  was  ther  nevere  in  court  of  his  degree; 

He  was  so  gentil  of  his  condicioun 

That  thurghout  al  the  court  was  his  renoun. 

They  seyden  that  it  were  a  charitee  575 

That  Theseus  wolde  enhauncen  his  degree, 

And  putten  hym  in  worshipful  servyse, 

Ther  as  he  myghte  his  vertu  exercise. 

And  thus  withinne  a  while  his  name  is  spronge, 

Bothe  of  hise  dedes  and  his  goode  tonge,  580 

That  Theseus  hath  taken  hym  so  neer, 

That  of  his  chambre  he  made  hym  a  squier, 

And  yaf  him  gold  to  mayntene  his  degree; 

And  eek  men  broghte  hym  out  of  his  contree, 


1472]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  21 

From  yeer  to  yeer,  ful  pryvely,  his  rente ;  585 

But  honestly  and  slyly  he  it  spente 

That  no  man  wondred  how  that  he  it  hadde. 

And  thre  yeer  in  this  wise  his  lif  he  ladde 

And  bar  hym  so  in  pees,  and  eek  in  werre, 

Ther  was  no  man  that  Theseus  hath  derre.  590 

And  in  this  blisse  lete  I  now  Arcite 

And  speke  I  wole  of  Palamon  a  lite. 

In  derknesse  and  horrible  and  strong  prison 
Thise  seven  yeer  hath  seten  Palamon. 
Forpyned,  what  for  wo  and  for  distresse.  595 

Who  feeleth  double  soor  and  hevynesse 
But  Palamon  ?   that  love  destreyneth  so 
That  wood  out  of  his  wit  he  goth  for  wo ; 
And  eek  ther-to  he  is  a  prisoner 
Perpetuelly,  noght  only  for  a  yer.  600 

Who  koude  ryme  in  Englyssh  proprely 
His  martirdom  ?   for  sothe  it  am  nat  I ; 
Therfore  I  passe  as  lightly  as  I  may. 

It  fel  that  in  the  seventhe  yer,  in  May, 
The  thridde  nyght,  (as  olde  bookes  seyn,  605 

That  al  this  storie  tellen  moore  pleyn), 
Were  it  by  aventure  or  destynee, — 
As  whan  a  thyng  is  shapen  it  shal  be, — 
That  soone  after  the  mydnyght,  Palamoun, 
By  helpyng  of  a  freend  brak  his  prisoun  610 

And  fleeth  the  citee,  faste  as  he  may  go, 
For  he  hade  yeve  his  gayler  drynke  so, 
Of  a  clarree,  maad  of  a  certeyn  wyn, 
With  nercotikes,  and  opie  of  Thebes  fyn,  614 


22  K NIGHT'S   TALE  [A  1473- 

That  al  that  nyght,  thogh  that  men  wolde  him  shake, 
The  gayler  sleepe,  he  myghte  nat  awake ; 

And  thus  he  fleeth,  as  faste  as  evere  he  may. 
The  nyght  was  short  and  faste  by  the  day, 
That  nedes-cost  he  moot  hymselven  hyde, 
And  til  a  grove,  faste  ther  bisyde,  620 

With  dredeful  foot,  thanne  stalketh  Palamoun, 
For,  shortly,  this  was  his  opinioun, 
That  in  that  grove  he  wolde  hym  hyde  al  day, 
And  in  the  nyght  thanne  wolde  he  take  his  way 
To  Thebes-ward,  his  freendes  for  to  preye  625 

On  Theseus  to  helpe  him  to  werreye; 
And,  shortly,  outher  he  wolde  lese  his  lif, 
Or  wynnen  Emelye  unto  his  wyf. 
This  is  theffect  and  his  entente  pleyn. 

Now  wol  I  turne  to  Arcite  ageyn,  630 

That  litel  wiste  how  ny  that  was  his  care, 
Til  that  Fortune  had  broght  him  in  the  snare. 

The  bisy  larke,  messager  of  day, 
Salueth  in  hir  song  the  morwe  gray, 
And  firy  Phebus  riseth  up  so  brighte  635 

That  al  the  orient  laugheth  of  the  lighte, 
And  with  hise  stremes  dryeth  in  the  greves 
The  silver  dropes,  hangynge  on  the  leves. 
And  Arcita,  that  is  in  the  court  roial 
With  Theseus,  his  squier  principal,  640 

Is  risen,  and  looketh  on  the  myrie  day ; 
And  for  to  doon  his  6bservaunce  to  May, 
Remembrynge  on  the  poynt  of  his  desir, 
He  on  a  courser,  startlynge  as  the  fir, 


1532]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  23 

Is  riden  into  the  feeldes  hym  to  pleye,  645 

Out  of  the  court,  were  it  a  myle  or  tweye ; 

And  to  the  grove  of  which  that  I  yow  tolde, 

By  aventure,  his  wey  he  gan  to  holde, 

To  maken  hym  a  gerland  .of  the  greves, 

Were  it  of  wodebynde,  or  hawethorn  leves,  650 

And  loude  he  song  ayeyn  the  sonne  shene  : 

'May,  with  alle  thy  floures  and  thy  grene, 

Welcome  be  thou,  faire,  fresshe  May, 

In  hope  that  I  som  grene  gete  may.' 

And  from  his  courser  with  a  lusty  herte  655 

Into  the  grove  ful  hastily  he  sterte, 

And  in  a  path  he  rometh  up  and  doun, 

Ther  as  by  aventure  this  Palamoun 

Was  in  a  bussh,  that  no  man  myghte  hym  se, 

For  soore  afered  of  his  deeth  was  he.  660 

No-thyng  ne  knew  he  that  it  was  Arcite  : 

God  woot  he  wolde  have  trowed  it  ful  lite ; 

But  sooth  is  seyd,  go  sithen  many  yeres, 

That  feeld  hath  eyen,  and  the  wode  hath  eres. 

It  is  ful  fair  a  man  to  bere  hym  evene,  665 

For  al  day  meeteth  men  at  unset  stevene. 

Ful  litel  woot  Arcite  of  his  felawe 

That  was  so  ny  to  herknen  al  his  sawe, 

For  in  the  bussh  he  sitteth  now  ful  stille. 

Whan  that  Arcite  hadde  romed  al  his  fille,       670 
And  songen  al  the  roundel  lustily, 
Into  a  studie  he  fil  sodeynly, 
As  doon  thise  loveres  in  hir  queynte  geres, — 
Now  in  the  crope,  now  doun  in  the  breres, 


24  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  1533- 

Now  up,  now  doun,  as  boket  in  a  welle.  675 

Right  as  the  Friday,  soothly  for  to  tellek 

N6w  it  shyneth,  now  it  reyneth  faste, 

Right  so  kan  geery  Venus  overcaste 

The  hertes  of  hir  folk ;   right  as  hir  day 

Is  gereful,  right  so  chaungeth  she  array, —  680 

Selde  is  the  Friday  al  the  wowke  y-like. 

Whan  that  Arcite  had  songe,  he  gan  to  sike, 
And  sette  hym  doun  withouten  any  moore : 
'  Alias,'  quod  he,  '  that  day  that  I  was  bore  ! 
How  longe,  Juno,  thurgh  thy  crueltee,  685 

Woltow  werreyen  Thebes  the  citee? 
Alias,  y-broght  is  to  confusioun 
The  blood  roial  of  Cadme  and  Amphioun, — 
Of  Cadmus,  which  that  was  the  firste  man 
That  Thebes  bulte,  or  first  the  toun  bigan,  690 

And  of  the  citee  first  was  crouned  kyng. 
Of  his  lynage  am  I,  and  his  ofspryng 
By  verray  ligne,  as  of  the  stok  roial ; 
And  now  I  am  so  caytyf  and  so  thral, 
That  he  that  is  my  mortal  enemy,  695 

I  serve  hym  as  his  squier  pourely. 
And  yet  dooth  Juno  me  wel  moore  shame, 
For  I  dar  noght  biknowe  myn  owene  name ; 
But  ther  as  I  was  wont  to  highte  Arcite, 
Now  highte  I  Philostrate,  noght  worth  a  myte.     700 
Alias,  thou  felle  Mars  !    alias,  Juno  ! 
Thus  hath  youre  ire  oure  lynage  al  fordo, 
Save  oonly  me,  and  wrecched  Palamoun, 
That  Theseus  martireth  in  prisoun. 


1592]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  25 

And  over  al  this,  to  sleen  me  outrely,  705 

Love  hath  his  firy  dart  so  brennyngly 
Y-stiked  thurgh  my  trewe,  careful  herte, 
That  shapen  was  my  deeth  erst  than  my  sherte. 
Ye  sleen  me  with  youre  even,  Emelye ! 
Ye  been  the  cause  wherfore  that  I  dye !  710 

Of  al  the  remenant  of  myn  oother  care 
Ne  sette  I  nat  the  montance  of  a  tare, 
So  that  I  koude  doon  aught  to  youre  plesaunce.' 
And  with  that  word  he  fil  doun  in  a  traunce 
A  longe  tyme,  and  after  he  up-sterte.  715 

This  Palamoun,  that  thoughte  that  thurgh  his  herte 
He  felte  a  coold  swerd  sodeynliche  glyde, 
For  ire  he  quook,  no  lenger  wolde  he  byde. 
And  whan  that  he  had  herd  Arcites  tale, 
As  he  were  wood,  with  face  deed  and  pale,  720 

He  stirte  hym  up  out  of  the  buskes  thikke, 
And  seide,  '  Arcite,  false  traytour  wikke  ! 
Now  artow  hent,  that  lovest  my  lady  so, 
For  whom  that  I  have  al  this  peyne  and  wo, 
And  art  my  blood,  and  to  my  conseil  sworn,        725 
As  I  ful  ofte  have  seyd  thee  heer-biforn, 
And  hast  byjaped  heere  due  Theseus, 
And  falsly  chaunged  hast  thy  name  thus ; 
I  wol  be  deed,  or  elles  thou  shall  dye; 
Thou  shalt  nat  love  my  lady  Emelye,  730 

But  I  wol  love  hire  oonly,  and  namo ; 
For  I  am  Palamon,  thy  mortal  foo, 
And  though  that  I  no  wepene  have  in  this  place, 
But  out  of  prison  am  astert  by  grace, 


26  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  1593 

I  drede  noght  that  outher  thow  shalt  dye,  735 

Or  thow  ne  shalt  nat  loven  Emelye. 

Chees  which  thou  wolt,  for  thou  shalt  nat  asterte  ! ' 

This  Arcite,  with  ful  despitous  herte, 
Whan  he  hym  knew,  and  hadde  his  tale  herd, 
As  fiers  as  leoun  pulled  out  his  swerd,  740 

And  seyde  thus,  'By  God  that  sit  above, 
Nere  it  that  thou  art  sik  and  wood  for  love, 
And  eek  that  thow  no  wepne  hast  in  this  place, 
Thou  sholdest  nevere  out  of  this  grove  pace, 
That  thou  ne  sholdest  dyen  of  myn  hond,  745 

For  I  defye  the  seurete  and  the  bond 
Which  that  thou  seist  that  I  have  maad  to  thee. 
What,  verray  fool,  thynk  wel  that  love  is  fre  ! 
And  I  wol  love  hire  mawgree  al  thy  myght. 
But  for  as  muche  thou  art  a  worthy  knyght,         750 
And  wilnest  to  darreyne  hire  by  bataille, 
Have  heer  my  trouthe,  tomorwe  I  nyl  nat  faile, 
Withoute  wityng  of  any  oother  wight, 
That  heere  I  wol  be  founden  as  a  knyght, 
And  bryngen  harneys  right  ynough  for  thee, —      755 
And  chees  the  beste  and  leef  the   worste  for  me, — 
And  mete  and  drynke  this  nyght  wol  I  brynge 
Ynough  for  thee,  and  clothes  for  thy  beddynge ; 
And  if  so  be  that  thou  my  lady  wynne 
And  sle  me  in  this  wode  ther  I  am  inne,  760 

Thou  mayst  wel  have  thy  lady,  as  for  me.' 

This  Palamqn  answerde,   '  I  graunte  it  thee.' 
And  thus  they  been  departed  til  a-morwe, 
Whan  ech  of  hem  had  leyd  his  feith  to  borwe. 


1652]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  27 

O  Cupide,  out  of  alle  charitee !  765 

O  regne,  that  wolt  no  felawe  have  with  thee  ! 
Ful  sooth  is  seyd  that  love  ne  lordshipe 
Wol  noght,  his  thankes,  have  no  felaweshipe. 
Wei  fynden  that  Arcite  and  Palamoun  ! 

Arcite  is  riden  anon  unto  the  toun,  770 

And  on  the  morwe,  er  it  were  dayes  light, 
Ful  prively  two  harneys  hath  he  dight, 
Bothe  suffisaunt  and  mete  to  darreyne 
The  bataille  in  the  feeld  betwix  hem  tweyne ; 
And  on  his  hors,  allone  as  he  was  born,  775 

He  carieth  al  this  harneys  hym  biforn  : 
And  in  the  grove,  at  tyme  and  place  y-set, 
This  Arcite  and  this  Palamon  ben  met. 
To  chaungen  gan  the  colour  in  hir  face, 
Right  as  the  hunters,  in  the  regne  of  Trace,         780 
That  stondeth  at  the  gappe  with  a  spere. 
Whan  hunted  is  the  leoun  or  the  here, 
And  hereth  hym  come  russhyng  in  the  greves, 
And  breketh  bothe  bowes  and  the  leves, 
And  thynketh,  '  Heere  cometh  my  mortal  enemy,  785 
With-oute  faile  he  moot  be  deed  or  I ; 
For  outher  I  moot  sleen  hym  at  the  gappe, 
Or  he  moot  sleen  me,  if  that  me  myshappe ' : 
So  ferden  they  in  chaungyng  of  hir  hewe, 
As  fer  as  everich  of  hem  oother  knewe.  790 

Ther  nas  no  '  Good  day,'  ne  no  saluyng, 
But  streight,  withouten  word  or  rehersyng, 
Everich  of  hem  heelpe  for  to  armen  oother, 
As  frendly  as  he  were  his  owene  brother; 


28  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  1653- 

And  after  that,  with  sharpe  spares  stronge,  795 

They  foynen  ech  at  oother  wonder  longe. 

Thou  myghtest  wene  that  this  Palamoun, 

In  his  fightyng  were  a  wood  leoun, 

And  as  a  crueel  tigre  was  Arcite  : 

As  wilde  bores  gonne  they  to  smyte,  800 

That  frothen  whit  as  foom  for  ire  wood, — 

Up  to  the  ancle  foghte  they  in  hir  blood 

And  in  this  wise  I  lete  hem  fightyng  dwelle, 
And  forth  I  wole  of  Theseus  yow  telle. 

The  Destinee,  ministre  general,  805 

That  executeth  in  the  world  over  al, 
The  purveiaunce  that  God  hath  seyn  biforn, 
So  strong  it  is  that,  though  the  world  had  sworn 
The  contrarie  of  a  thyng  by  ye  or  nay, 
Yet  somtyme  it  shal  fallen  on  a  day  810 

That  falleth  nat  eft  withinne  a  thousand  yeere. 
For  certeinly  cure  appetites  heere, 
Be  it  of  werre,  or  pees,  or  hate,  or  love, 
Al  is  this  reuled  by  the  sighte  above. 

This  mene  I  now  by  myghty  Theseus,  815 

That  for  to  hunten  is  so  desiriis, 
And  namely  at  the  grete  hert  in  May, 
That  in  his  bed  ther  daweth  hym  no  day 
That  he  nys  clad,  and  redy  for  to  ryde 
With  hunte  and  home,  and  houndes  hym  bisyde.  820 
For  in  his  huntyng  hath  he  swich  delit, 
That  it  is  al  his  joye  and  appetit 
To  been  hymself  the  grete  hertes  bane, 


I7i i]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  29 

For  after  Mars  he  serveth  now  Dyane. 

Cleer  was  the  day,  as  I  have  toold  er  this,       825 
And  Theseus,  with  alle  joye  and  blis, 
With  his  Ypolita,  the  faire  queene, 
And  Emelye,  clothed  al  in  grene, 
On  huntyng  be  they  riden  roially  ; 
And  to  the  grove,  that  stood  ful  faste  by,  830 

In  which  ther  was  an  hert,  as  men  hym  tolde, 
Due  Theseus  the  streighte  way  hath  holde; 
And  to  the  launde  he  rideth  hym  ful  right, — 
For  thider  was  the  hert  wont  have  his  flight, — 
And  over  a  brook,  and  so  forth  in  his  weye.        835 
This  due  wol  han  a  cours  at  hym,  or  tweye, 
With  houndes,  swiche  as  that  hym  list  commaunde. 

And  whan  this  due  was  come  unto  the  launde 
Under  the  sonne  he  looketh,  and  anon, 
He  was  war  of  Arcite  and  Palamon,  840 

That  foughten  breme,  as  it  were  bores  two. 
The  brighte  swerdes  wenten  to  and  fro 
So  hidously,  that  with  the  leeste  strook 
It  semed  as  it  wolde  fille  an  ook ; 
But  what  they  were  no  thyng  he  ne  woot.  845 

This  due  his  courser  with  his  spores  smoot, 
And  at  a  stert  he  was  bitwix  hem  two, 
And  pulled  out  a  swerd,  and  cride,  '  Hoo  ! 
Namoore,  up  peyne  of  lesynge  of  youre  heed ! 
By  myghty  Mars,  he  shal  anon  be  deed  850 

That  smyteth  any  strook,  that  I  may  seen. 
But  telleth  me  what  mystiers  men  ye  been, 
That  been  so  hardy  for  to  fighten  heere 


3o  KNIGHT'S  TALE  [A  1712- 

Withouten  juge,  or  oother  officere, 

As  it  were  in  a  lystes  roially?'  855 

This  Palamon  answerde  hastily 
And  seyde,  'Sire,  what  nedeth  wordes  mo? 
We  have  the  deeth  disserved  bothe  two. 
Two  woful  wrecches  been  we,  two  caytyves, 
That  been  encombred  of  oure  owene  lyves,  860 

And  as  thou  art  a  rightful  lord  and  juge, 
Ne  yeve  us  neither  mercy  ne  refuge, 
But  sle  me  first,  for  seinte  charitee, 
But  sle  my  felawe  eek  as  wel  as  me ; 
Or  sle  hym  first,  for  though  thow  knowest  it  lite,  865 
This  is  thy  mortal  foo,  this  is  Arcite, 
That  fro  thy  lond  is  banysshed  on  his  heed, 
For  which  he  hath  deserved  to  be  deed  ; 
For  this  is  he  that  cam  unto  thy  gate 
And  seyde  that  he  highte  Philostrate;  870 

Thus  hath  he  japed  thee  ful  many  a  yer, 
And  thou  hast  maked  hym  thy  chief  squier ; 
And  this  is  he  that  loveth  Emelye ; 
For  sith  the  day  is  come  that  I  shal  dye, 
I  make  pleynly  my  confessioun  875 

That  I  am  thilke  woful  Palamoun, 
That  hath  thy  prisoun  broken  wikkedly. 
I  am  thy  mortal  foo,  and  it  am  I 
That  loveth  so  hoote  Emelye  the  brighte 
That  I  wol  dye  present  in  hir  sighte.  880 

Therfore  I  axe  deeth  and  my  juwise; 
But  sle  my  felawe  in  the  same  wise, 
For  bothe  han  we  deserved  to  be  slayn.' 


1770  KNIGHT'S   TALE  31 

This  worthy  due  answerde  anon  agayn, 
And  seyde,   '  This  is  a  short  conclusioun  :  885 

Youre  owene  mouth,  by  youre  confessioun, 
Hath  dampned  yow,  and  I  wol  it  recorde, 
It  nedeth  noght  to  pyne  yow  with  the  corde, 
Ye  shal  be  deed,  by  myghty  Mars  the  rede  ! ' 

The  queene  anon,  for  verray  wommanhede,        890 
Gan  for  to  wepe,  and  so  dide  Emelye, 
And  alle  the  ladyes  in  the  compaignye. 
Greet  pitee  was  it,  as  it  thoughte  hem  alle, 
That  ever  swich  a  chaunce  sholde  falle, 
For  gentil  men  they  were,  of  greet  estaat,  895 

And  no  thyng  but  for  love  was  this  debaat, — 
And  saugh  hir  blody  woundes,  wyde  and  soore, 
And  alle  crieden,  bothe  lasse  and  moore, 
'  Have  mercy,  lord,  upon  us  wommen  alle  ! ' 
And  on  hir  bare  knees  adoun  they  falle,  900 

And  wolde  have  kist  his  feet  ther  as  he  stood, 
Til  at  the  laste  aslaked  was  his  mood, 
(For  pitee  renneth  soone  in  gentil  herte) 
And  though  he  first  for  ire  quook  and  sterte, 
He  hath  considered  shortly,  in  a  clause,  905 

The  trespas  of  hem  bothe,  and  eek  the  cause; 
And  although  that  his  ire  hir  gilt  accused, 
Yet  in  his  resoun  he  hem  bothe  excused  ; 
And  thus ;  he  thoghte  wel,  that  every  man 
Wol  helpe  hymself  in  love,  if  that  he  kan,  910 

And  eek  delivere  hymself  out  of  prisoun  ; 
And  eek  his  herte  hadde  compassioun 
Of  wommen,  for  they  wepen  ever  in  oon ; 


32  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  1772- 

And  in  his  gentil  herte  he  thoughte  anon, 

And  softe  unto  hym-self  he  seyde,  '  Fy  915 

Upon  a  lord  that  wol  have  no  mercy, 

But  been  a  leoun,  bothe  in  word  and  dede, 

To  hem  that  been  in  repentaunce  and  drede, 

As  wel  as  to  a  proud  despitous  man 

That  wol  maynteyne  that  he  first  bigan ;  920 

That  lord  hath  litel  of  discrecioun, 

That  in  swich  cas  kan  no  divisioun, 

But  weyeth  pride  and  humblesse  after  oon.' 

And  shortly,  whan  his  ire  is  thus  agoon, 

He  gan  to  looken  up  with  eyen  lighte, 

And  spak  thise  same  wordes,  al  on  highte. 

'The  god  of  love,  a  benedicite, 
How  myghty  and  how  greet  a  lord  is  he ! 
Ayeyns  his  myght  ther  gayneth  none  obstacles, 
He  may  be  cleped  a  god  for  hise  myracles,          930 
For  he  kan  maken,  at  his  owene  gyse, 
Of  everich  herte  as  that  hym  list  divyse. 

'  Lo  heere  this  Arcite,  and  this  Palamoun, 
That  quitly  weren  out  of  my  prisoun, 
And  myghte  han  lyved  in  Thebes  roially,  931 

And  witen  I  am  hir  mortal  enemy, 
And  that  hir  deth  lith  in  my  myght  also, 
And  yet  hath  love,  maugree  hir  eyen  two, 
Y-broght  hem  hyder,  bothe  for  to  dye. 
Now  looketh,  is  nat  that  an  heigh  folye  ?  940 

'Wh6  may  been  a  fole,  but  if  he  love? 
Bihoold,  for  Goddes  sake  that  sit  above, 
Se  how  they  blede  !    be  they  noght  wel  arrayed  ? 


1831]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  33 

Thus  hath  hir  lord,  the  god  of  love,  y-payed 
Hir  wages  and  hir  fees  for  hir  servyse  :  945 

And  yet  they  wenen  for  to  been  ful  wyse 
That  serven  love,  for  aught  that  may  bifalle. 
But  this  is  yet  the  beste  game  of  alle, 
That  she,  for  whom  they  han  this  jolitee, 
Kan  hem  ther-fore  as  muche  thank  as  me.  950 

She  woot  namoore  of  al  this  hoote  fare, 
By  God,  than  woot  a  cokkow  or  an  hare. 
But  all  moot  ben  assayed,  hoot  and  coold  ; 
A  man  moot  ben  a  fool,  or  yong  or  oold, — 
I  woot  it  by  myself  ful  yore  agon,  955 

For  in  my  tyme  a  servant  was  I  oon. 
And  therfore,  syn  I  knowe  of  loves  peyne, 
And  woot  how  score  it  kan  a  man  distreyne, 
As  he  that  hath  ben  caught  ofte  in  his  laas, 
I  yow  foryeve  al  hoolly  this  trespaas,  960 

At  requeste  of  the  queene,  that  kneleth  heere, 
And  eek  of  Emelye,  my  suster  deere. 
And  ye  shul  bothe  anon  unto  me  swere, 
That  nevere  mo  ye  shal  my  contree  dere, 
Ne  make  werre  upon  me,  nyght  ne  day,  965 

But  been  my  freendes  in  al  that  ye  may. 
I  yow  foryeve  this  trespas  every  deel.' 
And  they  him  sworen  his  axyng,  faire  and  weel, 
And  hym  of  lordshipe  and  of  mercy  preyde, 
And  he  hem  graunteth  grace,  and  thus  he  seyde: — 
'To  speke  of  roial  lynage  and  richesse,  971 

Though  that  she  were  a  queene  or  a  princesse, 
Ech  of  you  bothe  is  worthy,  doutelees, 


34  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  1832- 

To  wedden  whan  tyme  is,  but  nathelees, — 

I  speke  as  for  my  suster  Emelye,  975 

For  whom  ye  have  this  strif  and  jalousye, — 

Ye  woot  your  self  she  may  nat  wedden  two 

At  ones,  though  ye  fighten  everemo. 

That  oon  of  you.  al  be  hym  looth  or  lief, 

He  moot  go  pipen  in  an  yvy  leef:  980 

This  is  to  seyn,  she  may  nat  now  han  bothe, 

Al  be  ye  never  so  jalouse  ne  so  wrothe ; 

And  for-thy,  I  yow  putte  in  this  degree, 

That  ech  of  yow  shal  have  his  destynee 

As  hym  is  shape,  and  herkneth  in  what  wyse ;     985 

Lo  heere  your  ende  of  that  I  shal  devyse. 

'  My  wyl  is  this,  for  plat  conclusioun 
Withouten  any  repplicacioun, — 
If  that  you  liketh,  take  it  for  the  beste, — 
That  everich  of  you  shal  goon  where  hym  leste  990 
Frely,  withouten  raunson  or  daunger  ; 
And  this  day  fifty  wykes.  fer  ne  ner, 
Everich  of  you  shal  brynge  an  hundred  knyghtes 
Armed  for  lystes  up  at  alle  rightes, 
Al  redy  to  darreyne  hire  by  bataille ;  995 

And  this  bihote  I  yow  with-outen  faille 
Upon  my  trouthe  and  as  I  am  a  knyght, 
That  wheither  of  yow  bothe  that  hath  myght, 
This  is  to  seyn,  that  wheither  he  or  thow 
May  with  his  hundred,  as  I  spak  of  now,  1000 

Sleen  his  contrarie,  or  out  of  lystes  dryve, 
Him  shal  I  yeve  Emelya  to  wyve, 
To  whom  that  Fortune  yeveth  so  fair  a  grace. 


1888]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  35 

The  lystes  shal  I  maken  in  this  place, 
And  God  so  wisly  on  my  soule  rewe  1005 

As  I  shal  evene  juge  been,  and  trewe. 
Ye  shul  noon  oother  ende  with  me  maken 
That  oon  of  yow  ne  shal  be  deed  or  taken  ; 
And  if  yow  thynketh  this  is  weel  y-sayd, 
Seyeth  youre  avys  and  holdeth  you  apayd.  1010 

This  is  youre  ende  and  youre  conclusioun.' 
Who  looketh  lightly  now  but  Palamoun  ? 
Who  spryngeth  up  for  joye  but  Arcite? 
Who  kouthe  telle,  or  who  kouthe  endite, 
The  joye  that  is  maked  in  the  place  1015 

Whan  Theseus  hath  doon  so  fair  a  grace  ? 
But  doun  on  knees  wente  every  maner  wight 
And  thonken  hym  with  al  hir  herte  and  myght ; 
And  namely  the  Thebans  ofte  sithe.  1019 

And  thus  with  good  hope  and  with  herte  blithe 
They  taken  hir  leve,  and  homward  gonne  they  ride 
To  Thebes,  with  hise  olde  walles  wyde. 

PART     III 

I  trowe  men  wolde  deme  it  necligence 
If  I  foryete  to  tellen  the  dispence 
Of  Theseus,  that  gooth  so  bisily  1025 

To  maken  up  the  lystes  roially, 
That  swich  a  noble  theatre  as  it  was, 
I  dar  wel  seyn  in  this  world  ther  nas. 
The  circuit  a  myle  was  aboute, 
Walled  of  stoon  and  dyched  al  withoute.  1030 


36  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  1889- 

Round  was  the  shape,  in  manere  of  compaas, 
Ful  of  degrees,  the  heighte  of  sixty  pas, 
That  whan  a  man  was  set  on  o  degree, 
He  lette  nat  his  felawe  for  to  see. 

Estward  ther  stood  a  gate  of  marbul  whit,        1035 
Westward  right  swich  another  in  the  opposit. 
And,  shortly  to  concluden,  swich  a  place 
Was  noon  in  erthe,  as  in  so  litel  space ; 
For  in  the  lond  ther  was  no  crafty  man 
That  geometric  or  ars-metrik  kan,  1040 

Ne  purtreyour,  ne  kervere  of  ymages, 
That  Theseus  ne  yaf  him  mete  and  wages, 
The  theatre  for  to  maken  and  devyse. 
And,  for  to  doon  his  ryte  and  sacrifise, 
He  estward  hath,  upon  the  gate  above,  1045 

In  worshipe  of  Venus,  goddesse  of  love, 
Doon  make  an  auter  and  an  orat6rie ; 
And  westward,  in  the  mynde  and  in  memdrie 
Of  Mars,  he  maked  hath  right  swich  another, 
That  coste  largely  of  gold  a  fother.  1050 

And  northward,  in  a  touret  on  the  wal, 
Of  alabastre  whit  and  reed  coral, 
An  oratorie  riche  for  to  see, 
In  worshipe  of  Dyane  of  chastitee 
Hath  Theseus  doon  wroght  in  noble  wyse.  1055 

But  yet  hadde  I  foryeten  to  devyse 
The  noble  kervyng  and  the  portreitures, 
The  shape,  the  contenaunce,  and  the  figures 
That  weren  in  thise  oratories  thre. 

First,  in  the  temple  of  Venus  maystow  se,        1060 


1948]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  37 

Wroght  on  the  wal,  ful  pitous  to  biholde, 

The  broken  slepes,  and  the  sikes  colde, 

The  sacred  teeris,  and  the  waymentynge, 

The  firy  strokes,  and  the  desirynge, 

That  loves  servauntz  in  this  lyf  enduren  ;  1065 

The  othes  that  her  covenantz  assuren ; 

Plesaunce  and  Hope,  Desir,  Foolhardynesse, 

Beautee  and  Youthe,  Bauderie,  Richesse, 

Charmes  and  Force,  Lesynges,  Flaterye, 

Despense,  Bisynesse  and  Jalousye,  1070 

That  wered  of  yelewe  gooldes  a  gerland 

And  a  cokkow  sitynge  on  hir  hand ; 

Festes,  instrumentz,  cardies,  daunces, 

Lust  and  array,  and  alle  the  circumstaunces 

Of  love,  whiche  that  I  reken,  and  rekne  shal,     1075 

By  ordre  weren  peynted  on  the  wal, 

And  mo  that  I  kan  make  of  mencioun ; 

For  soothly  al  the  mount  of  Citheroun, 

Ther  Venus  hath  hir  principal  dwellynge, 

Was  shewed  on  the  wal  in  portreyynge,  1080 

With  al  the  gardyn  and  the  lustynesse. 

Nat  was  foryeten  the  porter  Ydelnesse, 

Ne  Narcisus  the  faire  of  yore  agon, 

Ne  yet  the  folye  of  kyng  Salamon, 

Ne  yet  the  grete  strengthe  of  Ercules,  1085 

Thenchauntementz  of  Medea  and  Circes, 

Ne  of  Turnus,  with  the  hardy  fiers  corage, 

The  riche  Cresus,  kaytyf  in  servage. 

Thus  may  ye  seen  that  Wysdom  ne  Richesse, 

Beautee  ne  Sleighte,  Strengthe,  Hardynesse,         1090 


38  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  1949- 

Ne  may  with  Venus  holde  champartie, 

For  as  hir  list  the  world  than  may  she  gye. 

Lo,  alle  thise  folk  so  caught  were  in  hir  las 

Til  they  for  wo  ful  ofte  seyde,  '  Alias ! ' 

Suffiseth  heere  ensamples  oon  or  two,  1095 

And  though  I  koude  rekene  a  thousand  mo. 

The  statue  of  Venus,  glorious  for  to  se, 
Was  naked,  fletynge  in  the  large  see, 
And  fro  the  navele  doun  al  covered  was 
With  wawes  grene,  and  brighte  as  any  glas.          noo 
A  citole  in  hir  right  hand  hadde  she, 
And  on  hir  heed,  ful  semely  for  to  se, 
A  rose  gerland,  fressh  and  wel  smellynge, 
Above  hir  heed  hir  dowves  flikerynge. 
Biforn  hire  stood  hir  sone  Cupido,  .          1105 

Upon  his  shuldres  wynges  hadde  he  two, 
And  blind  he  was,  as  it  is  often  scene ; 
A  bowe  he  bar  and  arwes  brighte  and  kene. 

Why  sholde  I  noght  as  wel  eek  telle  yow  al 
The  portreiture  that  was  upon  the  wal  mo 

Withinne  the  temple  of  myghty  Mars  the  rede? 
Al  peynted  was  the  wal,  in  lengthe  and  brede, 
Lyk  to  the  estres  of  the  grisly  place 
That  highte  the  grete  temple  of  Mars  in  Trace, 
In  thilke  colde,  frosty  regioun,  1115 

Ther  as  Mars  hath  his  sovereyn  mansioun. 

First,  on  the  wal  was  peynted  a  forest, 
In  which  ther  dwelleth  neither  man  nor  best, 
With  knotty,  knarry,  bareyne  trees  olde 
Of  stubbes  sharpe  and  hidouse  to  biholde,  1120 


2oo8]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  39 

In  which  ther  ran  a  rumbel  in  a  swough, 

As  though  a  storm  sholde  bresten  every  bough  ; 

And  dounward  on  an  hille,  under  a  bente, 

Ther  stood  the  temple  of  Mars  armypotente, 

Wroght  al  of  burned  steel,  of  which  the  entree  1125 

Was  long  and  streit,  and  gastly  for  to  see ; 

And  ther  out  came  a  rage,  and  such  a  veze 

That  it  made  all  the  gate  for  to  rese. 

The  northren  lyght  in  at  the  dores  shoon, — 

For  wyndowe  on  the  wal  ne  was  ther  noon         1130 

Thurgh  which  men  myghten  any  light  discerne, — 

The  dore  was  al  of  adamant  eterne, 

Y-clenched  overthwart  and  endelong 

With  iren  tough,  and  for  to  make  it  strong, 

Every  pyler,  the  temple  to  sustene,  1135 

Was  tonne  greet,  of  iren  bright  and  shene. 

Ther  saugh  I  first  the  derke  ymaginyng 
Of  felonye,  and  al  the  compassyng ; 
The  crueel  ire,  reed  as  any  gleede; 
The  pykepurs,  and  eke  the  pale  drede;  u40 

The  smylere,  with  the  knyfe  under  the  cloke ; 
The  shepne,  brennynge  with  the  blake  smoke; 
The  tresoun  of  the  mordrynge  in  the  bedde; 
The  open  werre,  with  woundes  al  bibledde ; 
Contek,  with  blody  knyf,  and  sharpe  manace ;     1145 
Al  ful  of  chirkyng  was  that  sory  place. 

The  sleere  of  hymself  yet  saugh  I  ther, 
His  herte  blood  hath  bathed  al  his  heer; 
The  nayl  y-dryven  in  the  shode  a-nyght ; 
The  colde  deeth,  with  mouth  gapyng  upright.      1150 


4o  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  2009- 

Amyddes  of  the  temple  sat  Meschaunce, 
With  disconfort  and  sory  contenaunce. 

Yet  saugh  I  Woodnesse,  laughynge  in  his  rage, 
Armed  compleint,  out-hees,  and  fiers  outrage, 
The  careyne,  in  the  busk,  with  throte  y-corve,     1155 
A  thousand  slayn  and  nat  of  qualm  y-storve ; 
The  tiraunt,  with  the  pray  by  force  y-raft ; 
The  toun  destroyed,  ther  was  no  thyng  laft. 

Yet  saugh  I  brent  the  shippes  hoppesteres ; 
The  hunte  strangled  with  the  wilde  beres;  n6o 

The  sowe  freten  the  child  right  in  the  cradel ; 
The  cook  y-scalded,  for  al  his  longe  ladel. 

Noght  was  foryeten  by  the  infortune  of  Marte, 
The  cartere  over-ryden  with  his  carte ; 
Under  the  wheel  ful  lowe  he  lay  adoun.  1165 

Ther  were  also  of  Martes  divisioun, 
The  barbour  and  the  bocher,  and  the  smyth 
That  forgeth  sharpe  swerdes  on  his  styth ; 
And  al  above,  depeynted  in  a  tour, 
Saugh  I  Conquest  sittynge  in  greet  honour          1170 
With  the  sharpe  swerd  over  his  heed 
Hangynge  by  a  soutil  twynes  threed. 

Depeynted  was  the  slaughtre  of  Julius, 
Of  grete  Nero,  and  of  Antonius, — 
Al  be  that  thilke  tyme  they  were  unborn,  1175 

Yet  was  hir  deth  depeynted  ther-biforn 
By  manasynge  of  Mars,  right  by  figure, 
So  it  was  shewed  in  that  portreiture 
As  is  depeynted  in  the  sterres  above 
Who  shal  be  slayn  or  elles  deed  for  love;  1180 


2068]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  4! 

Suffiseth  oon  ensample  in  stories  olde, 

I  may  nat  rekene  hem  alle  though  i  wolde. 

The  statue  of  Mars  upon  a  carte  stood, 
Armed,  and  looked  grym  as  he  were  wood, 
And  over  his  heed  ther  shynen  two  figures          1185 
Of  sterres  that  been  cleped  in  scriptures, 
That  oon  Puella,  that  oother  Rube'us. 
This  god  of  armes  was  arrayed  thus  : 
A  wolf  ther  stood  biforn  hym  at  his  feet 
With  eyen  rede,  and  of  a  man  he  eet.  1190 

With  soutil  pencel  depeynted  was  this  storie 
In  redoutynge  of  Mars  and  of  his  glorie. 

Now  to  the  temple  of  Dyane  the  chaste, 
As  shortly  as  I  kan,  I  wol  me  haste 
To  telle  yow  al  the  descripsioun.  1195 

Depeynted  been  the  walles  up  and  doun 
Of  huntyng  and  of  shamefast  chastitee. 
Ther  saugh  I  how  woful  Calistopee, 
Whan  that  Diane  agreved  was  with  here, 
Was  turned  from  a  womman  to  a  bere,  1200 

And  after  was  she  maad  the  loode  sterre ; 
Thus  was  it  peynted,  I  kan  sey  yow  no  ferre 
Hir  sone  is  eek  a  sterre,  as  men  may  see. 
Ther  saugh  I  Dane,  y-turned  til  a  tree, — 
I  mene  nat  the  goddesse  Diane,  1205 

But  Penneus  doughter  which  that  highte  Dane. 

Ther  saugh  I  Attheon  an  hert  y-maked, 
For  vengeance  that  he  saugh  Diane  al  naked ; 
I  saugh  how  that  hise  houndes  have  hym  caught 
And  freeten  hym,  for  that  they  knewe  hym  naught. 


42  KNIGHT'S  TALE  [A  2069- 

Yet  peynted  was  a  litel  forther  moor  1211 

How  Atthalante  hunted  the  wilde  boor, 
And  Meleagre,  and  many  another  mo, 
For  which  Dyane  wroghte  hym  care  and  wo. 
Ther  saugh  I  many  another  wonder  storie,  1215 

The  whiche  me  list  nat  drawen  to  mem6rie. 

This  goddesse  on  an  hert  ful  hye  sect, 
With  smale  houndes  al  aboute  hir  feet, 
And  undernethe  hir  feet  she  hadde  a  moone, 
Wexynge  it  was,  and  sholde  wanye  soone.  1220 

In  gaude  grene  hir  statue  clothed  was, 
With  bowe  in  honde  and  arwes  in  a  cas, 
Hir  eyen  caste  she  ful  lowe  adoun 
Ther  Pluto  hath  his  derke  regioun. 

A  womman  travaillynge  was  hire  biforn,  1225 

But,  for  hir  child  so  longe  was  unborn, 
Ful  pitously  Lucyna  gan  she  calle 
And  seyde,   '  Helpe,  for  thou  mayst  best  of  alle.' 
Wei  koude  he  peynten  lifly,  that  it  wroghte ; 
With  many  a  floryn  he  the  hewes  boghte.  1230 

Now  been  thise  lystes  maad,  and  Theseus, 
That  at  his  grete  cost  arrayed  thus 
The  temples,  and  the  theatre  every  deel, 
Whan  it  was  doon  hym  lyked  wonder  weel ; 
But  stynte  I  wole  of  Theseus  a  lite,  1235 

And  speke  of  Palamon  and  of  Arcite. 

The  day  approcheth  of  hir  retournynge, 
That  everich  sholde  an  hundred  knyghtes  brynge, 
The  bataille  to  dareyne,  as  I  yow  tolde, 
And  til  Atthenes,  hir  covenantz  for  to  holde,       1240 


2128]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  43 

Hath  everich  of  hem  broght  an  hundred  knyghtes 

Wei  armed  for  the  werre  at  alle  rightes ; 

And  sikerly  ther  trowed  many  a  man 

That  nevere,  sithen  that  the  world  bigan, 

As  for  to  speke  of  knyghthod  of  hir  hond,  1245 

As  fer  as  God  hath  maked  see  or  lond, 

Nas,  of  so  fewe,  so  noble  a  compaignye; 

For  every  wight  that  lovede  chivalrye 

And  wolde,  his  thankes,  han  a  passant  name, 

Hath  preyed  that  he  myghte  been  of  that  game ; 

And  wel  was  hym  that  ther-to  chosen  was;         1251 

For  if  ther  fille  tomorwe  swich  a  caas, 

Ye  knowen  wel  that  every  lusty  knyght 

That  loveth  paramours,  and  hath  his  myght, 

Were  it  in   Engelond  or  elles- where,  1255 

They  wolde,  hir  thankes,  wilnen  to  be  there. 

To  fighte  for  a  lady, — benedidtee  I 

It  were  a  lusty  sighte  for  to  see. 

And  right  so  ferden  they  with  Palamon. 

With  hym  ther  wenten  knyghtes  many  oon ;         1260 

Som  wol  ben  armed  in  an  haubergeoun, 

In  a  bristplate  and  in  a  light  gypoun ; 

And  some  woln  have  a  paire  plates  large; 

And  some  woln  have  a  Pruce  sheeld  or  a  targe ; 

Some  woln  ben  armed  on  hir  legges  weel,  1265 

And  have  an  ax,  and  some  a  mace  of  steel ; 

Ther  is  no  newe  gyse  that  it  nas  old. 

Armed  were  they,  as  I  have  yow  told, 

Everych  after  his  opinion. 

Ther  maistow  seen  comynge  with  Palamon       1270 


44  KNIGHT'S  TALE  [A  2129- 

Lygurge  hymself,  the  grete  kyng  of  Trace; 

Blak  was  his  herd,  and  manly  was  his  face ; 

The  cercles  of  his  eyen  in  his  heed, 

They  gloweden  bitwyxen  yelow  and  reed  ; 

And  lik  a  grifphon  looked  he  aboute,  1275 

With  kempe  heeris  on  hise  browes  stoute ; 

Hise  lymes  grete,  hise  brawnes  harde  and  stronge, 

Hise  shuldres  brode,  hise  armes  rounde  and  longe, 

And,  as  the  gyse  was  in  his  contree, 

Ful  hye  upon  a  chaar  of  gold  stood  he,  1280 

With  foure  white  boles  in  the  trays. 

In  stede  of  cote-armure,  over  his  harnays 

With  nayles  yelewe,  and  brighte  as  any  gold, 

He  hadde  a  beres  skyn,  col-blak,  for-old. 

His  longe  heer  was  kembd  bihynde  his  bak ;       1285 

As  any  ravenes  fethere  it  shoon  for-blak ; 

A  wrethe  of  gold,  arm-greet,  of  huge  wighte, 

Upon  his  heed,  set  ful  of  stones  brighte, 

Of  fyne  rubyes  and  of  dyamauntz; 

Aboute  his  chaar  ther  wenten  white  alauntz.     '  1290 

Twenty  and  mo,  as  grete  as  any  steer, 

To  hunten  at  the  leoun  or  the  deer; 

And  folwed  hym  with  mosel  faste  y-bounde, 

Colered  of  gold  and  tourettes  fyled  rounde. 

An  hundred  lordes  hadde  he  in  his  route,  1295 

Armed  ful  wel,  with  hertes  stierne  and  stoute. 

With  Arcita,  in  stories  as  men  fynde, 
The  grete  Emetreus,  the  kyng  of  Inde, 
Upon  a  steede  bay,  trapped  in  steel, 
Covered  in  clooth  of  gold,  dyapred  weel,  1300 


2i88]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  45 

Cam  ridynge,  lyk  the  god  of  armes,  Mars, 

His  cote  armure  was  of  clooth  of  Tars 

Couched  with  perles,  white  and  rounde  and  grete ; 

His  sadel  was  of  brend  gold,  nevre  y-bete ; 

A  mantelet  upon  his  shulder  hangynge,  1305 

Brat-ful  of  rubyes  rede,  as  fyr  sparklynge ; 

His  crispe  heer,  lyk  rynges  was  y-ronne, 

And  that  was  yelow,  and  glytered  as  the  sonne. 

His  nose  was  heigh,  his  eyen  bright  citryn ; 

His  lippes  rounde,  his  colour  was  sangwyn;         1310 

A  fewe  frakenes  in  his  face  y-spreynd, 

Bitwixen  yelow  and  somdel  blak  y-meynd, 

And  as  a  leoun  he  his  lookyng  caste. 

Of  fyve  and  twenty  yeer  his  age  I  caste ; 

His  berd  was  wel  bigonne  for  to  sprynge ;  1315 

His  voys  was  as  a  trompe  thonderynge ; 

Upon  his  heed  he  wered,  of  laurer  grene, 

A  gerland,  fressh  and  lusty  for  to  sene. 

Upon  his  hand  he  bar,  for  his  deduyt, 

An  egle  tame,  as  any  lilye  whyt.  1320 

An  hundred  lordes  hadde  he  with  hym  there, 

Al  armed,  save  hir  heddes,  in  al  hir  gere, 

Ful  richely  in  alle  maner  thynges ; 

For  trusteth  wel  that  dukes,  erles,  kynges, 

Were  gadered  in  this  noble  compaignye,  1325 

For  love  and  for  encrees  of  chivalrye. 

Aboute  this  kyng  ther  ran  on  every  part 

Ful  many  a  tame  leoun  and  leopart. 

And  in  this  wise  these  lordes,  alle  and  some, 

Been  on  the  Sonday  to  the  citee  come  1330 


46  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  2189- 

Aboute  pryme,  and  in  the  toun  alight. 

This  Theseus,  this  due,  this  worthy  knyght, 
Whan  he  had  broght  hem  into  his  citee 
And  inned  hem,  everich  at  his  degree, 
He  festeth  hem,  and  dooth  so  greet  labour          1335 
To  esen  hem,  and  doon  hem  al  hon6ur, 
That  yet  men  weneth  that  no  mannes  wit 
Of  noon  estaat  ne  koude  amenden  it. 

The  mynstralcye,  the  service  at  the  feeste, 
The  grete  yiftes  to  the  meeste  and  leeste,  1340 

The  riche  array  of  Theseus  paleys, 
Ne  who  sat  first,  ne  last,  upon  the  deys, 
What  ladyes  fairest  been,  or  best  daunsynge, 
Or  which  of  hem  kan  dauncen  best  and  synge, 
Ne  who  moost  felyngly  speketh  of  love ;  1345 

What  haukes  sitten  on  the  perch  above, 
What  houndes  liggen  in  the  floor  adoun, — 
Of  al  this  make  I  now  no  mencioun, 
But  al  theffect,  that  thynketh  me  the  beste  ;        1349 
Now  cometh  the  point,  and  herkneth  if  yow  leste. 

The  Sonday  nyght,  er  day  bigan  to  sprynge, 
Whan  Palamon  the  larke  herde  synge, 
Al  though  it  nere  nat  day  by  houres  two, 
Yet  song  the  larke,  and  Palamon  also. 
With  hooly  herte  and  with  an  heigh  corage,         1355 
He  roos  to  wenden  on  his  pilgrymage 
Unto  the  blisful  Citherea  benigne, — 
I  mene  Venus,  honurable  and  digne, — 
And  in  hir  houre  he  walketh  forth  a  paas 
Unto  the  lystes  ther  hire  temple  was,  1360 


2248]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  47 

And  doun  he  kneleth,  and  with  humble  cheere, 
And  herte  soor,  he  seyde  as  ye  shal  heere : — 

'Faireste  of  faire,  o  lady  myn,  Venus, 
Doughter  of  Jove,  and  spouse  to  Vulcanus, 
Thow  gladere  of  the  mount  of  Citheroon,  1365 

For  thilke  love  thow  haddest  to  Adoon, 
Have  pitee  of  my  bittre  teeris  smerte, 
And  taak  myn  humble  preyere  at  thyn  herte. 
Alias  !    I  ne  have  no  langage  to  telle 
Theffectes  ne  the  tormentz  of  myn  helle;  1370 

Myn  herte  may  myne  harmes  nat  biwreye  ; 
I  am  so  c6nfus  that  I  kan  noght  seye. 
But  mercy,  lady  bright,  that  knowest  weele 
My  thought,  and  seest  what  harmes  that  I  feele, 
Considere  al  this  and  rewe  upon  my  soore  1375 

As  wisly  as  I  shal  for  evermoore, 
Emforth  my  myght,  thy  trewe  servant  be, 
And  holden  werre  alwey  with  chastitee ; 
That  make  I  myn  avow,  so  ye  me  helpe. 
I  kepe  noght  of  armes  for  to  yelpe.  1380 

Ne  I  ne  axe  nat  tomorwe  to  have  victdrie, 
Ne  renoun  in  this  cas,  ne  veyne  glorie 
Of  pris  of  armes,  blowen  up  and  doun, 
But  I  wolde  have  fully  possessioun 
Of  Emelye,  and  dye  in  thy  servyse.  1385 

Fynd  thow  the  manere  how,  and  in  what  wyse ; 
I  recche  nat,  but  it  may  bettre  be, 
To  have  victorie  of  hem,  or  they  of  me, 
So  that  I  have  my  lady  in  myne  armes, 
For  though  so  be  that  Mars  is  god  of  armes,     1390 


48  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  2249- 

Youre  vertu  is  so  greet  in  hevene  above 

That,  if  yow  list,  I  shal  wel  have  my  love. 

Thy  temple  wol  I  worshipe  everemo, 

And  on  thyn  auter,  wher  I  ride  or  go, 

I  wol  doon  sacrifice  and  fires  beete ;  1395 

And  if  ye  wol  nat  so,  my  lady  sweete, 

Thanne  preye  I  thee,  tomorwe  with  a  spere 

That  Arcita  me  thurgh  the  herte  bere ; 

Thanne  rekke  I  noght,  whan  I  have  lost  my  lyf, 

Though  that  Arcita  wynne  hire  to  his  wyf:          1400 

This  is  theffect  and  ende  of  my  preyere, — 

Yif  me  my  love,  thow  blisful  lady  deere.' 

Whan  the  orison  was  doon  of  Palamon, 
His  sacrifice  he  dide,  and  that  anon, 
Ful  pitously  with  alle  circumstaunces,  1405 

Al  telle  I  noght  as  now  his  observaunces  ; 
But  atte  laste  the  statue  of  Venus  shook 
And  made  a  signe,  wher-by  that  he  took 
That  his  preyere  accepted  was  that  day ; 
For  thogh  the  signe  shewed  a  delay,  1410 

Yet  wiste  he  wel  that  graunted  was  his  boone, 
And  with  glad  herte  he  wente  hym  hoom  ful  soone. 

The  thridde  houre  in-equal  that  Palamon 
Bigan  to  Venus  temple  for  to  gon, 
Up  roos  the  sonne  and  up  roos  Emelye,  1415 

And  to  the  temple  of  Dyane  gan  she  hye. 
Hir  maydens,  that  she  thider  with  hire  ladde, 
Ful  redily  with  hem  the  fyr  they  hadde, 
Thencens,  the  clothes,  and  the  remenant  al 
That  to  the  sacrifice  longen  shal,  1420 


23081  KNIGHT'S   TALE  49 

The  homes  fulle  of  meeth,  as  was  the  gyse, — 
Ther  lakked  noght  to  doon  hir  sacrifise. 

Smokynge  the  temple,  ful  of  clothes  faire, 
This  Emelye,  with  herte  debonaire, 
Hir  body  wessh  with  water  of  a  welle;  1425 

But  how  she  dide  hir  ryte  I  dar  nat  telle, 
But  it  be  any  thing  in  general; 
And  yet  it  were  a  game  to  heeren  al ; 
To  hym  that  meneth  wel  it  were  no  charge, 
But  it  is  good  a  man  been*at  his  large.  1430 

Hir  brighte  heer  was  kempd,  untressed  al, 
A  coroune  of  a  grene  ook  cerial 
Upon  hir  heed  was  set,  ful  faire  and  meete ; 
Two  fyres  on  the  auter  gan  she  beete, 
And  dide  hir  thynges,  as  men  may  biholde          1435 
In  Stace  of  Thebes,  and  thise  bookes  olde. 
Whan  kyndled  was  the  fyr,  with  pitous  cheere, 
Unto  Dyane  she  spak  as  ye  may  heere : — 

'  O  chaste  goddesse  of  the  wodes  grene,  1439 

To  whom  bothe  hevene  and  erthe  and  see  is  seen, 
Queene  of  the  regne  of  Pluto,  derk  and  lowe, 
Goddesse  of  maydens,  that  myn  herte  hast  knowe 
Ful  many  a  yeer,  and  woost  what  I  desire, 
As  keepe  me  fro  thy  vengeaunce  and  thyn  ire, 
That  Attheon  aboughte  cruelly  ;  1445 

Chaste  goddesse,  wel  wostow  that  I 
Desire  to  ben  a  mayden  al  my  lyf, 
Ne  nevere  wol  I  be  no  love,  ne  wyf. 
I  am,  thow  woost,  yet  of  thy  compaignye, 

A  mayde,  and  love  huntynge  and  venerye,  1450 

D 


5o  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  2309. 

And  for  to  walken  in  the  wodes  wilde, 

And  noght  to  ben  a  wyf  and   be  with  childe  ; 

Noght  vvol  I  knowe  the  compaignye  of  man. 

Now  helpe  me,  lady,  sith  ye  may  and  kan, 

For  tho  thre  formes  that  thou  hast  in  thee.         1455 

And  Palamon,  that  hath  swich  love  to  me, 

And  eek  Arcite,  that  loveth  me  so  score — 

This  grace  I  preye  thee  withoute  moore — 

As  sende  love  and  pees  bitwixe  hem  two, 

And  fro  me  turne  awey  hir  hertes  so  1460 

That  al  hire  hoote  love  and  hir  desir, 

And  al  hir  bisy  torment  and  hir  fir, 

Be  queynt,  or  turned  in  another  place. 

And  if  so  be  thou  wolt  do  me  no  grace, 

Or  if  my  destynee  be  shapen  so  1465 

That  I  shal  nedes  have  oon  of  hem  two, 

As  sende  me  hym  that  moost  desireth  me. 

Bihoold,  goddesse  of  clene  chastitee, 

The  bittre  teeres  that  on  my  chekes  falle. 

Syn  thou  art  mayde,  and  kepere  of  us  alle,         1470 

My  maydenhede  thou  kepe  and  wel  conserve 

And  whil  I  lyve  a  mayde  I  wol  thee  serve.' 

The  fires  brenne  upon  the  auter  cleere 
Whil  Emelye  was  thus  in  hir  preyere, 
But  sodeynly  she  saugh  a  sighte  queynte,  1475 

For  right  anon  oon  of  the  fyres  queynte, 
And  quyked  agayn,  and  after  that,  anon 
That  oother  fyr  was  queynt  and  al  agon, 
And  as  it  queynte  it  made  a  whistelynge, 
As  doon  thise  wete  brondes  in  hir  brennynge ;    1480 


2368]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  51 

And  at  the  brondes  ende  out-ran  anon 
As  it  were  blody  dropes,  many  oon  ; 
For  which  so  soore  agast  was  Emelye 
That  she  was  wel  ny  mad,  and  gan  to  crye, 
For  she  ne  wiste  what  it  signyfied,  1485 

But  oonly  for  the  feere  thus  hath  she  cried, 
And  weep  that  it  was  pitee  for  to  heere ; 
And  ther-with-al  Dyane  gan  appeere, 
With  bowe  in  honde,  right  as  an  hunteresse, 
And  seyde,  '  Doghter,  stynt  thyn  hevynesse.          1490 
Among  the  goddes  hye  it  is  affermed, 
And  by  eterne  word  writen  and  confermed, 
Thou  shalt  ben  wedded  unto  oon  of  tho 
That  han  for  thee  so  muchel  care  and  wo, 
But  unto  which  of  hem  I  may  nat  telle.  1495 

Farwel,  for  I  ne  may  no  lenger  dwelle. 
The  fires  whiche  that  on  myn  auter  brenne 
Shulle  thee  declaren,  er  that  thou  go  henne, 
Thyn  aventure  of  love,  as  in  this  cas.' 
And  with  that  word  the  arwes  in  the  caas  1500 

Of  the  goddesse  clateren  faste  and  rynge, 
And  forth  she  wente  and  made  a  vanysshynge, 
For  which  this  Emelye  astoned  was, 
And  seyde,  '  What  amounteth  this,  alias  ! 
I  putte  me  in  thy  proteccioun,  1505 

Dyane,  and  in  thy  disposicioun.' 
And  hoom  she  goth  anon  the  nexte  weye. 
This  is  theffect,  ther  nys  namoore  to  seye. 
The  nexte  houre  of  Mars  folwynge  this, 
Arcite  unto  the  temple  walked  is  1510 


2  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [  A  2.169- 

Of  fierse  Mars,  to  doon  his  sacrifise 
With  alle  the  rytes  of  his  payen  wyse. 
With  pitous  herte  and  heigh  devocioun 
Right  thus  to  Mars  he  seyde  his  orisoun  : — 

'O  stronge  god,  that  in  the  regnes  colde         1515 
Of  Trace  hon6ured  art  and  lord  y-holde, 
And  hast  in  every  regne  and  every  lond 
Of  armes  al  the  brydel  in  thyn  hond, 
And  hem  forttinest  as  thee  lyst  devyse, 
Accepte  of  me  my  pitous  sacrifise.  1520 

If  so  be  that  my  youthe  may  deserve, 
And  that  my  myght  be  worthy  for  to  serve 
Thy  godhede,  that  I  may  been  oon  of  thyne, 
Thanne  preye  I  thee  to  rewe  upon  my  pyne. 
For  thilke  peyne,  and  thilke  hoote  fir,  1525 

In  which  thou  whilom  brendest  for  desir, 
Whan  that  thou  usedeste  the  beautee 
Of  faire,  yonge,  fresshe  Venus  free, 
And  haddest  hire  in  armes  at  thy  wille, 
Al-though  thee  ones  on  a  tyme  mysfille,  1530 

Whan  Vulcanus  hadde  caught  thee  in  his  las, 
And  foond  thee  liggynge  by  his  wyf,  alias  ! 
For  thilke  sorwe  that  was  in  thyn  herte, 
Have  routhe  as  wel  upon  my  peynes  smerte. 
I  am  yong  and  unkonnynge,  as  thow  woost,        1535 
And,  as  I  trowe,  with  love  offended  moost 
That  ever  was  any  lyves  creature ; 
For  she  that  dooth  me  al  this  wo  endure 
Ne  reccheth  never  wher  I  synke  or  fleete. 
And  wel  I  woot,  er  she  me  mercy  heete,  1540 


2428]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  53 

I  moot  with  strengthe  wynne  hire  in  the  place; 

And  wel  I  woot  withouten  helpe  or  grace 

Of  thee,  ne  may  my  strengthe  noght  availle. 

Thanne  helpe  me,  lord,  tomorwe  in  my  bataille, 

For  thilke  fyr  that  whilom  brente  thee,  1545 

As  well  as  thilke  fyr  now  brenneth  me, 

And  do  that  I  tomorwe  have  victorie. 

Myn  be  the  travaille,  and  thyn  be  the  glorie  ! 

Thy  sovereyn  temple  wol  I  moost  honouren 

Of  any  place,  and  alwey  moost  labouren  1550 

In  thy  plesaunce,  and  in  thy  craftes  stronge ; 

And  in  thy  temple  I  wol  my  baner  honge, 

And  alle  the  armes  of  my  compaignye, 

And  ever  mo,  un-to  that  day  I  dye, 

Eterne  fir  I  wol  biforn  thee  fynde  :  1555 

And  eek  to  this  avow  I  wol  me  bynde. 

My  beerd,  myn  heer,  that  hongeth  long  adoun, 

That  never  yet  ne  felte  offensioun 

Of  rasour  nor  of  shere,  I  wol  thee  yive, 

And  ben  thy  trewe  servant  whil  I  lyve.  1560 

Now,  lord,  have  routhe  upon  my  sorwes  soore, 

Yif  me  the  victorie,   I  aske  thee  namoore  ! ' 

The  preyere  stynt  of  Arcita  the  stronge, 
The  rynges  on  the  temple  dore  that  honge, 
And  eek  the  dores,  clatereden  ful  faste,  1565 

Of  which  Arcita  som-what  hym  agaste. 
The  fyres  brenden  upon  the  auter  brighte, 
That  it  gan  al  the  temple  for  to  lighte; 
A  sweete  smel  anon  the  ground  up  yaf, 
And  Arcita  anon  his  hand  up-haf,  1570 


54  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  2429- 

And  moore  encens  into  the  fyr  he  caste, 

With  othere  rytes  mo,  and  atte  last 

The  statue  of  Mars  bigan  his  hauberk  rynge ; 

And  with  that  soun  he  herde  a  murmurynge        1574 

Ful  lowe  and  dym,  and  seyde  thus  :    '  Victorie  ! ' 

For  which  he  yaf  to  Mars  honour  and  glorie. 

And  thus  with  joye  and  hope  wel  to  fare, 

Arcite  anon  unto  his  inne  is  fare, 

As  fayn  as  fowel  is  of  the  brighte  sonne. 

And  right  anon  swich  strif  ther  is  bigonne       1580 
For  thilke  grauntyng  in  the  hevene  above, 
Bitwixe  Venus,  the  goddesse  of  love, 
And  Mars,  the  stierne  god  armypotente, 
That  Juppiter  was  bisy  it  to  stente ; 
Til  that  the  pale  Saturnus  the  colde,  1585 

That  knew  so  manye  of  aventures  olde, 
Foond  in  his  olde  experience  an  art 
That  he  ful  soone  hath  plesed  every  part. 
As  sooth  is  seyd,  elde  hath  greet  avantage ; 
In  elde  is  bothe  wysdom  and  usage;  1590 

Men  may  the  olde  at-renne  and  noght  at-rede. 
Saturne  anon,  to  stynten  strif  and  drede, 
Al  be  it  that  it  is  agayn  his  kynde, 
Of  al  this  strif  he  gan  remedie  fynde. 

'  My  deere  doghter  Venus,'  quod  Saturne,         1595 
'  My  cours,  that  hath  so  wyde  for  to  turne, 
Hath  moore  power  than  woot  any  man  ; 
Myn  is  the  drenchyng  in  the  see  so  wan, 
Myn  is  the  prison  in  the  derke  cote,  1599 

Myn  is  the  stranglyng  and  hangyng  by  the  throte, 


2485]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  55 

The  murmure  and  the  cherles  rebellyng, 

The  groynynge  and  the  pryvee  empoysonyng ; 

I  do  vengeance  and  pleyn  correccioun 

Whil  I  dwelle  in  the  signe  of  the  leoun ; 

Myn  is  the  ruyne  of  the  hye  halles,  1605 

The  fallynge  of  the  toures  and  of  the  walles, 

Upon  the  mynour  or  the  carpenter, — 

I  slow  Sampsoun,  shakynge  the  piler, — 

And  myne  be  the  maladyes  colde, 

The  derke  tresons  and  the  castes  olde  ;  1610 

My  lookyng  is  the  fader  of  pestilence ; 

Now  weepe  namoore,  I  shal  doon  diligence 

That  Palamon,  that  is  thyn  owene  knyght, 

Shal  have  his  lady,  as  thou  hast  him  hight.         1614 

Though  Mars  shal  helpe  his  knyght,  yet  nathelees, 

Bitwixe  yow  ther  moot  be  som  tyme  pees, 

Al  be  ye  noght  of  o  compleccioun, 

That  causeth  al  day  swich  divisioun. 

I  am  thyn  aiel,  redy  at  thy  wille ; 

Weepe  now  namoore,  I  wol  thy  lust  fulfille.'        1620 

Now  wol  I  stynten  of  the  goddes  above, 
Of  Mars,  and  of  Venus,  goddesse  of  love, 
And  telle  yow,  as  pleynly  as  I  kan, 
The  grete  effect  for  which  that  I  bygan. 


PART     IV 

Greet  was  the  feeste  in  Atthenes  that  day,       1625 
And  eek  the  lusty  seson  of  that  May 
Made  every  wight  to  been  in  such  plesaunce, 


56  KNIGHT'S  TALE  [A  2486- 

That  al  that  Monday  justen  they  and  daunce, 

And  spenten  it  in  Venus  heigh  servyse ; 

But,  by  the  cause  that  they  sholde  ryse  1630 

Eerly,  for  to  seen  the  grete  fight, 

Unto  hir  reste  wenten  they  at  nyght. 

And  on  the  morwe,  whan  that  day  gan  sprynge, 

Of  hors  and  harneys  noyse  and  claterynge 

Ther  was  in  hostelryes  al  aboute,  1635 

And  to  the  paleys  rood  ther  many  a  route 

Of  lordes,  upon  steedes  and  palfreys. 

Ther  maystow  seen  divisynge  of  harneys 

So  unkouth  and  so  riche,  and  wroght  so  weel 

Of  goldsmythrye,  of  browdynge,  and  of  steel,       1640 

The  sheeldes  brighte,  testeres,  and  trappures ; 

Gold-hewen  helmes,  hauberkes,  cote  armiires ; 

Lordes  in  paramentz  on  hir  courseres ; 

Knyghtes  of  retenue,  and  eek  squieres, 

Nailynge  the  speres,  and  helmes  bokelynge,          1645 

Giggynge  of  sheeldes,  with  layneres  lacynge ; 

There,  as  nede  is,  they  weren  no  thyng  ydel. 

The  fomy  steedes  on  the  golden  brydel 

Gnawynge,  and  faste  the  armurers  also, 

With  fyle  and  hamer,  prikynge  to  and  fro ;  1650 

Yemen  on  foote,  and  communes  many  oon 

With  shorte  staves,  thikke  as  they  may  goon ; 

Pypes,  trompes,  nakers,  clariounes, 

That  in  the  bataille  blowen  blody  sounes ; 

The  paleys  ful  of  peples  up  and  doun,—  1655 

Heere  thre,  ther  ten,  holdynge  hir  questioun, 

Dyvynynge  of  thise  Thebane  knyghtes  two. 


2845]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  57 

Some  seyden  thus,  somme  seyde  it  shal  be  so, 
Some  helden  with  hym  with  the  blake  herd,        1659 
Some  with  the  balled,  somme  with  the  thikke  herd, 
Some  seyde  he  looked  grymme  and  he  wolde  fighte, 
He  hath  a  sparth  of  twenty  pound  of  wighte, — 
Thus  was  the  halle  ful  of  divynynge 
Longe  after  that  the  sonne  gan  to  sprynge. 

The  grete  Theseus,  that  of  his  sleepe  awaked  1665 
With  mynstralcie  and  noyse  that  was  maked, 
Heeld  yet  the  chambre  of  his  paleys  riche, 
Til  that  the  Thebane  knyghtes,  bothe  y-liche 
Honiired,  weren  into  the  paleys  fet. 
Due  Theseus  was  at  a  wyndow  set,  1670 

Arrayed  right  as  he  were  a  god  in  trone. 
The  peple  preesseth  thiderward  ful  soone 
Hym  for  to  seen,  and  doon  heigh  reverence, 
And  eek  to  herkne  his  heste  and  his  sentence. 

An  heraud  on  a  scaffold  made  an  '  Oo ! '         1675 
Til  al  the  noyse  of  the  peple  was  y-do ; 
And  whan  he  saugh  the  peple  of  noyse  al  stille 
Tho  shewed  he  the  myghty  dukes  wille. 

'The  lord  hath  of  his  heih  discrecioun 
Considered  that  it  were  destruccioun  1680 

To  gentil  blood  to  fighten  in  the  gyse 
Of  mortal  bataille  now  is  this  emprise  ; 
Wherfore,  to  shapen  that  they  shal  nat  dye, 
He  wolde  his  firste  purpos  modifye. 

'No  man  ther-fore,  up  peyne  of  los  of  lyf,       1685 
No  maner  shot,  ne  polax,  ne  shorte  knyf, 
Into  the  lystes  sende,  or  thider  brynge ; 


KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  2546. 

Ne  short  swerd,  for  to  stoke  with  poynt  bityng, 

No  man  ne  drawe,  ne  here  by  his  syde. 

Ne  no  man  shal  unto  his  felawe  ryde  1690 

But  o  cours  with  a  sharpe  y-grounde  spere ; 

Foyne,  if  hym  list,  on  foote,  hym  self  to  were. 

And  he  that  is  at  meschief  shal  be  take, 

And  noght  slayn,  but  be  broght  unto  the  stake 

That  shal  ben  ordeyned  on  either  syde ;  1695 

But  thider  he  shal  by  force,  and  there  abyde. 

'And  if  so  falle  the  chieftayn  be  take 
On  outher  syde,  or  elles  sleen  his  make, 
No  lenger  shal  the  turneiynge  laste. 
God  spede  you !   gooth  forth,  and  ley  on  faste  !  1700 
With  long  swerd  and  with  maces  fighteth  youre  fille. 
Gooth  now  youre  wey,  this  is  the  lordes  will.' 

The  voys  of  peple  touchede  the  hevene, 
So  loude  cride  they,  with  murie  stevene, 
'God  save  swich  a  lord,  that  is  so  good,  1705 

He  wilneth  no  destruccion  of  blood  ! ' 

Up  goon  the  trompes  and  the  melodye 
And  to  the  lystes  rit  the  compaignye 
By  ordinance,  thurgh-out  the  citee  large,  1709 

Hanged  with  clooth  of  gold,  and  nat  with  sarge. 

Ful  lik  a  lord  this  noble  due  gan  ryde, 
Thise  two  Thebans  upon  either  side ; 
And  after  rood  the  queene  and  Emelye, 
And  after  that  another  compaignye 
Of  oon  and  oother,  after  hir  degre;  1715 

And  thus  they  passen  thurgh-out  the  citee, 
And  to  the  lystes  come  they  by  tyme. 


2605]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  59 

It  nas  not  of  the  day  yet  fully  pryme 

Whan  set  was  Theseus  ful  riche  and  hye, 

Ypolita  the  queene  and  Emelye,  1720 

And  othere  ladys  in  degrees  aboute. 

Unto  the  seettes  preesseth  al  the  route, 

And  westward,  thurgh  the  gates  under  Marte, 

Arcite,  and  eek  the  hondred  of  his  parte, 

With  baner  reed  is  entred  right  anon.  1725 

And  in  that  selve  moment  Palamon 

Is  under  Venus,  estward  in  the  place, 

With  baner  whyt,  and  hardy  chiere  and  face. 

In  al  the  world  to  seken  up  and  doun 

So  evene,  withouten  variacioun,  1730 

Ther  nere  swiche  compaignyes  tweye ; 

For  ther  was  noon  so  wys  that  koude  seye 

That  any  hadde  of  oother  avauntage 

Of  worthynesse,  ne  of  estaat,  ne  age, 

So  evene  were  they  chosen,  for  to  gesse ;  1735 

And  in  two  renges  faire  they  hem  dresse. 

Whan  that  hir  names  rad  were  everichon, 
That  in  hir  nombre  gyle  were  ther  noon, 
Tho  were  the  gates  shet,  and  cried  was  loude,    1739 
'  Do  now  youre  devoir,  yonge  knyghtes  proude  ! ' 

The  heraudes  lefte  hir  prikyng  up  and  doun ; 
Now  ryngen  trompes  loude  and  clarioun ; 
Ther  is  namoore  to  seyn,  but  west  and  est 
In  goon  the  speres  ful  sadly  in  arrest ; 
In  gooth  the  sharpe  spore  into  the  syde.  1745 

Ther  seen  men  who  kan  juste  and  who  kan  ryde ; 
Ther  shyveren  shaftes  upon  sheeldes  thikke ; 


60  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  2606- 

He  feeleth  thurgh  the  herte-spoon  the  prikke. 

Up  spryngen  speres  twenty  foot  on  highte ; 

Out  goon  the  swerdes  as  the  silver  brighte ;         1750 

The  helmes  they  to-hewen  and  to-shrede, 

Out  brest  the  blood  with  stierne  stremes  rede; 

With  myghty  maces  the  bones  they  to-breste. 

He,  thurgh  the  thikkeste  of  the  throng  gan  threste, 

Ther,  stomblen  steedes  stronge,  and  doun  gooth  al ; 

He,  rolleth  under  foot  as  dooth  a  bal ;  1756 

He,  foyneth  on  his  feet  with  his  tronchoun, 

And  he  hym  hurtleth  with  his  hors  adoun ; 

He,  thurgh  the  body  is  hurt  and  sithen  y-take, 

Maugree  his  heed,  and  broght  unto  the  stake  ;    1 760 

As  forward  was,  right  ther  he  moste  abyde. 

Another  lad  is  on  that  oother  syde. 

And  som  tyme  dooth  hem  Theseus  to  reste, 

Hem  to  refresshe  and  drynken,  if  hem  leste. 

Ful  ofte  a-day  han  thise  Thebanes  two,  1765 

Togydre  y-met  and  wroght  his  felawe  wo ; 

Unhorsed  hath  ech  oother  of  hem  tweye. 

Ther  nas  no  tygre  in  the  vale  of  Galgopheye, 

Whan  that  hir  whelpe  is  stole  whan  it  is  lite, 

So  crueel  on  the  hunte,  as  is  Arcite  1770 

For  jelous  herte  upon  this  Palamoun  ; 

Ne  in  Belmarye  ther  nys  so  fel  leoun, 

That  hunted  is,  or  for  his  hunger  wood, 

Ne  of  his  praye  desireth  so  the  blood, 

As  Palamoun,  to  sleen  his  foo  Arcite.  1775 

The  jelous  strokes  on  hir  helmes  byte ; 

Out  renneth  blood  on  bothe  hir  sydes  rede. 


2665]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  61 

Som  tyme  an  ende  ther  is  of  every  dede, 
For,  er  the  sonne  unto  the  reste  wente, 
The  stronge  kyng  Emetreus  gan  hente  1780 

This  Palamon,  as  he  faught  with  Arcite, 
And  made  his  swerd  depe  in  his  flessh  to  byte, 
And  by  the  force  of  twenty  is  he  take 
Unyolden,  and  y-drawe  unto  the  stake. 
And  in  the  rescus  of  this  Palamoun  1785 

The  stronge  kyng  Lygurge  is  born  adoun, 
And  kyng  Emetreus,  for  al  his  strengthe, 
Is  born  out  of  his  sadel  a  swerdes  lengthe; 
So  hitte  him  Palamoun,  er  he  were  take ; 
But  al  for  noght ;   he  was  broght  to  the  stake.    1 790 
His  hardy  herte  myghte  hym  helpe  naught ; 
He  moste  abyde,  whan  that  he  was  caught, 
By  force,  and  eek  by  composicioun. 

Who  sorweth  now  but  woful  Palamoun, 
That  moot  namoore  goon  agayn  to  fighte?  1795 

And  whan  that  Theseus  hadde  seyn  this  sighte 
Unto  the  folk  that  foghten  thus  echon 
He  cryde,   '  Hoo  !    namoore,  for  it  is  doon  ! 
I  wol  be  trewe  juge,  and  no  partie; 
Arcite  of  Thebes  shall  have  Emelie  1800 

That  by  his  fortune  hath  hire  faire  y-wonne.' 

Anon  ther  is  a  noyse  of  peple  bigonne, 
For  joye  of  this,  so  loude  and  heighe  with-alle, 
It  semed  that  the  lystes  sholde  falle. 

What  kan  now  faire  Venus  doon  above?  1805 

What  seith  she  now,  what  dooth  this  queene  of  love, 
But  wepeth  so,  for  wantynge  of  hir  wille, 


62  KNIGHT'S  TALE  [A  2666- 

Til  that  hir  teeres  in  the  lystes  fille? 

She  seyde,  '  1  am  ashamed  doutelees.' 

Saturnus  seyde,  '  Doghter,  hoold  thy  pees,  1810 

Mars  hath  his  wille,  his  knyght  hath  al  his  boone, 

And,  by  myn  heed,  thow  shall  been  esed  soone.' 

The  trompes,  with  the  loude  mynstralcie, 
The  heraudes,  that  ful  loude  yolle  and  crie, 
Been  in  hire  wele,  for  joye  of  daun  Arcite.          1815 
But  herkneth  me,  and  stynteth  now  a  lite, 
Which  a  myracle  ther  bifel  anon. 

This  fierse  Arcite  hath  of  his  helm  y-don, 
And  on  a  courser,  for  to  shewe  his  face, 
He  priketh  endelong  the  large  place,  1820 

Lokynge  upward  up-on  this  Emelye, 
And  she  agayn  hym  caste  a  freendlich  eye 
(For  wommen,  as  to  speken  in  comune, 
Thei  folwen  all  the  favour  of  Fortune), 
And  was  al  his,  in  chiere,  as  in  his  herte.  1825 

Out  of  the  ground  a  furie  infernal  sterte, 
From  Pluto  sent,  at  requeste  of  Saturne, 
For  which  his  hors  for  fere  gan  to  turne, 
And  leep  aside,  and  foundred  as  he  leep, 
And  er  that  Arcite  may  taken  keep,  1830 

He  pighte  hym  on  the  pomel  of  his  heed, 
That  in  the  place  he  lay  as  he  were  deed, 
His  brest  to-brosten  with  his  sadel-bowe. 
As  blak  he  lay  as  any  cole  or  crowe, 
So  was  the  blood  y  ronnen  in  his  face.  1835 

Anon  he  was  y-born  out  of  the  place, 
With  herte  soor,  to  Theseus  paleys. 


2725]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  63 

Tho  was  he  korven  out  of  his  harneys, 
And  in  a  bed  y-brought  ful  faire  and  blyve ; 
For  he  was  yet  in  memorie  and  alyve,  1840 

And  alwey  criynge  after  Emelye. 

Due  Theseus  with  al  his  compaignye 
Is  comen  hoom  to  Atthenes  his  citee, 
With  alle  blisse  and  greet  solempnitee; 
Al  be  it  that  this  aventure  was  falle,  1845 

He  nolde  noght  disconforten  hem  alle,— 
Men  seyden  eek  that  Arcite  shal  nat  dye, 
He  shal  been  heeled  of  his  maladye. 

And  of  another  thyng  they  weren  as  fayn, 
That  of  hem  alle  was  ther  noon  y-slayn ;  1850 

Al  were  they  score  y-hurt,  and  namely  oon, 
That  with  a  spere  was  thirled  his  brest  boon. 
To  othere  woundes  and  to  broken  armes, 
Somme  hadden  salves  and  somme  hadden  charmes, 
Fermacies  of  herbes,  and  eek  save  1855 

They  dronken,  for  they  wolde  hir  lymes  have. 
For  which  this  noble  due,  as  he  wel  kan, 
Conforteth  and  hondureth  every  man, 
And  made  revel  al  the  longe  nyght 
Unto  the  straunge  lordes,  as  was  right ;  1860 

Ne  ther  was  holden  no  disconfitynge 
But  as  a  justes,  or  a  tourneiynge; 
For  soothly  ther  was  no  disconfiture, 
For  fallyng  nys  nat  but  an  aventure, 
Ne  to  be  lad  by  force  unto  the  stake  1865 

Unyolden,  and  with  twenty  knyghtes  take, 
O  persone  allone,  withouten  mo, 


64  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  2726- 

And  haryed  forth  by  arme,  foot  and  too, 

And  eke  his  steede  dryven  forth  with  staves, 

With  footmen,  bothe  yemen  and  eek  knaves, —  1870 

It  nas  aretted  hym  no  vileynye ; 

Ther  may  no  man  clepen  it  cowardye. 

For  which  anon  due  Theseus  leet  crye, 
To  stynten  alle  rancour  and  envye, 
The  gree  as  wel  of  o  syde  as  of  oother,  1875 

And  eyther  syde  y-lik  as  ootheres  brother; 
And  yaf  hem  yiftes  after  hir  degree, 
And  fully  heeld  a  feeste  dayes  three, 
And  conveyed  the  kynges  worthily 
Out  of  his  toun,  a  journee  largely,  1880 

And  hoom  wente  every  man  the  righte  way ; 
Ther  was  namoore,  but  '  Fare  wel ! '  '  Have  good  day ! ' 
Of  this  bataille  I  wol  namoore  endite, 
But  speke  of  Palamoun  and  of  Arcyte. 

Swelleth  the  brest  of  Arcite,  and  the  soore       1885 
Encreesseth  at  his  herte  moore  and  moore. 
/'The  clothered  blood,  for  any  lechecraft, 
Corrupteth,  and  is  in  his  bouk  y-laft, 
That  neither  veyne-blood  ne  ventusynge, 
Ne  drynke  of  herbes  may  ben  his  helpynge ;       1890 
The  vertu  6xpulsif,  or  animal, 
Fro  thilke  vertu  cleped  natural, 
Ne  may  the  venym  voyden  ne  expelle. 
The  pipes  of  his  longes  gonne  to  swelle, 
And  every  lacerte  in  his  brest  adoun  1895 

Is  shent  with  venym  and  corrupcioun. 
Hym  gayneth  neither,  for  to  gete  his  lii, 


2785]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  65 

Vomyt  upward,  ne  dounward  laxatif; 

Al  igr  to-brosten  thilke  regioun ; 

Nature  hath  now  no  dominacioun;  1900 

And  certeinly,  ther  Nature  wol  nat  wirche, 
/Farewel,  phisik  !   go  her  the  man  to  chirche  !x 

This  al  and  som,  that  Arcita  moot  dye, 

For  which  he  sendeth  after  Emelye, 

And  Palamon,  that  was  his  cosyn  deere.  1905 

Thanne  seyde  he  thus  as  ye  shal  after  heere  : 
'  Naught  may  the  woful  spirit  in  myn  herte 

Declare  o  point  of  alle  my  sorwes  smerte 

To  yow,  my  lady,  that  I  love  moost, 

But  I  biquethe  the  servyce  of  my  goost  1910 

To  yow  aboven  every  creature, 

Syn  that  my  lyf  [ne]  may  no  lenger  dure. 

Alias  the  wo !   alias,  the  peynes  stronge, 

That  I  for  yow  have  suffred,  and  so  longe  ! 
/Alias,  the  deeth  !   alias,  myn  Emelye!  1915 

Alias,  departynge  of  our  compaignye  ! 

Alias,  myn  hertes  queene  !   alias,  my  wyf ! 

Myn  hertes  lady,  endere  of  my  lyf! 

What  is  this  world  ?   what  asketh  men  to  have  ? 

Now  with  his  love,  now  in  his  colde  grave          1920 

Allone,  withouten  any  compaignye.X 

Farewel,  my  swete  foo,  myn  Emelye ! 

And  softe  taak  me  in  youre  armes  tweye 

For  love  of  God,  and  herkneth  what  I  seye. 

'  I  have  heer  with  my  cosyn  Palamon  1925 

Had  strif  and  rancour,  many  a  day  agon, 

For  love  of  yow,  and  for  my  jalousye, 

E 


66  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  2786- 

And  Juppiter  so  wys  my  soule  gye 
To  speken  of  a  servaunt  proprely, 
With  alle  circumstances  trewely, —  1930 

That  is  to  seyn,  trouthe,  honour,  and  knyghthede, 
Wysdom,  humblesse,  estaat  and  heigh  kynrede, 
Fredom,  and  al  that  longeth  to  that  art, — 
So  Juppiter  have  of  my  soule  part, 
As  in  this  world  right  now  ne  knowe  I  non        1935 
So  worthy  to  ben  loved  as  Palamon, 
That  serveth  yow  and  wol  doon  al  his  lyf. 
And  if  that  evere  ye  shul  ben  a  wyf, 
Forget  nat  Palamon,  the  gentil  man,' — 
'   And  with  that  word  his  speche  faille  gan,  1940 

For  from  his  feet  up  to  his  brest  was  come 
The  coold  of  deeth,  that  hadde  him  overcome ; 
And  yet  moore-over,  in  his  armes  two, 
The  vital  strengthe  is  lost  and  al  ago. 
Oonly  the  intellect,  withouten  moore  1945 

That  dwelled  in  his  herte  syk  and  soore, 
Gan  faillen  when  the  herte  felte  deeth, 
Dusked  his  eyen  two  and  failled  breeth. 
But  on  his  lady  yet  caste  he  his  eye ; 
His  laste  word  was,  '  Mercy,  Emelye ! '  1950 

His  spirit  chaunged  hous,  and  wente  ther, 
As  I  cam  never,  I  kan  nat  tellen  wher. 
Therfore  I  stynte,  I  nam  no  divinistre;      , 
1  Of  soules '  fynde  I  nat  in  this  registre, ./ 
Ne  me  ne  list  thilke  opinions  to  telle,  1955 

Of  hem,  though  that  they  writen  wher  they  dwelle. 
Arcite  is  coold,  ther  Mars  his  soule  gye; 


2845]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  67 

Now  wol  I  speken  forth  of  Emelye. 
/  Shrighte  Emelye,  and  howleth  Palamon,  S 

^r 

And  Theseus  his  suster  took  anon  1960 

Swownynge,  and  baar  hire  fro  the  corps  away. 
What  helpeth  it  to  tarien  forth  the  day, 
To  tellen  how  she  weepe,  bothe  eve  and  morwe? 
For  in  swich  cas  wommen  have  swiche  sorwe, 
Whan  that  hir  housbonds  ben  from  hem  ago,      1965 
That,  for  the  moore  part,  they  sorwen  so, 
Or  ellis  fallen  in  swich  maladye, 
That,  at  the  laste,  certeinly  they  dye. 

Infinite  been  the  sorwes  and  the  teeres 
Of  olde  folk,  and  folk  of  tendre  yeeres,  1970 

In  all  the  toun  for  deeth  of  this  Theban  ; 
For  hym  ther  wepeth  bothe  child  and  man  : 
So  greet  a  wepyng  was  ther  noon,  certayn, 
Whan  Ector  was  y-broght  al  fressh  y-slayn 
To  Troye.     Alias  !   the  pitee  that  was  ther,  1975 

Cracchynge  of  chekes,  rentynge  eek  of  heer. 

'  Why  woldestow  be  deed  ? '  thise  wommen  crye, 
And  haddest  gold  ynough,  and  Emelye.' 

N6  man  myghte  gladen  Theseus, 
Savynge  his  olde  fader  Egeus,  1980 

That  knew  this  worldes  transmutacioun, 
As  he  hadde  seyn  it  chaungen,  up  and  doun, 
/Joye  after  wo,  and  wo  after  gladnesse,  / 
And  shewed  hem  ensamples  and  liknesse. 

'  Right  as  ther  dyed  nevere  .man,'  quod  he,      1985 
'  That  he  ne  lyvede  in  erthe  in  som  degree, 
Right  so  ther  lyvede  nevere  man,'  he  seyde, 


68  KNIGHT'S  TALE  [A  2846- 

'  In  all  this  world,  that  som  tym  he  ne  deyde  : 
/  This  world  nys  but  a  thurghfare  ful  of  wo, 

And  we  been  pilgrymes,  passynge  to  and  fro>    1990 

Deeth  is  an  ende  of  every  worldly  score ' ; 

And  over  al  this  yet  seyde  he  muchel  moore 

To  this  effect,  ful  wisely  to  enhorte 

The  peple  that  they  sholde  hem  reconforte. 

Due  Theseus,  with  all  his  bisy  cure,  1995 

Cast[eth]  now  wher  that  the  sepulture 
Of  goode  Arcite  may  best  y-maked  be, 
And  eek  moost  honurable  in  his  degree; 
And  at  the  laste  he  took  conclusioun 
That  ther  as  first  Arcite  and  Palamoun  2000 

Hadden  for  love  the  bataille  hem  bitwene, 
That  in  that  selve  grove,  swoote  and  grene, 
Ther  as  he  hadde  his  amorouse  desires, 
His  compleynte,  and  for  love  his  hoote  fires, 
He  wolde  make  a  fyr  in  which  the  office  2005 

Funeral  he  myghte  al  accomplice; 
And  leet  comande  anon  to  hakke  and  hewe 
The  okes  olde,  and  leye  him  on  a  rewe, 
In  colpons,  wel  arrayed  for  to  brenne. 
Hise  officers  with  swifte  feet  they  renne,  2010 

And  ryde  anon  at  his  comandement. 
And  after  this  Theseus  hath  y-sent 
After  a  beere,  and  it  al  over  spradde 
With  clooth  of  gold,  the  richeste  that  he  hadde ; 
And  of  the  same  suyte  he  clad  Arcite.  2015 

Upon  hise  hondes  hadde  he  gloves  white, 
Eek  on  his  heed  a  coroune  of  laurer  grene, 


2905]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  69 

And  in  his  bond  a  swerd  ful  bright  and  kene. 
He  leyde  hym,  bare  the  visage,  on  the  beere. 
Ther-with  he  weep  that  pitee  was  to  heere;         2020 
And,  for  the  peple  sholde  seen  hym  alle, 
•  Whan  it  was  day  he  broghte  hym  to  the  halle, 
That  roreth  of  the  criyng  and  the  soun. 

Tho  cam  this  woful  Theban  Palamoun, 
With  flotery  berd  and  ruggy  asshy  heeres,  2025 

In  clothes  blake,  y-dropped  al  with  teeres  _, 
And  passynge  othere  of  wepynge,  Emelye, 
The  rewefulleste  of  al  the  compaignye. 
In  as  muche  as  the  servyce  sholde  be 
The  moore  neble  and  riche  in  his  degree,  2030 

Due  Theseus  leet  forth  thre  steedes  brynge, 
That  trapped  were  in  steele  al  gliterynge 
And  covered  with  the  armes  of  daun  Arcite. 
Upon  thise  steedes,  grete  and  white, 
Ther  sitten  folk,  of  whiche  oon  baar  his  sheeld,  2035 
Another  his  spere  up  in  his  hondes  heeld, 
The  thridde  baar  with  hym  his  bowe  Turkeys 
(Of  brend  gold  was  the  caas,  and  eek  the  harneys); 
And  riden  forth  a  paas  with  sorweful  cheere, 
Toward  the  grove,  as  ye  shul  after  heere.  2040 

The  nobleste  of  the  Grekes  that  ther  were 
Upon  hir  shuldres  caryeden  the  beere, 
With  slake  paas,  and  eyen  rede  and  wete, 
Thurgh-out  the  citee,  by  the  maister  strete, 
That  sprad  was  al  with  blak,  and  wonder  hye     2045 
Right  of  the  same  is  al  the  strete  y-wrye. 
Upon  the  right  hond  wente  olde  Egeus, 


70  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  2906- 

And  on  that  oother  syde  due  Theseus, 

With  vessels  in  hir  hand  of  gold  ful  fyn 

Al  ful  of  hony,  milk,  and  blood,  and  wyn  :          2050 

Eek  Palamon,  with  ful  greet  compaignye, 

And  after  that  cam  woful  Emelye,  » 

With  fyr  in  honde,  as  was  that  tyme  the  gyse 

To  do  the  office  of  funeral  servyse. 

Heigh  labour,  and  ful  greet  apparaillynge,         2055 
Was  at  the  service  and  the  fyr  makynge, 
That  with  his  grene  tope  the  heven  raughte, 
And  twenty  fadme  of  brede  the  armes  straughte ; 
This  is  to  seyn,  the  bowes  weren  so  brode. 
Of  stree  first  ther  was  leyd  ful  many  a  lode ;      2060 
But  how  the  fyr  was   maked  up  on  highte, 
And  eek  the  names  how  the  trees  highte, — 
As  ook,  firre,  birch,  aspe,  alder,  holm,  popeler, 
Wylugh,  elm,  plane,  assh,  box,  chasteyn,  lynde,  laurer, 
Mapul,  thorn,  bech,  hasel,  ew,  whippeltre, —        2065 
How  they  weren  feld  shal  nat  be  toold  for  me ; 
Ne  how  the  goddes  ronnen  up  and  doun, 
Disherited  of  hire  habitacioun, 
In  whiche  they  woneden  in  reste  and  pees, 
Nymphes,  fawnes,  and  amadriades ;  2070 

Ne  how  the  beestes  and  the  briddes  alle 
Fledden  for  fere,  whan  the  wode  was  falle ; 
Ne  how  the  ground  agast  was  of  the  light, 
That  was  nat  wont  to  seen  the  sonne  bright ; 
Ne  how  the  fyr  was  couched  first  with  stree,       2075 
And  thanne  with  drye  stikkes,  cloven  a  thre, 
And  thanne  with  grene  wode  and  spicerye, 


2965]  KNIGHT'S  TALE      .  7I 

And  thanne  with  clooth  of  gold,  and  with  perrye, 

And  gerlandes,  hangynge  with  ful  many  a  flour, 

The  mirre,  thencens,  with  al  so  greet  odour;       2080 

Ne  how  Arcite  lay  among  al  this, 

Ne  what  richesse  aboute  his  body  is, 

Ne  how  that  Emelye,  as  was  the  gyse, 

Putte  in  the  fyr  of  funeral  servyse, 

Ne  how  she  swowned  whan  men  made  the  fyr,  2085 

Ne  what  she  spak,  ne  what  was  hir  desyr, 

Ne  what  jeweles  men  in  the  fyr  caste 

Whan  that  the  fyr  was  greet  and  brente  faste ; 

Ne  how  somme  caste  hir  sheeld,  and  somme  hir  spere, 

And  of  hire  vestimentz,  whiche  that  they  were,   2090 

And  coppes  full  of  wyn,  and  milk,  and  blood, 

Into  the  fyr,  that  brente  as  it  were  wood ; 

Ne  how  the  Grekes,  with  an  huge  route, 

Thrie's  riden  al  the  fyr  aboute 

Upon  the  left  hand,  with  a  loud  shoutynge,         2095 

And  thrie's  with  hir  speres  claterynge, 

And  thrie's  how  the  ladyes  gonne  crye, 

And  how  that  lad  was  homward  Emelye ; 

Ne  how  Arcite  is  brent  to  asshen  colde, 

Ne  how  that  lychewake  was  y-holde  2100 

Al  thilke  nyght;   ne  how  the  Grekes  pleye 

The  wake-pleyes ;   ne  kepe  I  nat  to  seye 

Who  wrastleth  best  naked,  with  oille  enoynt, 

Ne  who  that  baar  hym  best  in  no  disjoynt. 

I  wol  nat  tellen  eek  how  that  they  goon  2105 

Hoom  til  Atthenes,  whan  the  pleye  is  doon ; 

But  shortly  to  the  point  thanne  wol  I  wende, 


7  2  KNIGHT'S   TALE  [A  2966- 

And  maken  of  my  longe  tale  an  ende. 

By  processe  and  by  lengthe  of  certeyn  yeres, 
Al  styntyd  is  the  moornynge  and  the  teres  2110 

Of  Grekes,  by  oon  general  assent. 
Thanne  semed  me  ther  was  a  parlement 
At  Atthenes,  upon  certein  poyntz  and  caas ; 
Among  the  whiche  poyntz  y-spoken  was, 
To  have  with  certein  contrees  alliaunce,  2115 

And  have  fully  of  Thebans  obeissaunce. 
For  which  this  noble  Theseus  anon 
Leet  senden  after  gentil  Palamon, 
Unwist  of  hym  what  was  the  cause  and  why ; 
But  in  his  blake  clothes  sorwefully  2120 

He  cam  at  his  comandement  in  hye. 
Tho  sente  Theseus  for  Emelye. 
Whan  they  were  set,  and  bust  was  al  the  place, 
And  Theseus  abiden  hadde  a  space 
Er  any  word  cam  from  his  wise  brest,  2125 

His  eyen  sette  he  ther  as  was  his  lest, 
And  with  a  sad  visage  he  siked  stille, 
And  after  that  right  thus  he  seyde  his  wille : 

'The  Firste  Moevere  of  the  cause  above, 
Whan  he  first  made  the  faire  cheyne  of  love,      2130 
Greet  was  theffect  and  heigh  was  his  entente ; 
Wei  wiste  he  why  and  what  therof  he  mente, 
For  with  that  faire  cheyne  of  love  he  bond 
The  fyr,  the  eyr,  the  water  and  the  lond, 
In  certeyn  boundes  that  they  may  nat  flee.          2135 
That  same  Prince,  and  that  same  Moevere,'  quod  he, 
'Hath  stablissed  in  this  wrecched  world  adoun 


3025]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  73 

Certeyne  dayes  and  duracioun 
To  al  that  is  engendrid  in  this  place, 
Over  the  whiche  day  they  may  nat  pace, —          2140 
Al  mo  we  they  yet  tho  dayes  wel  abregge, 
Ther  nedeth  noon  auctoritee  allegge 
For  it  is  preeved  by  experience, 
But  that  me  list  declaren  my  sentence. 
Thanne  may  men  by  this  ordre  wel  discerne       2145 
That  thilke  Moevere  stable  is  and  eterne. 
Wel  may  men  knowe,  but  it  be  a  fool, 
That  every  part  dirryveth  from  his  hool ; 
For  nature  hath  nat  taken  his  bigynnyng 
Of  no  partie,  ne  cantel,  of  a  thyng,  2150 

But  of  a  thyng  that  parfit  is  and  stable, 
Descendynge  so,  til  it  be  corrumpable. 
<    And  therfore  of  his  wise  purveiaunce 
He  hath  so  wel  biset  his  ordinaunce, 
That  speces  of  thynges  and  progressiouns  2155 

Shullen  enduren  by  successiouns,  ^ 
And  nat  eterne,  withouten  any  lye ; 
This  maystow  understonde,  and  seen  at  eye. 

'  Loo  the  ook,  that  hath  so  long  a  norisshynge 
From  tyme  that  it  first  bigynneth  sprynge,  2160 

And  hath  so  long  a  lif  as  we  may  see, 
Yet  at  the  laste  wasted  is  the  tree. 
'  Considereth  eek  how  that  th'j  harde  stoon 
Under  oure  feet,  on  which  we  trede  and  goon, 
Yit  wasteth  it,  as  it  lyth  by  the  weye ;  2165 

The  brode  ryver  somtyme  wexeth  dreye; 
The  grete  tounes  se  we  wane  and  wende; 


74  KNIGHT'S  TALE  [A  3026. 

Thanne  may  ye  se  that  al  this  thyng  hath  ende. 

'  Of  man  and  womman  seen  we  wel  also, 
That  nedeth  in  oon  of  thise  termes  two,  2170 

This  is  to  seyn,  in  youthe  or  elles  age, 
He  moot  be  deed,  the  kyng  as  shal  a  page; 
Som  in  his  bed,  som  in  the  depe  see, 
Som  in  the  large  feeld,  as  men  may  se ; 
Ther  helpeth  noght,  al  goth  that  ilke  weye  :         2175 
Thanne  may  I  seyn  that  al  this  thyng  moot  deye. 

'What  maketh  this  but  Juppiter,  the  kyng, 
The  which  is  prince,  and  cause  of  alle  thyng, 
Convertynge  al  unto  his  propre  welle, 
From  which  it  is  dirryved,  sooth  to  telle?  2180 

And  here-agayns  no  creature  on  lyve, 
Of  no  degree,  availleth  for  to  stryve. 

'Thanne  is  it  wysdom,  as  it  thynketh  me, 
To  maken  vertu  of  necessitee, 

And  take  it  weel  that  we  may  not  eschue,  2185 

And  namely  that  to  us  alle  is  due. 
And  whoso  gruccheth  ought,  he  dooth  folye, 
And  rebel  is  to  hym  that  al  may  gye  ; 
And  certeinly  a  man  hath  moost  honour, 
To  dyen  in  his  excellence  and  flour,  2190 

When  he  is  siker  of  his  goode  name ; 
Thanne  hath  he  doon  his  freend,  ne  hym,  no  shame, 
And  gladder  oghte  his  freend  been  of  his  deeth, 
Whan  with  honour  up-yolden  is  his  breeth, 
Than  whan  his  name  apalled  is  for  age,  2195 

For  al  forgeten  is  his  vassellage. 
Thanne  is  it  best,  as  for  a  worthy  fame, 


3085]  KNIGHT'S   TALE  75 

To  dyen  whan  that  he  is  best  of  name. 

'The  contrarie  of  al  this  is  wilfulnesse. 
Why  grucchen  we,  why  have  we  hevynesse,          2200 
That  goode  Arcite,  of  chivalrie  flour, 
Departed  is,  with  duetee  and  honour, 
Out  of  this  foule  prisoun  of  this  lyf? 
Why  grucchen  heere  his  cosyn  and  his  wyf 
Of  his  welfare  that  loved  hem  so  weel?  2205 

Kan  he  hem  thank  ? — Nay,  God  woot,  never  a  deel — 
That  bothe  his  soule  and  eek  hem-self  offende,    ' 
And  yet  they  mowe  hir  lustes  nat  amende. 

'  What  may  I  conclude  of  this  longe  serye, 
But  after  wo,  I  rede  us  to  be  merye,  2210 

And  thanken  Juppiter  of  al  his  grace? 
And  er  that  we  departen  from  this  place 
I  rede  that  we  make  of  sorwes  two 
O  parfit  joye,  lastynge  evermo.  2214 

And  looketh  now,  wher  moost  sorwe  is  her-inne, 
Ther  wol  we  first  amenden  and  bigynne. 

'Suster,'  quod  he,   'this  is  my  fulle  assent, 
With  all  thavys  heere  of  my  parlement, 
That  gentil  Palamon,  thyn  owene  knyght, 
That  serveth  yow  with  wille,  herte,  and  myght,  2220 
And  evere  hath  doon,  syn  that  ye  first  hym  knewe, 
That  ye  shul  of  your  grace  upon  hym  rewe, 
And  taken  hym  for  housbonde  and  for  lord ; 
Lene  me  youre  hond,  for  this  is  oure  accord. 
Lat  se  now  of  youre  wommanly  pitee;  2225 

He  is  a  kynges  brother  sone,  pardee, 
And  though  he  were  a  poure  bacheler, 


76  KNIGHT'S  TALE  [A  3086-3108 

Syn  he  hath  served  yow  so  many  a  yeer 

And  had  for  yow  so  greet  adversitee, 

It  moste  been  considered,  leeveth  me,  2230 

For  gentil  mercy  oghte  to  passen  right.' 

Thanne  seyde  he  thus  to  Palamon  ful  right : 
'  I  trowe  ther  nedeth  litel  sermonyng 
To  make  yow  assente  to  this  thyng ; 
Com  neer,  and  taak  youre  lady  by  the  hond.'     2235 
Bitwixen  hem  was  maad  anon  the  bond 
That  highte  matrimoigne,  or  mariage, 
By  al  the  conseil  and  the  baronage ; 
And  thus  with  alle  blisse  and  melodye 
Hath  Palamon  y-wedded  Emelye,  2240 

And  God,  that  al  this  wyde  world  hath  wroght, 
Sende  hym  his  love  that  hath  it  deere  aboght, 
For  now  is  Palamon  in  alle  wele, 
Lyvynge  in  blisse,  in  richesse,  and  in  heele ; 
And  Emelye  hym  loveth  so  tendrely,  2245 

And  he  hire  serveth  al-so  gentilly, 
That  never  was  ther  no  word  hem  bitwene 
Of  jalousie,  or  any  oother  tene. 

Thus  endeth  Palamon  and  Emelye  ; 
And  God  save  al  this  faire  compaignye.  2250 

Amen. 


NOTES. 


Heere  bigynneth  The  Knyghtes  Tale  :  Some  MSS.  here  quote 
in  the  margin  'Jamque  domos  patrias  Scithice  post  aspera  gentis 
Proelia,  etc.,'  the  beginning  of  the  passage  in  Statius  (T.hebais, 
xn.  5'9  etc.)  describing  the  return  of  Theseus  to  Athens. 

1 .  old6  stories  :  the  reference  is  not,  of  course,  to  the  TeseiJe  by 
Boccaccio,  who  was  Chaucer's  elder  contemporary  and  who  himself 
speaks  of  the  tale  as  '  an  ancient  story  so  hidden  away  in  the  course 
of  years  that  no  Latin   author  speaks   of  it'  (Teseide,  I.  2),  but 
vaguely    to    ancient    literature    and    legend.      Statius    introduces 
Theseus  in  his  Thebaid  and  Plutarch  wrote  a  life  of  him  in  Greek. 

2.  a  duo  :    the  title  of  the  Duke  of  Athens  was  held  in  Chaucer's 
youth  by  a  Constable  of  France,  killed  at  the  battle  of  Poitiers.     It 
was  thus  natural  for  Chaucer  to  apply  it  to  Theseus,  though  he  was 
properly  a  king.     Boccaccio  speaks  of  Theseus  as  Duca  di  Atene 
and  his  father  Aegeus  as  re.      In  the  Legend  of  Good  Women  the 
faithless   Theseus  apostrophises   Ariadne   as    '  My   dere   herte,    of 
Athenes  duchesse.' 

8.  conquered  al  the  regne  of  Femenye  :  Boccaccio  devotes  his 
first  book  to  an  account  of  this  campaign,  which  he  ascribes  to  the 
cruelty  shown  by  the  Amazons  to  Athenians  who  tried  to  enter  their 
kingdom.  Of  the  regne  of  Femenye  it  may  be  sufficient  to  quote 
from  the  article  '  Amazons '  in  Seyffert's  Dictionary  of  Classical 
Antiquities:  "AMAZONS  (Gr.  Amazongs  =  breastless).  A  mythical 
nation  of  women-warriors,  whose  headquarters  are  placed  by  early 
Greek  legend  in  Themiscyra  on  the  Thermodon,  on  the  southern 
shore  of  the  Euxine  [or  Black  Sea].  In  later  accounts  they  also 
appear  on  the  Caucasus  and  on  the  Don,  where  the  nation  called 
Sauromatae  was  supposed  to  have  sprung  from  their  union  with  the 
Scythians.  They  suffered  no  men  among  them  ;  the  sons  born  of 
their  intercourse  with  neighbouring  nations  they  either  killed  or 
sent  back  to  their  fathers  ;  the  girls  they  brought  up  to  be  warriors, 
burning  the  right  breast  off  for  the  better  handling  of  the  bow. 

77 


7g  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

Even  in  Homer  they  are  represented  as  making  long  marches  into 
Asiatic  territory  ;  an  army  of  them  invading  Lycia  is  cut  to  pieces 
by  Bellerophon  ;  Priam,  then  in  his  youth,  hastens  to  help  the 
Phrygians  against  them.  They  gained  a  firm  footing  in  Greek  song 
and  story  through  Arctinus  of  Miletus,  in  whose  poem  their  queen 
Penthesilea,  as  Priam's  ally,  presses  hard  on  the  Greeks,  till  she  is 
slain  by  Achilles.  After  that  they  became  a  favourite  subject  with 
poets  and  artists,  and  a  new  crop  of  fable  sprang  up  :  Heracles  wars 
against  them  to  win  the  girdle  of  their  queen,  Hippolyte  ;  Theseus 
carries  off  her  sister  AntTope,  they  in  revenge  burst  into  Attica,  en 
camp  on  the  Areopagus  of  Athens,  and  are  pacified  by  Antiope's 
mediation,  or  according  to  another  version,  beaten  in  a  great  battle. 
Grave-mounds  supposed  to  cover  the  bones  of  Amazons  were  shown 
near  Megara,  and  in  Euboea  and  Thessaly.  In  works  of  art  the 
Amazons  were  represented  as  martial  maids,  though  always  with 
two  breasts,  and  usually  on  horseback  ;  sometimes  in  Scythian  dress 
(a  tight  fur  tunic,  with  a  cloak  of  many  folds  over  it,  and  a  kind  of 
Phrygian  cap),  sometimes  in  Grecian  (a  Dorian  tunic  tucked  up  and 
the  right  shoulder  bare),  armed  with  a  half-moon  shield,  two-edged 
axe,  spear,  bow  and  quiver,  etc."  Boccaccio  follows  the  legend 
which  placed  the  Amazons  on  the  banks  of  the  Don,  i.e.  to  the 
north,  instead  of  the  south,  of  the  Black  Sea,  and  this  was  the 
district  to  which  the  name  Scythia  (though  it  was  used  very 
vaguely)  came  to  be  most  generally  applied. 

10.  weddedfe  the  queene  Ypolita :  as  we  have  seen,  in  the  earlier 
legends  it  was  Hippolyta's  sister  Antiope  whom  Theseus  bore  away 
and  married.  But  in  Statins  the  change  has  already  been  made. 
See  Introduction,  §  I. 

13.  hir  yong6  suster  Emelye  :  E.  substitutes  fa  ire  for  yonge,'  but 
yonge  is  wanted  to  translate  Boccaccio's  sorella  ficcoh'na,  '  little 
sisterling.'  Elsewhere  he  calls  her  fantina  and  donzelletta.  The 
name  '  Emelye,'  the  Latin  Aemilia,  shows  that  her  introduction  was 
no  part  of  any  of  the  earlier  legends. 

21.  And  of  the  grete  bataille  for  the  nones:  the  battle  began 
with  the  Amazons  resisting  the  attempt  of  the  Greeks  to  land.     At 
first  they  met  with  some  success,  and  then  were  driven  back  to  a 
castle  which  was  duly  besieged  till  Hippolyta  consented  to  marry 
Theseus.     For  the  nones,  for  the  occasion.     After  the  battle   the 
Amazons  laid  aside  their  fierce  looks  and  became  friendly. 

22.  Bitwlxen  Athenes  :  there  would  be  no  awkwardness  in  taking 
Athenes   here   in   its  usual    sense,    as    '  between   Athens    and    the 
Amazons '  would   be  quite  a  reasonable  phrase.      But  '  Athenes ' 
is  here  usually  explained  as  meaning  'Athenians.'      If  so,  this  is 
the  only  place  where  Chaucer  speaks  of  them  by  name. 

25  sq.  And  of  the  feste  .  .  .  And  of  the  tempest :  Boccaccio 
duly  records  the  feast  (Le  nozze  furon  grandi  e  liete  mnlto  E  piii 
tempo  duro  il  festeggiaie),  but  he  says  nothing  of  any  tempest.  On 


NOTES 


79 


the  contrary,  he  says  that  they  came  home  aided  by  an  excellent 
wind  between  north  and  north-west  (Quindi  spirando  tra  Borea  e 
Coro  Ottimo  vento).  But  perhaps  Chaucer  remembered  the  word 
Borea,  and  took  it  for  granted  that  Boreas  meant  mischief,  though 
they  wanted  a  north  wind  to  bring  them  from  Scythia  to  Athens. 
Dr.  Skeat  thinks  that  Chaucer's  mistaken  mention  of  a  storm  is  due 
to  a  confused  recollection  of  a  simile  of  a  storm  in  Statins  xii.  960 
sqq.  But  this  simile  comes  in  much  later  on,  when  Theseus  is 
mustering  his  army. 

31-35.  I  wol  nat  letten  eek  noon  of  this  route,  etc.  :  If  we 
believe  that  this  story  of  Palamon  and  Arcite  was  written  before  the 
scheme  of  the  Canterbury  Tales  was  formulated,  we  must  regard 
these  lines  as  inserted  when  the  poem  was  revised  for  its  present 
purpose.  The  whole  passage  from  1.  14  to  34  is  a  rather  clumsy 
interruption  of  the  story,  as  Chaucer  '  leaves '  Theseus  riding  to 
Athens,  not  to  tell  us  of  anything  ehe,  but  only  to  explain  that  he 
has  not  time  to  do  so. 

32.  Lat  every  felawe  telle  his  tale  aboute  :  the  singular  of  '  his 
tale '  suggests  that  each  pilgrim  was  only  to  tell  one  tale.  But  it  is 
clear  that  he  was  to  tell  one  tale  each  way,  and  in  the  Prologue, 
apparently  by  some  slip,  Chaucer  commits  each  pilgrim  to  telling 
four  tales  altogether,  two  on  the  road  to  Canterbury  and  two  coming 
home  again. 

36.  almost  unto  the  toun :  Statius  places  the  Altar  of  Mercy 
where   Theseus  finds  the   suppliants  in  the  middle   of  the  town. 
Boccaccio  takes  Theseus  in  triumph  to  the  Temple  of  Pallas  Athene, 
where  he  makes  his  offering,  and  he  only  lights  on  the  suppliants  in  a 
subsequent  procession  round  Athens.     Chaucer  apparently  places 
the  meeting  outside  the   town  in  order  to   heighten   the  effect   of 
the  chivalrous  readiness  of  Theseus  to  start  on  his  new  campaign 
before  even  setting  foot  in  Athens  :  cf.  1.  1 10. 

37.  in  his  mooste  pride :  Boccaccio  makes  the  Athenians  bring 
him  a  triumphal  car,  an  imperial  mantle,  and  a  conquerer's  crown 
or  chaplet.  * 

38.  He  was  war,  etc.     Chaucer  sometimes  distributes  his  accents 
otherwise  than  we  should  in  modern  verse,  but  Dr.  Liddell  is  pro 
bably  right  in  scanning  this  line  : 

He  |  was  war,  |  as  he  caste  |  his  eye  |  aside. 

44.  That  herde  :  after  '  nys '  we  expect  '  hath  herden '  rather  than 
'  that  herde.'  The  couplet  is  Chaucer's  addition  and  on  a  level  with 
the  overstrained  desire  for  emphasis  which  inspired  11.  55-56. 

50.  that  thus  compleyne  and  crye  :  Dr.  Skeat  makes  these 
verbs  indicatives  (ye  that  thus  compleyne) ;  they  must  surely  be  sub 
junctives,  'so  greet  envye  that  [ye]  thus  compleyne.'  For  the 
omission  of  the  pronoun,  cf.  1.  359. 

67.  Thanked  be  Fortune  and  hire  fals6  wheel :  in  medieval 
pictures  of  Fortune  she  is  often  represented  as  turning  a  wheel  to 


8o  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

which  one  man  clings  on  the  rising  side,  another  sits  crowned  on  the 
top,  a  third  is  falling  on  the  descending  side,  while  a  fourth  has  his 
head  dashed  against  the  ground. 

68.  assureth,  confirms.  The  idea  is  not  of  a  promise,  but  of 
stability. 

70.  in  the  temple  of  the  goddesse  Clemence.  Boccaccio  also 
speaks  of  a  temple  (pietoso  tempio),  Statius  only  of  an  altar,  of  which 
he  gives  rather  a  fine  description  (Th.  xn.  481  sqq.).  No  image  of 
the  goddess,  he  says,  adorned  it,  nor  did  the  suppliants  burn  incense 
there  or  make  sacrifice,  only  they  wetted  it  with  their  tears,  and 
offered  the  hair  they  cut  off  in  sign  of  grief  and  the  gay  garments 
which  they  had  put  aside. 

74.  Cappaneus,  one  of  the  '  Seven  against  Thebes.'  According 
to  the  legends  Zeus  struck  him  by  lightning  for  his  boasting 
during  the  assault.  Cf.  Troil.  V.  1504: 

.  .  .  how  Cappaneus  the  proude 
With  thonder-dint  was  slayn,  that  cri'de  loude. 

When  his  body  came  to  be  burnt  his  wife,  Evadne,  who  here  speaks, 
threw  herself  into  the  funeral  flames. 

83.  He,  resumptive. 

84.  To  do  the  ded6  toodyes  vlleynye.     The  importance  which  the 
Greeks   attached    to   securing   funeral    rites   for  their  dead  figures 
prominently  both  in  their  literature  and  history.       The   obstacles 
raised  against  the  burial  of  Ajax  and  not  his  death  forms  the  climax 
of  the  tragedy  by  Sophocles,   and  in  the  Peloponnesian  War  six 
Athenian  admirals  were  punished  with  death  for  not  having  taken 
sufficient  pains  to  collect  their  dead,  as  well  as  the  drowning,  after 
the  victory  of  Arginusae. 

94.  doun  from  his  courser.  Statius  and  Boccaccio  place 
Theseus  in  a  chariot,  such  as  Roman  generals  rode  in  when  they 
celebrated  a  triumph.  An  English  king  in  a  triumphal  entry  would 
ride  on  horseback,  and  Chaucer  makes  Theseus  do  the  same. 

107  sq.  Aifd  right  anoon,  withouten  moore  abood,  etc. 
Chaucer  emphasises  and  accelerates  Theseus'  chivalrous  haste.  In 
Statius  he  sends  forward  a  herald  to  Creon  and  also  gathers  fresh 
forces  from  Athens.  In  the  Teseide  he  makes  speeches. 

117.  statue,  figure. 

119.  That  alle  the  feeldes  glyteren  up  and  doun.  Cf.  Anelida, 
40  sq.  (of  Hippolyta)  : 

.  .  .  al  the  ground  about  her  char  she  spradde 
With  brightnesse  of  the  beautee  in  her  face. 

This  parallel,  and  the  use  of  'al  the  felde  aboute,'  six  lines 
earlier  in  the  same  poem  (see  Appendix),  surely  disprove  the  explana 
tion  of  '  feeldes '  as  referring  to  the  '  charges '  of  the  banner,  which 
Dr.  Skeat  adopts. 


NOTES  81 

121.  Of  gold  ful   riche,    riche   qualifies    'penoun'  and  governs 
'gold.'     Cf.  Prol.  479,  'But  riche  he  was  of  holy  thoght  and  werd.' 

y-bete,  stamped.  Lydgate  (Chron.  Troy,  I.  ix.)  speaks  of  arms 
'  branded  or  bete '  upon  coat  armour.  Cf.  also  Anelida,  \.  24,  v\  here 
we  are  told  that  the  car  of  Theseus  was  '  gold-bete.' 

122.  The  Mynotaur,  the  monster  with  a  bull's  head  and  man's 
body,  which  Minos,  King  of  Crete,  fed  with  Athenian  youths  and 
maidens,  till  Theseus  slew  it.     Chaucer  tells  the  story  in  the  Legend 
of  Good  Women,  1.  1893  sqq. 

129.  slough  hym  manly  as  a  knyght,  i.e.  in  single  combat. 

131.  And  by  assaut,  etc.  Statius  makes  the  Thebans  regard 
Theseus  as  a  deliverer  and  guest  (Jamque  hospes  Theseus.  Grant 
succedere  muris  Dignarique  domos,  etc. ).  In  the  Teseide  he  allows 
his  men  to  sack  the  town,  respecting  only  the  temples.  The  'assault' 
is  Chaucer's  invention. 

138,139.  That  the ladyes  .  .  .  Of  the  bodies  :— two  of  the  lines 
beginning  with  a  foot  consisting  of  a  single  weak  syllable  which  form 
a  blot  on  Chaucer's  versification.  Cf.  1.  156. 

149.  The  pilours,  a  touch  from  the  practice  in  the  Anglo-French 
wars  of  the  I4th  century.  In  Boccaccio  Palamon  and  Arcite  are 
found  by  men  whom  Theseus  has  sent  out  to  collect  his  wounded. 
Chaucer  substitutes  pillagers  for  these  ambulance  men. 

158.  by  here  cote-armures  and  by  hir  gere  :  the  N.E.D.  defines 
coat-armour  as  '  a  vest  of  rich  material  embroidered  with  heraldic 
devices,  worn  as  a  distinction  by  knights   over  their  armour,  by 
heralds,  etc.'     Chaucer  (Hous  of  Fame,  in.  236  sq.)  speaks  of  'a 
vesture,  Which  that  men  clepe  a  cote-armure,  embrowded  wonder  - 
liche  riche.'     The  'gere'  would  include  armour  and  weapons  on 
which  the  heraldic  devices  might  be  repeated. 

1 59.  The  heraudes  knewe  hem  best  in  special :  the  heralds  are 
of    Chaucer's    introduction.        Boccaccio    makes    the    ambulance 
men  recognise  by  their  shining  arms  and  lofty  countenances  that 
they  must  be  men  of  importance.     Chaucer  calls  in  the  heralds  as 
having  special  knowledge. 

166.  he  nolde  no  raunsoun.  Chaucer  offers  no  explanation  of 
this  harshness.  Boccaccio  makes  Theseus  so  struck  by  their  appear 
ance  that  he  thinks  of  putting  them  to  death  for  fear  of  the  harm 
they  might  do  him  if  let  go  free.  But  as  they  have  committed  no 
treachery  he  substitutes  for  death  perpetual  imprisonment. 

175.  This  passeth  yeer  by  yeer :  In  many  of  his  tales  Chaucer 
shows  himself  reckless  in  matters  of  time,  but  the  recklessness  in 
this  story  of  Palamon  and  Arcyte  is  more  noticeable  and  needless 
than  usual.  We  have  here  a  suggestion  of  several  years  ;  in  1.  523 
we  are  told  that  Arcite  after  his  release  endured  the  torment  of 
separation  from  Emily  'a  yeer  or  two';  he  was  'a  yeer  or  two' 
more  in  disguise  in  Theseus'  service  (1.  568  or  '  thre  yeer '  according 

K 


82  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

to  1.  588,  while  in  1.  594  we  are  told  that  altogether  '  seven  yeer ' 
had  elapsed.  After  this  there  is  an  interval  of  a  year  before  the 
tournament,  and  then  (1.  2109)  the  'lengthe  of  certeyn  yeres'  after 
the  death  of  Arcyte,  before  Palamon  finally  wins  Emily.  Boccaccio 
insists  much  less  on  the  lapse  of  time. 

176.  in  a  morwe  of  May:  Boccaccio  merely  says  'on  a  fair 
morning.'  The  whole  connection  of  the  story  with  May  is  Chaucer's 
addition. 

187.  '  Arys,  and  do  thyn  dbservaunce ' :  "  When  the  peasants  do 
their  '  observaunce  to  a  morn  of  May,'  great  boughs  of  hawthorn 
are  cut  before  daybreak  in  the  woods,  and  carried,  with  other  season 
able  leafage  and  blossom,  into  the  village  street.  Lads  plant 
branches  before  the  doors  of  their  mistresses.  The  folk  deck  them 
selves,  their  houses,  and  the  church  in  green.  Some  of  them  are 
clad  almost  entirely  in  wreaths  and  tOtties,  and  become  walking 
bushes,  'Jack  i'  the  green.'  The  revel  centres  in  dance  and  song 
round  a  young  tree  set  up  in  some  open  space  of  the  village,  or  a 
more  permanent  May-pole,  adorned  for  the  occasion  with  fresh 
garlands."  See  The  Medieval  Stage  by  E.  K.  Chambers  (1903), 
Vol.  i.  Chap.  VI. -viii..  where  the  whole  subject  of  Mayday  is 
elaborately  discussed. 

193.  at  the  sonne  up-riste  :  at  the  rising  of  the  sun,  sonne  is  the 
genitive  feminine,  upriste  dative. 

198.  The  gret6  tour  :   Illustrators,  for  their  own  convenience,  so 
that  both  Emily  and  the  knights  might  be  prominent  in  the  picture, 
have  usually  placed  the  prisoners  on  the  ground  floor.     But  Chaucer 
puts  the  chamber  whence  they  see  Emily  '  on  heigh '  (1.  207). 

199.  dongeoun:   in  Chaucer's   time    'dongeoun'  bore  both  the 
meanings  which  we  now  distinguisli  by  the  spellings  '  don-jon  '  and 
dungeon.     But  despite  the  mention  of  '  prisoun  '  in  the  next  line  it 
is  clear  that  he  uses  it  here  in  its  happier  sense,  as  in  the  Legend  of 
Good  Women  where  (1.  937)  he  writes  of  The  noble  tour  of  Ylion, 
That  of  the  citee  was  the  cheef  dungeon,'  i.e.  as  'the  great  tower 
or  keep  of  a  castle,  situated  in  the  inmost  court  or  bailey'  (N.E.I).). 
The  idea  of  strength  rules  both  meanings. 

205.  Palamon.  Boccaccio  says  '  Arcita.'  For  the  importance 
of  Chaucer's  variation  see  Introduction. 

216.  by  aventure  or  cas :  In  the  Teseide  Arcita  is  attracted  by 
Emily's  singing  and  puts  his  head  between  the  bars  of  his  prison- 
window  to  see  who  it  is. 

229.  Som  wikke  aspect,  etc.,  some  malign  aspect  or  adjustment 
of  Saturn  with  reference  to  (by)  some  constellation.  Saturn  was 
always  an  unlucky  planet,  and  if  at  the  hour  of  a  man's  birth  he 
stood  in  a  position  in  which  he  influenced  for  ill  other  heavenly 
bodies,  the  course  of  the  man's  life  was  thus  predestined  to  be  un 
lucky,  because  the  possible  good  fortune  from  these  other  heavenly 
bodies  would  be  overborne  by  the  ill-luck  brought  by  Saturn.  See 


NOTES  83 

'  Chaucer's  Astrology,'  §§  4  and  7,  and  11.  1585  seq.  with  the  notes. 
Where  (in  1.  215)  Chaucer  makes  Palamon  lament  that  he  was  born 
at  all,  Boccaccio  had  made  the  prisoners  curse  the  day  and  hour  of 
their  birth,  because  they  were  born  under  unlucky  influences.  It 
is  to  this  idea  that  Chaucer  now  recurs. 

231.  although  we  hadde  it  sworn:  whatever  account  of  the 
matter  we  may  ourselves  swear  to. 

233.  We  moste  endure  it :  this  is  the  short  and  playn  :  Prof. 
Skeat's  advice  '  pronounce  this  is  as  this  '  is  rather  more  drastic  than 
the  line  requires,  as  the  three  short  syllables  '  it  :  this  is,'  with  the 
caesura  after  the  first,  by  no  means  overweight  the  line. 

243.  wher,  whether. 

245.  on  knees  doun  he  fll :  In  the  Teseide  the  cousins  agree  that 
the  visitor  to  the  garden  is  Venus,  but  neither  of  them  goes  the 
length  of  praying  to  her.  The  ingenious  argument  founded  on  this 
prayer,  and  indeed  the  whole  of  the  rest  of  the  scene,  is  entirely 
supplied  by  Chaucer. 

275.  for  to  dyen  in  the  peyne,  though  the  alternative  be  to  die 
in  agony  or  under  torture.  Tyrwhitt  notes  :  So  in  Froissart,  v.  i, 
c.  206,  Edward  III.  declares  that  he  will  not  return  'jusques  a 
tant  qu'il  auroit  tin  de  guerre,  ou  paix  a  sa  sufrisarice,  ou  a  son  grand 
honneur  :  ou  il  mourroit  en  la  peine.' 

275'77-  That  nevere  ...  to  hyndre,  a  change  of  construc 
tion. 

278.  my  leeve  brother  :  Palamon 's  anger  runs  off  him  as  soon  as 
he  thinks  of  any  '  other  case '  but  that  of  love. 

279,  280.  thou  sholdest  ...  I  shal,  the  charge  of  tense  is  merely 
for  vividness. 

292.  if  it  lay  in  thy  myght,  the  past  tense  may  be  due  to 
Palamon's  realising,  as  he  spoke,  that  the  condition  could  not  be 
fulfilled,  since  it  was  impossible  for  his  fellow  prisoner  to  help  him 
to  win  Emily. 

295.  Thow  shalt  be  rather  fals  than  I,  you  are  more  likely  to 
prove  false  than  I. 

297.  TOT  par  amour,  etc.  :  i.e.  -with  love  I  loved  her.  This  is  a 
genuine  old  expression.  See  Froissart,  v.  i,  c.  156,  '  II  aima  done 
par  amours,  et  depuis  espousa,  Madame  Ysabelle  de  Juillers.' 
Tyrwhitt's  note. 

304.  I  pos6  that  thow  lovedest  hire  biforn.     I  put  the  case  that 
you  were  the  first  to  love  her.     Arcite  is  very  ingenious,  but  he  pro 
vides  so  many  alternative  arguments  that  he  hardly  seems  to  expect 
any  of  them  to  be  accepted. 

305.  the  oldd  clerkes  sawe  :  the  saying  of  the  old  clerk,  i.e.  of 
Boethius  in  his  De  Consolatione  Philosophiae,  Book  in.  metre  xii. 
Quis  legem  dat  amantibus  ?     Maior  lex  amor  e<t  sibi.      When  Pluto 


84  KNIGHT'S  TALE 

had  heard  Orpheus  sing  :  '  "  We  ben  overcomen,"  quod  he,  "  yeve 
we  to  Orpheus  his  wyf  to  beren  hym  compaignye  :  he  hath  wel 
y-bought  hire  by  his  faire  song  and  his  ditee.  But  we  wolen  putten 
a  lawe  in  this  and  covenaunt  in  the  yifte  :  that  is  to  seyn  that,  til  he 
be  out  of  helle,  yif  he  loke  byhynde  hym,  that  his  wyf  schal  comen 
ageyn  unto  us."  But  what  is  he  that  may  yeven  a  lawe  to  loverys? 
Love  is  a  grettere  lawe  and  a  strengere  to  hymself  (thanne  any  lawe 
that  men  may  yiven).  Alias  !  whanne  Orpheus  and  his  wyf  \veren 
almost  at  the  termes  of  the  nyght  (that  is  to  seyn,  at  the  laste 
boundes  of  helle)  Orpheus  lokede  abakward,  on  Erudyce  his  wif,  and 
lost  hire,  and  was  deed.'  (Chaucer's  translation.)  The  whole 
passage  is  quoted  here,  because  it  shows  that  if  love  will  not  obey 
laws,  it  has  to  pay  the  penalty,  and  perhaps  Chaucer  had  this  in 
mind  in  making  Arcyte  quote  from  it. 

For  '  to  any  erthely  man  '  E.  alone  reads  '  of  [i.e.  by]  any  erthely 
man,'  which  is  a  little  nearer  Boethius,  but  does  not  materially  alter 
the  meaning. 

309.  positif  lawe  and  swich  decree  :  fixed  or  definite  law  and  all 
such  enactments. 

310.  in  ech  degree,  '  in  every  rank  of  life  '  (Skeat).     This  seems 
better  than  to  suppose  a  reference  to  casuistical  discussions  as  to  the 
degrees  of  violence  in  sin  or  law-breaking. 

314.  And  eek  it  is  nat  likly,  etc.     Having  argued  (i)  that  he 
himself  was  in  the  right,  (ii)  that  there  was  no  right  in  the  matter, 
Arcyte  now  says  (iii)  that  there  is  no  practical  question  in  dispute. 
In  1.  323  he  restates  his  second  argument  rather  more  blatantly. 

315.  To  stonden,  i.e.  [for  you]  to  stand. 

333.  A  worthy  due,  that  highte  Perotheus,  i.e.  Peirithous, 
prince  of  the  Lapithae. 

342.  His  felawe  wente  and  soughte  hym  doun  in  helle.     There 
is  here  some  confusion  in  the  mythology.     Theseus  and  Peirithous 
went  to  Hades  together  to  carry  off  Persephone.      Hercules  sub 
sequently  rescued  Theseus,   and   Peirithous  was  left  to  pine  (like 
Palamon)  for  lack  of  a  friend.     I  can  find   no  other  reference  to 
Theseus  rescuing  Peirithous  or  Peirithous  Theseus,  save  that  pointed 
out  by  Prof.  Skeat  in  Chaucer's  favourite  authority,  the  Roman  de 
la  Rose,  1.  8186  : 

Si  cum  vesquist,  ce  dist  1'istoire, 
Pyrithous  apres  sa  mort, 
Que  Theseus  tant  ama  mort. 
Tant  le  queroit,  tant  le  sivoit  .  .  . 
Que  vis  en  enfer  1'ala  querre. 

343.  But  of  that  storie  list  me  nat  to  write  :  unless  we  put  it 
down  to  a  mere  slip  the  use  of  the  word  '  write'  here  points  clearly 
to  the  existence  of  this  passage  before  the  idea  of  tales  to  be  told  on 
the  road  to  Canterbury  had  been  conceived. 


NOTES  85 

354.  oo  stounde.  Tyrwhitt  found  this  reading  in  one  MS.,  all  the 
others  reading  or  for  oo.  To  make  '  stounde  '  a  third  alternative  to 
'by  day  or  nyght'  is  so  awkward  that  Tyrwhitt's  reading  is  here 
followed  despite  its  slight  authority. 

369.  Alias  that  evere  knew  I  Perotheus :  in  the  Teseide  Arcyte 
is  very  grateful  to  Peirithous ;  only  he  objects  to  be  sent  out  of 
Athens,  and  explains  that  he  would  like  to  serve  Theseus  out  of 
affection.  As  he  does  not  say  for  whom,  Theseus  is  only  puzzled, 
and  Arcyte  has  to  go.  But  his  grief  is  much  less  vivid  than  here. 

380.  Wei  hath  Fortune  y-turned  thee  the  dys  :  Chaucer  is  fond 
of  this  metaphor,  cf.  B.  124  sq.  : 

Your  bagges  been  nat  filled  with  ambes  as  (double  ace) 
But  with  sis  cynk,  that  renneth  for  your  chaunce. 

Also  B.  3851  : 

Thy  sys  fortune  hath  turned  into  as. 

389.  Ne  creature,  that  of  hem  maked  is  :  earth,  water,  fire,  and 
air  were  the  four  elements  out  of  which  everything  was  supposed  to 
be  compounded. 

395.  That  yevetL  hem  ful  ofte,  etc. :  cf.  Juvenal,  Sat.  x. 
346  sqq. : 

Nil  ergo  optabunt  homines  ?     Si  consilium  vis 
Permittes  ipsis  expendere  numinibus,  quid 
Conveniat  nobis,  rebusque  sit  utile  nostris. 
Nam  pro  jucundis  aptissima  quaeque  dabunt  Di. 
Carior  est  illis  homo,  quam  sibi. 

The  whole  passage  is  indeed  an  epitome  of  Juvenal's  Satire,  the 
same  which  Johnson  imitated  in  his  Vanity  of  Human  Wishes. 

402.  We  witen  nat  what  thing  we  preyen  heere  :  cf.  Boethius, 
De   Consol.    in.    prose    ii.,    '  But    I    retorne   ayen   to   the  studies 
[desires]  of  men,  of  whiche  men  the  corage  [heart]  alwey  reherceth 
and  seketh  the  sovereyne  good,  al  be  it  so  that  it  be  with  a  dyrkyd 
[darkened]  memorie  ;  but  he  not  [knows  not]  by  which  path,  ryght 
as  a  dronke  man  not  nat  by  whiche  path  he  may  retourne  hom  to 
his  hous '  (Chaucer's  version).     Prof.  Liddell  notes  :   '  The  edition 
of  Boethius  which  Chaucer  used   contained  the  commentary  tradi 
tionally   assigned   to   St.    Thomas   Aquinas.     These   verses   are   a 
translation  of  one  of  the  Aquinas  glosses  "  ebrius  scit   se   habere 
domum  .   .  .  nescit  quomodo  ad  earn  redeat."' 

403.  dronke  is  as  a  mous :    why  a  mouse  should  be  taken  as 
an  emblem  of  drunkenness  students  of  folk-lore  and  proverbs  have 
not  yet  told  us.      Dr.   Skeat  quotes  some  parallel    passages,  and 
shows  that  the  phrase  was  succeeded  by  '  drunk  as  a  rat.' 

429.  make  a  werre  so  sharpe  on  this  citee  :  in  the  Teseide 
Arcita  is  only  released  on  condition  that  he  promises  not  to  attempt 
to  take  vengeance  against  Theseus. 


86  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

444.  The  boxtree  :  The  N.  E.  D.  gives  sixteenth  century  quota 
tions  from  Turner's  Herbal  '  the  wood  of  boxe  is  yelowe  and  pale,' 
and  Gilpin's  Skialetheia  '  their  box  complexions  .  .  .  their  jaundice 
looks.'  Chaucer  uses  the  same  comparison  in  the  Legend  of  Good 
Women  (1.  867)  '  pale  as  box  sche  was.' 

449.  What  is  mankynd6  moore  unto  you  holde  :  how  is  mankind 
a  greater  concern  to  you  ? 

455.  What  governance  is  in  this  prescience  :  the  gods  foreknow 
all  things,  what  kind  of  rule  do  they  bear  which  results  in  innocent 
men  being  tormented  for  no  cause?  Dr.  Liddell  aptly  compares 
Boethius  (Bk.  I.  Inst.  V. ):  O  governour  governynge  alle  thynges 
why  refusestow  oonly  to  governe  the  workes  of  men,  why  suffrestow 
.  .  .  that  anoyous  peyne  that  sholde  duweliche  punysche  felons 
punyssheth  innocentes  ? 

458.  is  bounden  to  his  dbservaunce  :  is  tied  down  to  walk  accord 
ing  to  the  laws  that  are  set  before  him.  '  Observaunce '  is  any 
customary  duty  or  ceremonial  practice. 

464.  it  may  stonden  so  :  this  may  be  the  true  conclusion,  or 
final  result. 

470.  But  I  moot  been  in  prisoun  thurgh  Saturne  :    Saturn  is 
probably  only  named  here,  as  in  1.  230,  because  he  was  held  respon 
sible  astrologically  for  most  things  that  went  wrong. 

471.  And  eek  thurgh  Juno  :   the  'saevae  Junonis  opus  '  is  one  01 
the  subjects  Statius  proposed  to  himself  in  the  Thebais  (i.  12).     She 
contrived  the  destruction  of  Semele,  the  daughter  of  Cadmus,  and 
drove  Semele's  brother-in-law  Athamas  mad,  so  that  he  killed  his 
son    and    caused    his    wife    Ino    to    drown    herself.     Virgil  com 
memorates  the  '  mindful  wrath  '  with  which  Juno  pursued  the  sons 
of  Troy,  and  no  doubt  she  was  equally  persistent  in  the   case  of 
Thebes.     Cf.  Anelida,  1.  51. 

476-478.   These  lines  seem  to  clash  with  479-496. 

486.  exiled  upon  his  heed  :  Tyrwhitt  points  out  that  Froissart 
uses  sur  sa  teste,  sur  la  teste,  as  well  as  sur  peine  de  la  teste. 

487.  as  out  of  that  contree  :  the  phrase  seems  a  kind  of  apology 
for  speaking  of  a  man  as  '  exiled  '  when  sent  away  from  a  country  to 
which  he  had  only  been  brought  as  a  prisoner. 

489.  Yow  loveres  axe  I  now  this  questioun  :  It  is  hardly  necessary 

to  see  here,  as  Thomas  Wright  did,    '  an  implied  allusion  to  the 

-vX    medieval   courts   of  love,   in   which   questions   of  this  kind    were 

seriously  discussed.'     We  know  very  little  about   such   courts   in 

England. 

495.  ye  that  kan  :  you  that  have  knowledge  of  the  subject. 

497.  Dr.  Liddell  notes  that  the  division  of  the  Knighles  Tale  at 
this  point  seems  to  be  the  work  of  the  Ellesmere  scribe,  as  it  is  not 
found  in  any  of  the  other  manuscripts,  though  the  Hengwrt  scribe 
agrees  with  the  Ellesmere  in  marking  a  division  at  1.  1023. 


NOTES  87 

516.  Hereos,  a  trissyllable,  for  Eros,  Gk.  fyws,  the  love-god. 

518.  Biforn,  in  his  owene  celle  fantastik:  only  H.  reads  in, 
only  E.  and  Cam.  read  owetie,  and  perhaps  it  should  be  omitted 
as  a  scribe's  attempt  to  mend  the  line  while  it  lacked  in.  In 
medieval  physiology  the  front  of  the  head  was  reckoned  the  seat  of 
the  imagination  (the  '  celle  fantastik '),  the  middle  that  of  the 
reason,  the  back  that  of  the  memory.  Biforn  must  thus  be  taken 
absolutely  as  '  in  the  front  of  the  head,'  and  the  '  celle  fantastik  '  is 
said  to  be  mania's  own,  because  mania  is  a  disease  of  the  imagina 
tion,  produced,  as  it  was  thought,  by  the  excess  of  melancholic 
humour.  The  four  humours,  the  sanguine,  melancholic,  choleric 
and  phlegmatic,  were  composed  of  different  combinations  of  the 
four  elements  mentioned  in  the  account  of  the  Doctor  of  Physic  in 
the  Prologue  (1.  420)  viz.  hot,  cold,  moist,  and  dry,  and  governed 
men's  health  and  temperaments. 

526.  Upon  a  nyght,  in  sleepe  as  he  hym  leyde  :  This  vision,  in 
which  Mercury  bids  Arcite  go  to  Athens,  is  a  device  of  Chaucer's 
imagining.  In  the  Teseide  Arcite,  in  his  restlessness,  wanders  to 
Aegina,  and  one  day  sees  a  boat  come  in  there  from  Athens.  When 
he  hears  that  it  is  to  return  shortly  and  that  he  can  go  in  it,  he 
makes  up  his  mind  to  do  so.  Chaucer's  innovation  is  picturesque, 
but  perhaps  hardly  in  accordance  with  rule.  For  Mercury,  the 
messenger  of  the  gods,  was  not  wont  to  do  these  things  on  his  own 
account,  but  at  the  bidding  of  Jove  or  Juno,  and  as  yet  none  of  the 
gods  had  any  reason  to  concern  themselves  with  these  lovers. 

529.  His  slepy  yerde,  etc.  :  Hermes  or  Mercury  "is  the  god  ol 
sleep  and  of  dreams  ;  with  one  touch  of  his  staff  he  can  close  or 
open  the  eyes  of  mortals  .  .  .  His  usual  attributes  are  wings  on  his 
feet,  a  flat,  broad-brimmed  hat  (petasus),  which  in  later  times  was 
ornamented  with  wings,  as  was  also  his  staff.  This  last  (Lat. 
caduceus}  was  originally  an  enchanter's  wand,  a  symbol  of  the  power 
that  produces  wealth  and  prosperity,  and  also  an  emblem  of  influence 
over  the  living  and  the  dead."  (Seyffert's  Diet,  of  Class.  Ant.}. 
Claudian  (De  Raptu  Proserpinae,  I.  77)  writes : 

Cyllenius  astitit  ales 
Somniferam  quatiens  uirgam,  tectusque  galero, 

which  Chaucer  reproduces  so  neatly  as  to  suggest  he  was  thinking 
of  it.  But  as  he  distinctly  tells  us  that  Mercury  was  arrayed  as 
when  he  slew  Argus,  his  source  was  more  probably  Ovid.  Met.  I. 
671,  672,  which  forms  part  of  Ovid's  version  of  the  story.  Here 
Mercury  is  said — 

Alas  pedibus,  virgamque  potenti 
Somniferam  sumsisse  manu,  tegimenque  capillis, 
which  contains  all  Chaucer's  notes. 

532.  whan  that  Argus  took  his  sleepe :  when  Juno  in  her 
jealousy  turned  lo  into  a  heifer,  Argus,  the  hundred-eyed,  was  set  to 


88  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

watch  her.  But  at  Jupiter's  command  Mercury  lulled  him  to  sleep 
and  then  slew  him. 

540.  I  recche  nat  to  sterve,  I  don't  mind  dying. 

555.  nexte,  nearest. 

560.  He  fil  in  office  with  a  chamberleyn  :  we  must  imagine  that 
Emily  had  now  a  separate  establishment  in  the  palace  of  Theseus, 
and  that  this  chamberlain  was  the  steward  or  master  of  her  house 
hold,  who  engaged  the  servants  necessary  for  the  service  of  her 
private  room. 

564.  Wei  koude  he  hewen  wode  :  the  change  from  the  chamber 
lain  to  Arcyte  is  carelessly  abrupt. 

569.  Page  of  the  chambre  of  Emelye  the  brighte  :  as  mentioned 
in  the  Introduction,  Boccaccio  (Teseide,  Hi.  83  )makes  Emily,  as  she 
leans  over  her  balcony,  note  the  departure  of  Arcyte  from  Athens 
and  feel  sorry  for  him  : 

Mirando  ilgrazioso  giovinetto 
Che  in  esilio  dolente  se  n'andava, 
E  compassione  alquanto  gli  portava. 

She  now  in  the  Teseide  (iv.  56,  57)  recognizes  him,  despite  his 
changed  appearance,  and  says  to  herself  laughing  :  '  This  is  the  same 
Arcyte  whom  I  saw  depart  in  sorrow.  What  is  he  doing  here  ? 
Does  he  not  know  that  if  Theseus  finds  him,  he  will  be  slain  or 
imprisoned?'  But,  adds  Boccaccio, 

tanto  fu  discreta  e  saggia 
Che  mai  di  cio  non  parlo  a  nessuna — 
she  was  so  discreet  that  she  never  mentioned  it  to  anyone  ! 

570.  And  Philostrate  he  seyde  that  he  highte  :  in  the   Teseide 
Arcyte,  as  soon  as  he  is  released  from  prison,  assumes  the  name  of 
Penteo,   probably  from   the   Greek   TrevOos,   grief.      In    Philostrate 
Chaucer  is  using  the  name  //  Filostrato  which  Boccaccio  gave  to  his 
version  of  Troilus  and  Cressida.    Filostrato  is  said  to  be  a  truly  won 
derful  compound  of  the  Greek  <f>t\la  and  the  Latin  stratus,  with  the 
meaning  '  laid  low  by  love '  or  Love's  Conquered  One.     Chaucer's 
postponement  of  the  assumption  of  a  false  name  till  Arcyte  returns 
to  Athens  seems  reasonable. 

572.  of  his  degree,  i.e.  of  the  rank  he  assumed. 

573.  of  his  condicioun,  in  disposition.     This  meaning  of  condi 
tion  seems  to  survive  in  the  epithet  'ill-conditioned.' 

586.  slyly,  prudently. 

593.  In  derknesse  and  horrible  and  strong  prison :  Chaucer  is 
trying  to  work  on  our  feelings.  On  the  day  he  first  saw  Emily, 

'     As  was  his  wone,  bi  leve  of  his  gayler, 

Was  risen,  and  romed  in  a  chambre  on  heigh, 
In  which  he  al  the  noble  citee  seigh. 
Why  should  his  imprisonment  become  so  much  more  rigorous? 


NOTES  89 

604  sq.  in  May,  The  thridde  nyght,  as  olde  bookes  seyn : 
Chaucer's  references  to  'olde  bookes'  are  not  to  be  taken  very 
seriously.  As  far  as  we  know,  since  the  Thebais  of  Statins  ends 
with  the  return  of  Theseus  from  Thebes,  he  had  no  authority  save 
the  Teseide  for  the  rest  of  his  plot,  and  the  Teseide  says  nothing 
about  the  night  of  May  3rd,  this  chronological  detail  and  others 
which  hang  upon  it  being  apparently  Chaucer's  own  invention. 

610.  By  helpyng  of  a  freend  brak  Ms  prisoun :  in  the  Teseide 
Panfilo,  one  of  Palamon's  servants,  overhears  Arcyte  lamenting  and 
informs  Palamon  of  his  presence  in  Athens  and  the  trick  he  has 
played  on  Theseus.  Palamon  is  thus  stirred  to  escape.  He  feigns 
illness,  and  a  friendly  physician  enables  him  to  walk  out  of  prison  in 
the  clothes  of  Panfilo,  who  is  left  behind  in  his  stead.  Chaucer, 
with  his  usual  common  sense,  sees  that  the  part  assigned  to  the 
physician  is  too  risky,  and  cuts  it  out. 

614.  opie  of  Thebes.  There  is  a  note  in  the  Ellesmere  MS. 
opium  Thebaicttm.  The  Thebes  referred  to  must  be  Thebes  in 
Egypt,  but  whether  Chaucer  distinguished  the  two  cities  we  can 
hardly  tell. 

619.  nedes-cost:  'cost 'here  is  not  connected  with  the  modern 
word  for  price  or  expense,  but  with  O.E.  costian,  to  try,  prove, 
taste  (cf.  Latin  ^£^'^)-  The  meanings  given  it  in  the  New  Eng. 
Diet,  are  'way,  manner,  available  course,  contrivance.'  Nedes-cost 
thus  means  'in  the  way  of  necessity,  necessarily.'  Among  the 
parallels  cited  is  one  from  Pecock's  depressor  II.  ii.  141:  'This 
word  "  graued  ymage  "  bitokeneth  needis  cost  ...  a  feyned  graued 
god.' 

621.  dredeful,  apprehensive,  full  of  fear. 

636.  That  al  the  orient  laugheth  of  the  lighte :  '  a  beautiful 
line ;  but  copied  from  Dante,  Purg.  i.  20 — faceva  tutto  rider 
1'oriente '  (Skeat's  note). 

642.  And  for  to  doon  his  dbservaunce  to  May:  see  note  to  1.  187. 

644.  He  on  a  courser,  startlynge  as  the  fir :  the  description  of 
Aeneas  going  hunting  with  Dido  in  the  Legend  of  Good  Women  (11. 
1204-1211)  begins  in  the  same  way  : 

Upon  a  courser,  startlyng  as  the  fire, — 
Men  myghte  turne  him  with  a  litel  wire, — 
Sitte  Eneas,  like  Phebus  to  devyse, 
So  was  he  fresh  arrayed  in  his  wyse. 
The  fomy  bridel,  with  the  bitte  of  golde, 
Governeth  he,  ryght  as  himselfe  hath  wolde. 

Some  points  in  this  description  are  taken  from  Virgil,  but  the  phrase 
'  startlyng  as  the  fire '  is  borrowed  neither  from  Virgil  nor  Boccaccio, 
and  so  affords  us  no  clue  to  whether  the  Knightes  Tale  or  the 
Legend  was  written  first. 


9o 


KNIGHT'S   TALE 


646.  were  it  a  myle  or  tweye  :  it  might  be  a  mile  or  two,  cf.  1. 
650,  to  make  himself  a  garland  from  the  woods,  it  might  be  of 
honeysuckle  (were  it  of  wodebynde)  or  hawthorn  leaves. 

663.  go  sithen  many  yeres,  many  years  gone  since,  many  years 
ago- 

664.  That  feeld  hath  eyen,  and  the  wode  hath  eres :  a  Latin 
proverb  (quoted  by  Tyrwhitt)  runs  :  Campus  habet  lumen,  et  habet 
nemus   auris   acumen,  and  there  are  equivalents   in  Old   English, 
French  and  German. 

665.  evene,  equably. 

666.  at  unset  stevene,  a  proverbial  phrase,  equivalent  to   '  When 
they  least  expect  it.' 

671.  And  songen  al  the  roundel  lustily  :  the  roundel  (rondel,  or 
rondeau)  was  a  French  form  of  verse,  so  named  because  it  was 
originally  intended  '  as  an  accompaniment  to  the  dance  called  rondc 
or  rondel,  still  surviving  in  the  western  provinces  of  France,  in  which 
the  dancers  joined  hands  and  went  round  in  a  circle  according  to  the 
time  of  the  song '  (Kastner's  History  of  French  Versification,  p.  249). 
Chaucer  doubtless  made  many  of  them,  but  only  one  survives,  the 
charming  song  woven  into  the  Parlement  of  Foules,  11.  680-692. 

Now  welcom,  sower,  with  thy  sonne  softe 
That  hast  this  wintres  weders  overshake 
And  driven  a-wey  the  longe  nyghtes  blake  ; 
Seynt  Valentyn,  that  art  ful  hy  on  lofte, 
Thus  syngen  smale  foules  for  thy  sake 

Now  welcom,  somer,  with  thy  sonne  softe 

That  hast  this  wintres  weders  overshake, 
Wei  han  they  cause  for  to  gladen  ofte, 
Sith  ech  of  hem  recovered  hath  his  make  ; 
Ful  blisful  mowe  they  ben  when  they  awake. 

Now  welcom,  somer,  with  thy  sonne  softe 

That  hast  this  wintres  weders  overshake 

And  driven  a-wey  the  longe  nyghtes  blake. 

This  thirteen-line  sonnet,  with  its  refrains,  is  said  to  be  peculiar  to 
the  I4th  century,  and  the  English  example  in  the  Parlement  of 
Foules  is  quoted  here,  to  show  that  the  three  lines,  652-655, 

May,  with  alle  thy  floures  and  thy  grene 
Welcome  be  thou,  faire  fresshe  May 
In  hope  that  I  som  grene  gete  may  : 

form  the  beginning  of  a  similar  poem. 

672.  Into  a  studie.     This  use  of  study  survives  only  in  the  phrase 
'a   brown   study.'      It  denotes  any  meditation  which  carries   the 
thinker  away  from  his  surroundings.     Cf.   Prol.,  1.  841,  where  the 
Host  says  to  the  Clerk  '  ne  studieth  nat,'  and  the  note  there  given. 


NOTES  gi 

674.  Now  in  the  crope,  now  doun  in  the  breres  :  '  crop '  is 
especially  used  for  the  '  head '  or  top  of  a  tree,  hence  its  opposition 
to  the  briars  that  grow  at  the  roots. 

676.  Right  as  the  Friday,  etc.  Dr.  Skeat  quotes,  from  '  Notes 
and  Queries,"  a  Devonshire  proverb  equivalent  to  1.  681  and  a 
French  couplet  to  the  effect  that  Friday  weather  is  the  best  or  worst 
in  the  week,  but  this  passage  remains  our  best  authority  on  the 
popular  belief  on  the  subject. 

679.  hir  day :  Friday  is  '  Veneris  dies '  (Vendredi),  Frig,  the 
wife  of  Woden  in  Norse  mythology,  being  identified  with  Venus. 
See  Chaucer's  Astrology,  §  n. 

68 1.  al  the  wowke  :  i.e.  all  the  rest  of  the  week. 

685.  How  longe,  Juno,  thurgh  thy  crueltee  :  cf.  1.  471  and  note. 

688.  The  blood  roial  of  Cadme  and  Amphioun :  see  Introduc 
tion,  §  i. 

708.  shapen  was  my  deeth  erst  than  my  sherte:  In  Troilus,  in. 
733  sq.  and  Legend  of  Good  Women,  2629  sq.,  Chaucer  uses 
closely  similar  phrases  joined  with  an  apostrophe  to  the  'fatal 
sustren '  (the  Moirai  or  Parcae),  i.e.  '  Clotho  (the  spinner)  who 
spins  the  thread  of  life.  Lachesis  (Disposer  of  Lots)  who  determines 
its  length,  and  Atropos  (Inevitable)  who  cuts  it  off.'  (See  Seyffert's 
Diet,  of  Class.  Ant.  s.v .  Mcerce. 

714  sq.  And  with  that  word  he  fil  doun  in  a  traunce,  etc.: 
Chaucer's  good  genius  forsook  him  when  he  penned  this  feeble 
couplet.  His  heroes  are  even  readier  to  faint  than  Miss  Austen's 
heroines,  but  Arcite's  trance  is  here  peculiarly  inconvenient.  Must 
we  presume  that  Palamon  when  he  had  heard  his  tale,  1.  719, 
waited  during  his  trance  and  began  to  reproach  him  when  he  up 
started  ?  I  prefer  to  think  that  this  is  a  mere  conventional  phrase, 
and  that  Palamon's  cry  '  Arcite,  false  traytour '  came  quick  at  the 
end  of  his  soliloquy.  The  doubt  is  the  more  provoking,  because 
throughout  this  scene  Chaucer  improves  so  immensely  on  his 
original.  Arcite's  complaint  is  skilfully  abridged  from  that  assigned 
to  him  in  the  Teseide,  Book  iv.,  but  there  it  is  overheard,  not  by 
Palamon,  but  by  his  servant,  who  goes  silently  away  and  reports  to 
his  master.  When  Palamon  escapes  from  prison  Boccaccio  repre 
sents  him  as  procuring  horse  and  armour  immediately,  and  Arcite's 
curiosity  is  aroused  by  seeing  an  armed  knight  in  the  wood.  He 
asks  of  what  he  is  in  quest.  Palamon  makes  himself  known  (he 
apparently  has  no  difficulty  in  recognizing  Arcite) ;  the  cousins  tell 
each  other  their  adventures,  and  it  is  only  when  Palamon  mentions 
his  love  for  Emily  that  Arcite  pets  angry.  On  all  this  Chaucer  im 
proves  immensely,  but  he  ought  not  to  have  seemed  to  stop  the 
action  in  order  to  allow  Arcite  to  faint. 

727.  And  hast  byjaped  heere  due  Theseus:  cf.  11.  866-871. 
Palamon  seems  really  to  have  thought  that  Arcite  had  not  acted 
straightforwardly.  But  he  was  in  the  mood  to  be  a  stern  critic. 


92 


KNIGHT'S    TALE 


733.  And  though  that  I  no  wepene  have  in  this  place :  Pala- 
vnon's  fearlessness  in  the  presence  of  his  armed  cousin  and  Arcite's 
chivalrous  response  to  this  fearlessness  (cf.  11.  740,  755  sq.)  are 
much  more  effective  than  Boccaccio's  furnishing  Palamon  with 
armour  at  the  time  of  his  escape  from  prison. 

740.  As  fiers  as  leoun,  etc.  :  In  the  Tesvide  (v.  45  sq.),  when 
Palamon  challenges  him,  Arcite  makes  a  very  tame  response. 
'  Why,'  he  begins,  '  will  you  put  yourself  and  me  in  peril,  perchance 
of  death  ?  We  can  take  much  better  counsel  for  ourselves  than  that. 
Let  each  do  his  best  to  win  Emily's  love,  and  he  whom  Fortune 
favours  may  enjoy  it  without  any  risk.'  They  discuss  the  matter 
through  fifteen  stanzas,  five  of  which  Arcite  devotes  to  lamenting 
the  cruelty  of  the  gods  to  their  family. 

748.  What,  verray  fool,  thynk  wel  that  love  is  fre :  This,  and 
not  the  ingenious  quibble  about  Palamon  having  loved  Emily  as 
a  goddess,  is  Arcite's  real  defence  (cf.  11.  304-312). 

752.  tomorwe  I  nyl  nat  faile :  In  the  Teseide  Arcite  gets  his 
arms  and  his  warhorse  and  they  fight  at  once. 

767.  Ful  sooth  is  seyd  that  love  ne  lordshipe,  etc. :  Skeat  quotes 
Ovid,  Met.  ii.  846: 

Non  bene  conueniunt,  nee  in  una  sede  morantur 
Maiestas  et  Amor, 
and  Liddell  the  still  more  apposite,  Ars  Am.  564  : 

Non  bene  cum  sociis  regna  Venusque  manent, 

for  citing  which  he  gives  the  credit  to  Franciscus  Junius,  who  pre 
pared  an  edition  of  Chaucer  which  has  remained  in  manuscript. 
Both  lines  were  quoted  in  Morell's  edition  (ad  ed.  1740),  and  with 
them  Spenser's  '  For  Love  and  Lordship  bide  no  paragone '  from 
Mother  Hubbard's  Tale.  Morell's  edition,  which  was  published 
anonymously,  has  hardly  obtained  the  praise  which,  for  its  date,  it 
deserves.  He  was  a  worthy  precursor  of  Tyrwhitt. 

768.  his  thankes,  with  his  goodwill.     Morell  compares  the  con 
demnation  in  the  Parson's  Tale  '  of  hem,  that  never  wolde  with- 
drawe  hen  fro  synne,  her  thankys,  but  ever  continue  in  synne. ' 

779-780.  To  chaungen  gan  the  colour  in  hir  face,  Right  as 
the  hunters,  etc. :  Chaucer  found  this  simile  in  the  Teseide  (vn.  106) 
at  the  commencement  of  the  Tournament,  and  transferred  it  hither. 
It  comes  originally  from  Statius,  Thebais  IV.  494-499  : 
Qualis  Gaetulae  stabulantem  ad  confraga  sylvae 
Venator  longo  motum  clamore  leonem 
Expectat  firmans  animum,  et  sudantia  nisu 
Tela  premens.     Gelat  ora  pavor,  gressusque  tremiscunt 
Quis  veniat,  quantusque,  sed  horrida  signa  frementis 
Accipit,  et  caeca  metitur  murmura  cura. 

Boccaccio  faithfully  repeats  the  signs  of  fear  attributed  to  the  hunter. 


NOTES 


93 


Chaucer  omits  them.  His  hunter  changes  colour,  but  he  doesn't 
shake  or  sweat. 

793.  heelpe  for  to  armen  oother :  another  of  Chaucer's  happy 
new  touches. 

795.  with  sharpe  speres  stronge  :  Chaucer's  account  of  the  fight 
is  confusing.  In  the  Teseide  it  is  distinctly  said  that  the  knights  had 
no  lances  and  therefore  could  not  tilt  at  each  other.  But  Chaucer 
here  makes  them  use  spears  and  in  1.  842,  '  swords,'  as  if  they  had 
followed  the  usual  course  of  fighting  first  on  horseback  and  then  on 
foot. 

802.  Up  to  the  ancle  foghte  they  In  Mr  blood,  an  exaggeration 
common  enough  in  the  romances,  but  which  Chaucer  might  have 
forborne. 

805.  The  Destinee,  ministr6  general,  etc.  :  this  passage  is  a 
mixture  of  Boethius  and  Boccaccio.  For  the  '  notion  of  the 
subordination  of  Fate  to  Providence '  Mr.  Liddell  quotes  the  De 
Cons.  Philosoph.  iv. ,  prosa  vi.  '  God  disponith  in  his  purueaunce 
.  .  .  the  thinges  that  been  to  doone :  but  he  amynistreth  ...  by 
destyne  thilke  same  thinges  that  he  hath  disponyd.'  Lines  810-11 
are  from  the  Teseide. 

820.  With  hunte  and  home,  and  houndes :  this  picture  of 
Theseus  accompanied  by  hunter  and  hounds  seems  to  have  caught 
the  fancy  of  later  poets.  Cf.  Theseus'  speech  (iv.  i.  106  sqq.)  in  the 
'  Midsummer  Night's  Dream  '  beginning  : 

Go,  one  of  you,  find  out  the  forester ; 
For  now  our  observation  is  performed  ; 
And  since  we  have  the  vaward  of  the  day, 
My  love  shall  hear  the  music  of  my  hounds. 

Also  Morell  on  the  authority  of  Wood's  Athenae  relates  how,  at 
the  performance  of  Richard  Edwards'  Palamon  and  A  rate  before 
Queen  Elizabeth  at  Christ-Church  in  1566,  'in  the  representation  of 
the  said  play  was  acted  a  cry  of  hounds  in  the  quadrangle,  upon  the 
train  of  a  fox,  in  the  hunting  of  Theseus,  with  which  the  young 
scholars,  who  stood  in  the  remoter  parts  of  the  stage  and  in  the 
windows,  were  so  much  taken  and  surprized  (supposing  it  had  been 
real)  that  they  cried  out,  "  There,  there,  he's  caught,  he's  caught,"  ' 
much  to  the  Queen's  amusement. 

839.  Under  the  sonne  :  Mr.  Liddell  prefers  to  take  this  with 
'  launde  '  as  '  the  glade  lying  in  the  sunlight/  But  the  picture  seems 
rather  to  be  of  Theseus  shading  his  eyes  to  sweep  the  glade  with  his 
glance  in  search  of  the  hart,  and  spying  the  combatants  instead. 
In  the  Teseide  Emily  sees  them  first,  and  calls  Theseus. 

842.  The  bright*  swerd6s  :  cf.  note  to  1.  795. 

847.  at  a  stert  he  was  bitwix  hem  two.  In  the  Teseide  Theseus 
makes  no  spring  forward  to  the  combatants,  but  '  when  he  has 
wondered  enough  at  each  of  them  rides  forwards  and  draws  nigh 
them,'  and  with  a  polite  compliment  asks  who  they  are. 


94  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

867.  on  his  heed  :  cf.  1.  486  and  note. 

873.  And  this  is  he,  we  must  imagine  that  Palamon  points  to 
himself.  The  reference  is  only  made  clear  by  '  for '  in  the  next  line. 

887.  recorde,    register   the   condemnation  you   have  passed   on 
yourself. 

888.  to   pyne   yow  with  the  corde  :    the  N.E.D.  only  quotes 
instances   of  the  use   of  '  cord  '  for    the   hangman's  rope,  but   the 
allusion  here  seems  to  be  to  the  medieval  torture  in  which  a  man's 
wrists  were  tied  behind  his  back  and  he  was  jerked  up  and  down  by 
a  rope  over  a  pulley,  so  as  to  extort  a  confession. 

897.  And  saugh,  another  instance  of  Chaucer's  omission  of  a  pro 
noun.  Cf.  1.  1575. 

903.  For  pitee  renneth  soone,  etc.  Chaucer  uses  the  line  in  three 
other  places,  Leg.  of  G.  W.  503  ;  Cant.  Tales,  E.  1986,  F.  579. 
Oentil  refers  to  gentility  of  birth. 

922.  kan  no  divisioun,  recognizes  no  difference. 

923.  after  oon,  after  the  same  manner.     Cf.  Prol.  1.  341  :     'His 
breed,  his  ale,  was  alweys  after  oon.' 

926.  on  highte,  i.e.  aloud,  not  under  his  breath. 

927.  The  god  of  love,  a  benedicite  :  the  word  benedicite  (Praise 
the  Lord),  like  all  exclamations,  was,  no  doubt,  frequently  slurred  or 
clipped,  but  the   tone   of  Theseus   is  here  meditative,  and   every 
syllable  must  be  sounded  to  give  the  verse  its  effect.     Dr.  Liddell 
says  '  benedicite  is  here  clipped  to  berfdiste,''  but  it  is  difficult  to  see 
how  he  scans  the  line  without  spoiling  it. 

938.  maugree  Mr  eyen  two,  despite  what  they  could  not  have 
helped  seeing. 

941.  Who  may  been  a  fole,  but  if  he  love  ?  i.e.  your  lover  is  your 
only  perfect  fool.     The  reading  of  H,  '  who  may  be  a  fole  if  that  he 
love '  necessitates  the  insertion  of  not  after  may.     As  it  stands,  the 
line  is  an  example  of  the  effective  use  of  the  single  syllable  in  the 
first  foot,  which  Chaucer  sometimes  uses  unsuccessfully.     Here  it 
helps  the  emphasis.     Cf.  1.  1653. 

942.  ait,  contracted  form  of  sitteth. 

952.  than  woot  a  cokkow  or  an  hare,   the  cuckoo  (Scotch 
'gowk'  =  fool)   and   the   hare    ('as   mad   as   a    March    hare')    nre 
supposed  to  be  stupid  creatures,  hence  their  selection  here  as  types 
of  ignorance. 

953.  But  all  moot  ben  assayed,  hoot  and  coold :    whether  the 
warmth  of  the  lover's  passion  is  returned  or  not,  he  will  still  try  to 
win  his  lady. 

956.  a  servant  was  I  oon.  As  late  as  1652-54  this  use  of  '  ser 
vant  '  for  a  lover  is  frequent  in  the  letters  of  Dorothy  Osborne  to  Sir 
William  Temple,  e.g.  \  .etter  v.  '  The  younger  brother  was  a  Servant 


NOTES 


95 


a  great  while  to  my  fair  neighbour,  but  could  not  be  received  ;  and 
in  earnest  I  could  not  blame  her.' 

969.  And  hym  of  lordshipe  and  of  mercy  preyde.  '  Of '  here  is 
not  quite  equivalent  to  '  for,'  but  has  rather  the  meaning  of  '  by  way 
of '  or  '  in  accordance  with.'  They  owned  that  he  was  their  lord  and 
had  them  at  his  mercy,  and  prayed  that  he  would  act  accordingly. 
Cf.  E.  178  sq.  '  Bisekynge  hym  of  grace,  er  that  they  wenten,  That 
he  wolde  graunten  hem  a  certein  day  Of  his  spousaile,'  i.e.  asking 
the  marquis,  as  a  favour,  to  fix  his  wedding-day. 

971.  To  speke  of,  as  regards. 

979.  That  oon  of  you,  one  or  the  other  of  you. 

980.  He  moot  go  pipen  in  an  yyy  leef =he  may  try  whistling  for 
all  he  is  likely  to  get  ;    cf.   Wyclifs   '  The  Clergy  may  not  hold 
Property,'  cap.  IV.  :  '  if  the  clergi  gete  this  swerde  oonys  fully  in  her 
power,  the  seculer  party  may  go    pipe  with  an  yvy  lefe  for  eny 
lordeschipis  that  the  clerkis  will  yeve  hem  ayen ' :  also  Troihts,  v. 
1433  (when  Criseyde  has  proved  untrue),  '  But  Troilus,  thou  mayst 
now,  est  or  west,  Pipe  in  an  ivy  leef,  if  that  thee  lest ! ' 

981.  now,  H  om.  rather  to  the  improvement  of  the  line. 

983.  I  yow  putte  in  this  degree.  A  'degree'  is  a  step,  and 
Theseus  seems  to  mean,  I  put  you  on  this  step  of  the  ladder  you 
want  to  climb — I  can  do  as  much  as  this  for  you. 

986.  Lo  heere  your  ende  :  see,  this  is  the  upshot  for  you  of  what 
I  mean  to  arrange. 

992.  And  this  day  fifty  wykes  fer  ne  ner :  '  Fer  ne  ner'  =  no 
later  or  sooner ;  fifty  wykes  are  of  course  used  here  for  a  year, 
Boccaccio's  'un  anno  intero.'  Dr.  Skeat  reproduces  as  a  note  on 
this  line  a  very  ingenious  communication  he  made  to  Notes  and 
Queries  in  1868  on  the  chronology  of  this  part  of  the  story.  He 
thinks  that  Chaucer  worked  out  his  days  and  hours  so  as  to  get  the 
influence  of  the  appropriate  planets  predominant  at  each  stage  of 
the  story.  Palamon  breaks  prison  after  midnight  on  the  third  night 
in  May,  i.e.  early  on  May  4th  ;  later  in  the  same  day,  which  can  be 
shown  to  be  a  Friday  and  was  therefore  sacred  to  Venus,  Arcite 
goes  Maying  ;  the  duel  takes  place  on  May  5th,  a  Saturday,  and 
therefore  unlucky  and  fit  for  mischief;  a  year  later,  the  clay  falling 
on  a  Sunday  (1.  1330),  each  lover,  according  to  Theseus'  instructions, 
brings  his  hundred  knights  to  Athens ;  on  the  Monday  (May  6th) 
in  the  astrological  hours  respectively  appropriated  to  Venus,  IJiana, 
and  Mars,  Palamon,  Emily  and  Arcite  make  their  prayers  to  these 
deities  respectively ;  finally  the  tournament  takes  place  on  the 
Tuesday  (May  7th),  Tuesday  being  sacred  to  Mars,  and  therefore  a 
good  day  for  fighting.  Chaucer  was  so  genuinely  interested  in 
astrology,  and  the  \vhole  scheme  is  so  appropriate  to  this  legend  ot 
Cupid's  saints  (Chaucer's  pretty  phrase  for  a  story  of  true  love)  that 
Dr.  Skeat's  chronology  commands  ready  assent.  But  save  in  the 


96  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

matter  of  the  prayers  to  the  three  deities  Chaucer  was  too  good  a 
poet  to  thrust  all  this  astrological  appropriateness  into  prominence. 
He  kept  it  to  himself,  even  to  the  extent  of  not  letting  his  readers 
see  quite  clearly  what  he  had  in  his  mind  in  talking  about  a  Friday 
in  1.  676  ;  for  until  we  get  to  the  mention  of  the  Sunday  in  1.  1330, 
and  work  back  a  year  and  two  days  from  this,  we  have  nothing  to 
show  us  that  it  was  actually  on  a  Friday  that  Arcyte  fell  into  his 
Friday  mood.  Dr.  Skeat  (as  I  understand  him)  would  like  to  take 
us  a  step  further,  and  get  at  the  date  of  the  Knightes  Tale  by  sug 
gesting  that  Chaucer  took  his  start  from  the  third  rather  than  any 
other  night  in  May,  because  in  the  year  he  was  writing  the  days  of 
the  month  and  of  the  week  came  right,  if  the  start  were  made  from 
this  third  night.  But  in  the  line  before  that  in  which  he  wrote  of 
'  the  thridde  nyght '  Chaucer  had  written  of  '  the  seventh  yer,'  and 
as  seven  and  three  are  sacred  and  poetic  numbers  I  am  inclined  to 
attribute  his  choice  of  the  third  night,  rather  than  the  second  or  the 
fourth,  solely  to  that. 

1007  sq.  noon  oother  ende  ...  That  oon  of  yow  ne  shal  be  deed, 
etc.  :  no  other  conclusion  which  will  not  oblige  one  of  you  to  be 
killed  or  captured. 

1027.  a  noble  theatre.  In  the  Teseide  (v.  97),  in  proposing  the 
tournament  to  Palamon  and  Arcite,  Theseus  speaks  of  '  teatro 
nostro '  as  if  it  were  already  in  existence.  For  a  carefully  thought- 
out  description  of  medieval  lists  intended  for  such  a  melee  as  that 
which  Chaucer  tells  of  see  Scott's  '  Ivanhoe,'  Chap.  vii.  Scott, 
however,  was  content  with  representing  his  lists  as  '  a  space  of  a 
quarter  of  a  mile  in  length  and  about  half  as  broad.'  The  'mile 
about,'  i.e.  in  circumference,  of  which  Chaucer  speaks  would  have 
given  a  much  larger  area. 

1032.  Ful  of  degrees,  i.e.  with  steps,  like  an  ancient  amphitheatre, 
for  successive  rows  of  spectators.  Cf.  1.  1721. 

1034.  lette  nat,  did  not  hinder. 

1038.  as  in  so  litel  space.  This  can  hardly  refer  to  the  amount 
of  ground  which  the  theatre  covered,  as  this  was  considerable.  We 
must  understand  it  of  the  short  space  of  time  which  Theseus  had  to 
build  it  in. 

1047.  Doon  make,  caused  (men)  to  make.     In  1.  1055  we  have 
the  alternative  construction  '  doon  wroght,'  caused  (to  be)  wrought. 

1048.  And  westward,  in  the  mynde  and  in  memdrie.     This  is 
the  Harleian  reading,  the  other  six  manuscripts  giving  (with  slight 
variants)  'and  on  the  westward  in  memorie. '     Prof.  Liddell  makes 
the  best  of  both  worlds  by  reading  '  and  on  the  westward,  in  mynde 
and   in    memorie,'  which   gets   rid    of  a   superfluous   '  the '  before 
'mynde.'     But   Chaucer  speaks  of  'the  deeth'  (Prol.  605),   'the 
peyne'  (1.   275),  'the  feere'  (1.   1486),  where  we  should  omit  the 
article. 


NOTES 


97 


1060.  First,  in  the  temple  of  Venus :  Boccaccio's  description  of 
this  (Teseide,  vn.  50-65)  had  already  been  drawn  on  by  Chaucer  in  *^ 
the  passage  of  the  Parlement  of  Fcniles  quoted  in  our  Appendix. 

1071.  That  wered  of  yelewe  gooldes  a  gerland :  we  are  accus 
tomed  to  associate  jealousy  with  the  colour  green,  owing  to  the 
popularity  of  Shakespeare's  phrase,  '  the  green-eyed  ;  monster ' 
(Othello,  in.  iii.  166),  but  green  in  Chaucer  is  symbolical  of  in 
constancy,  as  blue  of  constancy  ;  cf.  Ballade  against  Women  Incon 
stant,  '  In  stede  of  blew,  thus  may  ye  were  al  grene.'  Green  and 
yellow,  which  shade  into  each  other,  are  both  appropriated  to 
jealousy,  as  the  colours  produced  in  the  complexion  by  jaundice. 
The  same  play  of  Shakespeare  which  has  familiarized  us  with  '  the 
green-eyed  monster '  contains  the  question  '  why  roll  your  yellow 
eye'  for  why  look  so  jealous,  and  in  Dekker's  '  Northward  Ho'  (l.  3) 
we  have  the  phrase,  '  You  wear  yellow  hose  without  cause.' 

1073.  Fe"stes,  instrumentz,  etc. ,  for  the  metre  cf.  1.  652. 

1078.  the  mount  of  Citheroun= Mount  Cithaeron,  on  the 
borders  of  Attica  was  sacred  to  Bacchus  and  the  Muses,  not  to  Venus. 
But  Boccaccio  in  his  '  De  Genealogia  Deorum  '  is  uncertain  whether 
her  name  Cythera  was  connected  with  this,  or  with  the  island  of 
Cythera,  which  was  her  legendary  home,  and  both  he  and  Chaucer 
took  the  wrong  alternative. 

1082.  Nat  was  foryeten  the  porter  Ydelnesse  :  see  the  elaborate 
description  of  the  '  mayden  semely  for  to  see,'  who  opens  the  door 
of  the  garden  in  the  '  Romaunt  of  the    Rose '   (11.  537  sqq. )  and 
declares  her  name  to  be  '  Ydelnesse.' 

1083.  Ne  Narcisus  the  faire.     This  also  is  a  reminiscence  of  the 
'  Romaunt '  (11.   1601  sq.),  where  mention  is  made  of  'the  mirour 
perilous ' : 

In  which  the  proude  Narcisus 
Saw  all  his  face  fair  and  bright, 
That  made  him  sith  to  lye  upright. 
For  who  so  loke  in  that  mirour, 
Ther  may  nothing  ben  his  socour 
That  he  ne  shal  ther  seen  som  thing 
That  shal  him  lede  unto  [loving]. 

1085.  Ne  yet  the  grete  strengthe  of    Ercules :    the  love  ot 
Hercules  for  lole  caused  his  wife  Deianira  to  send  him  the  poisoned 
shirt  by  which  he  died. 

1086.  Medea,   the   enchantments  of  Medea   were   employed   to 
enable  Jason,  for  whom  Venus  had  stricken  her  with  love,  to  gain 
the  Golden  Fleece  ;    those  of  Circe  were  directed  to  turning  the 
crew  of  Odysseus  into  swine,  but  she  delayed  the  hero's  return  home 
a  whole  year. 

1087.  Turnus  fought  with  Aeneas  for  the  land  of  Lavinia. 

1088.  The  riche  Cresus.     In  addition  to  Boethius,  Bk.  n.  Pr.  2, 
where  he  is  translating,  Chaucer  alludes  to  Croesus  in  three  other 

G 


98  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

passages  (Hous  of  Fame)  105,  B.  3917-50  (Monkes  Tale),  B.  4328- 
30  (Nonne  Prestes  Tale),  and  seems  to  have  been  impressed  both  by 
the  miraculous  rain  which  extinguished  the  fire  at  which  the  king  was 
being  burnt,  and  by  the  dream  which  his  daughter  so  unflinchingly 
expounded:  'Thou  shall  anhanged  be,  fader,  certeyn.'  But  these 
legends  are  by  no  means  obvious  illustrations  of  the  power  of  Venus, 
though  the  vicissitudes  of  Croesus  may  be  connected  with  her 
'  gerefulness  '  (cf.  1.  679  sq.). 

1097.  The  statue  of  Venus,  the  description  is  that  of  Venus 
'  Anadyomene,'  she  who  'rises  out  of  the  sea,'  of  whom  Apelles 
painted  a  famous  picture.  The  statue  here  described  is  very 
similar  to  the  '  portrayture '  in  the  Temple  of  Venus  in  Hous  of 
Fame,  130-139. 

1114.  the  grete  temple  of  Mars  in  Trace.  In  the  seventh  book 
of  the  Thebaid  of  Statius,  Jupiter  sends  Mercury  to  bid  Mars  stir  the 
Greeks  to  attack  the  Trojans  more  fiercely. 

Dixerat ;  at  Thracum  Cyllenius  arua  subibat ;  [34] 

Atque  ilium  Arctoae  labentem  cardine  portae 

Tempestas  aeterna  plagae  praetentaque  coelo 

Agmina  nimborum  primique  Aquilonis  hiatus 

In  diuersa  ferunt :  crepat  aurea  grandine  multa 

Palla,  nee  Arcadii  bene  protegit  umbra  galeri. 

Hie  steriles  delubra  notat  Mauortia  syluas 

(Horrescitque  tuens)  ubi  mille  furoribus  illi 

Cingitur  auerso  domus  inmansueta  sub  Haemo. 

Ferrea  compago  laterum,  ferro  arcta  [vl.  apta]  temnlur 

Limina,  ferratis  incumbunt  tecta  columnis. 

Laeditur  aduersum  Phoebi  iubar,  ipsaque  sedem 

Lux  timet,  et  durus  [vl.  dirus]  contristat  sidera  fulgor. 

Digna  loco  static  :  Primis  salit  Impetus  amens 

Eforibus,  caecumque  Nefas,  Iraeque  rubentes 

Exsanguesque  Metus,  occultisqtte  enstbrts  aslant 

Insidiae,  geminumque  tenens  Discordia  ferrum. 

Innumeris  strepit  aula  Minis,  Tristissima  Virtus 

Stat  medio,  laetusque  Furor,  vultuque  cruento 

Mors  armata  sedet ;  bellorum  solus  in  aris 

Sanguis,  et  incensis  qui  raptus  ab  urbibus  ignis. 

Terrarum  exuuiae  circum,  et  fastigia  templi 

Captae  insignibant  gentes,  caelataque  ferro 

Frc.gmina  portarum,  bellatricesque  carinae, 

Et  vacui  currus  protritaqtie  curribus  ora  ; 

Paene  etiam  gemitus  :  adeo  vis  omnis  et  omne 

Vulnus.     Ubique  ipsum,  sed  non  usquam  ore  remisso 

Cernere  erat.     Talem  divina  Mulciber  arte 

Ediderat.  [62] 

Boccaccio  was  so  struck  by  this  passage  that  he  quotes  nearly  all  of 
it  in  his  description  of  Mars  in  the  De  Geneahgia  Deorum,  com- 


NOTES 


99 


meriting  on  it  elaborately.  In  order  to  use  it  he  personifies  Arcite's 
prayer,  which  goes  to  this  temple  of  Mars  in  Thrace,  thus  justifying 
a  long  description  of  the  temple.  The  same  course  is  followed 
with  the  other  prayers.  Chaucer's  device  is  not  very  much  happier, 
for  he  represents  this  temple,  inside  and  out,  as  being  painted  on 
the  wall  of  the  temple  which  Theseus  built.  In  describing  it  he 
may  have  used  Statius  as  well  as  Boccaccio,  but  the  points  which 
can  be  traced  to  Statius  and  cannot  be  traced  through  Boccaccio  are 
not  very  clear.  Chaucer,  however,  added  many  details  of  his  own 
in  order  to  make  his  temple  illustrate  the  planetary  influence  of 
Mars  as  well  as  his  attributes  as  the  God  of  War.  It  may  be 
doubted  whether  in  this  he  was  well  advised  :  not  because  (as 
Tyrwhitt  thought)  some  of  the  details  are  homely,  but  because  the 
influence  of  Mars,  as  God  of  War,  is  quite  enough  for  the  story. 
But  Chaucer  could  not  resist  a  chance  of  bringing  in  his  astrology. 

1115.  In  thilke  colde,  frosty  regioun :  Thrace  corresponds 
roughly  to  Turkey  (in  Europe)  and  Bulgaria,  i.e.  the  country  of  the 
Balkans. 

1119.  With  knotty,  knarry,  bareyne  trees  olde:  Boccaccio's 
'  nodosi  ed  aspri,  rigidi  e  vetusti. '  Statius  only  speaks  of  '  steriles 
silvas. ' 

1123.  dounward  on  an  hille,  under  a  bente  :  there  is  no  men 
tion  of  a  hill  in  Boccaccio's  version.     It  may  have  been  suggested  by 
the  allusion  to  Mt.  Haemus  (sub  adverso  Haemo)  in  Statius. 

1 1 24.  the  temple  of  Mars  armypotente :   Boccaccio's   '  la   ca' 
dell'  Iddio  Armipotente.' 

1127.  a  rage,  and  such  a  veze :  'impetus  amens,'  '  Impeti 
dementi.' 

1129.  The  northren  lyght  in  at  the  dores  shoon  :  there  is 
nothing  answering  to  this  in  Statius  or  Boccaccio  save  a  passage 
which  speaks  of  the  sunlight  being  shot  back  by  the  burnished  steel. 
Chaucer  may  have  misunderstood  this,  though  it  doe's  not  seem 
likely.  By  '  northren  lyght '  we  should  understand  not  the  '  aurora 
borealis, '  as  has  been  too  learnedly  suggested,  but  such  light  as  they 
get  in  northern  countries,  '  wintry  light.' 

1137,  etc.  Ther  saugh  I:  in  what  follows  the  attributes  assigned 
to  Mars  in  medieval  astronomy  jostle  and  overcrowd  the  warlike 
qualities  emphasized  by  Statius.  For  the  supposed  effects  of  Mars 
Thomas  Wright  quotes  from  the  Compost  of  Ptolemy :  '  Under 
Mars  is  borne  theves  and  robbers  that  kepe  hye  wayes,  and  do  hurte 
to  true  men,  and  nyght  walkers,  and  quarell-pykers,  bosters, 
mockers  and  skoffers,  and  these  men  of  Mars  causeth  warres  and 
murder  and  batayle  ;  they  will  gladly  be  smythes  or  workers  of  yron, 
lyght-fingred,  and  lyers,  gret  swerers  of  othes  in  vengeable  wyse 
and  a  greet  surmyler  \sic\  and  crafty.  He  is  red  and  angry  with 
blacke  heer  and  lytell  iyen  ;  he  shall  be  a  great  walker,  and  a  maker 
01  swordes  and  knyves  and  a  sheder  of  mannes  blode  .  .  .  and  good 


ioo  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

to  be  a  harbour  and  blode-letter,  and  to  drawe  tethe,  and  is  perylous 
of  his  handes.' 

1 149.  The  nayl  y-dryven  in  the  shode  a-nyght :  except  that  he 
met  the  same  death  this  line  has  nothing  to  do  with  the  death  of 
Sisera,  who  was  not  killed  'a-nyght.'  Neither  is  it  fair  to  Chaucer 
to  suggest  that  he  is  inventing  an  impossible  method  of  suicide.  The 
whole  passage  from  1.  1137  onwards  is  very  compressed,  and  this  is 
a  new  picture  of  murder  by  treachery.  Dr.  Skeat  rightly  cites  the 
parallel  lines  in  Cant.  Tales,  D.  765-770 : 

Of  latter  date,  of  wives  hath  he  red 

That  somme  han  slayn  hir  housbondes  in  hir  bed  .   .  . 

And  somme  han  drive  nayle's  in  hir  brayn, 

Whil  that  they  slepte,  and  thus  they  han  been  slayn. 
But  he  seems  to  welcome  the  suggestion  of  a  mistake,  as  supporting 
the  theory  of  a  first  draft  of  '  Palamon  and  Arcite '  which  Chaucer 
here  hastily  adapted  ! 

1151.  Amyddes  of  the  temple  sat  Meschaunce.  This  must  be  a 
translation  of  Statius's  '  Tristissima  Virtus  stat  medio '  (Boccaccio's 
'  E'n  mezzo  il  loco  la  Virtu  tristissima'),  but  the  idea  is  different, 
'  Meschaunce '  suggesting  the  occasion  of  calamity,  while  '  tristissima 
virtus '  is  courage  involved  in  it. 

1153.  Woodnesse,  laughynge  in  his  rage  :  Boccaccio's  Tallegro 
Furore.'  Throughout  this  passage  Chaucer  continually  makes 
Boccaccio's  phrases  more  vivid  and  individual. 

1 1 59.  Yet  saugh  I  brent  the  shippes  hoppesteres :  this  picture 
of  the  burning  ships  tossing  up  and  down  as  if  dancing  on  the  sea  is 
striking  enough,  but  it  is  probably  due  to  a  mistake.  Statius  and 
Boccaccio  write  of  warships  '  bellatrices  carinae,'  'navi  bellatrici.' 
It  has  been  cleverly  suggested  that  Chaucer  misread  '  bellatrici '  as 
'  ballatrici,'  '  dancers,'  and  this  explanation  is  almost  certainly  right, 
though  Herrick's  line,  '  Ships  have  been  drowned  where  late  they 
danced  before,'  comes  from  the  4th  Epistle  of  Seneca  ('eodem  die 
ubi  luserunt  navigia  sorbentur '),  with  whom  Chaucer  had  some 
small  acquaintance. 

1164.  The  cartere  over-ryden  with  his  carte  :  in  introducing  the 
astrological  influences  of  Mars,  Chaucer  did  not  hesitate  to  suggest 
accidents  which  Tyrwhitt,  good  critic  as  he  was,  being  yet  of  the 
i8th  century,  thought  so  undignified  that  he  tried  to  emend  '  the 
barbour  and  the  bocher'  of  1.  1 167  into  '  th'  armerer  and  the  bowyer ' ! 
The  poet  may  therefore  in  this  place  have  deliberately  altered  his 
originals,  and  substituted  a  carter  in  our  modern  sense  for  a 
charioteer.  But  in  1.  1183  he  speaks  of  the  statue  of  Mars  stand 
ing  on  a  '  carte,'  and  it  is  quite  possible  that  carter  here  means  the 
driver  of  a  war-chariot.  Boccaccio  has  '  I  voti  carri,  e  li  volti 
guastati ' ;  Statius,  '  Et  vacui  currus  protritaque  curribus  ora,'  the 
second  half  of  the  line  being  nearer  to  Chaucer's  '  under  the  wheel 
ful  lowe  he  lay  adoun  '  than  Boccaccio's  '  marred  countenances.' 


NOTES  i 01 

1167.  The  barbour  and  the  bocher,  and  the  smyth  :  cf.  notes  on 
11.  1137  and  1164. 

1172.  Hangynge  by  a  soutil  twynes  threed  :  this  application  of 
the  story  of  Damocles  is  Chaucer's  addition. 

1 1 73.  the  slaughtre  of  Julius  :  Chaucer  tells  the  stories  of  the 
murder  of  Julius  Caesar  and  suicide  of  Nero  among  the  Tragedies  of 
the  Monke's  Tale.     The  suicide  of  Mark  Antony  is  narrated  in  the 
Legend  of  Cleopatra.     When  books  were  rare  and  the  knowledge 
of  history  scanty,  it  was  natural  for  the  same  examples  to  be  often 
referred  to. 

1177.  right  by  figure,  i.e.  the  astrological  figure  in  which  the 
ominous  position  of  Mars  in  relation  to  other  heavenly  bodies  was 
set  down. 

1 1 80.  or  elles  deed  for  love  :  this  misfortune  is  only  mentioned 
as  an  instance  of  what  the  stars  foretell,  not  as  the  particular  work 
of  Mars. 

1181.  Suffiseth  oon  ensample  in  stories   olde :   there  is  some 
carelessness    here,    for  if  the    reference    be   to   the   ensamples   in 
11.  1173  sq.,  these  are  three  in  number.     If  it  does  not  refer  to  these, 
the  '  oon  ensample '  does  not  seem  to  be  given. 

uSssqq.  two  figures  Of  sterres  that  been  cleped  in  scrip 
tures,  That  oon  Puella,  that  oother  Rubeus :  Judicial  astrology 
of  itself  can  only  be  used  for  divination  when  a  start  can  be  made 
from  the  position  of  the  heavenly  bodies  at  some  moment  of  time. 
To  extend  its  application  there  was  invented  Geomancy,  '  a  science 
and  art  which  consisteth  of  points,  prickes  and  lines,  made  instead 
of  the  foure  elementes,  and  of  the  Starres  and  Planets  of  Heauen, 
called  the  science  of  the  Earth,  because  in  time  past  it  was  made  on 
it'  (The  Geomancie  of  Maister  Christopher  Cattan,  1591,  p.  i),  i.e. 
figures  were  constructed  according  as  the  number  of  pricks  made  at 
random  on  the  earth  were  odd  or  even,  and  these  figures,  sixteen  in 
number,  were  arbitrarily  applied  to  different  planets  and  different 
positions  of  the  planets,  so  that  an  astrological  answer  could  be  got 
to  any  question.  Puella  and  Rubeus  are  the  names  given  to  two  of 
these  figures,  Puella  (along  with  a  figure  called  '  Amissio ')  being 
directly  appropriated  to  Venus,  and  Rubeus  (with  the  figure  '  Puer') 
to  Mars.  But  according  to  the  treatise  on  Geomancy,  wiongly 
ascribed  to  Cornelius  Agrippa,  '  Puella  and  Rubeus  have  for  their 
signe  Scorpio,  the  House  of  Mars'  (Henry  Cornelius  Agrippa,  his 
Fourth  Book  of  Occult  Philosophy,  1665,  p.  3),  and  we  need  not 
suppose,  as  has  been  suggested,  that  Chaucer  made  a  slip.  Puella 
and  Puer  were  '  fortunate '  or  '  benevolent '  figures,  whereas  Rubeus 
(Mars,  it  will  be  remembered,  has  a  reddish  hue)  was  '  malevolent.' 
According  to  the  pseudo- Agrippa,  Rubeus  (p.  24  sq.)  'in  the  first 
house  signifies  a  short  life  and  an  evil  end,'  in  the  second  it  '  maketh 
theeves  and  robbers '  (cf.  Chaucer's  '  pike  purs '),  and  generally  is 
ominous  of  imprisonment,  violence,  and  death. 


102  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

1194.  As  shortly  as  I  kan.  The  description  of  the  temple  of 
Diana  is  only  half  the  length  of  that  of  Mars,  in  which  Chaucer  had 
rather  laid  aside  his  usual  feeling  for  proportion.  As  it  is,  the 
descriptions  of  the  three  temples  occupy  a  tenth  of  the  poem,  and 
(good  as  they  are)  stop  the  action  too  long. 

1198.  woful  Calistopee,  or  rather  '  Callisto,'  an  Arcadian  nymph, 
beloved  by  Jupiter,  who  changed  her  into  a  she-bear  that  Juno 
might  not  hear  of  the  intrigue.  But  Juno  discovered  what  he  had 
done,  and  caused  Diana  to  slay  the  bear  in  her  hunting,  where 
upon  Jupiter  placed  Callisto  and  her  son  Areas  among  the  stars  as 
Arctos  and  Arctophylax,  the  Bear  and  the  Bear-guard.  The  legends 
are  not  precise  as  to  whether  Callisto  became  the  Great  Bear  or  the 
Little  Bear,  but  as  the  lode-star  is  in  the  Little  Bear  Chaucer 
plainly  adopts  this  alternative.  Callisto  had  been  one  of  Diana's 
companions,  hence  the  'grievance'  of  the  goddess.  According  to 
another  legend  she  was  hunted  and  on  the  point  of  being  killed  by 
Areas,  when  they  both  metamorphosed. 

1204.  Dane,  i.e.  Daphne,  daughter  of  the  river  god  Peneus,  in 
Thessaly.  On  being  pursued  by  Apollo  she  was  changed,  at  her 
own  prayer,  into  a  laurel-tree. 

1207.  Attheon,  i.e.  Actaeon,  a  grandson  of  Cadmus  of  Thebes 
(Chaucer  might  have  mentioned  his  kinship  to  Palamon  and  Arcite  !), 
who  accidently  saw  Diana  and  her  nymphs  bathing  in  the  vale  ot 
Gargaphie  (cf.  1.  1768),  was  changed  into  a  stag  and  rent  by  his 
own  hounds. 

1212.  Atthalante,  i.e.  Atalanta,  the  swift-footed  maid  who  in  the 
race  against  her  lover  could  not  help  stopping  to  pick  up  the  golden 
apples  he  threw  in  her  path  to  delay  her.  Before  this  took  place 
she  had  joined  with  Meleager  in  hunting  the  wild  boar  which  laid 
waste  the  fields  of  Calydon.  He  is  said  to  have  given  its  skin  to 
Atalanta,  and  to  have  slain  his  mother's  brothers  when  they  took  it 
from  her,  whereat  his  mother  burnt  the  brand  which  typified  his  life, 
and  Meleager  died. 

1218.  With  smale  houndes :  'small'  hounds  seem  more  appro 
priate  to  Chaucer's  Prioress  (Prol.  1.  146)  than  to  the  mighty 
huntress.  But  Diana  was  more  especially  the  protectress  of  the 
young. 

1224.  Ther  Pluto  hath  his  derke  regioun:  cf.  1.  1441,  and 
Horace,  Odes,  in.  22  : 

Montium  custos  nemorumque  virgo 
Quae  laborantes  utero  puellas 
Ter  vocata  audis  adimisque  leto, 

Diva  triformis, 

where  Dr.  Wickham  compares  Virg.  Aen.  IV.  54,  '  Tergeminamque 
Hecaten,  tria  virginis  ora  Dianae,'  and  explains  '  She  was  Luna  in 
Heaven,  Diana  on  earth,  Hecate  in  Hades.'  Chaucer,  however, 


NOTES  I03 

seems  to  have  identified  the  Diana  of  the  lower  world  with  Pro 
serpina,  Pluto's  queen.  The  legends  themselves  are  a  mass  of 
confusion. 

1227.  Lucyna :  at  Rome  Juno  had  originally  been  recognized  as 
more  especially  the  goddess  of  light,  and  therefore  of  childbirth,  but 
the  epithet  Lucina  was  afterwards  applied  also  to  Diana. 

1230.  With  many  a  floryn  lie  the  hewes  boghte.  We  do  not 
now  think  of  the  cost  of  the  colours  as  a  large  item  in  the  value  of  a 
picture,  but  in  Chaucer's  time,  and  later,  colours,  more  especially 
ultramarine,  were  very  expensive,  and  elaborate  contracts  were 
made  between  artist  and  patron  as  to  the  payment  for  them,  and  the 
quantity  to  be  used. 

1242.  at  alle  rightes  :  in  all  respects.  The  phrase  is  repeated 
from  Theseus'  stipulations  in  1.  994. 

1245.  knyghthod  of  Mr  bond,  martial  dexterity. 

1249.  his  thankes,  willingly,  if  he  can. 

1254.  paramours,  as  by  way  of  love,  i.e.  as  a  suitor  rather  than  a 
husband. 

1257.  benedicitee  :  cf.  note  on  1.  927.  Here  again  we  are  told 
that  the  pronunciation  must  be  clipped,  and  cut  down  to  'ben'citee.' 
But  here  also  the  note  of  admiration  in  the  line  depends  for  iis  effect 
on  a  strong  pause  after  the  third  foot  (which  allows  an  extra  syllable 
to  be  slipped  in)  and  a  stress  on  the  one  long  vowel  in  '  benedlcite,' 
which  is  curiously  selected  for  omission.  Scan  : 

To  figh  |  te  for  [  a  la  |  dy,  |j  —  be'ne'dl  |  citee  ! 

1263.  a  paire  plates  :  we  get  the  same  construction  with  'pair' 
in  the  phrase  '  a  payre  bedys  '  quoted  from  the  Doctors'  Commons 
Wills  in  the  note  to  Prologue,  1.  159.     The   'pair  of  plates' are 
frequently  alluded  to  in  I4th  century  inventories,  the  body  armour 
being   thickened   over   each    breast   by   steel    plates,    which    were 
frequently  covered  with  velvet,  satin,  and  other  gay  materials. 

1264.  a   Pruce   sheeld,  i.e.  a   shield   like  those  carried   by  the 
Teutonic  knights  in  Prussia. 

1265.  Some  woln  ben  armed  on  hir  legges  weel :  plate  armour 
for  the  legs  had  come  into  use  in  the  second  half  of  the  I3th  century, 
and  was  common  in  Chaucer's  time. 

1 267.  Ther  is  no  newe  gyse  that  it  nas  old  :  Chaucer  seems  to 
be  apologising,  with  an  unusual  sense  of  anachronism,  for  assigning 
to  these  Greek  combatants  armour  like  that  of  his  own  day.  He 
takes  refuge  in  the  thought  that  the  newest  fashions  are  always 
revivals  of  old  ones.  But  it  is  difficult  to  see  why  he  wrote 
'nas  old'  instead  of  '  nys  old.'  Perhaps  he  meant  that  it  was 
already  old  in  the  time  of  Theseus. 

1271.  Lygurge  hymself,  the  grete  kyng  of  Trace  :  a  son  of 
Dryas  and  king  of  the  Edones  in  Thrace.  He  had  a  mortal  feud  with 


104 


KNIGHT'S   TALE 


Bacchus,  which  led  to  his  death.  The  origin  of  the  feud  is  obscure. 
In  the  '  De  Genealogia  Deorum '  Boccaccio  solemnly  discusses 
whether  it  was  because  Lycurgus  drank  too  much,  or  because  he 
was  the  first  man  who  mixed  water  with  his  wine. 

1283.  With  nayles  yelewe.  Dr.  Skeat  quite  rightly  reprobates  a 
bad  guess  which  had  identified  these  nails  with  metal  studs.  Such 
studs  were,  of  course,  used  ;  a  king  of  France  managed  to  employ 
6000  gilt  nails  in  fixing  the  velvet  on  a  '  pair  of  plates.'  But  coat- 
armour  was  not  thus  nailed  down,  and  there  can  be  no  doubt  that 
the  nails  are  the  nails  of  the  bear.  We  need  not,  however,  send 
Chaucer,  as  Dr.  Skeat  suggests,  to  a  description  of  a  tiger  skin  in 
Thebais,  vi.  722,  to  look  for  them.  In  contenting  himself  with  one 
prominent  partisan  on  each  side,  instead  of  reciting  a  list  of  them  as 
in  Boccaccio,  Chaucer  borrowed  attributes  from  some  of  the  heroes 
he  leaves  unnamed  to  increase  the  dignity  of  Lycurgus.  Thus  he  is 
invested  with  many  of  the  attributes  of  Agamemnon — the  car  drawn 
by  four  bulls,  and  the  black  beard  and  uncombed  hair.  Following 
these  we  find  a  mention  of  the  bear-skin  with  shining  nails  with 
which  his  armour  was  covered  : 

Non  armi  chiare,  non  mantel  lodato, 

Non  pettinati  crin,  non  ornamenti 

D'  oro  e  di  pietra  aveva,  ma  legato 

D'  orso  un  velluto  cuoio  con  lucenti 

Unghioni  al  collo,  il  quale  d'  ogni  lato 

Ricoprien  1'  armi  tutte  rugginenti. 
Another  hero  (see  st.  36)  also  wore  a  bear-skin  : 
le  cui  unghie  gia  nere 

Sott'  oro  eran  nascose  luminoso. 

Boccaccio  certainly  borrowed  from  Statius,  but  it  may  be  guessed 
that  Chaucer  very  rarely  did  so  at  first  hand. 
1287.  arm-greet,  cf.  tonne-greet,  1.  1136. 

1290.  alauntz,  Lycurgus's  mastiffs  are  due  to  Chaucer's  imagina 
tion. 

1294.  Colered  of  gold  and  tourettes  fyled  rounde  :  having  gold 
collars  with  small  holes  pierced  at  intervals  round  them.  Tyrwhitt 
notes  "  from  the  Fr.  '  7'ouret,'  which  is  explained  by  Cotgrave  to 
signify  among  other  things  '  the  little  ring,  by  which  a  hawk's  lune 
or  leash  is  fastened  unto  the  jesses.'  Mr.  Warton  has  shown,  by 
several  quotations,  that  toretes  were  affixed  to  the  collars  of  dogs  for 
a  similar  purpose.  Hist,  of  Eng.  Poetry,  p.  364.  Our  author  says 
that  '  the  ringe  [of  the  Astrolabe]  renneth  in  a  maner  of  a  turet.' " 
Tr.  of  Ast.  fol.  291  b. 

1298.  The  grete  Emetreus,  the  kyng  of  Inde  :  as  often  when  he 
means  to  mystify  us  Chaucer  heralds  his  mention  of  Emetreus  with 
'in  stories  as  men  fynde,'  but  there  is  no  mention  of  him  in  the 
Teseide,  though  details  of  the  description  are  borrowed  from  what 
Boccaccio  writes  of  Peleus  and  other  champions. 


NOTES  !05 

1300.  Covered    in  clooth    of    gold,    dyapred    weel :      in    his 

'Armour  in  England'  Mr.  Starkie  Gardiner  writes,  'In  the  halcyon 
days  of  mail,  the  steel  was  kept  bright  and  bare,  the  helm  and 
shield  burnished,  with  nothing  to  conceal  its  brilliancy,  but  a 
coronet  and  the  rich  sword-belts  which  merely  enhanced  the  effect. 
But  in  Chaucer's  Sir  Thopas  there  is  no  mention  of  steel  forming 
part  of  the  visible  equipment : 

His  jambeux  were  of  cuir  bouly 
His  swerdes  sheth  of  ivory, 
His  helme  of  latoun  bright. 

Over  the  body  armour  was  a  garment,  called  by  Chaucer,  the  '  cote- 
armoure'  : 

As  whit  as  is  the  lily  floure, 

His  sheld  was  al  of  gold  so  red 

And  thereon  was  a  bores  hed 

A  charbouncle  beside. 

The  helmets  were  almost  hidden  by  the  large  crests  and  the  scarlet 
mantling,  and  the  metal  exposed  was  generally  gilt.  The  trunk- 
armour  was  concealed  under  the  emblazoned  surcoat  or  pourpoint  ; 
and  when  the  thighs  and  legs  are  visible  below  this  they  are  seen  to 
be  clothed  over  the  mail  by  splinted  or  brigandine  armour,  showing 
velvet  or  satin  externally  attached  by  gilt  or  silver  nails.  The 
horse  armour  was  almost  entirely  concealed  by  rich  caparisons,  as  in 
Chaucer's  Knight's  Tale  : 

Upon  a  stede  bay,  trapped  in  stele, 
Covered  with  cloth  of  gold  diapred  wele. 

.  .  .  Exposed  pieces  of  armour  were  gilt,  if  not  jewelled,  pearls 
and  carbuncles  being  the  favourite  gems.  The  magnificence 
indulged  in  was  often  destructive  to  the  wearers,  who  might  have 
otherwise  escaped  in  battle.  They  were  "  hunted  for  their  hides," 
or  slain  for  the  sake  of  their  spoils.'  The  description  of  Emetreus 
gives  a  good  example  of  this  foppery. 

1302.  clooth  of  Tars,  a  rich  silken  stuft,  also  called  tarse,  tar- 
tarine,  and  tartarium.  Derivation  uncertain,  but  presumably  of 
Tatar  origin.  The  cloth  was  brought  overland  by  the  Tatars,  but 
was  probably  made  in  China.  Cf  Piers  Plowman,  B.  xv.  163, 
'  As  gladde  of  a  goune  of  a  graye  russet  As  of  a  tunicle  of  tarse  or  of 
trye  scarlet.' 

1323.  in  al!6  maner  thynges  :  cf.  1  1686,  'no  maner  shot,'  and 
1.  852,  '  what  mystiers  men  ye  be.' 

1330.  Been  on  the  Sonday  to  the  citee  come  :  cf.  note  on  1.  992. 
It  is  by  working  back  a  year  from  this  muster-day  that  we  find  that 
Arcite  and  Palamon  fought  on  a  Saturday,  having  met  on  the  day 
before. 


I06  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

J333-  Whan  he  had  broght  hem  into  his  citee :  to  'bring'  in 
both  Chaucer  and  Shakespeare  is  the  equivalent  for  our  '  to  escort.' 

1339.  The mynstralcye,  etc.:  in  the  Teseide,  vi.  7  sqq.  Boccaccio 
had  touched,  though  only  briefly,  on  some  of  these  matters  which 
Chaucer  takes  credit  for  omitting. 

1342.  deys.  Note  that  this  is  a  monosyllable,  riming  with 
'paleys.'  The  modern  spelling  'dais'  is  wrong. 

1353.  Al  though  it  nere  nat  day  by  houres  two,  i.e.  by  two  of 
the  unequal  hours  of  which  Chaucer  speaks  in  1.  1413.  There  were 
twelve  of  these  astrological  hours  from  sunrise  to  sunset — twelve  from 
sunset  to  sunrise,  and  it  was  only  when  days  and  nights  were  of 
equal  length  that  the  day-hours  and  night-hours  could  also  be  equal. 

1357.  the  blisful  Citherea  benigne,  i.e.  Venus:  see  note  to 
1.  1078. 

1359.  Andinhirhoure:  see  Chaucer's  Astrology, §  ii.  Theseven 
planets  known  to  him  in  the  order  of  their  distance  from  the  earth  are 
Saturn,  Jupiter,  Mars,  Sun,  Venus,  Mercury,  Moon,  and  the  first 
planetary  hour  of  each  twenty-four  is  that  of  the  name-planet  of  the 
day.  Remembering  this,  we  can  appreciate  Tyrwhitt's  excellent 
note  :  '  The  first  hour  of  the  Sunday  reckoning  from  sunrise  be 
longed  to  the  Sun,  the  planet  of  the  day  ;  the'  second  to  Venus,  the 
third  to  Mercury,  etc.,  and  continuing  this  method  of  allotment, 
we  shall  find  that  the  twenty-second  hour  also  belonged  to  the  Sun, 
and  the  twenty-third  to  Venus  ;  so  that  the  hour  of  Venus  really  was 
[i.e.  began],  as  Chaucer  says,  two  hours  before  sunrise  of  the 
following  day. 

'  Accordingly  we  are  told  in  ver.  2273  [1413]  that  the  third  hour  after 
Palamon  set  out  for  the  temple  of  Venus,  the  Sun  rose,  and  Emelie 
began  to  go  to  the  temple  of  Diane.  It  is  not  said  that  this  was  the 
hour  of  Diane,  or  of  the  Moon,  but  it  really  was,  for,  as  we  have 
just  seen,  the  twenty-third  hour  of  Sunday  belonging  to  Venus,  the 
twenty- fourth  must  be  given  to  Mercury,  and  the  first  hour  of  Mon 
day  falls  in  course  to  the  Moon,  the  presiding  planet  of  that  day. 

'  After  this  Arcite  is  described  as  walking  to  the  Temple  of  Mars, 
ver.  2369  [1509],  '  in  the  nexte  houre  of  Mars,'  that  is,  the  fourth  hour 
of  the  day.  It  is  necessary  to  take  these  words  together,  for  '  the  nexte 
houre '  singly  would  signify  the  second  hour  of  the  day,  but  that, 
according  to  the  rule  of  rotation  mentioned  above,  belonged  to 
Saturn,  as  the  third  did  to  Jupiter.  The  fourth  was  '  the  nexte 
houre  of  Mars'  that  occurred  after  the  hour  last  named.' 


1365.  mount  of  Citheroon  :  cf.  1.  1078. 

1366.  Adoon,  Adonis — a  youth  beloved 
ound  received  from  a  boar. 

1381.   Scan:  N'  n'ax|e  nat | to-morw' | t'have | victorie. 


1366.  Adoon,  Adonis — a  youth  beloved  of  Venus.     He  died  of  a 
wound  received  from  a  boar. 


NOTES 


107 


1386.  Fynd  thow  the  manere  how,  and  in  what  wyse,  etc. :  all 
these  three  speeches  follow  the  Teseide  fairly  closely,  and  these  lines 
are  taken  from  it,  the  Italian  being  : 

II  modo  trova  tu,  ch'  io  non  mi  euro 

O  ch'  io  sia  vinto,  o  ch'  io  sia  vincitore  : 

Me  poco  euro,  s'  io  non  son  sicuro 

Di  possedere  il  disio  del  mio  core. 

But  Chaucer  makes  them  the  keynote  of  the  story,  which  he  adapts 
freely  so  as  to  bring  out  the  contrast  between  Palamon,  with  whom 
his  love  for  Emily  is  paramount,  and  Arcyte,  whose  thoughts  are 
divided  between  love  and  arms. 

1391.  vertu,  power,  influence. 

1394.  wher  I  ride  or  go,  whether  I  ride  or  walk— on  foot  or  on 
horseback.  So  in  '  Sir  Thopas,'  '  For  in  that  contree  was  ther  noon 
That  to  him  dorste  ryde  or  goon.'  Here  it  means  little  more  than 
'  always  '  or  '  in  all  circumstances.' 

1399.  Thanne  rekke  I  noght,  etc.     This  little  bit  of  philosophy    . 

is  Chaucer's  addition. 

1408.  he  took,  he  took  note,  understood. 

1413.  The  thridde  houre  in-equal :  see  notes  to  11.  1353  and 
1359.  There  was  only  one  clear  hour  between  those  of  Venus  and 
Diana,  viz.  that  of  Mercury,  so  Chaucer  reckons  in  that  from  which 
he  takes  his  start.  As  Palamon  made  his  prayer  in  the  23rd  hour 
of  the  astrological  Sunday,  Emily  prayed  in  the  first  hour  of 
Monday,  when  both  the  hour  and  the  day  were  sacred  to  Diana. 
In  the  Teseide  Arcyte  prays  first,  Palamon  second,  Emily  last. 
Chaucer  may  have  altered  the  order  either  because  he  had  made 
Palamon  see  Emily  before  Arcyte  and  wished  to  retain  for  him  this 
primacy,  or  to  save  Palamon  from  praying  to  Venus  on  a  day 
devoted  to  Diana,  with  whom  she  was  at  variance. 

1419.  the  clothes.  In  this  line  'clothes'  translates  'vesti,'  gar 
ments.  In  1.  1423  it  is  suggested  by  the  line  in  the  Teseide,  '  fu 
mondo  il  tempio  e  di  be'  drappi  ornato,'  where  'drappi'  must  mean 
'cloths,'  used  as  hangings  or  tapestries.  Boccaccio  tells  us  that 
Emily  after  her  ablution  'di  bianchissima  porpora  vestissi,'  and  this 
robe  of  glittering  purple  is  presumably  what  is  here  alluded  to. 

1421.  homes  fulle  of  meeth  suggest  an  old  English  ceremonial. 
Boccaccio  only  says  '  con  corni  pien  d'  offerte,'  horns  full  of 
offerings. 

1423.  Smokynge  the  temple,  ful  of  clothes  faire,  burning  incense 
in  the  temple,  which  had  been  draped  with  beautiful  hangings. 

1430.  been  at  his  large,  keep  himself  free  (from  anything  that 
may  give  offence). 


I08  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

1434.  Two  fyres  on  the  auter  gan  she  beete  :  Chaucer's  transla 
tion  of  Boccaccio  is  here  (an  unusual  thing  with  him)  much  less 
precise  and  vivid  than  the  original,  which  tells  us  (Tes.  vii.  74)  that 
Emily  very  reverently  placed  on  the  altar  two  logs  of  like  thickness 
and  length,  and  set  fire  to  them  : 

Sopra  1'altare,  molto  reverente, 

Due  roghi  fece  di  simil  grossezza ; 

Ne  ebbe  1'un  piu  che  1'altro  d'altezza. 

We  need  this  explanation  of  the  two  similar  brands  to  understand 
11.  1475-1482.  The  two  brands  typified  the  two  suitors,  and  Emily 
was  practising  a  bit  of  folk-divination,  such  as  is  still  used  in  Scot 
land  on  Hallowe'en,  where  the  burning  or  bursting  of  a  pair  of  nuts 
placed  side  by  side  in  the  fire  is  supposed  to  betoken  whether  lovers 
will  remain  true  or  be  sundered.  The  folk-lore  connected  with  the 
burning  of  the  great  Yule-log  is  also  to  the  point.  Compare,  again, 
the  brand  which  symbolized  the  life  of  Meleager,  mentioned  in  the 
note  to  1.  121 2.  Emily's  divination  was  successfully  carried  out. 
The  brand  which  typified  Palamon  was  quenched  to  signify  his 
defeat,  and  its  revival  betokened  his  ultimate  success,  after  the 
brand  of  Arcite  had  been  quenched  in  blood. 

1435.  dide  hir  thynges  :  made  her  offerings  or  sacrifices.     So  in 
the  Shipman's  Tale  (B.  1281)  the  friar  is  said  to  'sey  his  thinges,' 
i.e.  read  his  appointed  prayers. 

1436.  In  Stace  of  Theb6s,  and  thise  bookes  olde :   of  course 
Statins  says  nothing  about  Emily  in  his   '  of  Thebes '   (Chaucer's 
rendering  of  the  title  '  Thebais  '),  but  we  may  fairly  take  this  to  be 
a  general  reference.      '  If  you  want  to  know  how  the  ancients  per 
formed  their  sacrifices  look  in  the  Thebais  and  other  old  books.' 

1441.  Queene  of  the  regne  of  Pluto,  see  note  to  1.  1224. 

1445.  Atteon,  see  note  to  1.  1207. 

1455.  For  tho  thre  formes,  etc.,  see  note  1.  1224. 

1458.  withoute  moore,  as  all  I  ask. 

1486.  the  feere,  see  note  to  1.  1048. 

1492.  by  eteme  word,  cf.  1.  446  and  note. 

1498.  Shulle  thee  declaren.  This  is  a  curious  slip  on  Chaucer's 
part,  as  he  has  already  narrated  the  result  of  Emily's  divination,  in 
11.  1475  sqq. 

1507.  nexte,  nearest. 

1509.  The  nexte  hour  of  Mars,  see  note  to  1.  1359. 

1528.  Of  faire,  yonge,  fresshe  Venus:  the  definite  form  of  the 
adjectives,  with  e-final  sounded,  seems  to  be  due  to  their  being 
followed  by  a  proper  name.  The  story  of  Mars  and  Venus  is  told 
in  Chaucer's  '  Compleynt  of  Mars.' 


NOTES  109 

1539.  ne  reccheth  never  wher  I  synke  or  fleete,  cares  not  whether 
I  die  or  live,  succeed  or  fail.     Emily  was  not  really  so  hardhearted. 
Cf.  11.  I459-67- 

1540.  heete,  promise. 

1544-47.  helpe  me  ...  tomorwe  in  my  bataille  .  .  .  And  do  that  I 
tomorwe  have  victorie.  There  is  something  of  the  '  irony '  with 
which  Sophocles  makes  his  heroes  denounce  beforehand  their  own 
sins,  or  take  pride  in  what  is  to  prove  their  ruin,  in  the  skill  with 
which  Chaucer  has  anticipated  this  speech  of  Arcite's  in  the  philoso-  * 
phical  remarks  he  assigns  to  him  in  11.  393-409.  In  '  seeking  fast 
after  felicity '  and  prescribing  how  he  was  to  get  it,  he  '  went 
wrong,'  even  as  '  som  man  desireth  for  to  han  richesse,  That  cause  is 
of  his  moerdre.' 

1552.  alle  the  armes  of  my  compaignye  :  Boccaccio  makes 
Arcite  vow  the  arms  of  Palamon  in  the  first  place,  and  his  own  as 
well.  Chaucer  shows  the  better  taste.  Let  us  hope  it  was  not  due  ^ 
merely  to  a  confused  recollection  that  'del  mio  vinto  compagnone,' 
('  of  my  conquered  companion  ')  received  the  more  generous  turn  here 
given  it. 

1557-  M7  beerd,  myn  heer,   that  hongeth  long  adoun.     At 
Athens  boys  cut  off  their  long  hair  when  they  reached  manhood, 
and  dedicated  it  to  some  deity.     At  Rome  the  day  on  which  the 
beard  was  first  shaved  was  kept  as  a  festival.     The  sacrifice  of  hair   / 
was  presumably  on   the   principle   of  a  part  of  the  body  for  the  J 
whole. 

1558.  ne  felte  offensioun  Of  rasour,  taken  straight  from  the 
Italian  : 

E  la  barba  e  i  miei  crin,  che  offensione 
Di  ferro  non  sentiron,  ti  prometto. 

1573.  bigan  his  hauberk  rynge  :  the  hauberk  was  made  of 
chain-mail  which  would  clink  with  any  movement. 

1575.  and  seyde  thus:  'Victorie!'  For  the  omission  of  the 
pronoun,  cf.  1.  897.  This  low  and  dim  murmuring  of  '  Victory,' 
which  gave  a  promise  of  a  joyless  triumph,  is  Chaucer's  innovation. 
Boccaccio  speaks  of  a  'dolce  romore.' 

1585.  pale  Saturnus  the  colder  many  of  the  characteristics  of 
Saturn  here  mentioned  are  among  those  enumerated  in  the  section 
on  him  in  '  The  Compost  of  Ptholomeus,  Prynce  of  Astronomye ' 
(Wyer's  edition) :  '  The  firste  planet  is  Saturne.  Saturne  is  the 
hyest  Planet  of  all  the  seven  .  .  .  and  therfore  it  is  more  than  xxx. 
yere  or  he  may  ronne  his  course  (cf.  1.  1596).  Whan  he  dothe 
reygne  there  is  moche  thefte  vsed  and  lytell  cnaryte,  moche  lyinge 
and  moche  lawynge  one  agaynst  another,  and  grete  prysonynge  (cf. 
1.  1599)  and  moche  debate  (cf.  11.  1592  sqq.)  and  great  swerynge. 
And  moche  plente  of  corne  and  also  moche  plente  of  hogges  and 
great  trauayle  on  the  Erthe,  and  olde  folkes  shall  be  very  syckely  and 


HO  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

many  dyseases  shall  reygne  amonge  the  people  (cf.  1.  1611),  and 
specyally  in  the  chefe  houres  of  Saturne.  And  therfore  this  planet 
is  lykened  vnto  age,  as  harde,  hungry,  suspecyous  and  couetous, 
that  selden  is  content  with  any  thynge,  for  Saturne  is  ennemy  to  all 
thynges  that  growe  and  here  lyfe  of  nature,  for  the  colde  and  stormy 
byternes  of  his  tyme.'  The  Proprytes  of  Saturne  :  '  The  man  that  is 
borne  vnder  Saturne  shall  be  false,  enuyous  and  full  of  debate  and 
full  of  lawe,  and  he  shal  be  cunnynge  in  coryenge  of  lether,  and  a 
great  eter  of  brede  and  flesshe,  and  he  shall  haue  a  stynkynge 
breth  :  and  he  shall  be  heuy,  thoughtfull  and  malycyous,  a  robber,  a 
fyghter,  and  full  of  couetise,  and  yet  he  shall  kepe  well  counceyle 
and  be  wyse  in  counceylynge  (cf.  11.  1589  sqq. ).  And  he  shal  loue  to 
synne  wylfully,  he  shall  be  a  great  speaker  of  tales,  Justes  and 
Cronycles,  and  shal  haue  litel  iyen,  blacke  heer,  great  lyppes,  brode 
sholdres,  and  shall  loke  downewarde.  .  .  .  And  the  children  of  the  sayd 
Saturne  shall  be  great  Jangelers  and  chyders,  blacke  and  lene  in  the 
face,  thyn  berded,  euyl  languaged,  and  shall  be  full  of  lawe  and 
vengeaunce  (cf.  1.  1603).  And  they  wyll  neuer  forgyue  tyll  they  be 
reuenged  of  theyr  quarell.  And  lyke  as  the  planet  Saturne  is  colde 
(cf.  1.  1585),  and  causer  of  great  frostes  and  snowes,  semblably  he 
that  is  borne  vnder  hym  shall  be  colde  in  charyte,  and  nat 
mysericordyous  and  mercyfull,  but  vengeable  and  will  neuer  be 
entreated.'  Compare  also  Gower,  Conf.  Am.  VII.  935  sqq.  : 

The  heyeste  and  aboven  alle 

Stant  that  planete  which  men  calle 

Saturnus,  whos  complexioun 

Is  cold,  and  his  condicion 

Causeth  malice  and  crualte 

To  him  the  whos  natiuite 

Is  set  under  his  governance. 

For  alle  hise  werkes  ben  grevance 

And  enemy  to  mannes  hele. 

1590.  usage,  experience. 

1591.  Men  may  the  olde  at  renne  and  noght  at-rede,  a  proverb, 
quoted  again  in  Troilus,  IV.  1456.     Dryden  made  a  sad  hash  of  it 
in  the  couplet  '  For  this  advantage  Age  from  Youth  has  won,  As 
not  to  be  outridden  (sic),  though  outrun.' 

J593-  agayn  his  kynde,  against  his  nature,  as  explained  in  the 
note  to  1.  1585. 

1 596.  My  cours,  that  hath  so  wyde  for  to  turne  :  Saturn  had  the 
widest  orbit  of  any  planet  known  in  Chaucer's  time. 

1599.  the  prison  in  the  derke  cote.  No  one  has  explained 
what  is  meant  by  this  '  dark  cottage  '  or  '  hut.' 

1603.  Whil  I  dwelle  in  the  signe  of  the  leoun  :  the  sign  Leo  is 
the  Fall  or  Detriment  of  Saturn,  i.e.  the  opposite  to  its  House. 
(See  Chaucer's  Astrology,  §  5.)  In  the  case  of  a  beneficent  planet 


NOTES  III 

this  would  reduce  its  influence  to  a  minimum,  but  the  malefic 
planets  were  as  dangerous  in  their  Detriment  as  in  their  House,  and 
the  strength  of  '  the  Lion  '  made  bad  worse. 

1617.  noght  of  o  compleccioun,  etc.,  not  of  the  same  combination 
of  '  humours,'  the  same  temperament,  a  difference  which  continually 
causes  strife. 

1619.  I  am  thyn  aiel :  Venus  was  the  daughter  of  Jupiter,  and 
Jupiter  Saturn's  son. 

1640.  Of  goldsmythrye,  of  browdynge,  and  of  steel :  cf.  note  to 
1.  1300. 

1642.  Gold-hewen  helmes,  helmets  forged  with  gold  ;  so  the 
car  of  Theseus  in  Anelida  is  said  to  be  '  gold-bete,'  i.e.  gilded. 
'  The  bassinet,  like  the  rest  of  the  knight's  armour,  did  not  neces 
sarily  exhibit  a  surface  of  plain  burnished  steel.  It  was  frequently 
covered  with  leather  ...  It  was  also  tinned  or  gilded,  or  even  of  pure 
gold,  as  prizes  for  tourneys,  or  like  one  set  with  gems,  sent  to 
Edward  I.  by  his  father-in-law  in  1334'  (Starkie  Gardner's  Armour 
in  England,  p.  34). 

Note  how  the  alteration  of  the  usual  stress  in  the  first  foot 
( —  -"  instead  of  •—  —  )  in  these  five  lines  gives  the  idea  of  haste  and 
bustle.  Cf.  11.  1744  sqq. 

1644.  Knyghtes  of  retenue,  i.e.  knights  in  attendance  on  greater 
lords. 

1659.  Some  helden  with  hym  with  the  Wake  berd.  It  is  better 
not  to  refer  this  to  Lycurge,  despite  1.  1271.  These  hym's  and  he's 
are  merely  individual  combatants  pointed  at  by  members  of  the 
crowd.  Cf.  11.  1754  sqq. 

1667.  Heeld  yet  the  chambre,  etc.  '  II  gran  Teseo  dagli  alti 
sonni  tolto,  Ancor  le  ricche  camere  tenea  Del  suo  palagio '  (Tes. 
vn.  96).  We  still  use  the  phrase  '  to  keep  one's  room.' 

1678.  Tho  shewed  he  the  myghty  dukes  wille.  Boccaccio 
leaves  an  unstated  interval  of  time  between  the  arrival  of  the  two 
champions  at  Athens  and  the  final  preparations.  On  one  day  during 
this  interval  Theseus  summons  all  the  combatants  to  his  theatre  and 
makes  the  announcement  here  assigned  to  a  herald,  himself,  in  the 
course  of  a  speech  eleven  stanzas  long  (Tes.  vil.  3-13).  For  the 
purport  of  the  speech,  cf.  Calendar  of  Entries  in  the  Papal 
Registers  relating  to  Great  Britain  and  Ireland.  Papal  Letters, 
Vol.  IV.  p.  27,  7  id.  Aug.  1368:  Urban  V.  'to  Master  Robert  de 
Stratton,  D.C.  L.,  canon  of  Lincoln,  papal  chaplain  and  auditor. 
Mandate  to  go  to  Lionel,  Duke  of  Clarence,  and  warn  him  under 
pain  of  excommunication  not  to  hold  the  tournament  (in  itself  re 
probated  by  the  sacred  canons),  which  he  and  many  other  nobles 
are  said  to  have  agreed  and  sworn  to  carry  on,  as  a  hostile  and 
deadly  combat.  Faculty  is  granted  for  the  relaxation  of  any  oaths 
and  obligations  that  have  been  made  and  taken.' 


H2  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

Cf.  also  Scott's  Ivanhoe,  Chap.  xii.  {duly  ushered  in  by  a  quota 
tion  of  11.  1741-52  of  the  Knight's  Tale):  '  The  heralds  then  pro 
claimed  silence  until  the  laws  of  the  tourney  should  be  rehearsed. 
These  were  calculated  in  some  degree  to  abate  the  dangers  of  the 
day ;  a  precaution  the  more  necessary,  as  the  conflict  was  to  be 
maintained  with  sharp  swords  and  pointed  lances.  The  champions 
were  therefore  prohibited  to  thrust  with  the  swords  and  were  confined 
to  striking.  A  knight,  it  was  announced,  might  use  a  mace  or 
battle-axe  at  pleasure,  but  the  dagger  was  a  prohibited  weapon.  A 
knight  unhorsed  might  renew  the  fight  on  foot  with  any  other  on 
the  opposite  side  in  the  same  predicament ;  but  mounted  horsemen 
were  in  that  case  forbidden  to  assail  him.  When  any  knight  could 
force  his  antagonist  to  the  extremity  of  the  lists,  so  as  to  touch  the 
palisade  with  his  person  or  arms,  such  opponent  was  obliged  to 
yield  himself  vanquished,  and  his  armour  and  horse  were  placed  at 
the  disposal  of  the  conqueror.  A  knight  thus  overcome  was  not 
permitted  to  take  farther  share  in  the  combat.  If  any  combatant 
was  struck  down,  and  unable  to  recover  his  feet,  his  squire  or  page 
might  enter  the  lists,  and  drag  his  master  out  of  the  press ;  but  in 
that  case  the  knight  was  adjudged  vanquished  and  his  arms  and 
horse  declared  forfeited.  The  combat  was  to  cease  as  soon  as 
Prince  John  threw  down  his  leading  staff  or  troncheon.'  Scott  had 
not  read  his  Knight's  Tale  in  vain,  though  he  adds  a  few  particulars 
from  other  sources. 

1691.  with  a  sharpe y-ground6  spere.  In  '  Ivanhoe'  the  earlier 
combatants  touch  the  shields  of  the  challengers  with  the  reverse 
end  of  their  lances,  and  so  fight  with  '  arms  of  courtesy '  i.e.,  with  the 
points  blunted.  When  they  have  all  been  defeated,  the  Disinherited 
Knight  '  to  the  astonishment  of  all  present,  riding  straight  up  to  the 
central  pavilion,  struck  with  the  sharp  end  of  his  spear  the  shield  of 
Brian  de  Bois-Guilbert  until  it  rang  again,'  and  so  challenged  him 
to  the  more  dangerous  combat.  Ivanhoe  and  Sir  Brian  run  two 
courses  with  these  sharp  spears.  Here  only  one  is  allowed. 

1693.  at  meschief,  at  a  disadvantage,  in  danger. 

1694.  the  stake,  apparently  not  the  palisade  round  the  lists  as  in 
Scott,  but  a  separate  paling  for  the  purpose.     Scott's  arrangement, 
indeed,  must  have  brought  some  hard  fighting  rather  too  close  the 
spectators. 

1709.  By  ordinance,  i.e.  as  explained  in  11.  1711  sqq. 
1721.  in  degrees  aboute  :  cf.  1.  1032. 

1736.  in  two  renges.  In  '  Ivanhoe'  we  are  told  that  the  'two 
foremost  ranks '  charged  first,  and  the  '  rear  rank  of  each  party ' 
advanced  afterwards  to  their  support.  Chaucer  surely  means  that 
there  was  only  a  single  rank  on  each  side,  though  here  there  were  a 
hundred  knights  of  each  party,  while  in  '  Ivanhoe '  there  were  only 
about  fifty. 


NOTES  TI3 

1738.  That  in  hir  nombre  gyle  were  ther  noon  :  cf.  '  Ivanhoe' : 
'  As  yet  the  knights  held  their  long  lances  upright,  their  bright 
points  glancing  to  the  sun,  and  the  streamers  with  which  they  were 
decorated  fluttering  over  the  plumage  of  the  helmets.  Thus  they 
remained  while  the  marshals  of  the  field  surveyed  their  ranks  with 
the  utmost  exactness,  lest  either  party  had  more  or  fewer  than  the 
appointed  number.  The  tale  was  found  exactly  equal.  The  mar 
shals  then  withdrew  from  the  lists,  and  William  de  Wyvil,  with  a 
voice  of  thunder,  proclaimed  the  signal  words — Laissez  aller.  The 
trumpets  sounded  as  he  spoke— the  spears  of  the  champions  were  at 
once  lowered,  and  placed  in  the  rests — the  spurs  were  dashed  into 
the  flanks  of  the  horses,  and  the  two  foremost  ranks  of  either  party 
[a  piece  of  bad  grammar  on  the  part  of  Sir  Walter]  rushed  upon 
each  other  in  full  gallop.' 

1744.  In  goon  the  speres  ful  sadly  in  arrest.  'Ful  sadly'  is 
'right  earnestly.'  The  'arrest'  or  'rest'  is  the  'stop'  against 
which  the  butt  of  the  lance  was  placed,  so  that  it  should  not  be 
forced  back  at  the  moment  of  encounter.  With  this  description  of 
a  land-battle,  compare  that  of  the  sea-fight  in  the  story  of  Cleopatra, 
'  Legend  of  Good  Women,'  640  sqq. : 

In  gooth  the  grapenel  so  ful  of  crokes, 

Amonge  the  ropes  and  the  sheryng  hokes  ; 

In  with  the  polax  preseth  he  and  he  ; 

Byhynde  the  maste  begyneth  he  to  fle, 

And  out  agayn,  and  dryveth  hem  over  borde  ; 

He  stynteth  hem  upon  his  speres  orde  ; 

He  rent  the  sayle  with  hokes  lyke  a  sithe  : 

He  bryngeth  the  cuppe,  and  biddeth  hem  be  blithe  ; 

He  poureth  pesen  upon  the  hacches  slidre  ; 

With  pottes  ful  of  lyme,  they  goon  togidre  ; 

And  thus  the  longe  day  in  fight  they  spende, 

Till  at  the  last,  as  every  thing  hath  ende, 

Antony  is  shent,  and  put  hym  to  the  flyghte  ; 

And  al  his  folke  to-go,  that  best  go  myghte. 
In  point  of  style  there  is  nothing  to  choose  between  them. 

1749.  Up  spryngen  speres  twenty  foot  on  highte.  When  both 
combatants  were  skilful  the  lances  were  shivered  to  pieces  in  the 
encounter,  and  the  combatants  then  took  to  their  swords. 

1761.  forward,  agreement. 

1762.  Another  lad  is,  i.e.  to  the  'stake.' 

1767.  Unhorsed  hath  ech  oother  of  hem  tweye,  i.e.  they  had 
each  unhorsed  two  knights  of  the  opposite  party. 

1768  in  the  vale  of  Galgopheye.  Dr.  Skeat's  identification  of 
this  with  the  vale  of  Gargaphie,  in  Boeotia,  where  Actaeon  was 
turned  into  a  stag  (see  note  to  1.  1207),  is  the  best  yet  made. 

H 


H4  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

1770.  on  the  hunte,  on  the  hunter. 

1772.  Belmarye,  Benmarin,  a  Moorish  kingdom  in  North  Africa. 
Chaucer's  Knight  had  seen  service  there.  Cf.  Prologue,  1.  57  and 
nbte.  In  the  Teseide  Boccaccio,  in  the  '  epic '  style  he  affected, 
describes  the  result  of  several  single  combats,  and  this  simile  of  the 
lion  is  taken  from  the  description  of  an  onslaught  by  Diomede  on 
Ulysses  (vm.  26). 

1781.  as  he  faught  with  Arcite.  This  rather  ungenerous  inter 
ference  with  a  single  combat  between  the  two  leaders  may  have 
suggested  to  Scott  the  attack  of  Athelstane  and  Front-de-Boeuf  on 
Ivanhoe  when  he  is  engaged  with  the  Templar.  The  '  stronge 
kyng  Lycurge  '  was  less  successful  than  '  Le  Noir  Faineant'  in  coming 
to  the  rescue. 

1811.  his  knyght  hath  al  his  boone,  Ealamon  had  prayed  that 
he  might  'have  victorie'  in  his  'bataille,'  and  victory  in  battle  was 
all  that  Mars  could  secure  for  him. 

1817.  Which  a  myracle,  what  kind  of  a  miracle  ;  cf.  Prol.  1.  40, 
'and  whiche  they  weren  and  of  what  degre.' 

1820.  He  priketh  endelong  the  large  place.  The  fate  which 
befel  Arcite  in  his  triumphal  ride  recalls  Scott's  comment  when  he 
makes  Ivanhoe  exhibit  the  paces  of  the  war-horse  he  wins  in  the 
tourney,  by  riding  twice  around  the  lists.  '  The  appearance  of 
vanity,  which  might  otherwise  have  been  attributed  to  this  display, 
was  removed  by  the  propriety  shown  in  exhibiting  to  the  best 
advantage  the  princely  reward  with  which  he  had  just  been 
honoured.'  Perhaps  Scott  had  Arcite's  fate  in  mind. 

1825.  And  was  al  his,  in  chiere,  as  in  his  herte :  this  is  Dr. 
Furnivall's  emendation,  no  manuscript  containing  the  first  in — '  She 
was  all  his  in  her  looks  as  the  queen  of  his  heart.'     H.  reads  and 
for  as;    Hengwrt,  'And  she  was  al  his  cheere,' etc.,  i.e.  'all  his 
delight,  as  regarded  his  heart,'  but  this  is  not  the  use  of  cheere  here 
wanted.     If  further  emendation  were  permissible,  a  good  meaning 
would  be  given  by  reading  '  And  was  al  his  in  chiere  as  his  in  herte.' 
But  this  has  a  modern  ring. 

1826.  a  Furie  infernal,  the  Ellesmere,  Hengwrt  and  Cambridge 
manuscripts  read  'furie'  and  in    Boccaccio   (Tes.    IX.  4-7)  it  is  a 
Fury   raised   by   Venus.       But   the    Harleian    MS.  has  'fyr,'   and 
perhaps  rightly.     As  Chaucer  attributes  the  apparition   to   Saturn 
instead  of  Venus  he  was  in  no  slavish  mood,  and  it  may  reason 
ably   be   thought  that  if  he  had  taken   over  Boccaccio's   Fury  he 
would  have  taken  also  his  description  of  her  and  the  panic  she  spread. 
The  fire  was  no  less  miraculous  than  the  Fury,  but  it  seems  easier  to 
acquiesce  in,  and  the  consideration  would  have  appealed  to  Chaucer. 

1833.  His  brest  to-brosten  with  his  sadel-bowe  :  the  '  bow '  was 
two  curved  pieces  of  wood  fixed  before  and  behind  the  rider  to  hold 
him  in  his  seat.  Arcite  was  pitched  against  the  front  piece  so 
violently  as  to  shatter  his  breast. 


NOTES  115 

1838.  korven  out,  i.e.  by  cutting  the  laces  and  straps. 

1844.  With  alle  blisse  and  greet  solempnitee.  In  the  Teseide 
poor  Arcite  is  arrayed  in  triumphal  garments  and  chaplet,  and  offers 
his  own  arms  and  those  of  Palamon  to  Mars,  and  joyously  makes  a 
round  of  triumph.  Chaucer  seems  to  have  known  better  what  a 
man  could  do  with  a  broken  breast-bone. 

1850.  That  of  hem  alle  was  ther  noon  y-slayn.  Boccaccio  kills 
an  indefinite  number  of  the  combatants  for  the  pleasure  of  devoting 
seven  stanzas  to  describing  their  funeral. 

1852.  That  with  a  spere  was  thirled  his  brest  boon:  whose 
breast-bone   was    pierced    by   a   spear.       For  '  that .   .   .  his '    as 
equivalent  to  '  whose,' cf.  Prol.  1.   43  sqq.  :   'A  Knight  .  .  .  that 
fro  the  tyme  that  he  first  bigan  to  riden  out,  he  loved  chivalrie,' 
where  'that  .  .  .  he'  =  who. 

1853.  To  othere  woundes,  for  the  help  of  other  wounds.  • 

1867.  6  persone  allone,  withouten  mo  :  another  line  in  which 
the  monosyllabic  first  foot  is  effective. 

1871.  It  nas  aretted  hym  no  vileynye,  it  was  not  reckoned 
against  him  as  unbecoming  conduct.  Cf.  Prol.  1.  726. 

1875.  The  gree,  the  pre-eminence.  Theseus  caused  it  to  be  pro 
claimed  that  both  sides  had  done  equally  well. 

1880.  a  journee  largely,  escorted  them  a  long  stage  on  their 
road. 

1887.  for  any  lechecraft,  despite  all  the  skill  of  physicians. 

1889.  neither  veyne-blood  ne  ventusynge.  To  take  blood  from 
the  body,  either  by  opening  a  vein  or  by  scratching  the  skin  and 
then  applying  a  glass  in  which  the  air  was  rarefied  by  heat  or  other 
wise  (ventusynge,  from  O.Fr.  ventose,  a  cupping-glass),  was  the 
chief  medieval  remedy  for  all  diseased  states  of  the  body,  and  was 
used  once  or  twice  a  year,  as  a  precaution,  even  by  those  in  health. 
Popular  manuals  of  the  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries  are  full  of 
directions  as  to  the  best  times  for  letting  blood,  in  deciding  \vh;ch 
astrology  played  a  great  part. 

1891.  The  vertu  6xpulsif,  or  animal,  Fro  thilke  vertu  cleped 
natural.  According  to  medieval  physicians  every  operation  of  the 
body  was  performed  in  accordance  with  some  appropriate  virtue  or 
'  myghte  of  the  soule  essenciably  yeue  to  werke  and  do  his  dedes  in 
the  body,'  'The  vertue  expulsiua  puttyth  off  the  superfluytees 
that  the  lymme  draweth  to'  (Bartholomew,  De  Proprietatibtts 
Remm,  in.  8:  ed.  of  c.  1495).  According  to  Bartholomew  animal 
virtue,  which  had  its  place  in  the  brain,  was  coordinate  with  the 
natural  virtue,  whose  seat  was  in  the  liver.  In  putting  it  on 
a  quality  with  a  single  function  like  the  'vertue  expulsif,'  Chaucer 
seems  to  differ  from  authority.  Almost  all  this  medical  lore,  it 
should  be  noted,  is  his  addition. 


Il6  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

1903.  This  al  and  som,  etc.:  this  the  whole  story — that  Arcite 
must  die. 

1904.  For  which   he   sendeth  after  Palamon.     In  the   Teseide 
Arcite  first  arranges  matters  with  Theseus,  and  then  sends  for  Pala 
mon  and  Emily,  and  explains  the  position  to  them.     Chaucer  shows 
real  dramatic  feeling  in  making  the  dying  man  say  his  farewell  to 
Emily ;  and  then,  when  at  his  bidding  she  has  taken  him  in  her  arms, 
plead  the  cause  of  his  friend  and  foe.     Despite  1.  882  and  the  grudging 
tone  of  11.  1399  sq.,  we  may  hope  that  Palamon  would  have  been 
equally  generous. 

1917.  alias,  my  wyf !  In  the  Teseide  Arcite  goes  through  the 
form  of  marriage  with  Emily  as  soon  as  he  is  brought  home. 

1951  sq.  wente  ther,  As  I  cam  never,  I  kan  nat  tellen  wher. 
Dr.  Skeat  comments  :  '  The  real  reason  why  Chaucer  could  not  here 
describe  the  passage  of  Arcite's  soul  to  heaven  is  because  he  had 
already  copied  Boccaccio's  description,  and  had  used  it  with  respect 
to  the  death  of  Troilus.'  The  passage  in  Troilus  (1807-27)  will  be 
found  quoted  in  our  Appendix,  but  Dr.  Skeat's  '  real  reason '  is  a 
little  disrespectful  to  Chaucer,  who  could  surely  have  provided  a 
variant  out  of  his  own  head  had  it  pleased  him  to  do  so.  We  may 
find  ourselves  more  in  accord  with  Dr.  Liddell,  who  writes  :  '  There 
are  few  passages  in  literature  more  tender  and  pathetic  than  these 
dying  words  of  Arcite.  If  the  student  will  compare  them  with  the 
Teseide,  x.  54'63,  he  will  see  how  many  human  touches  Chaucer  has 
given  to  the  scene  .  .  .  Indeed  the  passage  is  so  affecting  that 
Chaucer  has  need,  like  Shakspere,  to  resort  to  humor,  in  order  to 
break  the  strain  of  it.'  We  may,  however,  go  farther  than  this. 
Prof.  M'Cormick  has  noted  in  his  recension  of  'Troilus'  for  the 
'  Globe  Chaucer '  that  in  two  of  the  three  manuscripts  which  repre 
sent  the  earliest  form  of  'Troilus'  these  stanzas  from  the  'I eseide 
do  not  appear  at  all,  and  that  in  the  third  they  are  a  later  insertion. 
The  belief  has  been  already  expressed  in  the  introduction  to  this 
edition  that  when  Chaucer  came  to  these  stanzas  (xi.  1-13)  in 
adapting  the  Teseide  he  perceived  that  the  sense  of  the  nothingness 
of  life  with  which  they  are  filled  was  not  suitable  to  a  poem  which 
was  yet  to  end  in  a  happy  marriage,  while  eminently  suited  as  a 
final  meditation  by  Troilus.  He  therefore  inserted  them  as  an 
after-thought  in  'Troilus,'  and  here  indulges  almost  too  freely  in 
his  characteristic  humour. 

If,  as  we  may  believe,  Chaucer  was  pleased  with  himself  for  these 
light-hearted  lines,  we  can  imagine  that  they  suggested  the  opening 
of  the  prologue  to  the  Legend  of  Good  Women,  in  which  in  no  very 
different  mood  he  writes  : 

A  thousand  sythes  have  I  herd  men  telle 

That  there  is  joy  in  hevene  and  peyne  in  helle, 

And  I  acorde  Avel  that  it  be  so  ; 

But  natheles,  this  wit  I  wel  also, 


NOTES  117 

That  there  nis  noon  that  dwelleth  in  this  countree 

That  eythir  hath  in  helle  or  hevyne  i-be, 

Ne  may  of  it  non'othere  weyis  wytyn 

But  as  he  hath  herd  seyd,  or  founde  it  wrytyn  ; 

For  by  asay  there  may  no  man  it  preve, 

a  proposition  on  which  he  proceeds  to  base  a  general    claim  for 
belief  in  old  books. 

1954.  'Of  soules'  fynde  I  nat  in  this  registre.  The  inverted 
commas  are  due  to  Dr.  Liddell,  and  help  greatly  in  bringing  out  the 
force  of  the  line.  A  '  register  '  in  old  books  is  the  name  given  to  the 
table  of  contents,  and  Chaucer  says  that  he  does  not  find  that  he  has 
made  any  entry  '  De  Animis '  in  his  table  of  contents,  committing 
him  to  write  about  souls. 

1968.  That,  at  the  laste,  certeinly  they  dye.  It  is  to  be  feared 
that  the  '  at  the  laste '  in  this  line,  so  carefully  led  up  to,  was  meant 
mischievously. 

1977.  thise  wommen  crye.  For  the  use  of  'thise'  to  give  the 
idea  of  a  separate  class,  cf.  1.  673,  '  As  doon  thise  loveres  in  hir 
queynte  geres,'  and  1.  1480,  '  As  doon  thise  wete  brondes  in  hir 
brennynge.'  The  cry  itself  is  touching  enough  :  'all  he  could  wish 
for,  and  he  dead.' 

1980.  his  olde  fader  Egeus.  Boccaccio  and  Chaucer  clearly  did 
not  adopt  the  legend  that,  long  ere  this,  Theseus,  on  returning  from 
slaying  the  Minotaur,  had  forgotten  to  hoist  white  sails  instead  of 
black  ones,  whereat  Egeus,  thinking  him  dead,  threw  himself  into 
the  sea. 

1996.  Cast[eth].  The  manuscripts  have  'cast,'  the  shorter  form 
of  the  same  word,  as  '  hit"  for  'hideth.'  The  full  form  is  needed 
for  the  metre. 

2005.  office  Funeral,  'ofncium  funerale,'  burial  service. 

2016.  gloves  white.  Dr.  Skeat  notes  that  'white  gloves  were 
used  as  mourning  at  the  funeral  of  an  unmarried  person.'  But  here 
they  are  not  used  as  mourning,  but  in  arranging  the  body  of  Arcite 
for  lying  in  state. 

2019.  bare  the  visage.  Tyrwhitt  writes:  "If  this  expression 
were  in  Milton,  the  Criticks  would  not  fail  to  call  it  an  elegant 
Grsecism.  In  Chaucer  we  can  only  hope  that  it  may  be  allowed 
to  be  an  elegant  Anglicism.  Froissart  says  that  the  corpse  of  our 
Edward  III.  was  carried  'tout  au  long  de  la  cite  de  Londres,  a 
viaire  decouvert,  jusques  a  W estmonstier. '  v.  i.  c.  326." 

2035.  of  whiche  oon  baar  his  sheeld.  At  the  funeral  of  Sir 
Philip  Sidney,  as  depicted  in  Lant's  engraving  (1587),  the  hearse 
was  preceded  by  his  pennon  ;  his  warhorse,  ridden  by  a  page  trail 
ing  a  broken  lance  ;  his  riding  horse,  covered  with  cloth  of  gold, 
ridden  by  a  page  carrying  a  battle-axe  reversed  ;  his  banner  ;  his 


n8  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

spurs,  gauntlets,  helmet  and  crest,  the  hatchment  of  his  arms,  and 
his  coat  armour,  carried  severally  by  five  heralds  in  their  tabards. 

2037.  his  bowe  Turkeys  :  so  in  the  '  Roman  de  la  Rose '  Love  is 
said  to  have  '  deux  arcs  Turquois,'  line  924  [Tyrwhitt]. 

2039.  a  paas,  at  a  footpace  ;  cf.  Troilus,  li.  626  sq.  '  And  wounded 
was  his  hors,  and  gan  to  blede,  On  which  he  rood  a  pas,  ful  softely. ' 

2044.  maister  strete,  the  chief  street  of  the  city,  or  High  Street 
as  we  should  call  it ;  cf.  Legend  of  Good  Women,  1965,  '  toward  the 
maistre  strete  of  Athenes.' 

2045.  Bonder  hye  Right  of  the  same  is  al  the  strete  y-wrye  : 
all  the  street  is  covered  with  the  same  material  to  a  great  height,  i.e. 
the  houses  were  draped  in  black. 

2050.  Al  ful  of  hony,  milk,  and  blood,  and  wyn.     In  the  Greek 
^rites  libations  of  honey,  wine,  oil,  and  milk  were  brought  to  the 
tomb  on  the  third,  ninth,  and  thirtieth  day  after  the  funeral. 

2061.  But  how  the  fyr  was  maked  up  on  highte,  etc.  In  the 
sixth  book  of  the  Thebais,  Statius  gives  an  elaborate  account  of 
a  funeral,  enumerating  the  different  trees  of  which  the  pyre  was 
made.  Morell  and  later  commentators  have  duly  quoted  from  this 
and  from  other  ancient  authors.  But  the  refusal  of  Chaucer  to 
dwell  on  these  details  is  surely  a  proof  that  he  was  hurrying  towards 
his  conclusion  and  it  is  unlikely  that  he  went  in  search  of  other 
authorities  than  the  Teseide,  in  which  Boccaccio  draws  largely  from 
Statics.  It  may  even  be  doubted  whether  in  crowding  twenty-one 
trees  into  three  lines  (2063  sqq.)  Chaucer  concerned  himself  in  the 
least  with  what  had  been  written  before,  or  with  the  appropriateness 
of  those  he  names.  Trees  were  wanted  and  he  supplies  them  with 
a  rather  patently  careless  profusion. 

2076.  with  dry6  stikkes,  cloven  a  thre.  None  of  the  commen 
tators  explains  this  '  cloven  a  thre.' 

2iooetc.  lychewake  .  .  .  wake  pleyes.  Tyrwhitt  writes:  'The 
custom  of  watching  with  dead  bodies  (lice,  Saxon)  is  probably  very 
ancient  in  this  custom.  It  was  abused  as  other  vigils  were.  See 
Du  Cange,  in  v.  Vigiliae :  '  In  vigiliis  circa  corpora  mortuorum 
vetantur  choreae  et  cantilenae,  seculares  ludi  et  alii  turpes  et  fatui,' 
Synod.  Wigorn.  an.  1240,  c.  5.  Chaucer  seems  to  have  confounded 
the  Wake-plays,  as  they  were  called,  of  his  own  time  with  the 
Funeral  Games  of  the  Antients.  So  in  Troilus,  v.  303,  Troilus  says 
to  Pandarus : 

But  of  the  fire  and  flambe  funeral 

In  which  my  body  brennen  shal  to  glede, 

And  of  the  feste  and  playe's  palestral 

At  my  vigile  I  pray  thee  take  good  hede.' 

2109.  by  lengthe  of  certeyn  yeres,  see  note  to  1.  175.  Boccaccio 
is  content  to  speak  of  days  (XII.  3,  '  Ma  poiche  furon  piu  giorni 
passate,'  etc.).  ""  . 


NOTES 


119 


21 12.  Thanne  seined  me.  This  strange  phrase  may  be  a  lemi- 
niscence  of  Boccaccio's  '  parve'  in  the  lines  'Con  Teseo  essendo  gli 
Greci  adunati,  Parve  di  general  consentimento  Ch'  e'  tristi  pianti 
omai  fosser  lasciati ' — it  seemed  good  to  the  Greeks  in  council  to 
give  over  mourning.  Otherwise  we  can  only  explain  Chaucer's 
'  seemed  me '  as  a  relic  of  the  dream-form  in  which  he  cast  several 
of  his  earlier  poems.  Cf.  '  Saugh  I '  in  1.  1 137. 

2121.  in  hye,  in  haste. 

2129.  The  First6  Moevere  of  the  cause  above.  In  the  Teseide 
(xn.  7)  the  speech  of  Theseus  begins  with  the  similes  of  the  oak, 
the  stones  and  the  river,  which  are  duly  rehearsed  in  11.  2159  sqq.  But 
Chaucer  prefixes  thirty  lines  embodying  the  teaching  of  Boethius  in 
the  De  Consolatione  Philosophiae.  They  may  be  summarized  some 
what  as  follows  :  '  He  who  is  the  cause  of  all  causes,  and  who  has 
bound  together  the  elements  in  such  harmony  that  they  observe 
their  respective  limits,  hath  set  limits  also  to  the  lives  of  all 
terrestrial  creatures,  which  they  may  not  exceed.  That  He  himself  is 
eternal  we  know,  because  only  that  which  is  complete  and  eternal 
could  have  brought  into  existence  this  great  world  of  nature.  But 
the  creature  is  inferior  to  the  creator  and  so  is  corruptible  ;  where 
fore  God  has  ordained  that  the  types  He  has  ordained  should  be 
maintained  not  by  the  eternity  of  individual  examples  of  them,  bul 
by  a  consequent  succession  of  examples  preserving  and  develo]  ing 
the  type.'  Dr.  Liddell,  who  has  made  a  special  study  of  Chaucer's 
'  Boece,'  writes  :  '  firste  Moevere  of  the  cause  above  seems  to  be  a 
reminiscence  of  Boece,  1115  (Globe  Chaucer,  p.  401),  thilke 
devyne  substaunce  tornith  the  world  and  the  moveable  circle  of  things. 
The  apostrophe  itself  is  from  the  ninth  metre  of  the  third  book 
(Gl.  Ch.  p.  392),  O  qui  perpetua  mundum  ratione  gubernas.  The 
theology  of  the  Metrum  is  elaborately  explained  in  the  commentary 
on  it.  The  notions  which  Chaucer  uses  are  (i)  that  God  is  the 
mover  of  \he  primum  mobile  ;  (ii)  that,  while  the  first  cause  controls 
everything,  God  directs  everything  to  its  destined  end— the 
supreme  good.  Hence  the  rather  curious  expression  of  1.  2987. 
The  Metrum  goes  on  to  say  (in  Chaucer's  translation)  thoti  byndest 
the  elements  by  nombres  proporcionables,  that  the  coolde  thirties  mowen 
accord  with  the  hote  thinges  and  the  drye  thinges  with  the  moyste 
(i.e.  the  four  elements).  Chaucer  substitutes  the  cheyne  of  lcnie  for 
nombres  proporcionables,  making  use  of  Boethius'  notion  of  the 
immanence  of  love  in  the  universe  as  expressed  in  Book  u.,  metre 
viii.  (Gi.  Ch.  p.  379),  al  this  accordaunce  of  thinges  is  bounde  with 
IOTC.  He  then  passes  on  to  the  notion  of  the  relation  between 
Providence  and  Destiny,  Book  iv.  prosa  v\.,for  purvcance  is  thilke 
devyne  resoun  that  is  establissed  in  the  soveryn  prince  of  thinges.' 
The  argument  of  11.  2149  sqq.  Dr.  Liddell  traces  to  Book  in.  prosa 
x.  of  the  De  Consolatione. 

2172.  the  kyng  as  shal  a  page.  Chaucer  in  this  and  the  next 
two  lines  gives  the  thoughts  of  Boccaccio  his  own  colouring. 


120  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

2184.  To  maken  vertu  of  necessitee.    Chaucer  uses  this  phrase  in 
Troilus,  iv.  1586,  and  Squires  Tale  (F.  593),  and  it  occurs  in  the 
Roman  de  la  Rose.     But  he  is  here  translating  quite  literally  from 
Boccaccio  (xn.    n)  :  'E  per6  far  della  necessitate  Virtu  quando 
bisogna  e  sapienza,  Ed  il  contrario  e  chiara  vanitate'  (cf.  1.  2199). 

2185.  take   it  weel,  accept  cheerfully;  cf.  1.  226,  '  taak  al  in 
pacience.' 

2189.  And  certeinly  a  man  hath  moost  honour,  etc.    The  credit 
-^of  this  fine  passage  must  be  given  to  Boccaccio.     It  is  taken  with 
'some  alterations  from  Tes.  xn.  9. 

2214.  lastynge  evenno.     Theseus  is  bold. 

2225.  Lat  se  now  of  youre  wommanly  pitee.    Give  (an  example) 
of  your  compassion. 

2226.  a  kynges  brother  sone,  a  king's  bi other's  son.     Brother  is 
the  uninflected  genitive  like  '  fader  '  in  Prol.  771  :  '  Now  by  my  fader 
soule  that  is  ded.' 

2231.  to  passen  right,  to  do  more  than  strict  justice  can  demand. 

2242.  Sende  hym  his  love,  Chaucer's  prayer  goes  back  more  than 
two  thousand  years,  if  he  thought  about  his  chronology. 

2249.  Thus  endeth  Palamon  and  Emelye.  We  have  here  a  title 
for  the  story,  not  '  Palamon  and  Arcite '  but '  Palamon  and  Emelye,' 
and  the  title  shows  that  Chaucer  regarded  it  as  a  happy  love-story. 


ILLUSTRATIONS   OF   CHAUCER'S    GRAMMAR 

FROM   THE    "KNIGHT'S   TALE." 

BY  MARY  A.  TRIMEN,  M.A.  LOND. 

Bedford  College  (for  Women),  Lond. 


SUBSTANTIVES. 

I.  Examples  of  Substantives  possessing  a  fully-sounded  -e  final 
independent  of  inflection. 

(a)  Words  of  French  origin:  carte,  1183;  celle,  518;  chaunce, 
894;  cote-armure,  1302;  dispense,  1070;  doute,  464;  entente, 
629 ;  ese,  1 1 1  ;  face,  545  ',  feste,  48  (so  probably  in  1.  25  where 
it  comes  at  the  caesura) ;  grace,  374  ;  gyle,  1738  ;  gyse,  1279  ;  juge, 
1006;  myle,  1029;  noyse,  1666 ;  peyre,  1263;  reste,  1632;  sege, 
79 ;  tiompe,  1316. 

(&)  Words  of  English  origin :  bane  (bana),  239  ;  drinke  (drinc), 
612  ;  erthe  (eorthe),  388  ;  grove  (g~af),  620  (monosyllabic  in  656) ; 
halle  (heall),  1663;  hewe  (heow),  506;  hope  (hopa),  1577;  hunte 
(hunta),  1160;  larke  (lawerce),  1352;  love  (lufu),  767  (mono 
syllabic  in  896);  shepne  (scypen),  1142;  shame  (sceamu),  2192; 
speche  (sprsec),  513;  strengths  (strengthu),  1541  ;  tyme  (tima),  4. 

Note  turneyiuge,  1699,  a  French  word  with  English  suffix,  and 
goddesse,  1501,  an  English  word  with  French  suffix.  In  70 
goddesse  is  dissyllabic. 

II.  Inflections. 

(a)  Genitive  Singular  in  -es:  beres,  1284  ;  brondes,  1481  ;  dayes, 
771;  hertes,  823  (hart);  hertes,  1917  (heart);  lordes,  957;  loves, 
957;  lyves,  1537;  mannes,  1337;  nedes,  311;  swerdes,  1788; 
thankes,  768;  twynes,  1172;  ravenes,  1286;  worldes,  1981. 

Also  in  the  French  words :  clerkes,  305  ;  dukes,  1678. 

Note  uninflected  genitive  :  brother,  2226. 
121 


I22  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

(6)  Datives  in  -e:  arme,  1868;  borwe,  764;  blisse,  591;  upriste, 
I  en  ;  wyve,  1002. 

Note  that  croppe,  674,  and  gappe,  781,  may  be  dative  inflections, 
but  their  nominative  forms  seem  doubtful.  The  O.  E.  forms  are 
crop  and  geap. 

(c)  Plurals  in  -es :  armes,  99;  bones,  134;  clothes,  2026;  dayes, 
1878;    erles,     1324;    fyres,     1434;    gates,    1128;    helmes,    1642; 
knees,   245  (monosyllabic  in  900) ;    lesinges,   1069 ;   nayles,   1283  ; 
okes,   2008 ;    sykes,  1062 ;    stones,    1288 ;    shaftes,    1722 ;    tounes, 
2167;  waves,  noo;  giftes,  134. 

Also  in  words  of  French  origin:  aventures,  1586;  compagnyes, 
1731;  formes,  1455;  herbes,  1855;  listes,  855;  perles,  1308; 
toures,  1606. 

(d)  Plurals  in  -en  :  asshen,  444  ;  eyen,  505  ;  oxen,  29. 

(e)  Plurals  without  inflection :  yeer,  588. 


ADJECTIVES. 

I.  Adjectives  possessing  fully-sounded  -e  final  independent  of 
inflection.     Chaste,    1439;   dere,   376;   eterne,    1555;    faire,   653; 
false,  722;  felle,  701  ;  grene,  654;  huge,   2093;  leve>   326;  newe, 
1267;  riche,  6;  slake,  2043;  stronge,   1515;  swete,  1569;  trtwe, 
101  ;  tame,  1328  ;  wrecche. 

II.  Definite  forms  making  singular  in  -e.     The  beste   game, 
948;   the  blake  smoke,    1142;    his  crispe  heer,    1309;   the  derke 
cote,   1599;  this  foule  prison,   2203;  his  goode  tonge,    580;    this 
hole  fare,  951  ;  the  leste  strook,  843  ;  the  loude  minstralcye,  1813  ; 
myn  owne  name,  698;    the  pale  Saturnus,   1585;   the  same  wyse, 
882 ;    the   sterne   God,    1 583 ;   his   wyse   brest,    2125;    hir  yonge 
suster,  13. 

III.  Indefinite,  without  inflection.      In  ech   degree,   310;    fals 
Arcite,  287;  so  fel  leoun,  1772;  of  good  Arcite,  1997;  with  long 
sword,  1701  ;  pleyn  correccioun,   1603;  a  sad  visage,  2127;  short 
swerd,   1688. 

IV.  Plurals  in  -e.     Hir  bare  knees,  900 ;  his  bittre.  salte  teres, 
422  ;  drye  stokkes,   2076  ;   the  dede  bodyes,   84  ;   his  hole  fyres, 
2004 ;    kempe   heres,   1276;   the    pure    feltres,    421;    hir   queynte 
geres,  673;  smale   houndes,    1218;    stierne    stremes,    1752;   thise 
wete  brondes,  1480. 

V.  Comparatives.      Note   the   forms :    derre,    590 ;    gretter,    5 ; 
neer,  no;  wofullere,  482. 


ILLUSTRATIONS  OF  CHAUCER'S  GRAMMAR 


ADVERBS, 


123 


I.  In  -e.     Depe,  674;  evele,  269;  faire,  1736;  faste,  408 ;  hote, 
879;    longe,   685;    loude,    1704;    softe,    1923;    sodeynliche,   717; 
sore,  536;  stille,  477. 

II.  In   -ly.     Brenningly,   706;   certainly,  812;    falsly,  728;  fer- 
forthly,  102;  fully,  18 ;  gentilly,  2246;  hidously,  843;  oonly,  600; 
quitly,  934;   redily,    1418;   sadly,    1744;  sodeynly,   672;    utterly, 
705;  verraily,  316;  woodly,  443. 

III.  In    -ely.       Largely,     1050;    namely,    1019;    prively,    364; 
pourely,  554  ;  trewely,  409  ;  richely,  1323.      (N.B. — In  279  trewely 
is  dissyllabic.) 

IV.  In  -es.     Amiddes,    1151;    nones,    21;   ones,    176;    thryes, 
2094. 

V.  Comparatives.     Lenger,  718;  ferre,  1202. 


VERBS. 
I.  Present  Indicative. 

(a)  1st  sing,   in  -e :    axe,   881  ;    drede,   735;  kepe,    1380;  lete, 
465  ;  love,  1909  ;  make,  35  ;  mene,  1205  ;  pose,  304  ;  preye,  1458  ; 
putte,  1505:  recche,  540;  rede,  2213;  waille,  73. 

(b)  yd  sing,  in  -eth,   -th:    approcheth,   1237;    brenneth,   1546; 
carieth,     776;     doubleth,     440;     executeth,     806;     falleth,    811  ; 
gadereth,   195  ;   honoureth,   1858  ;   laugheth,   636  ;   meneth,    1429 ; 
presseth,  1672  ;  rometh,  261  ;  salueth,  634  ;  sitteth,  669 ;  stondeth, 
781  ;  tormenteth,  456;  wepeth,  363;  wilneth,  1706;  comth,  1350; 
doth,   141;    fle(e)th,   6ll;    goth,   213;    lyth,   360;    sle(e)th,   260; 
tak(e)th,  359. 

(c)  Contracted  form  of  yd  sing.:    brest,    1752;    list,   269;    rit, 
116;  sit,  741. 

(d)  Plural  in  -en  -e :  blowen,  1654  ;  clateren,  1501  ;  doon,  673  ; 
enduren,    1065 ;    folwen,    1824 ;    grucchen,    2200 ;    justen,    1628  ; 
liggen,  1347  ;  riden,  2039  5  seken,  408 ;  shiveren,  1747  ;  stomblen, 
!755;    tellen,    i;    to-hewen,    1751;    wepen,    913;    come,    1717; 
stryve,  319. 

(e)  Plural  in  -eth:   asketh,    1919;   goth,    1750;    meteth,    666; 
wepeth,   1972.     Greveth,   59 ;  may  be  plural,  or  singular  agreeing 
with  the  nearest  subject. 


124 


KNIGHT'S   TALE 


II.  Past  Indicative,     ist  and  yd  sing. 

(a)  Strong,      bigan,    496;    brak,    610  ;    eet,    1190; 

heeld,  1878;  held,  1667;  leep,  1829;  quod)a^9_j  rood,  1 08;  sal, 
1151  ;  sect,  1217  ;  saugh,  JJ24,  seigh,  208:  shook,  1407  ;  starf,  75^ 
slough,  122;  slow,  1608;  wex,  504;  wessh,  1425;  up-haf,  1570" 

(b)  Weak,     (i)  Answerde,  856;    caused,  237;   coude,  512  (also 
couthe,   1014);   coste,  1050;    deyed,  1985;  dusked,    1948;  failled, 
1948;    hadde,   330;    hente,    oxjj   made,    1859  (also  maked,    188) ; 
pulled,   740;  spedde,  359;    semed,  844;  touchede,   1703;    wered, 
1317;  weddede,  10.  -  (ii)  aboghte,  1445;  tolde,  201. 

(c)  Plural  in   -en   -e ;    (i)    Strong :    cryden,    jji ;    diden,    149 ; 
gloweden,    1274;    losten,    7Ji_;    wenten,    842   (also   wente,    1632); 
woneden,  2069  ;    (ii)  Weak  :  dronken,   1856 ;  gonne,  800  ;   helden, 
1659;  seten,  2035;  shullen,  2156. 

III.  Imperative  Present. 

(a)  2nd  sing.      Strong:    arys,    187;    ber,    1902;    chees,    737; 
foryet,  1939;  help,  7^;  hold,  1810;  sle,  863  ;  tak,  226;  yif,  1402; 
weep,  1612. 

Weak  :  (i)  do,  187  ;  far,  1882  ;  keep,  1444 ;  leen,  2224  ;  lat,  32, ; 
stint,  1490 ;  think,  748 ;  yif,  1402 ;  (ii)  have,  92 ;  rewe,  1375  ; 
sende,  1459 ;  torne,  1460. 

(b)  2nd plur.  :  (i)  considereth,  2163;  demeth,  495;  goth,  1700; 
herkneth,  985  ;  holdeth,  1010  ;  loketh,  940  ;  sayeth,  1010  ;  stinteth, 
1816  ;  telleth,  52;  trusteth,  1324;  (ii)  do,   1740;  fight,   1701;  ley, 
1700  ;  tak,  989  ;  se,  943. 

NOTE. — herkneth,  1924  and  leveth,  2230  are  plural  forms  used  to 
address  a  single  person. 

IV.  Infinitives  in  -en,  -n,  -e. 

(a)  amenden,    1338;    bresten,    1122;    clepen,    1872;    declaien, 
1498;  drawen,  1216;  enhauncen,  576;  faillen,  1947  ;  freten,  1161  ; 

"gladen,  1979 ;  hewen,  564  ;  letten,  3_i_;  loven,  736 ;  pypen,  980  ; 
stonden,  315;  suffren,  $y  •  taken,  1830;  thanken,  2211;  voyden, 
1893;  werreyen,  686 ; 'been,  284  (also  ben,  1890);  han,  18;  seen, 
263  ;  seyn,  293  ;  abyde,  1792  ;  breke,  Q6  ;  dye,  880 ;  dwelTe,  492  ; 
endure,  2156  ;  faille,  1940;  gete,  654  ;  helpe,  1791  ;  knowe,  2147  ; 
lese,  357  ;  wene,  797. 

(b)  Gerundial:  to  abyden,  63  ;  to  armen,  793;  to  dwellen,  165; 
to  esen,  1336  ;  to  fighten,  853  ;  to  letten,  459  ;  to  seken,  1729  ;  to 
shapen,   1683;  to  wenden,   1356;  to  been,  485;  to  doon,   135;  to 
goon,  349  ;  to  sleen,  364  ;  to  biholde,  443  ;  to  crye,  237  ;  to  make, 
2234  ;  to  pleye,  337  ;  to  wreke,  103. 


ILLUSTRATIONS  OF  CHAUCER'S  GRAMMAR     ^5 

V.  Past  Participles. 

Strong:  arisen,  183;  broken,  877;  born,  120;  chosen,  1251; 
corven,  1838  ;  cloven,  2076  ;  driven,  1869 ;  founden,  754 ;  goon, 
553;  misboden,  jy,;  rad,  1737;  slayn,  134;  sprad,  2045;  seten, 
1033  ;  songen,  671  ;  to-brosten,  1833  ;  ungolden,  1784  ;  fordo,  702  ; 
shape,  985,  stole,  1769;  y-grounde,  1691. 

Weak:  (i)  arrayed,  531;  apayd,  1010 ;  brent,  2099;  couched, 
2075;  disgysed,  554;  diched,  1030;  feld,  2066;  hust,  2123; 
inned,  1334;  kembd,  1285;  lad,  1762;  maked,  389  (also  maad, 
613) ;  suffised,  375  ;  shent,  1896  ;  thirled,  1852 ;  winged,  527  ;  (ii) 
aboght,  2242  ;  broght,  632  ;  wroght,  154. 


APPENDIX. 

CHAUCER'S      USE     OF     THE     TESEIDE     IN     OTHER 
POEMS 

I. 

THE  COMPLEYNTE  OF  FAIRE  ANELIDA  AND 
FALSE  ARCITE.1 

THOU  ferse  God  of  armes,  Mars  the  rede, 
That  in  the  frosty  contree  called  Trace, 
Within  thy  grisly  temple  ful  of  drede, 
Honoured  art,  as  patroun  of  that  place  ! 
With  thy  Bellona,  Pallas,  ful  of  grace  ! 
Be  present,  and  my  song  contynue  and  gye. 
At  my  begynnyng  thus  to  the  I  crye. 

For  hit  ful  depe  is  sonken  in  my  mynde, 
With  pitous  herte,  in  Englysh  for  tendyte 
This  olde  storie,  in  Latyn  which  I  fynde,  10 

Of  quene  Anelyda  and  fals  Arcite, 
That  elde,  which  that  al  can  frete  and  bite, — 
As  hit  hath  freten  mony  a  noble  storie, — 
Hath  nygh  devoured  out  of  our  memorie. 

Be  favorable  eek,  thou  Polymnya, 
On  Painaso  that  with,  thy  sustres  glade, 
By  Elicon,  not  fer  from  Cirrea, 

1  For  the  first  three  stanzas  cp.  Teseide  I.,  st.  3,  2,  and  i.  Lines  22-40  follow 
Statius  and  the  Teseide  jointly.  Lines  50-70  are  taken  from  Teseide  II., 
st.  10-12.  After  this  Chaucer  goes  off  on  his  own  track. 

126 


APPENDIX  127 

Syngest  with  vois  memorial  in  the  shade, 

Under  the  laurer  which  that  may  not  fade, 

And  do  that  I  my  shippe  to  haven  wynne.  2O 

First  folwe  I  Stace,  and  after  him  Corynne. 


[The  Story] 

When  Theseus,  with  werres  longe  and  grete, 
The  aspre  folk  of  Cithe  hadde  overcome, 
With  laurer  crouned,  in  his  char  gold-bete, 
Home  to  his  contre  houses  is  y-come  ; 
For  which  the  peple,  blisful  al  and  somme, 
So  cryden,  that  un-to  the  sterres  hit  wente, 
And  him  to  honouren  dide  al  hir  entente. 

Beforn  this  duke,  in  signe  of  hy  victorie, 
The  trompes  come,  and  in  his  baner  large,  30 

The  ymage  of  Mars  ;  and  in  tokenyng  of  glorie, 
Men  myghte  seen  of  tresor  mony  a  charge, 
Mony  a  bright  helm,  and  mony  a  spere  and  targe, 
Mony  a  fresh  knyght,  and  mony  a  blisful  route, 
On  hors,  and  fote,  in  al  the  felde  aboute. 

Ipolita,  his  wyf,  the  hardy  quene 
Of  Cithia,  that  he  conquered  hadde, 
With  Emelye  her  yonge  suster  shene, 
Faire  in  a  char  of  golde  he  with  hym  ladde, 
That  al  the  ground  aboute  her  char  she  spradde  40 

Writh  brightnesse  of  the  beautee  in  her  face, 
Fulfilled  of  largesse  and  of  al  grace. 

With  his  tryumph,  and  laurer-crouned  thus, 
In  al  the  floure  of  fortunes  yevynge, 
Lete  I  this  noble  prince,  this  Theseus, 
Toward  Athenes  in  his  wey  ridynge, 
And  founde  I  wol  in  shortly  for  to  hrynge 
The  slye  wey  of  that  I  gan  to  write, 
Of  quene  Anelida  and  fals  Arcite. 


128  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

Mars,  which  that  through  his  furious  course  of  yre,  50 
The  olde  wrath  of  Juno  to  fulfille, 
Hath  set  the  peples  hertes  bothe  on  fire 
Of  Thebes  and  Grece,  eche  other  for  to  kille 
With  blody  speres,  ne  rested,  never  stille, 
But  throng  now  her,  now  ther,  among  hem  bothe, 
That  everych  other  slough,  so  were  they  wrothe. 

For  when  Amphiorax  and  Tyde'us, 
Ipomedon,  Parthonopee  also 
Were  dede,  and  slawen  proud  Campaneus, 
And  when  the  wrecched  Thebans  bretheren  two  60 

Were  slayn,  and  kyng  Adrastus  home  a-go, 
So  desolat  stood  Thebes  and  so  bare, 
That  no  wyght  coude  remedie  of  his  tare. 

And  when  that  olde  Creon  gan  espye 
How  that  the  blood  roial  was  broght  adoun, 
He  held  the  cite  by  his  tyrannye, 
And  dide  the  gentils  of  that  regioun 
To  ben  his  frendes,  and  wonnen  in  the  toun. 
So,  what  for  love  of  him,  and  what  for  awe, 
The  noble  folk  wer  to  the  toune  y-dr,awe.  7° 

Among  al  these,  Anelida  the  quene 
Of  Ermony  was  in  that  toune  duellynge, 
That  fairer  was  then  is  the  sonne  shene  ; 
Throughout  the  world  so  gan  her  name  sprynge, 
That  her  to  seen  had  every  wyght  likynge  ; 
For,  as  of  trouthe,  ther  is  noon  her  liche, 
Of  al  the  women  in  this  worlde  riche. 

Yong  was  this  quene,  of  twenty  yeer  of  elde, 
Of  mydel  stature,  and  of  swich  fairnesse, 
That  Nature  had  a  joye  hir  to  behelde  ;  80 

And  for  to  speken  of  her  stidfastnesse, 
She  passed  hath  Penelope  and  Lucresse, 
And  shortly,  yf  she  shal  be  comprehended, 
In  her  ne  myghte  nothing  been  amended. 


APPENDIX 


129 


This  Theban  knyght  [Arcite]  eek,  soth  to  seyn, 
Was  yonge,  and  ther-withal  a  lusty  knyght, 
But  he  was  double  in  love,  and  nothyng  pleyn, 
And  subtil  in  that  crafte  over  any  wyght, 
And  with  his  cunnyng  wan  this  lady  bright : 
For  so  ferforth  he  can  hir  trouthe  assure,  90 

That  she  him  trust  over  any  creature. 

What  shulde  I  seyn  ?     She  lovede  Arcite  so 
That  when  that  he  was  absent  any  throwe, 
Anon  hir  thoghte  hir  herte  brast  a-two? 
For  in  hir  sight  to  hir  he  bar  him  lowe, 
So  that  she  wende  have  al  his  herte  y-knowe  ; 
But  he  was  fals,  hit  nas  but  feyned  chere, — 
As  nedeth  not  to  men  such  craft  to  lere  ! 

But  natheles  ful  mychel  besynesse 

Hadde  he,  er  that  he  myghte  his  lady  wynne,  100 

And  swor  he  wolde  dyen  for  distresse, 
Or  from  his  wyte,  he  seyde,  he  wolde  twynne. 
(Alas  the  while  !  for  hit  was  routhe  and  synne,) 
That  she  upon  his  sorwes  wolde  rewe, 
But  nothyng  thenketh  the  fals  as  doth  the  trewe. 

Hir  fredom  fond  Arcite  in  swich  manere, 
That  al  was  his  that  she  hath,  moche  or  lyte  ; 
Ne  to  no  creature  ne  made  she  chere, 
Ferther  than  that  it  lykede  to  Arcite  ; 
Ther  was  no  lak  with  which  he  myghte  hir  wyte,         no 
She  was  so  ferforth  yeven  him  to  plese, 
That  al  that  lykede  him  it  dide  hir  ese. 

Ther  nas  to  hir  no  maner  lettre  y-sent 
That  touched  love,  from  eny  maner  wyght, 
That  she  ne  shewed  hit  him  er  hit  was  brent ; 
So  pleyn  she  was,  and  dide  hir  fulle  myght, 
That  she  nyl  hiden  nothyng  from  her  knyght, 
Lest  he  of  any  untrouth  hir  upbreyde  ; 
Withoute  bode  his  heste  she  obeyde. 
I 


130 


KNIGHT'S   TALE 

And  eek  he  made  him  jelous  over  here,  120 

That  what  that  eny  man  hadde  to  hir  seyd, 
Anoon  he  wolde  preyen  hir  to  swere 
What  was  that  word,  or  make  him  evel  apaid  • 
Then  wende  she  out  of  her  wyt  have  brayd. 
But  al  this  nas  but  sleight  and  flaterie  ; 
Withouten  love,  he  feyned  jelousye. 

And  al  this  took  she  so  debonairly, 
That  al  his  wylle,  hir  thoghte  hit  skilful  thyng  ; 
And  ever  the  lenger  she  loved  him  tenderly, 
And  dide  him  honour  as  he  were  a  kyng.  130 

Hir  herte  was  to  him  wedded  with  a  ring  ; 
So  ferforth  upon  trouthe  is  hir  entente, 
That  vvher  he  goth,  hir  herte  with  him  wente. 

When  she  shal  ete,  on  him  is  so  hir  thoght, 
That  wel  unnethe  of  mete  took  she  kepe  ; 
And  whan  that  she  was  to  her  reste  broght, 
On  him  she  thoghte  alwey  til  that  she  sleep 
When  he  was  absent,  prevely  she  weep. 
Thus  lyveth  fair  Anelida  the  quene, 
For  fals  Arcite,  that  dide  her  al  this  tene.  140 

This  fals  Arcite,  of  his  newfangelnesse, 
For  she  to  him  so  lowly  was  and  trewe, 
Took  lesse  deyntee  for  her  stedfastnesse, 
And  saw  another  lady,  proud  and  newe, 
And  right  anon  he  cladde  him  in  hir  hewe, — 
Wot  I  not  whether  in  white,  rede,  or  grene, — 
And  falsed  fair  Anelida  the  quene. 

But  nathelesse,  gret  wonder  was  hit  noon 
Thogh  he  were  fals,  for  hit  is  kynde  of  man, 
Sith  Lamek  was,  that  is  so  longe  agoon,  150 

To  been  in  love  as  fals  as  ever  he  can  ; 
He  was  the  firste  fader  that  began 
To  loven  two,  and  was  in  bigamye. 
And  he  found  tentes  first,  but  if  men  lye. 


APPENDIX  I3I 

This  fals  Arcite  somwhat  moste  he  feyne 
When  he  was  fals,  to  covere  his  traitorye, 
Right  as  an  hors,  that  can  both  bite  and  pleyne; 
For  he  bar  hir  on  honde  of  trecherye, 
And  swoor  he  coude  her  doublenesse  espye, 
And  al  was  falsnes  that  she  to  him  mente  ;  160 

Thus  swoor  this  theef,  and  forth  his  way  he  wente. 

Alas  !  what  herte  myghte  enduren  hit, 
For  routhe  or  wo,  hir  sorwe  for  to  telle  ? 
Or  what  man  hath  the  cunnyng  or  the  wyt  ? 
Or  what  man  myghte  within  the  chambre  duelle, 
If  I  to  him  rehersen  shal  the  helle 
That  suffreth  fair  Anelida  the  quene 
For  fals  Arcite,  that  dide  her  al  this  tene  ? 

She  wepeth,  waileth,  swouneth  pitously, 
To  grounde  deed  she  falleth  as  a  stoon  ;  1 70 

Al  crampissheth  her  lymes  crokedly  ; 
She  speketh  as  hir  wyt  were  al  agoon  ; 
Other  colour  then  asshen  hath  she  noon, 
Non  other  word  she  speketh  moche  or  lyte, 
But  '  Mercy  !  cruel  herte  myn,  Arcite  ! ' 

And  thus  endureth,  til  she  was  so  mate 
That  she  ne  hath  foot,  on  which  she  may  sustene, 
But  forth,  languisshing  evere  in  this  estate, 
Of  which  Arcite  hath  nother  routhe  ne  tene  ; 
His  herte  is  elleswher  so  newe  and  grene,  180 

That  on  hir  wo  ne  deyneth  him  not  to  thinke, 
Him  rekketh  never  wher  she  flete  or  synke. 

His  newe  lady  holdeth  him  so  narwe 
Up  by  the  brydel,  at  the  staves  ende, 
That  every  word  he  dradde  hit  as  an  arwe  ; 
Hir  daunger  made  him  bothe  bowe  and  bende, 
And  as  hir  liste,  made  him  turne  or  wende  ; 
For  she  ne  graunted  him  in  her  lyvynge 
No  grace,  why  that  he  hath  lust  to  synge  ; 


I32  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

But  drof  him  forth,  unnethe  liste  hir  knowe  190 

That  he  was  servaunt  to  her  ladishippe  ; 
But  lest  that  he  wer  proude,  she  helde  him  lowe. 
Thus  serveth  he,  withouten  fee  or  shipe 
She  sent  him  now  to  londe,  now  to  shippe  ; 
And  for  she  yaf  him  daunger  al  his  fille, 
Therfor  she  hadde  him  at  her  owne  wille. 

Ensample  of  this,  ye  thrifty  wymmen,  alle, 
Take  here  of  Anelida  and  fals  Arcite, 
That  for  hir  liste  him  '  dere  herte  '  calle, 
And  was  so  meke,  therfor  he  loved  hir  lyte  ;  200 

The  kynde  of  mannes  herte  is  to  delyte 
In  thyng  that  straunge  is,  also  God  me  save  ! 
For  what  he  may  not  gete,  that  wolde  he  have. 

Now  turne  we  to  Anelida  ageyn, 
That  pyneth  day  be  day  in  languisshyng : 
But  when  she  saw  that  hir  ne  gat  no  geyn, 
Upon  a  day,  ful  sorwfully  wepyng, 
She  caste  hir  for  to  make  a  compleynyng ; 
And  with  her  owne  hond  she  gan  hit  wryte, 
And  sente  it  to  her  Theban  knyght  Arcite.  2IO 

11.  211-350  contain  Anelida's  Complaint,  which,  as  it  does  not  affect  the 
story,  need  not  be  here  printed.  At  the  end  of  the  Complaint  is  the  following 
stanza  : 

Whan  that  Anelida,  this  woful  quene, 
Hath  of  her  hancle  writen  in  this  wyse, 
With  face  deed,  betwyxe  pale  and  grene, 
She  fel  a-swowe  ;  and  sith  she  gan  to  rise, 
And  unto  Mars  avoweth  sacrifise 
Within  the  temple,  with  a  sorwful  chere, 
That  shapen  was,  as  ye  shal  after  here. 

This  seems  to  be  intended  to  lead  up  to  a  description  of  the  Temple  of  Mars 
(cp.  Knightes  Tale,  11.  1112-92).  Apparently  Anelida  intended  to  pray  to  the  God 
of  War  for  vengeance  on  Arcite,  and  Chaucer  may  have  planned  for  Palamon  to 
be  sent  as  her  champion,  thus  working  round  to  a  Tournament  with  Palamon 
and  Arcite  as  the  chief  combatants.  But  here  he  broke  off,  and  guessing  is 
only  fruitless. 


APPENDIX 


133 


II. 

SIXTEEN  STANZAS  FROM  THE  PARLEMENT  OF  FOULES. 
11.  183-294.! 

A  garden  saw  I  ful  of  blosmy  bowes 
Up-on  a  river  in  a  grene  mede, 
There  as  ther  swetnesse  evermore  y-now  is  ; 
With  floures  white,  blewe,  yelwe,  and  rede, 
And  colde  welle-stremes,  no-thyng  dede, 
That  swommen  ful  of  smale  fisches  lighte, 
With  fynnes  rede  and  scales  silver-brighte. 

On  every  bough  the  briddes  herde  I  synge,  190 

With  voys  of  aungel  in  her  armonye  ; 
Som  besyede  hem  hir  briddes  forth  to  brynge. 
The  litel  conyes  to  hir  pley  gunne  hye  ; 
And  further  al  aboute  I  gan  aspye 
The  dredful  roo,  the  buk  the  hert  and  hynde, 
Squerels  and  bestes  smale  of  gentil  kynde. 

Of  instruments  of  strenges  in  acord 
Herde  I  so  pleye  a  ravisshyng  swetnesse, 
That  God,  that  maker  is  of  al  and  Lord, 
Ne  herde  never  beter,  as  I  gesse  ;  200 

Therwith  a  wynd,  unnethe  it  myghte  be  lesse, 
Made  in  the  leves  grene  a  noyse  softe, 
Acordant  to  the  foules  songe  on-lofte. 

The  air  of  that  place  so  attempre  was 
That  never  was  grevaunce  of  hoot  ne  cold  ; 
There  wex  eek  every  holsom  spice  and  gras  ; 
Ne  no  man  may  ther  wexe  seek  ne  old, 
Yit  was  ther  joye  more  a  thousand  fold 
Than  man  can  telle  ;  ne  never  wolde  it  nyghte, 
But  ay  cleer  day  to  any  mannes  sighte.  210 

iWith  11.  183-259  cp.  Teseide  VII.,  st.  51-60;  with  11.  260-280,  tt>.  st.  63-66; 
with  11.  281-294,  ib.  st.  61-62.  The  Italian  text  and  a  literal  translation  are  given 
in  Skeat's  The  Works  of  Geoffrey  Chaucer,  Vol.  i.  pp.  68-73. 


'34 


KNIGHT'S   TALE 

Under  a  tre  beside  a  welle,  I  say 
Cupide  our  lord  his  arwes  forge  and  file 
And  at  his  fet  his  bowe  al  redy  lay, 
And  Wille  his  doyhter  temprede  al  this  while 
The  hedes  in  the  welle  ;  and  with  hir  wyle 
She  couchede  hem  after  as  they  shulde  serve, 
Som  for  to  slee,  and  som  to  wounde  and  kerve. 

Tho  was  I  war  of  Plesaunce  anon -right, 
And  of  Aray  and  Lust  and  Curtesye, 
And  of  the  Craft  that  can  and  hath  the  myght  220 

To  doon  be  force  a  wyght  to  doon  folye ; 
Disfigurat  was  she,  I  nyl  not  lye  ; 
And  by  him-self,  under  an  ok  I  gesse, 
Saw  I  Delyt  that  stood  with  Gentilesse. 

I  saw  Beaute,  withouten  any  atyr  ; 
And  Youthe,  ful  of  game  and  Jolyte  ; 
Fool-hardinesse,  Flatery  and  Desyr, 
Messagerye  and  Mede  and  other  three, — 
Hir  names  shal  not  here  be  told  for  me, — 
And  upon  pilers  grete  of  Jasper  longe,  230 

I  saw  a  temple  of  bras  y-founded  stronge. 

Aboute  the  temple  daunseden  alwey 
Wommen  y-nowe,  of  whiche  somme  ther  were 
Faire  of  hem-self,  and  somme  of  hem  were  gay; 
In  kirtels,  al  disshevele  wente  they  there, — 
That  was  hir  office  alwey,  yeer  be  yere, — 
And  on  the  temple  of  doves  white  and  faire 
Saw  I  sittynge  many  an  hundred  peire. 

Be-fore  the  temple  dore,  ful  soberly, 
Dame  Pees  sat  with  a  curteyn  in  hir  hond,  240 

And  hir  besyde,  wonder  discretly, 
Dame  Pacience  sittyng  ther  I  fond 
With  face  pale,  up-on  an  hille  of  sond  ; 
And  aldernext  within  and  eek  with-oute, 
Beheste  and  Art,  and  of  hir  folk  a  route. 


APPENDIX 


135 


Within  the  temple,  of  syghes  hole  as  fyr 
I  herde  a  swogh  that  gan  aboute  renne  ; 
Whiche  sighes  were  engendred  with  desyr 
That  maden  every  auter  for  to  brenne 
Of  newe  flaume  ;  and  wel  espyed  I  thenne  250 

That  al  the  cause  of  sorwes  that  they  drye 
Com  of  the  bitter  goddesse  Jelousye. 

The  god  Priapus  saw  I  as  I  wente 
Within  the  temple,  in  sovereyn  place  stonde 
In  swich  aray  as  whan  the  asse  him  shente, 
With  cry  by  nyght,  and  with  his  ceptre  in  honde. 
Ful  besily  men  gunne  assaye  and  fonde. 
Up-on  his  hede  to  sette,  of  sondry  hewe 
Garlondes  ful  of  freshe  floures  newe. 

And  in  a  privee  corner  in  desporte  260 

Fond  I  Venus  and  hir  portere  Richesse, 
That  was  ful  noble  and  hauteyn  of  hir  porte ; 
Derk  was  that  place,  but  afterward  lightnesse 
I  saw  a  lyte,  unnethe  it  myghte  be  lesse, 
And  on  a  bed  of  gokle  she  lay  to  reste 
Til  that  the  note  sonne  gan  to  weste. 

Hir  gilte  heres  with  a  golden  thred 
Y-bounden  were,  untressed  as  she  lay, 
And  naked  fro  the  breste  unto  the  hed 
Men  myghte  hir  seen  ;  and  sothly  for  to  say,  270 

The  remenaunt  was  wel  kevered  to  my  pay, 
Right  with  a  subtil  kerchef  of  Valence, 
Ther  nas  no  thikker  cloth  of  no  defence. 

The  place  yaf  a  thousand  savours  swote, 
And  Bachus,  god  of  wyn,  sat  hir  besyde, 
And  Ceres  next,  that  doth  of  hungir  bote  ; 
And  as  I  seyde,  amyddes  lay  Cypride, 
To  whom,  on  knees  two  yonge  folkes  cryde 
To  ben  hir  help  ;  but  thus  I  let  hir  lye, 
And  ferther  in  the  temple  I  gan  espye  280 


I36  KNIGHT'S   TALE 

That,  in  dispit  of  Diane  the  chaste, 
Ful  many  a  bow  y-broke  heng  on  the  wal, 
Of  maydens  swiche  as  gunne  hir  tymes  waste 
In  hir  servyse ;  and  peynted  overal 
Ful  many  a  story  of  which  I  touche  shal 
A  fewe,  as  of  Calyxte  and  Athalante, 
And  many  a  mayde  of  which  the  name  I  wante  : 

Semyramus,  Candace  and  Hercules, 
Biblis,  Dido,  Thisbe,  and  Piramus, 

Tristram,  Isoude,  Paris,  and  Achilles,  290 

Eleyne,  Cleopatre,  and  Troilus, 
Silla,  and  eke  the  moder  of  Romulus, — 
Alle  these  were  peynted  on  that  other  syde. 
And  al  hir  love,  and  in  what  plyt  they  dyde. 


III. 

THREE  STANZAS  FROM   TROILUS. 
Book  V.     1 807- 1 827. l 

And  whan  that  he  was  slayn  in  this  manere 
His  lighte  goost  ful  blissfully  is  went 
Up  to  the  holwnesse  of  the  eighte  spere, 
In  convers  leting  everich  element :  1810 

And  ther  he  saugh  with  ful  avisement 
Th'  erratik  sterres,  herkning  armonye 
With  sounes  fulle  of  hevenissh  melodye. 

And  down  from  thennes  faste  he  gan  avise 
This  litel  spot  of  erthe  that  with  the  see 
Embraced  is,  and  fully  gan  despise 
This  wrecched  world,  and  held  al  vanite 
To  respect  of  the  pleyne  felicite 
That  is  in  hevene  above.     And  at  the  laste, 
Ther  he  was  slayn  his  loking  down  he  caste.  1820 

1  Cp.  Teseide  xi.  1-3. 


APPENDIX 

And  in  himself  he  lough  right  at  the  wo 
Of  hem  that  wepen  for  his  deth  so  faste, 
And  dampned  al  our  werk,  that  folwen  so 
The  blinde  lust  the  whiche  that  may  not  laste, 
And  sholden  al  our  herte  on  hevene  caste. 
And  forth  he  wente,  shortly  for  to  telle 
Ther-as  Merciirie  sorted  him  to  dwelle. 


137 


GLOSSARY. 


NOTE. — y  in  the  middle  of  a  word  is  arranged  as  i. 


A,  prep,  weakened  form  of  on  ; 
a  tJtrs,  2076 ;  a-nyght,  184, 
1149;  a-morzve,  763;  a-day, 

1765- 

abyden,  v.  abide,  await,  69. 
abiden,  p.p.  waited,  2 1 24. 
abood,  sb.  abiding,  delay,  107. 
aboughte,  3.  s.  pret.  (from  a  by), 

paid  for,   1445 ;  aboght,  /./. 

2242. 

aboute,  adv.  in  turn,  32. 
abregge,  v.  to  abridge,  shorten, 

2141    (O.    Fr.  abregier,    Lat. 

abbrevtare). 

accomplice,  v.  accomplish,  2006. 
accord,   sb.   agreement,    decree, 

2224. 
acorded,   -fr.p.  agreed,    decreed, 

356. 

adamant,  attnamaunt,  sb.  iron 
stone,  1132,  447. 
a-day,  in  the  day,  1765. 
Adoon,  Adonis,  1366. 
adoun,  adv.  down,  132. 
afered,  p.p.  (from  a/ere)  afeard, 

afraid,  660. 
affeccioun,    sb.     affection,     the 

mental   emotion  produced  by 

anything,  300. 

agayn,  prep,  against,  1593  ;  to 
wards,  1822. 
agast,  /./.  terrified,  1483  (from   j 

O.  E.  gaestan,  to  frighten,  with    | 


intensive  a.  The  incorrect 
spelling  aghast  seems  to  ap 
pear  first  in  Spenser). 

agaste,  3,  s.  pret.  frightened, 
hym  agaste,  refl.  took  fright, 
1566. 

agon,  agoon,  /./.  agone,  gone, 
418,  924  ;  ago,  955. 

agreved,  /./.  aggrieved,  dis 
pleased,  1199. 

aiel,  sb.  grandfather,  1619  (Fr. 
aieul,  Lat.  aviolus,  dim.  of 
avus). 

al,  adj.  all,  16  ;  al,  adv.  wholly, 
814  ;  although,  313. 

alauntz,  sb.  pi.  wolfhounds, 
1290  (O.  Fr.  a/an,  Med.  Lat. 
alanus). 

alighte,  3  s.  pret.  dismounted, 
halted,  125. 

alle,  adj.  pi.  all,  54. 

allegge,  v.  to  allege,  quote, 
2142.  (An  interesting  note 
in  the  N.E.D.  shows  that  this 
word  which  must  have  been 
derived  from  a  Latin  exlitigare 
though  O.  Fr.  alegier,  to  clear 
up  at  law,  took  over  the  mean 
ing  of  the  Lat.  allegare,  Fr. 
alleguer. ) 

alliaunce,  sb.  alliance,  2115. 

amadriades,  sb.  pi.  hamadryads, 

.     2070. 


138 


GLOSSARY 


139 


amenden,  v.  to  amend,  improve, 
cure,  2216;  amended,  /./.  52. 

a-morwe,  on  the  morrow,  763. 

angwissh,  sb.  anguish,  172. 

a  nyght,  at  (lit.  on)  night, 
1149. 

tuioon,  adv.  anon,  at  once,  107 
(O.E.  on  dne,  in  one). 

apayd,  p.p.  (from  apay)  pleased, 
contented,  ioio(O.  Fi.apaier, 
late  Lat.  ad-pacare). 

apalled,  /./.  made  pale,  en 
feebled,  2195  (O.  FT.  apalir). 

apparaillynge,  sb.  preparation, 
2055  (O.  Fr.  apareiller). 

aretted,  p.p.  accounted,  1871 
(O.  Fr.  areler,  Lat.  reputare). 

arys,  2  s.  imper.  a.rise._jSy. 

armen,  v.  to  arm,  793. 

armes,  sb.  (pi.  used  as  sing.) 
armour ;  in  oon  armes,  in 
armour  of  the  same  fashion, 
or  bearing  the  same  heraldic 
device,  154. 

arm-greet,  big  as  a  man's  arm, 
1287. 

armypotente,  adj.  mighty  in 
arms,  1124  (Lat.  armipotens). 

array,  sb.  raiment,  clothing,  76, 
550 ;  disposition,  condition, 
arrangement,  680,  1341. 

arrayed,  p.p.  arranged,  2009. 

arreest,  sb.  arrest,  452. 

arrest,  sb.  socket,  or  '  stop,'  of  a 
spear,  1744,  apparently  only 
used  in  this  phrase  (O.  F.  ares/). 

ars-metrik,  sb.  arithmetic,  1040 
(as  if  from  Latin  ars  metrica, 
or  'measuring  art,'  instead  of 
from  Greek  apid/Mimcf]). 

artow,  art  thou,  283,  293. 

arwes,  sb.  arrows,  1108. 

aslaked,  p.p.  slackened,  abated, 
appeased,  902. 

aspe,  sb.  aspen  tree,  2063. 

aspect,  sb.  planetary  relation.  220. 

assayed,  p.p.  tried,  tested,  953 
(O.  Fr.  assaier). 


assaut,  sb.  assault,  131  (O.  Fr. 

assaut,  from  Lat.  ad+sultare). 
asseged,  p.p.  besieged,  23  (O. 

Fr.jOKgwy,  late  Lat.  assegiare). 
asshen,  sb.  pi.  ashes,  444,  506. 
assureth,    3    s.   pret.    insures, 

makes  certain,  68. 
asterte,     v.     to    escape,     737 ; 

astert,  /./.  734. 
astoned,  /./.  astonished,   1503. 

(Deriv.  uncertain). 
at-rede,  v.  to  outwit,  surpass  in 

advice,   1591  (cp.  Troilus,  iv. 

I456)- 

at-renne,  v.  to  outrun,  1591. 

atte,  at  the.  261. 

Atthalante,  Atalanta,  1212. 

atthamaunt,  sb.  adamant,  447. 

Attheon,  Actaeon,  1207. 

auctoritee,  sb.  authority,  2142. 

auter,  sb.  altar,  1047  (O.  Fr. 
outer,  Mod.  Fr.  autel;  Lat. 
altare}. 

avauntage,  sb.  advantage,  435 
(Fr.  avantage,  the  erroneous 
introduction  of  a  d,  as  if  from 
a  Latin  word  beginning  with 
the  preposition  ad,  instead  of 
abante,  appears  in  English 
early  in  the  i6th  century). 

aventure,  sb.  adventure,  acci 
dent,  chance,  216,  302,  328 
(Fr.  aventure,  ~L,&t.adventura, 
the  d  in  which  begins  to  re 
appear  in  the  English  form 
towards  the  end  of  the  I5th 
century). 

avys,  sb.  advice,  opinion,  1010 
(Fr.  avis,  Lat.  advisutn,  the  d 
in  which  reappears  in  English 
at  end  of  I5th  century). 

avow,  sb.  vow,  1379. 

axe,  i  s.  pres.  ask,  489  (O.E. 
acsiari). 

axyng,  sb.  asking,  request,  968. 

ay,  adv.  always,  ever,  325. 

ayeyn,  adv.  again,  34  ;  ayeyns, 
prep,  towards,  65 1  .against, 929. 


140 


KNIGHT'S   TALE 


baar,  bar,  3  s.  pret.  bore,  carried, 

322,  529.     (See  bere,  v.). 
taak,  sb.  back,  IQ2. 
balled,  adj.  bald,  1660. 
bane,  sb.  death,  deadly  wound, 

239,  823  (O.E.  bana). 
baner,  sb.  banner,  a  large  square 

flag,  1 08  (O.  Fr.  banere}. 
barbour,  sb.  barber,  1167  (O.  Fr. 

barbeor}. 

bareyne,  adj.  barren,  386. 
bataille,  sb.  battle,  21,150. 
bauderie,  sb.  gaiety,  1068  (O.F. 

bander ie}. 

beautee,  sb.  beauty,  _ 
bedde,  sb.  bed,  1143. 
been,  v.  to  be,  52. 
been,  3  //.  pres.  are,  29,  53. 
beerd,   berd,   sb.    beard,    1272, 

1557- 
beere,  sb.  bier,  2013  (O.E.  beer, 

connected     with     beran  —  to 

carry), 
beete,   v.    kindle,    1395   (O.E. 

betan). 
Belmarye,  a  Moorish  kingdom 

in  Africa,  1772. 
ben,/./,  been,  71. 
bente,  sb.  grassy  slope,  hill-side, 

1123. 
bere,  sb.  bear,  782 ;  beres,  //. 

1 1 60. 
bere,   v.   to   bear,    carry,    564 ; 

ber,  2  s.  imper.  carry,  1902  ; 

thurgh    bere,     pierce,     1398 

(O.E.  beran). 
best,  sb.  beast,  1118  (O.F.  beste, 

Mod.  bete,  Lat.  bestia). 
bi,  prep.  by,^2o6. 
bibledde,    /./.     covered     with 

blood,  1 144. 

byde,  v.  to  abide,  wait,  718. 
bifel,  3  s.  pret.  befell,  happened, 

bifore,  biforn,  prep.  before.juS. 

290. 

bigan,  i  s.  pret.  began,  496. 
bigonne, /./.  begun,  1315. 


bihynde,  prep,  behind, 

biliolde,  v.  behold,  443,  1435. 

bihoold,  2  5.  imper.  behold,  942, 
1468. 

bifcote,  i  s.  pres.  promise,  996 
(O.E.  behdtaii). 

byjaped,  /./.  tricked,  mocked, 
727. 

biknowe,  v.  to  confess,  acknow 
ledge,  698  (O.E.  becndwari). 

biquethe,  i  s.  pres.  bequeath, 
1910  (O.E.  becwethan). 

biraft,  /./.  bereft,  taken  away, 

503- 

biseken,  i  //.  pres.  beseech,  60 
(O.E.  besecan}. 

biset,  /./.  disposed,  ordained, 
2154. 

bisyde,  prep,  beside,  16,  109. 

bisynesse,  sb.  business,  149. 

bisy,  adj.  busy,  anxious,  1995. 

byte,  3  //.  pres.  bite,  1776. 

bitynge,  adj.  biting,  keen,  1688. 

bittre,  adj.  bitter,  1367. 

bitwixen,  betwixe,  prep,  be 
tween,  22,  322. 

biwreye,  v.  make  known,  dis 
close,  betray,  1371. 

blak,  blake,  adj.  black,  53, 
2026. 

bleynte,  ^s.pret.  (from  blenchun}, 
blenched,  flinched,  started 
back,  220. 

blyve,  a^Tquickly,  1839  (O.E. 
bi-life\ 

blody,  adj.  bloody,  152. 

bocher,  sb.  butcher,  1 167. 

boghte,  3  s.  pret.  bought,  1230. 

bokelynge,  pres.  part,  buckling, 
1645. 

boket,  sb.  bucket,  675. 

boles,  sb.  pi.  bulls,  1281. 

bond,  3  s.  pret.  bound,  2133. 

boon,  sb.  bone,  319. 

boone,  5^.  boon,  prayer,  141 
(O.N.  ban}. 

boor,  sb.  boar,  1212. 

bore,  /./.  born,  684. 


GLOSSARY 


141 


bores,  sb.  pi.  boars,  841. 
borwe,  sb.  pledge  ;  to  borwe,  as 

a  pledge,  764  (O.E.  borh}. 
bouk,  sb.  body,  1888  (O.E.  Me. 

Early  confused  with  bulk}. 
bowes,  sb.  pi.  boughs,  784,  2059. 
brak,    3   s.   pret.    broke,    610. 

(See  breke). 
brat-ful,  adj.  full  to  the  brim, 

1306.    (Another  form  of  M.E. 

brerd-ful,  where  brerd  is  the 

O.E.    word    meaning    brim, 

brink). 

brawnes,  sb.  pi.  muscles,  1277. 
brede,  sb.  breadth,  1112. 
breetn,  sb.  breath,  1948. 
breke,  v.  break,  96  (O.  E.  brecan}. 
breme,      adv.      fiercely,     841. 

(Derivation  uncertain.) 
brend,  /./.  (used  as  adj.),  burnt, 

burnished,  bright,  1304. 
brenneth,  3  s.  pres.  (from  bren- 

nen),    burns,    1546;   brenne, 

•$  pi.  pres.  1473;  brennynge, 

pres.  part.    1  142  ;   brendest, 

2  s.  pret.   1526;  brente,  3  s. 

pret.    1545  ;    brenden,    3  //. 

pret.   1567;  brent,/./.  1159. 

(O.E.  byrnan,  bernan;  O.N. 

brenna). 

brennynge,  sb.  burning,  138. 
brennyngly,  adv.  burningly,  706. 
breres,  sb.  pi.  briars,  674. 
brest,  sb.  breast,  1833. 
bresten,  i>.  to  burst,  break,  1  122  ; 

brest,  3  s.  pres.   1752  (O.E. 

bersten.) 

briddes,  sb.  pi.  birds,  207  1  . 
brydel,  sb.  bridle,  46. 
bryngen,  v.  bring,  755. 
bristplate,  sb.  breast-plate,  1262. 
brode,  adj.  broad,  1278. 
broghte,  35.  pret.  brought,  n. 
broyded,  /./.  braided,  plaited, 


brondes,  sb.  pi.  brands,  burning 

logs,  1480. 
browdynge,  ^.embroidery,  1640. 


bulte,  3  s.  pret.  built,  690. 
burned,    /./.    burnished,    1125 

(O.  Fr.  burnir}. 
busk,  sb.  bush,    1155;  buskes, 

//.  721. 

caas,  cas,  sb.  case,  chances.  216. 

278,    1252 ;   //.    occurrences, 

2113  (Lat.  casus). 
caytyf,  adj.  wretched,  694  (O.Fr. 

caitif,    Lat.    captivus,    Mod. 

Fr.  chitij). 
caytyves,  sb.  pi.  wretches,  66, 

859. 

cam,  3  s.  pret.  came,  125,  321. 
cantel,  sb.  portion,  corner,  2 1 50. 
careyne,    sb.    carrion,    corpse, 

1155   (O.   Fr.    caroigne,   Lat. 

card]. 
caryeden,    3  //.  pret.    carried, 

2042. 
caste,   i  s.  pres.  reckon,   1314; 

casteth,   3  s.  pres.    ponders, 

1996. 
castes,     sb.    pi.     contrivances, 

plots,   1610. 

cercles,  sb.  pi.  circles,  1273. 
cerial,  adj.  cerrial,  of  or  belong 
ing   to    evergreen   oak,    1432 

(Boccaccio's       cei-eale,       Lat. 

cerrus). 
certayn,  certeyn,  adv.  certainly, 

1973,  281. 
certes,  adv.  certainly,  assuredly, 

64. 

chaar,  sb.  car,  1280. 
champartie,  sb.   partnership  in 

power,  1091  (Fr.  champ-pariie, 

a  share  in  land), 
charge,  sb.  harm,  burden,  1429. 
chasteyn,    sb.    chestnut,     2064 

(O.   Fr.  chastaigne,   Lat.  cas- 

tanea). 

chaunce,  sb.  event,  chance,  894. 
chaungen,  v.  change,  779. 
cheere,  sb.  countenance,  aspect, 

appearance,  55,  1361  (O.  Fr. 

chere,  countenance). 


142 


KNIGHT'S   TALE 


chees,  zs.imper.  choose,  737,756. 
cheyne,  sb.  chain,  2 1 30 ;  cheynes, 

//.  485- 

chekes,  sb.  cheeks,  1976. 
cherles,    sb.  pi.    serfs,    churls, 

1600  (O.E.  cforl). 
chiere,    sb.    appearance,    1728. 

(See  clieere.) 

chirkyng,  sb.  murmuring,  creak 
ing,  1146. 
citee,  sb.  city,  81. 
citole,   sb.    a    stringed    musical 

instrument,  1101. 
citryn,  adj.  citron-colour,   1309 

(O.  Fr.  citrin,  Lat.  citrinus}. 
clariounes,  sb.  pi.  clarions,  1653 

(O.Fr.  clarion}. 
clarree,    sb.    spiced   wine,    613 

(O.  Fr.  dart,  i.e.  a  liquid  made 

clear  by  straining). 
clatereden,   3  //.  pret.   rattled, 

1565- 
clateren,    3   //.    pres.    clatter, 

rattle,  1501. 
deer,   adj.  clear,  jcn.  (O.   Fr. 

cler,  Lat.  darns). 
cleere,  adv.  brightly,  1473. 
clepen,  v.  to  call,  1872  ;  cleped, 

p.p.  930  (O.E.  deopian). 
clerkes,  sb.gen.  clerk's,  scholar's, 

305- 

clooth,  sb.  cloth,  1300. 
clothered,  /./.  clothed,  1887. 
cloven,  /./.  split,  2076. 
cokkow,  sb.  cuckoo,  952. 
col-blak,  black  as  coal,  1284. 
colered,  /./.  collared,  wearing  a 

collar,  1294. 
colpons,   sb.  logs,  shreds,  2009 

(O.     Fr.    colpon,     Mod.     Fr. 

coupon,  anything  cut  off). 
commune,  in   commune,    com 
monly,  generally,  393. 
communes,     sb.    pi.     common 

people,  1651. 

compaignye,  sb.  company,  40. 
compleccioun,    sb.    disposition, 

temperament,  1617. 


compleint,  sb.  complaint,  1154. 
composicioun,    sb.    agreement, 

1793. 
conforteth,  3  s.  pres.  comforts, 

100. 

confus,  adj.  confused,  1372. 
conseil,  sb.  counsel,  privy  policy, 

283,    725  ;    counsellor,    289  ; 

council,  2238. 
conserve,  2  s.  imper.  preserve, 

1471. 
contek,  sb.  strife,  1145.    (Deriva 

tion  uncertain.  ) 
contenaunce,   sb.    countenance, 

1058. 

contrarie,  sb.  adversary,  1001. 
contree,  sb.  country,  6,  146. 
coold,  adj.  cold,  717. 
coppes,  sb.  pi.  cups,  2091  (O.E. 

cuppe). 
corage,  sb.  disposition,  courage, 

1087. 

coroune,  sb.  crown,  1432. 
corps,  sb.  corpse,  1961. 
correccioun,  sb.  correction,  1603. 
corrumpable,   adj.    corruptible, 

2152. 

cosyn,  sb.  cousin,^  223.  423 
cote,  sb.  hut,  den,  1599. 
cote-armures,    sb.    coats    worn 

over  the  armour,  embroidered 

with  the  armorial  bearings  of 

the  wearers,  158,  1282. 
couched,  /./.  laid,  inlaid,  1303, 

2075  (O.    Fr.    fouchier,    Lat. 

collocare). 

cours,  sb.  course,  run,  836,  1595. 
courser,     sb.     charger,     battle- 

Tiorse,  94,  644. 
covenantz,    sb.   pi.    covenants, 

agreements,  1240. 
cowardye,  sb.  cowardice,   1872. 
cracchynge,  sb.  scratching,  1976. 
cride,  3  s.  pret.  cried,  shouted, 


cridestow,  criedst  thou, 
crieden,  criden,  3  //.  pret.  cried 
91,  898. 


GLOSSARY 


143 


criynge,  pres.  part,  crying,  48, 

242. 
crope,  sb.  dat.  top,  summit  (of 

a  tree),  674. 
cure,  sb.  care,  149. 

dampned,  p.p.  condemned,  317, 
484. 

dar,  i  s.  pres.  dare,  293,  698. 

darreyne,  v.  contest,  fight  for, 
75  !>  773  (Lat.  de-rationare, 
O.  Fr.  di'-raisnier,  to  give 
reason  for,defend ;  so  to  decide 
by  wager  of  battle). 

darst,  2  s.  pres.  darest,  282. 

daun,  sb.  lord,  master,  521  (O. 
Fr.  dan,  Lat.  dominus). 

dauncen,  v.  to  dance,  1344. 

daunger,  sb.  danger,  liability, 
991  (O.  Fr.  dangler,  Lat. 
dominiarium,  lordship;  hence 
'  power  to  hurt '  on  the  part 
of  the  lord,  and  '  liability  to 
be  hurt '  on  the  part  of  the 
vassal). 

daunsynge,  pres.  part,  dancing, 

1.343- 

daweth,  3  s.  pres.  dawns,  818. 
debaat,  sb.  strife,  contention,  896. 
debonalre,  adj.  gentle,  gracious, 

1424. 

dede,  sb.  deed,  1778  (O.E.  ddd). 
deduyt,    sb.   diversion,   delight, 

1319  (O.  Fr.  dtduit,  Lat.  de- 

dnctttm). 
dede,  deed,  adj.  dead,  84.  264 

(O.E.  ditad). 

deedly,  adj.  death-like,  55.  224, 
deel,  sb.  part,  whit,  967  (O.E. 

ddl). 

deeth,  sb.  death,  106,  276. 
deye,  v.  to  die,  2176  ;    deyde, 

3  s.  pret.  died,  1988. 
deys,  sb.  dais,  seat  of  honour, 

1342  (O.  Fr.  dezs). 
delit,  sb.  delight,  821. 
deme,  v.  consider,  think,  judge, 

1023  (O.E.  diman). 


demeth,  2.  pi.  imper.  judge,  495. 
depart^   v.  part,  276   (O.   Fr. 

departir). 
depeynted,       /./.        depicted, 

painted,  1169. 

dere,  v.  harm,  965 (O.E.  derian}. 
derke,  adj.  dark,  1137. 
derknesse,  sb.  darkness,  593. 
derre,  adj.  comp.  dearer,  590. 
desir,  sb.  desire,  643. 
desirus,  adj.  desirous,  816. 
despense,  sb.  expenditure,  1070 

(Lat.  dispensare}. 
despit,  sb.  spite,  scorn,  83  (O. 

Fr.  despit,  Lat.  despectus,  lit. 

a  looking  down  on). 
despitous,  adj.  scornful,  738. 
desplayeth,  3  s.  pres.  displays, 

108. 
destreyneth,  3  s.  pres.  holds  in 

its  grasp,  afflicts,  597  (O.  Fr. 

destreindre,  Lat.  distringere}. 
detri,  sb.  death,  957. 
devyse,  v.  (i)  describe,  i36tt_QQfc> 

(2)  to  order,  design,  558,  1043 

(O.  Fr.  deviser,  late  Lat.  di- 

visare,  to  divide,  so  to  make 

in  detail). 

devoir,  sl>.  duty,  1740. 
dyamauntz,   sb.  pi.    diamonds, 

1289. 

Dyane,  Diana,  824. 
dyapred,    /./.     diapered,    em 
broidered  with  small  patterns, 
1300  (O.  Fr.  diaprer). 
dyched,  /./>.   ditched,    moated, 

1030. 
dide,  3  s.  pret.  did,  146;  3//., 

319;  diden,  3  pi.  pret.,  149. 
dyen,  v.  die,  251.  275^ 
dight,  /./.    dressed,    prepared, 

183,  772  (O.E.  dihtan}. 
dlgTIe,  adj.  worthy,  1358. 
dym,  adj.  dim,  dull,  indistinct, 

1575- 
dirryveth,    3   s.  pres.    derives, 

originates,  2148. 
dys,  sb.  dice,  380. 


144 


KNIGHT'S   TALE 


disconfiture,  disconfltynge,  si>. 

discomfiture,  rout,  150,  1861. 
disconfort,       sb.       discomfort, 

misery,  1152. 
disconforten,  v.  to  discomfort, 

disquiet,  1846. 
disherited,    p.p.     disinherited, 

2068. 
disjoynt,  sb.  dilemma,  difficulty, 

2104  (O.  Fr.  disjointe}. 
dispence,       sb.       expenditure, 

1024. 
dispitously,      adv.      scornfully, 

angrily,  266* 
disposicioun,    sb.    arrangement 

(with  the  secondary  meaning 

of    "  planetary     influence "), 

220. ;  disposal,  1506. 
disserved,  /./.  deserved,  858. 
distreyne,  v.  to  grasp  hold  of, 

vex,  958.     (See  destreyneth. ) 
dyvynynge,  pres.  part,  surmis 
ing,  1657. 

dyvynys,  sb.  pi.  divines,  theo 
logians,  465. 

divinlstre,  sb.  diviner,  1953. 
divyse,  v.  to  ordain,  932.     (See 

devyse. ) 

divisynge,  sb.  designing,  1638. 
doghter,  doughter,  sb.  daughter, 

1206,  1810. 
dongeoun,  sb.  don-jon,  dungeon, 

1 99.     (See  note. ) 
doon,  v.  do,  102  ;  doon  make, 

had  made,  1047. 
dooth,  3  s.pres.  does,  141,  697; 

causes,  1538. 
dores,  sb.pl.  doors,  1129  (O.E. 

dor}. 
double  wise,  two-fold,  doubly, 

480. 

doun,  adv.  down,  94. 
doute,  sb.  doubt,  283  (F.  doute. 

The  b  was  re-introduced  in  the 

1 5th  century,  through  influence 

of  Lat.  dubito). 

doutelees,  adj.  doubtless,  973. 
dowves,  sb.  doves,  1104. 


drawen  to  memorie,  call  to  re 
membrance,  1216. 
drede,  sb.  dread,  fear,  918,  1140. 
drede,    i    s.  pres.  fear,   doubt, 

735- 

dredeful,  adj.  timid,  621. 
dreye,  adj.  dry,  2166. 
drenchyng,  sb.  drowning,  1598 

(O.E.  drencari). 
dresse,  3  //.  pret.  make  ready 

(O.  F.  dresser,  Lat.  directus). 
dronke,  adj.  drunk,  403. 
drope,  sb.  drop,  62  ;  //.  638. 
drugge,  v.  drudge,  558. 
due,  sb.  duke,  2. 
duetee,  sb.  duty,  due  reverence, 

2202. 
dure,  v.  to  endure,  remain,  378, 

502. 

duracioun,  sb.  duration,  2138. 
dusked,   3  pi.  pret.    darkened, 

1948. 
dwellen,  v.  dwell,  165. 

ech,  adj.  each,  41,  274  ;   echon, 

each  one,  1797. 
eek,  adv.  also,  13,  314. 
eerly,  adv.  early,  1631. 
eet,  3  s.  pret.  ate,  1190. 
eft,  adv.  again,  8ll. 
eyen,  sb.  pi.  eyes^gj^j.  664. 
eyleth,  3  s.  pres.  aileth,  223. 
eyr,  sb.  air,  2134. 
eyther,  adv.  either,  1876. 
elde,  sb.  age,  1589  (O.E.  ieldu). 
elles,  adv.  else,  otherwise,  293  ; 

ellis,  1967. 
emforth,  prep,  according  to,  to 

the   extent    of,    1377    (O.E. 

efen,  forth), 
empoysonyng,     sb.     poisoning, 

1602. 

emprise,  sb.   enterprise,   under 
taking,  1682  (O.  Fr.  emprise). 
encens,  sb.  incense,  1571. 
encombred,    /./.    encumbered, 

860. 
encrees,  sb.  increase,  1326. 


GLOSSARY 


'45 


encressen,  3  //.  pres.  increase, 

480. 
encresseth,  3  s.  pres.  increaseth, 

457- 

endelong,  adv.  along  the  length 
of,  lengthways,  1133  (a  *-3tn 
century  word  which,  ace.  to 
N.E.D.,  was  formed  by 
popular  etymology  to  take 
the  place  of  andlang,  the  old 
form  of  along). 

endere,  sb.  ender,  1918. 

endite,  v.  write,  compose,  522, 
1014. 

engendred,  engendrid,  p.p.  en 
gendered,  born,  517,  2139. 

enhauncen,  v.  to  enhance, 
elevate,  576. 

enhorte,  v.   exhort,  encourage, 

1993- 

enoynt,  p.p.  anointed,  2103. 

ensamplea,  sb.  examples,  1095 
(O.  Fr.  essample,  Lat.  exem- 
plum). 

entente,  sb.  intention,  100,  142. 

entree,  sb.  entrance,  1125. 

er,  adv.  ere,  before.  182. 

ere,  v.  plough,  28  (O.  E.  eriari). 

ernest,  sb.  earnest,  267. 

erst  than  (for  er  than),  sooner 
than,  before,  708  (er  =  before, 
erst  =  first). 

eschue,  v.  to  eschew,  avoid, 
2185  (O.  Fr.  eschiver}. 

ese,  sb.  ease,  pleasure,  in. 

esen,  v.  entertain,  comfort,  ease, 
1336  ;  esed, /./.  1812. 

estat,  estaat,  sb.  state,  68,  98 
(O.E.  estat,  Lat.  status). 

estres,  sb.  pi.  inner  parts  of  a 
house,  1113(0.  Fr.  estre,  Pr. 
estra,  ultimate  derivation  un 
known). 

estward,  adv.  eastward,  1035. 

ete,  v.  eat,  89. 

eterne,  adj.  eternal,  251,;  en 
during,  everlasting,  1132. 

evene,  adv.  evenly,  calmly,  665. 


evene,  adj.  just,  fair,  1006. 
everich,  pron.  each  one,  328,790. 
evermo,  adv.  evermore,  371. 
6w,  sb.  yew,  2065  (O.E.  e6w). 
expulsif,  adj.  excellent,  driving 
out,  1891. 

fader,   sb.    father,    1611    (O.E. 

fader). 
fadme,   sb.   (without  change  in 

pi.}  fathom,  2058. 
fayn,  adj.  and  adv.  glad,  gladly, 

399,  i579(O.E./fl5?w»). 
faire,  adv.  fairly,  1801. 
fallen,  v.  befall,  happen,  810; 

falle,    /./.    befallen,     1845  > 

fallen,  2072. 
falow,  adj.  pale  brown  or  yellow, 

506  (O. E.  fealu,  fealw), 
fals,  adj.  falset_2l2,  293. 
fare,  sb.  behaviour,  businesses  i. 
fare,  vb.  to  go,  537  ;  wel  to  fare, 

to  succeed,  1577  ;  faren,  i  //. 

pres.,  403;  fare,/./.,    1578 

(O.E.faran). 

fawnes,  sb.  pi.  fauns,  2070. 
feeld,  sb.  field,  28,  664 ;  feelds, 

//.,  119,  645. 
feith,  sb.  faith,  764. 
fel,  adj.  cruel,  1772;  felle,  701. 
fel,  3  s.  pret.  befell,  happened 

604.     (See  fa.) 
felawe,  sb.  fellow,  companion, 

partner,  32,   173,  766  (O.E. 

felage,  "  the  primary  sense  is 

one  who  lays  down  money  in 

a    joint      undertaking     with 

others, "  N.E.D.). 
felaweshipe,      sb.      fellowship, 

partnership,  768. 
feld,  p.p.  felled,  cut  down,  2066. 

(See  fille) 

felyngly,   adv.   feelingly,    sym 
pathetically,  1345. 
Femenye,     the     land     of     the 

Amazons,  8  (lit.  the  kingdom 

of  womankind), 
fer,  adj.  and  adv.  far,  790,  992. 


146 


KNIGHT'S   TALE 


ferde,  3  s.  pret.  fared,  behaved, 

514;  ferden,  //.,  789  (O.E. 

feran. ) 

fere,  feere,  sb.  fear,  475,  1486. 
ferforthly,  adv.  far  forth,  to  that 

extent,  102. 

fermacies,  sb.  pharmacies,  medi 
cines,  1855. 

ferre,  adv.  comp.  further,  1202. 
feste,  sb.  feast,  festival,  25,  48  ; 

festes, //.,  1073. 
festeth,  3  s.  pres.  feasts,  1335. 
fet,  /./.  fetched,  1669. 
fey,  sb.  faith,  268. 
flers,    adj.    fierce,    740,    1087 ; 

fierse,  1511. 
fll,  fille,  3  s.  pret.  befell,  ^76. 

1252  ;  fell,  245,  560. 
fllle,  v.  to  fell,  cut  down,  844. 
fillen,  3  //.  pret.  fell,  91.     (See 

flel  and  fel. ) 
fyn,  adj.  fine,  614. 
fynden,  3  pi.  pres.  find,  769. 
fir,  fyr,  sb.  fire,  388,  1418. 
firy,  adj.  fiery,  635. 
fledden,  •$  pi.  pret.  fled,  2072. 
fleete,    i    s.  pres.    float,    1539 

(O.E.  fle6tari). 
fletynge,    tires,   fart,    floating, 

1098. 
flikerynge,  pres.  part,  fluttering, 

1104. 
flotery,  adj.  fluttering,  flowing, 

2025. 
flour,  sb.  flower,   124;   floures, 

pl-  ji?a  (°-    Fr-  ft***    Lat. 

florem,  flos). 

foghten,  T>pl.pret.  fought,  1797. 
foynen,  3  //.  pres.  thrust,  797  ; 

foyne,  3  s.  1692. 
fole,  sb.  fool,  941. 
folye,  sb.  folly,  940. 
folwed,  3//.  pret.  followed,  1293. 
folwyng,  pres.  part,    following, 

1509. 

fomy,  adj.  foamy,  1648. 
foo,  sb.  foe,  732. 
foom,  sb.  foam,  801  (O.E.  fdw). 


foond,  /./.  found,  1532. 
forbere,  v.  forbear,  27. 
for-blak,  adj.  very  black,  1286 

(the  prefix  for-  gives  to  an  adj. 

the  sense  of  an  absolute  super 
lative,     'very,'     'extremely.' 

Cp.  Lat.  per). 

fordo,/./,  destroyed,  ruined,  702. 
forgeten,  /./.  forgotten,  1056. 
for-old,   adj.    very    old,    1284. 

(See  for-blak. ) 
forpyned,  /./.  wasted  away  by 

pain,  595. 

forther,  adv.  comp.  farther,  1211. 
forthren,  v.  further,  assist,  279, 

280  ;  forthre,  290. 
for-thy,  adv.  therefore,  983. 
fortunest,  2  s.  pres.  givest  for 
tune,  1519. 
forward,    sb.    agreement,     351 

(O.E.  foreweard,   a    security 

taken  in  advance), 
foryeve,  i  s.  tires,  forgive,  960, 

967. 
father,  sb.  cartload,  1050  (O.E. 

father). 

founden,  /./.  found,  754. 
foundred,  3  s.  pret.   foundered, 

fell  (of  a  horse),  1829. 
fourtenyght,  sb.  fortnight,  71. 
frakenes,  sb.pl.  freckles,  1311. 
freend,  sb.  friend,  610 ;  freendes, 

//.,  966. 

freendlich,  adj.  friendly,  1822. 
freeten, /./.  eaten,  1210.      (See 

freten. ) 

frely,  adv.  freely,  349. 
fresshe,  adv.  freshly,  190. 
freten,   v.    to  eat,   1161    (O.E. 

fretati). 

fro.  prep,  from,  1460. 
frotrien,  3  //.  pres.  froth,  80 1. 
fruyt,  5*.  fruit,  424. 
ful,  adv.  fully,  very,  121. 
fulfild  of,  /./.  filled  with,  82. 

gadered,  p.p.  gathered,  1325. 
gadereth,  3  s.  p>-es.  gathers,  1 9^. 


GLOSSARY 


147 


gayler,  sb.  gaoler,  jo6,  612. 

gayneth,  3  s.  pres.  avails,  318, 
929. 

Galgopheye,  Gargaphie,  1768. 
(See  note.) 

gan,  3  s.  pret.  began,  2  54,  779 
(often  used  almost  as  an 
auxiliary,  like  'did'). 

gappe,  sb.  gap,  781. 

gastly,  adj.  horrible,  ghastly, 
1126  (O.E.  gdstlte.  The  in 
trusive  '  h '  seems  to  appear 
first  in  Caxton — is  established 
by  1590). 

gaude  grene,  a  light  green 
colour,  1 22 1  (Fr.  gander,  to 
dye  green). 

geere,   sb.    behaviour,   manner, 

SM- 

geery,  adj.  changeable,  678. 
gentil,  adj.  gentle,  185. 
gentillesse,  sb.  gentleness,  62. 
gentilly,  adv.  gently,  2246. 
gere,     sb.     clothing,     armour, 

accoutrements,  158. 
gereful,  adj.  changeable,  680. 
geres,  sb.pl.  manners,  behaviour, 

673- 

gerland,  sb.  garland,  .ig6A  649. 
gesse,  i  s.  pres.  guess,  102.  244.^ 
gete,  v.  get,  obtain,  1897. 
gye,  v.  to  guide,   1092  (O.   Fr. 

guier,  Mod.  guider). 
giggynge,  pres.  part,  fitting  with 

straps  (to  hang  the  shield  over 

the  shoulder),  1646. 
gyle,  sb.  deceit,  guile,  1738. 
gilt,  sb.  guilt,  907. 
giltelees,  adj.  guiltless,  454. 
gypoun,    sb.   short  tunic  (worn 

under  the  hauberk),  1262. 
gyse,  sb.  custom,  fashion,  man 
ner,  135,  350  (Fr.  guise). 
gladen,  i>.  to  make  glad,  1979. 
gladere,    sb.    one    who    makes 

glad,  1365- 
gleede,   sb.    red-hot   coal,    1139 


glyteren,  3  pi.  pres.  glitter,  1 19. 
gloweden,    3  pi.    pret.    shone, 

glowed,  1274. 
go,  p.p.  gone,  663. 
gold-hewen,  adj.  hewn  of  gold, 

gold-forged,  1642. 
goldsmythrye,    sb.    goldsmiths' 

work,  1640. 

gonne,  3/7.  pret.  began,  800. 
gooldes,  sb.pl.  marigolds,  1071. 
goon,  v.  go,  349. 
goost,    sb.    ghost,    spirit,    1910 

(O.E.£vw/). 

gooth,  z  pi.  imper.  go,  1700. 
goth.   gooth,  3  s.  pres.  goeth, 

,21^598,  1025. 
governance,     sb.     government, 

management,  455- 
gree,    sb.    superiority,    pre-emi 
nence,  1875  (O.  Fr.  gre,  Lat. 

gradus). 

greet,  adj.  great,  12. 
grene,  adj.  green,  1432. 
grete,  adj.  great,  21. 
gretter,  adj.  comp.  greater,  5. 
greves,  sb.  pi.  groves,  637,  649. 
grifphon,  sb.  griffin,  1275. 
grym,     grymme,     adj.     grim, 

fierce,  1184,  1661. 
grisly,  adj.   frightful,  ugly,  505 

O.E.  gri'slie). 

groynynge,  sb.  groaning,  1601. 
gruccheth,    3   s.  pres.   grudges, 

grumbles.    2187  ;    gruccnen, 

r    //.    pres.     2200    (O.     Fr. 

grouchier\ 
gruf,  adj.  grovelling,  flat  on  the 

face,  91. 

hadde,  3  s.  pret.  had,  55. 

hakke,  v.  cut  with  axes,  hack, 
2007. 

hamer,  sb.  hammer,  1650. 

ban,  ?'.  have,  18,  836  (con 
tracted  from  haven,  O.E.  hab- 
ban). 

happed,  3  s.  pret.  happened, 
331- 


148 


KNIGHT'S   TALE 


hardy,  adj.  brave,  bold,  24,  853 

(O.  Fr.  hardf). 
hardynesse,        sb.       boldness, 

bravery,   1090. 
haryed,  /./.    harried,    driven, 

1868. 
harmes,  sb.  pi.  hurts,  wounds, 

I.37I- 
barneys,  sb.  armour,  148,  755  ; 

harnays,  1282. 
haubergeoun,  sb.  a  short  coat  of 

mail,    1261    (a  diminutive   of 

hauberk,  Old  High-Ger.  hals- 

berk,  neck  guard), 
hauberk,  sb.  coat  of  mail,  1573. 
hede,  heed,  sb.  head,  136.  311, 

486  (O.E.  hedfod). 
heele,  sb.  health,  413,  2244. 
heeld,  3  s.  pret.  held,  occupied, 

1667. 

heelpe,  3  s.  pret.  helped,  793* 
heepe,  sb.  heap,  86. 
heer,  adv.  here,  752  ;  heere,  70. 
heer,  sb.  hair,  191,  1148. 
heer-biforn,   adv.    before   now, 

726. 

heere,  v.  hear,  17,  56. 
heete,  3  s.  pres.  subj.  promise, 

1540. 
heigh,    adj.    high,    .207,    940 ; 

heih,  1679. 

helmes,  sb.pl.  helmets,  1642. 
hem,  pron.  them,  54,  162. 
hem-self,      pron.      themselves, 

2207. 

henne,  adv.  hence,  1498. 
hente,  v.  to  seize,  catch,   1780  ; 

3  s.  pret.  99 ;    henten.   3  //. 

pret.  46  ;  hent,  /./.  723. 
heraudes,  sb.  heralds,  159  (O.Fr. 

heraut). 

herd,  adj.  haired,  1 660. 
herde,  3  s.  pret.  heard,  44,  265  ; 

herd,/./,  heard,  719. 
here,  pass.  adj.  their,  158. 
here,  pron.  her,  1199. 
here-agayns,  against  this,  2181. 
her-inne,  adv.  herein,  2215. 


heris,  sb.  pi.  hairs,  530  ;  heeris, 

1276. 
herknen,  v.  hearken   to,   668  ; 

herkne,  1674. 
herkneth,  2  pi.  imper.  hearken, 

listen,  985. 
hert,  sb.  hart,  stag,  817  (O.E. 

hear  I). 
herte,     sb.     heart,     93     (O.E. 

heorte). 

hertes,  sb.  gen.  s.  hart's,  823. 
herte-spoon,  sb.  the  depression 

at  the  end  of  the  breast-bone, 

1748. 
heste,    5^.    behest,    command, 

1674. 

hevene,  sb.  heaven^  21,2, 
hevenysshly,  adv.  in  a  heavenly 

manner,  197. 

hevynesse,   sb.    heaviness,    dis 
tress,  1490. 
hewe,  sb.  hue,  complexion.  180.. 

506. 
hewen,  v.  to  hew,  564 ;  hewe, 

2007. 

hewes,  sb.  pi.  colours,  1 230. 
hyder,  adv.  hither,  939. 
hidouse,  adj.  hideous,  1120. 
hidously,  adv.  hideously,  843. 
hye,  adj.  high,  39. 
hye,  v.  to  hasten,  1416. 
hye,  sb.  haste,  2121. 
hight, /./.  promised,  1614. 
highte,  3  s.  pret.  was  called,  2, 

155;  be  called,  699;  am  called, 

700  (from  O.E.  hat  an). 
highte,  sb.  height  ;  on  highte, 

aloud,  926. 
hym,  pron.    (fat.    him,    1 1  ;    to 

him,  979. 

hymselven,  pron.  himself,  619. 
hyndre,  v.  hinder,  277. 
hir,  poss.  pron.  her,   13  ;  their, 

158,  944- 

hire,  pers.  pron.  her,  1 1  ;  poss. 
pron.  67. 

holde,  /./.  held  bound,  con 
sidered,  449;  holden,  1861. 


GLOSSARY 


149 


holdeth,  2  //.  imper.  hold,  con 
sider,  1010. 

holm,  sb.  evergreen  oak,  2063. 

holwe,  adj.  hollow,  505. 

homward,  adv.  homeward,  359. 

bond,  sb.  hand,  529,  745. 

hondred,  num.  hundred,  1724. 

honge,  v.  to  hang,  1552 ; 
hongeth,  3  s.  pres.  1557; 
honge,  3/7.  pret.  1564. 

hool,  sb.  whole,  2148. 

hoolly,  adv.  wholly,  960. 

hoolynesse,  sb.  holiness,  300. 

hoom,  sb.  home,  u,  168. 

hoom-comynge,  hom-comynge, 
sb.  home-coming,  26,  47. 

boost,  sb.  host,  army,  16,  168. 

hoote,  adj.  hot,  951  ;  adv.  hotly, 
879- 

hoppesteres,  sb.  pi.  dancers, 
used  for  adj.  dancing,  1 1 59. 

how,  adv.  however,  536. 

housbondes,    sb.   husbands,  78, 

134- 

humblesse,  sb.  humbleness,  923. 
hunte,  sb.  hunter,  860,  1160. 
hunten,  v.  hunt,  816. 
hurtleth,     3    s.    pres.    pushes, 

1758. 
hust,  /./.  hushed,  2123. 

in-equal,  adj.  unequal,  1413. 
infortune,  sb.  misfortune,  1163. 
inned,  p.p.  housed,  1334. 
iren,  sb.  iron,  1134. 

jalous,  adj.  jealous,  471,  982. 

jalousie,  sb.  jealousy,  441,  976. 

japed,  p.p.    tricked,    deceived, 

871. 

/Xjoynant,  pres.  part,  joining,  ad 
joining.  202^ 

jolitee,   sb.   jollity,  amusement, 

949- 

journee,  sb.  day's  journey,  1880. 
juge,  sb.  judge,  854. 
juste,  v.  joust,  tilt,  1746;  justen, 

$  pi.  pres.  1628. 


justes,  sb.  jousts,  1862. 
juwise,   sb.  judgment,   88  1   (O. 
Fr.jiiise,  Lat.  judicitun}. 

kaytyf,    sb.    and    adj.    wretch, 

wretched,  1088.    (See  caytyf.  ) 
kan,  3  s.  pres.  can,  is  able,  495, 

567  ;  knows,  1040  ;  kan  thank, 

is  grateful,  950. 
keep,   keepe,    sb.    care,    heed, 

notice,  1830,  531. 
kembd,  kempd,  combed,   1285, 

143  1- 

kempe,  adj.  shaggy,  1276. 
kene,  adj.  keen,  1108. 
kepe,  i  s.  pres.  care,  reck,  1380. 
kepere,  sb.  keeper,  1470. 
kervere,  sb.  carver,  1041. 
kervyng,  sb.  carving,  sculpture, 

i°57- 

kynde,  sb.  nature,  1593. 
kynrede,  sb.  kindred,  428. 
kyte,  sb.  kite,  321. 
knarry,    adj.    having   knars   or 

knobs,  gnarled,  1119. 
knaves,  sb.  boys,  servants,  1870. 
knyf,  sb,  knife,  1145. 
knyghthede,     sb.     knighthood, 


knytte,  v.  to         ^- 
knowe,  p.p.  known,  345. 
korven,  p.p.  cut,  1838. 
koude,  3  s.  pret.  could,  562. 
kouthe,  3  s.  pret.  could,  1014. 

laas,  sb.  snare,  net,  959  (O.  Fr. 
las,  Lat.  laqueus). 

lacerte,  sb.  muscle,  1895  (O-  Fr. 
lacerte  Lat.  lacertus). 

lacynge  pres.  part,  lacing,  1646. 

lad  j  .p.  led,  taken,  1865. 

ladde,  3  s.  pret.  led,  588. 

laft,  /./.  left,  1158. 

layneres,  sb.  pi.  straps,  1046 
(Fr.  laniere,  "afterwards  re- 
adopted  as  lanyer,  and 
corrupted  into  lanyard," 
N.E.D.). 


'5° 


KNIGHT'S   TALE 


langage,  sb.  language,  1369. 
large,  at  his  large,  free,  at  large, 

I43°- 

las,  sb.  snare,  1093.     (.9^flaas. ) 

lasse,  adj.  comp.  less,  898. 

lat,  v.  imper.  let,  32,  33. 

launde,  sb.  a  natural  clearing  in 
a  wood,  833  (O.  Fr.  launde, 
cp.  Welsh  llan). 

laurer,  sb.  laurel,  169  (Lat. 
laurtis.  The  modern  form 
laurel,  found  as  early  as  the 
1 5th  century,  is  due  to  the 
tendency  to  substitute  an  /  for 
a  second  r,  helped  by  the 
existence  of  forms  lawriol, 
lawriall,  lawryell,  from  the 
•^  diminutive  laureolns). 
7~lechecraft,  sb.  physician's  skill, 
1887. 

leep,  3  s.  pret.  leapt,  1829. 

leeste,    adj.    sup.    least,    263, 

843- 
leet,  3  s.  pret.  let,  caused,  348, 

1873- 
leeve,  adj.  clear,  278  (O.E.  leaf, 

cf.  lief). 
leeveth,    2   s.    imper.    believe, 

2230. 

lefte,  I  5.  pret.  left  off,  34. 
leyde,  3  s.  pret.  laid,  526. 
leyser,  sb.  leisure,  330  (O.  F. 

leisir,    ultimately     connected 

with  licere,  to  be  permitted). 
lene,  adj.  lean,  504. 
lene,    2   s.    imper.    lend,    2224 

(O.E.  Ixnan). 
lenger,  adj.   comp.   longer,  718. 

(For   the   vowel    change    cp. 

strenger  from  strong. ) 
leoun,  sb.  lion,  740,  782. 
lese,  v.  lose,  357,  432. 
lesynge,  sb.  losing,  loss,  849. 
lesynges,  sb. pi.  lies,  1069  (O.E. 

teasing). 
lest,  sb.  pleasure,  2126  (said  to 

be    a    Kentish    form ;    O.E. 

lyst). 


leste,  3  s.  pret.   it  was  pleasing 

to,    146 ;   pres.    it   is   pleasing 

to,  990  (cf.  listc). 
lete,    i  s.  pres.   let,   leave,   15, 

465. 
letten,  v.   hinder,  stand  in  the 

way  of,  31  ;  lette,  pret.  1034. 
letten  of,  give  up,  forego,  459. 
leve,  sb.  leave,  389. 
leves,  sb.  leaves,  638. 
ley,  2  pi.  imper.  lay,  1700. 
lychewake,  sb.   watch  (or  vigil) 

held   over    the    dead,    wake, 

2 too  (O.  E.  lie  =  body,  wacu  - 

waking). 

lye,  sb.  lie,  2157. 
lief,  adj.   dear,  979  (O.E.   leoft 

cf.  leeve). 

lif,  lyf,  sb.  life,  314,  354. 
lifly,    adv.   in    a   life-like   way, 

1229  (O.E.  lif  lice). 
liggen,    3  pi.  pres.    lie,     1347 

(O.E.  licgan). 

li&gyn&e,  pres.  part,  lying,  1 53. 
ligne,  sb.  line,  descent,  693. 
lyk,  adj.  like,  443. 
likly,  adv.  likely,  314. 
liknes&e,  sb.  likeness,  similarity, 

1984. 

lylie,  sb.  lily,  i  78— 
lymes,  sb.  pi.  "limbs,  1277. 
lynage,  sb.  lineage,  252,  692. 
lynde,  sb.  lime-tree,  2064 
liste,  3  s.  pns.  it  is  pleasing  to, 

194 ;    list,    1216;   lyst,    1519 

TcTleste). 
lystea,  sb.  lists,  place  appointed 

for   a   tournament,    855,    994 

(O.  Fr.  lisles). 
lite,   adj.  and   adv.   liltle,   335, 

476,  865. 

litel,  adv.  little,  631. 
lith,   3  s.  pres.  lieth,  lies,  360, 

937 ;  17th.  2 i 65.   (See  liggen. ) 
lyve,  on  lyve  (dat.),  alive,  2181. 
lyvede,  3  s.  pret.  lived,  1986. 
lyven,  -•.  live,  58. 
lyves,  adj.  living,  1537. 


GLOSSARY 


lyveth,  3  s.  pres.  liveth,  170. 
lyvynge,  pres.  part,  living,  43. 
lode,  sb.  load,  2060. 
longen,  v.  belong,  1420. 
longes,  sb.  pi.  lungs,  1894. 
loo,  intcrj.  lo  !  2159. 
loode-sterre,  sb.  load-star,  1201. 
looketh,     2    //.     iniper.    look, 

940. 

lookyng,  sb.  glance,  look,  1313. 
looth,  adj.  hateful,  979. 
los,  sb.  loss,  1685. 
losten,  3  //.  pret.  lost,  78. 
lust,  sb.  pleasure,  1074 ;  lustes, 

//.  2208  (O.K.  lyst). 
lusty,  adj.  pleasant,  joyous,  655. 
lustynesse,  sb.  pleasure,  1081. 

maad,  /./.  made,  613,  747. 
maat,    adj.  dejected,  97  (O.  Fr. 

maf,  from  Arabic  mdt,  as  in 

'  check-mate '). 
mayntene,  v.  maintain,  583. 
maist,  2  s.  pres.  mayest,  385. 
maister,    sb.    used    adjectively, 

master,  chief,  2044. 
maistow,  maystow,  mayest  thou, 

378,  1060. 
make,   sb.    companion,    match, 

1698. 
maken,  3  //.  pres.    make,    77  ; 

maked,  3  s.  pret.  i88__;  maad, 

p.p.  613- 
malencolik,     adj.    melancholy, 

517. 

manace,  sb.  menace,  threat,  1 145. 
manasynge,  sb.  threat,  menacing, 

1177. 
manere,    maner,    sb.    manner, 

kind  of,  18,  1017. 
manye,  sb.  mania,  madness,  516. 
marines,  sb.  gen.  man's,  1337. 
manhede,  sb.  manhood,  427. 
mantelet,  sb.  small  cloak,  1305. 
Marte,  sb.  Mars,  1163. 
martireth,  3  s.  prei.  torments, 

704. 
mateere,   sb.  matter,  401. 


maugree,  mawgree,  prep,  in 
spite  of,  in  defiance  of,  311, 
749  (O.  Fr.  matigre,  Mod.  Fr. 
malgrf). 

meeste,  adj.  super,  most,  great 
est,  1340. 

meeth,  sb.  mead,  1421. 

meynee,  sb.  train,  retinue,  400 
(O.  Fr.  mesm'e,  as  from  a  Low 
Latin  mansionata,  household  ; 
cp.  menial}. 

men,  one,  1337  (weakened  form 
of  man,  used  indefinitely). 

mencioun,  sb.  mention,  35. 

mene,  I  s.  pres.  mean,  intend, 
815;  mente,  pret.  2132. 

merye,  adj.  merry,  2210. 

mescneef,  sb.  mischief,  harm, 
468  ;  at  meschief,  in  danger, 
1693. 

messager,  sb.  messenger,  633. 

mester,  sb.  occupation,  craft, 
482  (O.  Fr.  mester,  Mod.  Fr. 
niftier,  Lat.  ministeriuni). 

myn,  pass.  adj.  mine,  47  ;  myne, 
1609. 

mynour,  sb.  miner,  1607. 

mynstralcye,  sb.  minstrelsy, 
music,  1339  (Fr.  mtnestrel, 
Lat.  ministralis,  a  servant). 

myrie,  adj.  merry,  641. 

mirour,  sb.  mirror,  541. 

mirre,  sb.  myrrh,  2080. 

mysboden,  /./.  insulted,  mis 
used,  51  (O.E.  misbtodan). 

mysfille,  3  s.  pret.  (impersonal] 
mischanced,  1530. 

mystiers,  sb.gen.  what  mystiers 
men,  what  manner  of  men, 
852  (lit.  men  of  what  trade  ; 
see  mester). 

mo,  adj.  more,  171. 

moche,  adj.  much,  258. 

moerdre,  sb.  murder,  398. 

moevere,  sb.  mover,  2129. 

mone,  sb.  moan,  508. 

montance,  sb.  value,  amount, 
712. 


KNIGHT'S   TALE 


moore,   adj.    more,   90 ;   moor, 

1211. 

mooste,  adj.  most,  greatest,  37. 
moot,  i  s.  pres.  must,  27  ;  3  s. 

pres.  311. 

mordrynge,  sb.  murdering,  1 143. 
morwe,   sb.    morning,    morrow, 

126,634. 

morwenynge,  sb.  morning, 
mosel,  sb.  muzzle,  1293. 
moste,  i  //.  pres.  must,  .233, 
mowe,  3  //.  pres.  may,  are  able, 

2141. 

muchel,  adj.  much,  12. 
murie,  adj.  merry,  528. 

nayl,  sb.  nail,  1 1495/7.  claws, 

1283  (O.E.  nagl). 
nakers,  sb.  pi.  drums,  1653  (from 

Arabic    naqdrah,    introduced 

by  Crusaders). 

nam,  ne  am,  am  not,  564,  416. 
namely,  adv.  especially/?  17. 
namoore,  namo,  no  more,  116, 

264,  73i- 

nas,  ne  was,  was  not,  358,  791. 
nat,  adv.  not,  31. 
nathelees,  adv.  nevertheless,  974. 
navele,  sb.  navel,  1099. 
ne,  adv.  and  conj.  not,  65,  nor, 

no,  in. 

necligence,  sb.  negligence,  1023. 
nedes-cost,  adv.  of  necessity,  6 19. 
neer,  ner,  adj.  near,  581,  992. 
neer,  adj.  comp.  nearer,  1 10. 
nekke,  sb.  neck,  360. 
nercotikes,  sb.pl.  narcotics,  614. 
nere,  ne  were,  were  not,  17.  27J. 
nexte,  adj.  sup.  nearest,  555. 
ny,  wel  ny,  adv.  nearly,  472. 
ny,  adj.  near,  631. 
nya.  ne  is,  is  not,  43. 
noght,  adv.  not,  698. 
nolde,  ne  wolde,  would  not,  45, 

1 66. 

nombre,  sb.  number,  1738. 
nones,  for  the  nones,  for  then 

once,  for  the  occasion,  21. 


noon,  adj.  none,  5,  31. 
noot,  ne  wool,  know  not, 


northren,  adj.  northern,  1129. 

0,  00,  num.  adj.  one,  any,  354, 

1033  (see  oon). 

obeissaunce,  sb.  obedience,2ii6. 
obsequies,  sb.  funeral  rites,  135. 
observaunce,  sb.  any  customary 

duty  or  ceremonial   practice, 

187,  458,  642. 

of ',  prep,  off,  1818;  from,  459. 
offended,/./,  injured,  1536  (O. 

Fr.  offendre). 
offensioun,  sb.    offence,    injury, 

1558  (Boccaccio's  offensione). 
office,  sub.  service,  rite,  religious 

office,  znn  (Lat.  officium). 
ofspryng,  sb.  offspring,  692. 
okes,  sb.  oaks,  2008. 
oghte,  3  s.  pret.  ought,  2193. 
ones,  adv.  once,  j^E,  978. 
oo,  interjection  Ho  !  the  cry  of 

a  herald  to  call  attention,  1 67  5. 
ook,  sb.  oak,  844  ;  ook  cerial, 

evergreen  oak,  1432. 
oon,  num.    adj.   one,   491  ;  the 

same,  154  (O.E.  dn). 
oonly,  adv.  only,  515. 
ooth,  sb.  oath,  101,  281. 
oother,  pron.  other,  41,  274. 
opie,  sb.  opium,  614. 
orient,  sb.  east,  636. 
orison,  sb.  prayer,   1403  ;    ori- 

soun,    1514   (O.  Fr.  oreisun, 

Lat.  orationem). 
othes,  sb.  pi.  oaths,  1066. 
out-hees,  sb.  hue  and  cry,  1154 

(O.E.  lit  '  out '  and  Aas,  from 

hdtan,    '  a  calling   by  name,' 

hence  'outcry,'  'clamour'). 
outlier,  conj.  either,  627. 
outrely,    adv.    utterly,    wholly, 

296,  705. 

over,  prep,  above,  besides,  705. 
over-al,  adv.  everywhere,  349 

(O.E.  ofer-eall). 


GLOSSARY 


153 


over-ryden,  /./.  run  over,  1164. 
overthwart,  adv.  athwart,across, 

"33- 
owene,  adj.  own,  518. 

paas,  sb.  pace ;  a  paas,  at  a 
walking-pace,  1359  (Fr.  pas, 
Lat.  passus). 

pace,  v.  to  pass,  744. 

payen,  adj.  pagan,  1512  (O.  Fr. 
paten,  \^.\..pagamts,  a  villager). 

paleys,  sb.  palace,  1341. 

pan,  sb.  brain-pan,  skull,  head, 

307. 
paramentz,  sb.  pi.   rich  array, 

1643  (O.  Fr.  parement,  Low 

Lat.  paramentum). 
paramours,    adv.    passionately, 

1254. 
pardee,     par    Dieu,    by    God, 

454- 
parflt,  adj.  perfect,  2151  (O.  Fr. 

parfez,  Lat.  perfectus). 
parlement,  5^.  parliament,  21 12 ; 

decision,  decree,  448. 
partie,  sb.  partisan,  partial  um 
pire,  1799 ;  part,  2150. 
party,  adv.  partly,  lag. 
pas.  sb.  pi.   paces,   feet,    1032. 

(See  paas.) 

passant,  adj.  surpassing,  1249. 
pees,  sb.  peace,  589,  813. 
poyne,  sb.  pain,  461  ;  //.  480 ; 

torture,  275. 
penoun,     si>.      pennon,      small 

pointed  flag,   120. 
perflt,  adj.  perfect,  413. 
perrye,     sb.     precious     stones, 

jewellery,  2078(0.  Yr.pierrie). 
perturben,  2  //.  pres.   disturb, 

48. 

pighte,  3  s.  pret.  pitched,  1831. 
pykepurs,  sb.  pickpocket,  1140. 
pyler,  sb.  pillar,  1135;  piler, 

1608. 

pilours,  sb.  pillagers,  149,  162. 
pyne,  v.  to  torture,  888. 
pyne,  sb.  pain,  grief,  466. 


pipen,  v.  pipe,  whistle ;  go 
pipen  in  an  yvy  leef,  'go 
whistle,'  980. 

pitee,  sb.  pity,  62. 

pitous,  adj.  compassionate,  pity 
ing,  95  ;  sad,  pitiable,  97. 

pitously,  adv.  piteously,  sadly, 

plat,   adj.   flat,  plain,  987  (Fr. 

plat ;  Germ,  platte}. 
pley,  sb.  play,  sport,  267  (O.E. 

plega) ;  pleye,  v .  to  play,  269 

(O.E.  plegian). 

pleyynge,  sb.  amusement,  203. 
pleyn,  adj.  full,  complete,  open, 

130,  629  (O.  Fr.  pleins,  Lat. 

plenus). 
pleyne,   v.    to   complain,   462 ; 

pleynen,  3  //.  pres.  complain, 

393- 
plesaunce,  sb.  pleasure,  713  (O. 

Fr.  plaisance,  Low  Lat.  pla- 

centia). 

poyntz,  sb.pl.  points,  2113. 
polax,  sb.  pole-axe,  1686. 
pomel,  sb.  knob,  boss,  1831  (O. 

F.  pomel,  dimin.    from    Lat. 

pomum,  an  apple), 
popeler,  sb.  poplar,  2063. 
portreyynge,  sb.  painting,  1080. 
portreyour,  sb.   painter,   1041  ; 

portreitures,  //.,  1057. 
pose,    i   s.  pres.   put  the   case, 

assume,  304  (O.  Fr.  poser). 
positif,  adj.  positive,  settled,  309. 
poure,  adj.  poor,  551. 
pourely,  adv.  poorly,  554,  696. 
praye,  sb.  prey,  1774. 
preesseth,    3   s.    pres.    presses, 

1672. 

preeved, /./.  proved,  2143. 
prescience,  sb.  fore-knowledge, 

455- 
preye,  v.    pray,   625 ;    preyde, 

3  //.  pret.  969. 
preyere,  sb.  prayer,  346. 
priketh,    3    s.    tires,    pricketh, 

urgeth,  185. 


KNIGHT'S   TALE 


prikynge,  pres.  part,  spurring, 

hurrying,  1650. 
pryme,  sb.  the  first  hour  of  the 

religious  day,  6  a.m.,  or  a  little 

later,  1331. 

pris,  sb.  prize,  fame,  1383. 
pryvee,     adi.     private,     secret, 

1602. 
pryvely,  adv.  privately,  secretly, 

585- 
privetee,     sb.     private     affairs, 

secrets,  553. 

profreth,  3  s.  pres.  offers,  557. 
propre,  adj.  proper,  own,  2179. 
Pruce,  Prussia,  1264. 
pure,  adj.  mere,  very,  421. 
purveiaunce,   purvieaunce,  sb, 

foresight,     providence,     394, 

807. 
putten,  v.  to  put,  577. 

qualm,   sb.   disease,    pestilence, 

1156  (O.  E.  cwea/m). 
queynt,  /./.    quenched,    1463 ; 

queynte,  3  s.  pret.  1476. 
queynte,  adj.  curious,  strange, 

1475  (O.  Fr.  cointt  Lat.  cogni- 

tits). 
questioun,  sb.  question,  enquiry, 

1656. 
quyke,    adj.    quick,    alive,    157 

(O.E.  curie). 

quyked,  3  s.  pret.  revived,  1477. 
quite,  v.  set  free,  release,  174. 
quitly,  adv.  freely,  934. 
quod,  3  s.  pret.  quoth,  said,  49, 

268  (O.E.  cwetkan). 
quook,  3  s.pret.  quaked,  718,904. 

rad,  p.p.  read,  1737. 

ransake,  v.  ransack,  search 
thoroughly,  147  (O.N.  raun, 
'  house,'  saka,  '  seek  '). 

rasour,  sb.  razor,  1559. 

raughte,  3  s.  pret.  reached,  2057. 

raunsoun,  sb.  ransom,  166,  318. 

recche,  i  s.  pres.  care,  540,  1387; 
reccheth,  3  s.  pres.  1539. 


reconforte,  v.  to  comfort  again, 

1994. 

rede,  adj.  red,  117,  889. 
rede,  i  s.  pres.  advice,  counsel, 

2210  (O.E.  r&dan). 
redily,  adv.  readily,  1418. 
redoutynge,  p.  pres.  reverence, 

fear,  1192. 

redy,  adj.  ready,  183. 
reed,  sb.  advice,  358  (O.E.  r&d). 
reed,  adj.  red,  1139  (O.E.  redd). 
regne,  sb.  kingdom,  8,  766  (Lat. 

regnutn). 
reliersyng,  sb.  rehearsal,  parley, 

792. 

reynes,  sb.  reins,  46. 
reyneth,  3  s.  pres.  raineth,  677. 
rekke,    i    s.   pres.    care,    1399. 

(Cf.  recche). 
rekne,    v.    reckon ;     I    s.  pres. 

reken,  1075. 
remenant,    sb.    remainder,    30, 

711. 

renges,  sb.  pi.  ranks,  1736. 
renneth.  3  s.  pres.  runs,  903. 
rentynge,  sb.  tearing,  1976. 
repplicacioun,    sb.    reply,    988 

(Lat.  replicare). 
rescus,  sb.  rescue,  1785  (O.  Fr. 

rescousse). 
rese,     v.    quake,    move,     1128 

(O.E.  krisien). 
resoun,  sb.  reason,  908. 
resouneth,  3  s.  pret.  resounds, 

420. 

respit,  sb.  respite,  delay,  90. 
retenue,  sb.  retinue,  suite,  1644. 
retournynge,  sb.  returning,  1237. 
rewe,    3  sing.    sub.    have   pity, 

1005  ;  2  sing,  itnper.,  1375. 
rewe,  sb.  row,  line,  2008. 
rewefulleste,  adj.  super,  ruefull- 

est,  most  sorrowful,  2028. 
riden,  /./.  ridden,  829. 
ryme,  v.  to  rhyme,  601. 
ryngen,  •$  pi.  pres.  ring,  resound, 

1742. 
rynges,  sb.  pi.  ringlets,  1307. 


GLOSSARY 


'55 


tit,  3  s.  pres.  rides,  1 1 6,  123. 
ryte,  sb.  rite,  ceremony,   1044 ; 

rytes,  1512. 
roial,  adj.  royal,  160. 
romen,  v.  to  roam,  241  ;  romed, 

3   s.  pret.,    207  ;    romyiige, 

pres.  part.,  213. 
ronnen,  3  //.  pret.  ran,  2067. 
rood,  3  s.  pret.  rode,  108. 
roos,  3.  s.  pret.  rose,  1356. 
roreth,  3  s.  pres.  roars,  resounds, 

2023. 
rouketli,     3    s.    pres.     cowers, 

huddles,  450  (cp.  O.  N.  hritga, 

heap  up), 
roundel,    sb.    roundelay,    song, 

671  (O.  Fr.  rondel). 
route,  sb.   assembly,   company, 

31  (O.   Fr.   route,   Low   Lat. 

rota,  rupta). 
routhe,  sb.  pity,  56. 
ruggy,    adj.    unkempt,  shaggy, 

2025. 

ruyne,  sb.  ruin,  1605. 
rumbel,  sb.  roaring  wind,  1121. 

sadel,  sb.  saddle,  1304. 

sadly,  adv.   firmly,   in   earnest, 

1744. 

sayn,  3  //.  pres.  say,  340. 
salueth,  3  s.  pres.  saluteth,  634 

(Fr.  saluer,  Lat.  salitare). 
saluyng,  sb.  salutation,  791. 
sangwyn,  adj.  blood-red,  1310 

(O.   Fr.  sanguine,   Lat.   san- 

guineus}. 

sarge,  sb.  serge,  1710. 
saugh,  3  s.  pret.  saw,  97,  542. 

(See  se. ) 
save,    sb.    sage,    1855    (O.    Fr. 

sauge,  Lat.  salria). 
sawe,    sb.    saying,    adage,    dis 
course,  305,  668  (O.E.  sagu). 
scape,  v.  escape,  249. 
se,  seen,  sene,  v.  to  see,    33, 

177,  263. 

see,  sb.  sea,  1098. 
seege,  sb.  siege,  79. 


sect,  3  s.  pret.  sat,  1217. 
seettes,  sb.  pi.  seats,  1722. 
sey,  v.  to  say,  tell,  1202. 
seyde,  3$.  pret.  said,  57,  215; 
seide,  722  ;  seyden,  3//.  pret. 

575- 

seyeth,  2  pi.  impcr.  say,  1010. 
seigh,  3.  s.  pret.  saw,  208.    (See 

se.) 

seyn, /./.  seen,  807.      (See  se.) 
seyn,  v.  say,  tell,  293,  559. 
seinte,  adj.  holy,  863   (O.   Fr. 

seint,  Lat.  sanctus). 
seist,  2  s.  pres.  sayest,  747- 
seith,  3  s.  pres.  saith,  187. 
seistow,  sayest  thou,  267. 
seken,  i  //.  pres.  seek,  408. 
selde,  adv.  seldom,  68 1   (O.E. 

seld). 

selve,  adj.  same,  1726. 
semely,     adj.    seemly,    pretty, 

1 1 02. 

sepulture,  sb.  funeral  rites,  1996. 

serye,  sb.  series,  train  of  argu 
ment,  2209. 

servage,  sb.  servitude,  1088. 

servauntz,  sb.pl.  servants,  1065. 

servyse,  sb.  service,  2084. 

sesoun,  sb.  season,  185. 

seten,  p.p.  sat,  594. 

seurete,  sb.  surety,  assurance, 
746  (O.  Fr.  seurle,  Lat. 
securitateni). 

shalt,  2  s.  pres.  shalt,  oughtest, 
oughtest  to  be  considered  (the 
sense  of  debt  or  obligation  is 
equally  prominent  in  Chaucer's 
mind  with  that  of  futurity), 
287,  295. 

shaltow,  shalt  thou,  533. 

shamefast,  adj.  modest,  1197. 

shapen,  shape,  /./.  planned, 
y  ordained,  367,  534. 

sheene,  shene,  adj.  bright, 
beautiful.  114.  210.  65L(Q.E. 
scdne,  Germ.  SC/IOH). 

shent,  p.p.  injured,  destroyed, 
1896. 


156 


KNIGHT'S   TALE 


shepne,  sb.  shed,  1142  (O.E. 
scypen}. 

shere,  sb.  shears,  1559. 

sherte,  sb.  shirt,  708. 

shet,/./.  shut,  1739. 

shynes,  sb.  shins,  legs,  421. 

shynen,  3//.  pres.  shine,  1185. 

shyveren,  3  //.  pres.  shiver, 
splinter,  1747. 

shode,  sb.  the  parting  of  the  hair 
on  a  man's  head,  hence  the 
temple,  1149  (O.E.  scade, 
from  sceaden,  to  divide). 

sholde,  pi.  should,  104. 

sholdest,  s.  shouldest,  279. 

shoon,  3  s.  pret.  shone,  1129. 

shrighte,   3  s.    pret.   shrieked, 

1959- 

shul,  2  //.  pres.  shall,  963. 

shuldres,  sb.  shoulders,  1106. 

sik,  adj.  sick,  742 ;  syk,  1946. 

sike,  v.  sigh,  682 ;  siked,  3 
s.  pret.  2127  (O.E.  sican}. 

siker,  adj.  sure,  2191  (Lat. 
securus). 

sikerly,  adv.  surely,  1243. 

sikes,  sb.  sighs,  1002. 

ayn,  adv.  since,  335,  957. 

synken,  v.  sink,  93. 

sith,  sithen,  adv.  since,  after 
wards,  72,  434,  663. 

sithe,  sb.  pi.  times,  1019. 

slake,  adj.  slack,  slow,  2043. 

slawe,  /./.  slain,  85. 

sle,  2  s.  subj.  slay,  760. 

sleen,  v.  slay,  364,  705  (O.E. 
slean). 

sleere,  sb.  slayer,  1147. 

sleeth,   3  s.  pres.  slayeth,  260, 

474- 
sleigh  te,    sb.    craft,    prudence, 

1090  (O.  Norse  slcegtk). 
slepy,  adj.  causing  sleep,  529. 
slider,  adj.  slippery,  406. 
slogardie,  sb.  slothfulness,  184. 
slough,  -^s.pret.  slew,  122,  129; 

Blow,   I  s.  pret.   1608.      (See 

sleen). 


smale,  adj.  pi.  small,  1218. 
smerte,  adj.  smarting,  grievous, 

1367- 
smerte,   3  s.  pres.  sub.   impers. 

pain,  hurt,  536. 
smylere,  sb.  smiler,   hypocrite, 

1141. 

smoot,  3  s.  pret.  smote,  846. 
socour,  sb.  succour,  help,  60. 
sodeynly,  sodeynliche,  adv. 

suddenly,  260,  672,  717. 
softe,  adv.  softly,  1923. 
solempnytee,  sb.  solemnity,  12. 
som,    adj.    s.    some,    one,    62 ; 

some,  //.  1263. 
somdel,  adv.  somewhat,  1312. 
sommer,  sb.  summer,  479. 
Sonday,  sb.  Sunday,  1330. 
sone,  sb.  son,  1105,  2226  (O.E. 

sunn). 
song,    soong,    3  s.  pret.    sang, 

197,  651,  1354. 
songen, /./.  sung,  671. 
sonne,    sb.    sun,    5 ;    dat.    193 

(O.E.  sunne). 
soor,  adj.  sore,  1362. 
soor,  sb.  pain,  596. 
soore,  adv.  sorely,  536. 
sooth,  sb.  truth,  663. 
soothly,  adv.  truly,  244,  341. 
soper,  sb.  supper,  33. 
sorwe,  sb.  sorrow,  93. 
sorweful,  adj.  sorrowful,  2 12, 248. 
sorwen,  3  pi.  pres,  sorrow,  1966. 
sorweth,  3  s.  pres.  sorroweth. 
sory,  adj.  sad,  luckless,  1146. 
sothe,    sb.    truth;    for    sothe, 

truly,  235,  602. 
soun,  sb.  sound,  1574  (Fr.  son, 

Lat.  sonus). 
soutil,   adj.   subtle,   fine,   1172, 

(O.Fr.    sotil,    Lat.    subttlis). 

Chaucer  also  uses  subtil,  q.v. 
spak,  3  s.  pret.  spoke,  54,  294. 
sparre,  sb.  beam,  balk  of  timber, 

132,  218. 
sparth,    sb.   halbert,  battle-axe, 

1662  (O.N. 


GLOSSARY 


'57 


speces,   sl>.  pi.    species,   kinds, 

2155-  . 
special,  in  special,  particularly, 

159- 
spedde,  3  s.  pret.  sped,  hastened, 

359- 

speken,  v.  speak,  127. 

spenten,  3  //.  pret.  spent,  em 
ployed,  1629. 

spere,  sb.  spear,  117. 

spore,  sb.  spur,  1745  ;  spores, 
//.  846. 

spradde,  3  s.  pret.  spread,  2013 ; 
sprad,  /./.  2045. 

sprynge,  v.  to  spring,  grow, 
2160;  spronge, /./.  579. 

squier,  sb.  squire,  872. 

stable,  adj.  fixed,  immovable, 
lasting,  2146,  2151. 

stablissed,     /./.      established, 

2137- 

starf,  3  s.  pret.  died,  75. 
startlynge,  adj.  spirited,  fresh, 

skittish,  644. 

stede,  sb.  place  ;  in  stede,  in 
stead,  1282. 

stent, /./.  stopped,  510. 
stenten,    v.    cease,    stop,    45 ; 

stente,  1584. 

sterres,  sb.pl.  stars,  1179. 
stert,  sb.  start,  bound,  847. 
sterte,  v.  start,  leap,  186 ;  35. 

pret.  94,  222. 
sterve,  3  s.  pret.  sub.  die,  286  ; 

I  sing.  pres.  436. 
stevene,  sb.  appointed  time,  666 

(O.E.  stefn). 

stierne,  adj.  stern,  1296. 
stynte,  v.  to  stop,  cease,  476  ; 

stynt,    styntyd,   /./.    1563, 

21 10. 

stirte,  3  s.  pret.  started,  721. 
styth,  sb.  anvil,  1168. 
stok,  sb.  stock,  693. 
stoke,  v.  stab,  1688. 
stomblen,  3  //.  pres.  stumble, 

1755- 
stonden,  v.  stand,  315,  464. 


stongen,  /./.  stung._22i. 

stoon,  sb.  stone,  1030. 

stounde,    sb.    space    of    time, 
moment,  354. 

straughte,  •$  pi.  pret.  stretched, 
2058. 

stree,  sb.  straw,  2060. 

streit,  adj.  narrow,  1126. 

stremes,  sb.  pi.  beams,  637. 

strepe,  v.  strip,  148. 

strif,  sb.  strife,  329,  976. 

stryven,  i  //.  pres.  strive,  quar 
rel,  319. 

stroof,  3   s.  pret.    strove,    con 
tended  for  supremacy,  1 80. 

strook,  sb.  stroke,  843. 

stroong,  adj.  strong,  198. 

stubbes,  sb.  pi.  stumps,  1120. 

studle,  sb.  study,  reverie,  672. 

subtil,  adj.  subtle,  finely-made, 
196. 

sufflsaunt,  adj.  sufficient,  773. 

suffren,  v.  suffer,  allow,  87. 

suyte,  sb.  suit,  array,  2015  (Fr. 
suite,  Lat.  secta}. 

sum,  adj.  some,  230. 

sustene,  v.  support,  1135. 

suster,     sb.     sister,     13,    962  ; 
sustren,  pi.  161. 

swelte,   3   s.  pret.    fainted  498 
(O.E.  sweltan). 

swerd,  sb.  sword,  357,  717. 

swere,  v.  swear,  963. 

swlch,  adj.  such,  4,  419. 

swoor,  3  s.  pret.  swore,  101. 

swoote,  adj.  sweet,  2002. 

swough,  sb.  low  noise,  blast  of 
wind,  1 121. 

swowned,  p.p.  swooned,  fainted, 

55- 

swownynge,  pres.  part,  fainting, 
1961. 

taak,  2  s.  imper.  take,  226^. 
taas,  sb.  heap,  147  (O.  Fr.  (as) 
take,/./,  taken,  1866. 
targe,  sb.    target,   small  shield, 
117  (O.  Fr.  targe). 


158 


KNIGHT'S   TALE 


tarien,  v.  cause  to  tarry,  delay, 

1962. 

teeris,  sb.  pi.  tears,  1063 
telleth,  2  //.  imperat.  tell,  52, 

852. 

tendite,  to  endite,  351. 
tene,  sb.  vexation,  trouble,  2248 

(O.E.  teona). 

terme,  sb.  term,  duration,  171. 
testeres,     sb.    pi.    headpieces, 

helmets,     1641     (from     O.F. 

teste,  tite,  head). 
thabsence,  the  absence,  381. 
thavys,  the  advice,  2218. 
theffect,  the  effect,  the  impor 
tant  part,  the  gist  (of  a  story), 

331,629;  theffectes,  //.  1370. 
thencens,  the  incense,  1419. 
thenchauntementz,  the  enchant 
ments,  1086. 
ther,  adv.  where,  34 ;  there,  39 ; 

tlier  as,  where,  460. 
therwithal,  adv.   therewith,  in 

addition,  220. 
thider,  adv.  thither,  405  ;  thider - 

ward,  adv.  thitherwards,  1672. 
thikke,  adj.  thick,  198. 
thilke,  the  ilk,  the  same,  that, 

335,  876. 

thyn,  pass.  pron.  thine,  93. 
thirled,  p.p.  pierced,  1 852. 
thise,  dem.  pron.  pi.  these,  594> 

673,  1480,  1977  (note). 
thyselven,  thyself,  316. 
tho,  adv.  then,  135,  1678. 
dem.  pron.  thnsp,  265. 
thogh,   adv.   though,  although, 

312. 
thonken,    3    s.    pret.    thanked, 

1018. 

thral,  sb.  slave,  thrall,  694. 
threed,  sb.  thread,  1172. 
threste,  v.  to  thrust,  1754. 
thridde,  num.  adj.  third,  605. 
thries,  adv.  thrice,  2094. 
thurgh,  prep,  through,  62,  217. 
thurghfare,    sb.     thoroughfare, 

1989. 


thurgh  -  girt,       p.p.       pierced 

through,   152. 
thurghout,    prep,    throughout, 

238. 

til,  adv.  until,  46. 
til,    prep,    to,    unto,    274,    62C 

(O.N.  til,  to), 
tirannye,  sb.  tyranny,  253. 
tiraunt,  sb.  tyrant,  103. 
to,  adv.  too,  17. 
to-breste,     3    //.    pres.    bursi 

asunder,  break  to  pieces,  1753 

to-brosten, /./.  1833. 
togydre,  adv.  together,  1766. 
to -he  wen,    3  pi.  pres.    hew   ir 

pieces,  1751. 

tomorwe,  tomorrow,  752. 
tonge,  sb.  tongue,  580. 
tonne,    sb.    tun,    cask ;     tonm 

greet,  big  as  a  tun,   1136. 
too,  sb.  toe,'  1868  (O.E.  to). 
toold,  p.p.  told,  290,  825. 
tope,  sb.  top,  crown,  head,  2057. 
to-shrede,   3  //.  pres.   cut  intr 

shreds,  1751. 

toun,  sb.  town,  690  (O.E.  ttin). 
tour,  sb.    tower,   172,   198  (Fr. 

tour,  Lat.  turris). 
touret,  sb.   turret,   1051. 
tourettes,  sb.  pi.  round  holes  foi 

rings,  1294  (note). 
tourneiynge,     sb.     tournament, 

1862. 

Trace,  Thrace,  780. 
trays,  sb.  pi.  traces,  1281. 
trapped,  p.p.  having  trappings, 

1299. 
trappures,    sb.    pi.     trappings, 

1641. 

travaille,  sb.  labour,  1548. 
trede,  i  pi.  pres.  tread,  2164. 
tretee,  so.  treaty,  430  (F.  traiti'}. 
trewely,  adv.  truly,  279. 
trompe,  sb.  trumpet,  1316. 
tronchoun,  sb.  thick  stick  (shafi 

of  a  broken  spear?),  1757  ((). 

Fr.  tronchon^  from  Lat.  ft  HI: 

cut)'. 


GLOSSARY 


'59 


trone,  sb.  throne,  1671. 
trouthe,    sb.    truth,    guarantee, 

troth,  752  (O.E.  trefriuth). 
trowe,  i  s.  pres.  believe,  trow, 

1023. 

trowed,  /./.  believed,  662. 
trusteth,  2  //.  imper.  trust,  be 

sure,  1324. 

Turkeys,  adj.  Turkish,  2037. 
turneiynge,      sb.      tournament, 

1699. 

tweye,  num.  adj.  two,  40,  270. 
tweyne,  num.  adj.  twain,  two, 

276. 
twynes,  sb.  gen.  of  twine,  1172. 

unknowe,  adj.  unknown,  548. 

unkonnynge,  adj.  ignorant,  1 535. 

unkouth,  adj.  strange,  rare, 
1639  (O.E.  unciith,  lit.  un 
known,  hence  strange). 

unset,  adj.  unarranged,  casual, 
666. 

untressed,  /./.  unfastened, 
loose,  1431. 

unwist,  adj.  unknown,  2119. 

unyolden,  /./.  unyielded,  not 
having  surrendered,  1 784. 

up,  prep,  upon,  849. 

up-haf,  3  s.  pret.  heaved  up, 
lifted  up,  1570. 

up-riste,  sb.  dat.  up-rising,  193  ; 
sonne  up-rist  =  sun-rise. 

up-so-doun,  upside-down,  519. 

up-sterte,  3  s.  pret.  started  up, 
441. 

up-yolden, /./.  yielded  up,  2194. 

usedeste,  2  s.  pret.  usedst,  1 527. 

vassellage,    sb.    good    service, 

prowess,  2196. 
venerye,  sb.  hunting,  1450. 
venym,  sb.  poison,  1893. 
ventusynge,  sb.  letting  blood  by 

means  of  a  cupping-glass,  1889 

(O.  Fr.  ventoser,  to  cup), 
verraily,  adv.  verily,  truly,  316. 
verray,  adj.  true,  genuine,  693, 

748  (O.  Fr.  verai). 


vertu,  sb.  power,  influence,  1391. 
vestimentz,    sb.    //.    garments, 

2090. 

veyn,  adj.  vain,  foolish,  236. 
veyne-blood,  sb.  letting  blood  by 

opening  a  vein,  1889. 
veze,    sb.    rush    of   wind,    1127 

(spelt  fese  in  Bradley's  edition 

of  "  Stratmann's   Mid.    F,ng. 

Diet."     O.E.  fesian,  to  drive. 

It  may  be  an  imitative  word. 

Cp.  modern  English  fizz  and 

Icel.yf.sv2). 
vilenye,  sb.  villany,  dishonour, 

84. 

visage,  sb.  face,  2019. 
voyden,   v.   remove,   drive  out, 

1893- 

voys,  sb.  voice,  1316. 
vomyt,  sb.  vomit,  1898. 

wayke,  adj.  weak,  29. 
waille,  i  s.  pres.  wail,  73. 
waymentynge,  sb.  lamentation, 

44,  137- 
wake,    sb.    a   watch,    especially 

over  a   dead   body,   a   vigil  ; 

wake-pleyes,   funeral   games, 

2102. 
wan,  3  s.  pret.   won,  captured, 

IS*- 

wan,    adj.    pale,    dull  coloured, 

1598. 
wane,  v.  to  decrease,  get  small, 

2167. 
wanhope,  sb.  despair,  391  (O.E. 

wan-  (neg.  prefix)  hopd]. 
wanye,  v.  wane,  decrease,  1220. 
war,  adj.  aware,  wary,   38,  360 

(O.E.  war). 
waste,     adj.     waste,     desolate, 

473- 

wasted,/./,  perished,  2162. 
wawes,   sb.   waves,   uoo  (O.E. 

ivagn). 
wedde,     <b.    dat.    pledge  ;    to 

wedde,  as  a  pledge,  360. 
wedden,  v.  wed,  974. 


i6o 


KNIGHT'S   TALE 


wede,  sb.  clothing,  148. 

weel,    adj.    and   adv.   well,   68, 

1009. 

weep,  3  s.  pret.  wept,  1487. 
weye,  wey,  sb.   way,  road,  39, 

112 ;  atte  leste  weye,  at  the 

least,  263. 

weyeth,  3  s.  pres.  weighs,  923. 
weylaway,  interj.  alas,  80. 
wele,  sb.  weal,  well-being,  good 

fortune,  37,  414. 
welle,  sb.  source,  fountain,  2179. 
wenden,    v.    turn,    go,    depart, 

1356 ; wende,  533,  2107,  2167 

(O.E.  wendan). 
wene,  v.  to  think,  797  ;  weneth, 

3  s.  pres.  1337  ;  wenen,  3  pi. 

pres.,  946;  wende,  I  s.  pret. 

411  (O.E.  wenan.} 
wenten,  3  //.  pret.  went,  1290. 

(See  wenden). 
wepe,    i    s.    pres.    weep,    73 ; 

wepen,  3//.  pres.  913. 
wepene,    wepne,    sb.    weapon, 

733,  743- 
were,    v.    guard,    1692    (O.E. 

werian). 
werede,  3  s.  pret.    wore,   530, 

1071. 
weren,  were,  3  //.  pret.  were, 

98,  321. 

werre,  sb.  war,  429,  589. 
werreye,   werreyen,    v.    make 

war  against,  626,  686. 
wessh,  3  s.  pret.  washed,   1425. 
wete,  adj.  wet,  422. 
wexe,  3  s.  pret.  waxed,  became, 

504  ;  wexeth,  3  s.  pres.  2166; 

wexynge,  /.  pres.  1220. 
whan,  adv.  when,  36. 
wheither,  pron.  which  of  two, 

whether,  998,  999,  267. 
wher,  adv.  whether,  243. 
wher.  adv.  where,  255. 
whil,  adv.  while,  79,  321. 
whilom,  adv.  formerly,  once,  I, 

1526  (dot.  plur.  oihwil,  while, 

time). 


whippeltre,  sb.  cornel  tree,  dog 
wood,  2065. 

whistelynge,  sb.  whistling,  hiss 
ing,  1479. 

whit,  adj.  white,  80 1  ;  whyt, 
1320. 

wydwe,  sb.  widow,  313. 

wyf,  sb.  wife,  74,  313  ;  to  wyve, 
dat.  to  wife,  1002. 

wight,  sb.  creature,  person, 
wight,  567,  1017  (O.E.  u<iht). 

wighte,  sb.  weight,  1287. 

wykes,  sb.  pi.  weeks,  992. 

wikke,  adj.  wicked,  evil,  229, 
722. 

wyl,  wille,   sb.    will,   pleasure, 

987,  459- 

wilnest,  2  s.  pres.  desirest,  751. 
wilnen,  v.  desire,  1256;  wilneth, 

3  sing.  pres.  \  706. 
wiltow,  wilt  thou,  298. 
wylugh,  sb.  willow,  2064. 
wyn,  sb.  wine,  613. 
wynne,  v.  win,  gain,  33. 
wirche,  v.  to  work,  1901. 
wys,  adj.  wise,  562. 
wise,  sb.  fashion,  manner,  803, 

882. 

wisly,  adv.  surely,  1005. 
wiste,  3  s.  pret.  knew,  631. 
wistest,     2    s.    pres.    knowest, 

298. 
witen,    I  //.  pres.  know,  402  ; 

3  pi.  pres.  936. 

withouten,  prep,  without,  90. 
withseyn,  v.  to  gainsay,  deny, 

282. 

wityng,  sb.  knowledge,  753. 
wode,  sb.  wood,  564,  664  (O.E. 

•wudll}. 

wodebynde,  sb.  woodbine,  650. 
wol,  I  s.pres.  will,  31  ;  3  s.  pres. 

184. 
wolde,    i   sing,    would,    18 ;    3 

sing.  1 10. 

woldestow,  wouldest  thou,  1977. 
woln,  T,  pi.  pres.  will,  1263. 
wolt,  2  s.  pres.  wilt,  766. 


GLOSSARY 


161 


woltow,  wilt  thou,  686. 
womruanliede,  sb.  womanhood, 

890. 
wone,    sb.    wont,    custom,    182, 

206  (O.E.  ge-Tvuna) 
woneden,  3  pi.  pret.  dwelt,  2069 

(O.E.  wunian). 
wonne,  wonnen,  /./.   won,  6, 

144,  19. 

wont,  adj.  accustomed,  834. 
woo,  sb.  woe,  524. 
wood,  adj.  mad,  471,  598  (O.E. 

wod). 

woodly,  adv.  madly,  443. 
woodnesse,  sb.  madness,  1153. 
wook,  3  s.  pret.  awoke,  535. 
woost,  2  s.  pres.  k  no  west,  316. 
woot,  3  s.  pres.  knows,   28 ;    I 

s.  pres.  282  (O.  E.  wdt). 
wostow,  knowest  thou,  305. 
wowke,  sb.  week,  68 1. 
wrastleth,   3  s.  pres.   wrestles, 

2103. 
wrecche,   sb.    and   adj.   wretch, 

wretched  one,  73,  248. 
wreke,   v.    avenge,    103   (O.E. 

wrecan). 

wrethe,  sb.  wreath,  1287. 
wroght,    /./.    wrought,    made, 

154. 

wrothe,     adj.     wroth,      angry, 
321. 

yaf,  3  s.  pret.  gave,  583.     (See 

yeve. ) 
y-bete,  /./.   beaten,  embossed, 

121. 
y-born,  /./.  bom,  161  ;  carried, 

1836. 

y-bounden.  /./.  bound,  291. 
y-brent,  /./.  burnt,  88. 
y-brogbt,  /./.  brought,  253. 
y-buryed,  p.p.  buried,  88. 
y-clenched,  /./.  clamped,  1133. 
y-cleped,  /./.  called,  9. 
y-corve, /./.  cut,  1155. 
ydel,  adj.  idle,  1647. 
ydelnesse,  sb.  idleness,  1082. 


y-do,  p.p.  done,  finished,  1676  ; 

y-don,  167. 

y-drawe,  /./.  drawn,  86. 
y-dryven,  p.p.  driven,  1149. 
y-dropped,     /./.     be-dropped, 

2026. 

ye,  yea,  809. 
yeer,   yer,  sb.   year,    175,   345, 

600  ;  yere.  dat.  345. 
yelewe,  adj.  yellow,  1071. 
yelpe,    v.    boast,     1380    (O.E. 

gielpan). 
yemen,   sb.  pi.    yeomen,    1651 

(cp.     O.     Fries,     gdman,     a 

villager,  from  gd,  a  village), 
yerde,  sb.  yard,  rod,  192,  529. 
yeve,  v.  give,  306  (O.E.  giefan). 
yeven,  yeve,/./.  given,  57,  228, 

308. 

y-fetered, /./.  fettered,  371. 
yiftes,  sb.  pi.  gifts,  1340. 
yive,  1559.     (SeeyevQ). 
y-laft,  /./.  left,  1888. 
y-liche,  adv.  alike,  1668 ;  y-like, 

68 1  ;    y-lik,    1876   (O.E.   ge- 

Ue\ 
ymaginacioun,  sb.  imagination, 

236. 

ymaginyng,  sb.  imagining,  plan 
ning,  conception,  1137* 
y-maked,  /./.  made,  1207. 
y-meynd,  /./.  mingled,  1312. 
ynougb.,  adj.  enough,  30. 
yolle,  3  //.  pres.    yell,   shout, 

1814. 
yond,   adv.  yonder,   241   (O.E. 

geond). 

yonge,  adj.  young,  1 14. 
yore,   adv.    a    long    time,   955 

(O.E.    gedra,    from    gear,    a 

year). 

youlyng,  sb.  yelling,  420. 
yow,  pron.  you,  18,  247. 
y-payed,  p.p.  paid,  944. 
y-raft,  p.p.  seized,  1157. 
y-ronne,    /./.     run,    arranged, 

1307 ;  y-ronnen,  run  together, 

coagulated,  1835. 


162 


KNIGHT'S   TALE 


y-sayd,  /./.  said,  1009. 
y-set,  p.p.  appointed,  777. 
y-spreynd,      p.p.       sprinkled, 

1311. 
y-Btiked,  /./.    thrust,   stabbed, 

707. 
y-storve, /./.  dead,  1156. 


y-take,  p.p.  taken,  captured, 

1759- 

yvele,  adv.  ill,  badly,  269. 
yvy  leef,  sb.  ivy-leaf,  980. 
y-wonne,  p.p.  won,  1801. 
y-wrye,  /./.  covered,  veiled, 

2046  (O.E.  ^vrihan}. 


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MACMILLAN  AND  CO.,   LIMITED,    LONDON. 


otu  I ,  NflK  £ 


PR  Chaucer,   Geoffrey 

1868  Canterbury  tales 

K62P6 
1903 


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