Geoffrey Chaucer — English Poetry Library

English Poetry Library

Geoffrey Chaucer1343–140014th century Geoffrey Chaucer was an English poet, writer and civil servant best known for The Canterbury Tales. He has been called the 'father of English literature', or alternatively, the 'father of English poetry'. He was the first writer to be buried in what has since become Poets' Corner in Westminster Abbey.

Poems

150 poems

1. Cheapside, where jousts were sometimes held, and which12 lines
1. Every dative case ends in _-e_.9 lines
1. Plight: pulled; the word is an obsolete past tense from21 lines
11. Peacock Arrows: Large arrows, with peacocks’ feathers.6 lines
1140. Caucasus.--B. ii. pr. 7. 43.8 lines
1262. A dronke man, &c.--B. iii. pr. 2. 61.12 lines
13. Bathe: both; Scottice, “baith.”9 lines
13. Compare B. ii. pr. 4. 98-101.5 lines
13. Oseney: A once well-known abbey near Oxford.9 lines
14. Railings.6 lines
15. It was fashionable to hang bells on horses’ bridles.4 lines
16. The conclucions of the Astrolabie. Fol. cclxi.4 lines
17. The pure fetters: the very fetters. The Greeks used17 lines
18. Limitour: A friar with licence or privilege to beg, or4 lines
19. The House of Fame. Fol. cclxxiiij., back.24 lines
2. Astrolabe: “Astrelagour,” “astrelabore”; a mathematical10 lines
2. Reprinted, with additional matter; London, 1542. Folio.16 lines
2. See introduction to “The Legend of Good Women”.14 lines
21. Because she was town-bred, he offered wealth, or money13 lines
21. Compline: even-song in the church service; chorus.6 lines
21. Lovedays: meetings appointed for friendly settlement of7 lines
25. Clary: hippocras, wine made with spices.5 lines
25. Poor scholars at the universities used then to go about4 lines
25. Unhardy is unsely: the cowardly is unlucky; “nothing4 lines
28. Forlore: lost; german, “verloren.”24 lines
28. Mew: cage. The place behind Whitehall, where the king’s20 lines
3. Gite: gown or coat; French “jupe.”6 lines
35. Good counsail of Chaucer. [Truth.] Same page.6 lines
36. The authors mentioned here were the chief medical text-8 lines
36. The two lines within brackets are not in most of the10 lines
36. Thilke: that, contracted from “the ilke,” the same.8 lines
38. Last: lace, leash, noose, snare: from Latin, “laceus.”22 lines
38. Yit halt thyn ancre.--B. ii. pr. 4. 40.5 lines
39. Chaucer to his emptie purse. Same page.25 lines
391. Ne trust no wight to finden in Fortune19 lines
3951. TRAGEDIE.--B. ii. pr. 2. 51-2. (See 3163 above.)6 lines
44. Cop: Head; German, “Kopf”.12 lines
47. This line, perhaps, refers to the deed of Jael.7 lines
5. The A.S. _[=e]a_ produced M.E. open _[=e]_.76 lines
526. O god, that at thy disposicioun8 lines
53. Dane: Daphne, daughter of the river-god Peneus, in10 lines
55. Every deal: in every part; “deal” corresponds to the8 lines
55. Pardoner: a seller of pardons or indulgences.6 lines
6. See note 1 to The Man of Law’s Tale.89 lines
6. Testif: headstrong, wild-brained; French, “entete.”9 lines
61. On the dais: see note 32 to the Prologue.4 lines
63. Adon: Adonis, a beautiful youth beloved of Venus, whose10 lines
65. Chaucer's A. B. C. Genuine; here printed as poem no. I.140 lines
67. Stace of Thebes: Statius, the Roman who embodied in the12 lines
7. Boecius de Consolatione Philosophie. Fol. ccx., back.8 lines
7. Reprinted, with slight additions; London, 1687. Folio.20 lines
74. Parements: ornamental garb, French “parer” to deck.5 lines
763. Felicitee clepe I my suffisaunce.--B. iii. pr. 2. 6-8.11 lines
8. Popelet: Puppet; but chiefly; young wench.18 lines
816. Ful anguisshous than is, god woot--quod she--15 lines
83. Belmarie is supposed to have been a Moorish state in10 lines
837. Fortune is my fo.--B. i. pr. 4. 8.17 lines
87. Y-wrie: covered, hid; Anglo-Saxon, “wrigan,” to veil.13 lines
9. Pillers: pillagers, strippers; French, “pilleurs.”30 lines
9. See note 1 to the Prologue to the Reeves Tale7 lines
90. Lyke-wake: watching by the remains of the dead; from7 lines
A VERSE TRANSLATION BY JOHN WALTON.96 lines
About Google Book Search7 lines
Also D 334:--13 lines
And-th['e]r-in st['i]ked | a-l['i]ly fl['o]ur.12 lines
As for to bydde a womman for to renne.51 lines
As whyt as lilie or rose in rys24 lines
Audio formats available:5 lines
Bedford MS. (Bedford Library).--I.32 lines
Bk. i. met. 5. 28. Cx. on the nekkes.15 lines
Bk. iv. 309-15 (stanza 45) runs thus:--7 lines
Bk. iv. 638 runs thus:--13 lines
Bk. iv. pr. 6. 52. Cx. be cleped.4 lines
Bk. v. pr. 3. 142. Cx. impetren.105 lines
BOETHIUS AND TROILUS5 lines
BY THE6 lines
December 20079 lines
Edited for Popular Perusal40 lines
ERRATA AND ADDENDA.4 lines
Explicit Liber Primus50 lines
Explicit Liber Tercius.29 lines
Explicit Secundus Liber.50 lines
GLOSSARIAL INDEX.68 lines
GROUP B.22 lines
GROUP E.13 lines
GROUP F.7 lines
GROUP G.5 lines
GROUP I.66 lines
I. BOETHIUS.18 lines
I. Chief forms.4 lines
ii. pr. 5. 35. 'of the laste beautee' translates Lat. 'postremae65 lines
II. TROILUS.57 lines
II. Without the first syllable.4 lines
III. 1417. 'Lucifera: Stella matutina.'5 lines
iii. pr. 12. 55, 67. a keye: 'clauus;' and again, 'clauo.'8 lines
iii. pr. 8. 11. anoyously: 'obnoxius;' (see the note).11 lines
III. Syllable dropped after the caesura.4 lines
INTRODUCTION, GLOSSARY, AND INDEXES6 lines
IV. Two syllables dropped.117 lines
Language: English107 lines
LEGEND OF GOOD WOMEN.6 lines
LENVOY.38 lines
LIST OF CHAUCER'S WORKS.68 lines
METRE I.41 lines
METRE II.38 lines
METRE III.45 lines
METRE IV.24 lines
METRE V.60 lines
METRE VI.47 lines
METRE VII.60 lines
MINOR POEMS5 lines
My dere maister--God his soule quyte--120 lines
Notes to The Knight’s Tale.15 lines
Notes to the Prologue45 lines
Notes to the Prologue to the Miller’s Tale5 lines
Notes to the Prologue to the Reeves Tale.8 lines
PAGE77 lines
PART I. REPRINTED MATTER.5 lines
PROSE I.108 lines
PROSE VII.138 lines
Que miex vaut asses et profite127 lines
Section 2.15 lines
Section 3.16 lines
Section 4.27 lines
Section 5.23 lines
Sion College MS. (Shirley's).--I.9 lines
So also in B 1178:--30 lines
The Canterbury Tales. Chaucer's Tale of Meliboeus.49 lines
The Canterbury Tales. The Cook's Tale.100 lines
The Canterbury Tales. The Parson's Tale.75 lines
The Complete Works of Geoffrey Chaucer/Volume 15 lines
The Complete Works of Geoffrey Chaucer/Volume 25 lines
The Complete Works of Geoffrey Chaucer/Volume 55 lines
The Complete Works of Geoffrey Chaucer/Volume 66 lines
THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE7 lines
THE HOUSE OF FAME.12 lines
THE LIFE OF CHAUCER32 lines
The list is as follows.56 lines
The Parliament of Fowles119 lines
These may be analysed as below.67 lines
This file should be named 23722.txt.19 lines
Title: The Canterbury Tales6 lines
To whom for eu_er_emor myn herte is holde:67 lines
Transcriber’s Notes:42 lines
V. 365.--R. 18709.110 lines
v. met. 5. 6. by moist fleeinge: 'liquido uolatu.'12 lines
V. PARLEMENT OF FOULES.7 lines
WITH LIFE, GRAMMAR, NOTES, AND AN15 lines
Without | e fabl' | I wol | descryve.4 lines
XV. LAK OF STEDFASTNESSE.6 lines