The Poetical Works of Geoffrey Chaucer: Memoir of Chaucer, by Sir Harris Nicolas. Essay on the language and versification of Chaucer, by T. Tyrwhitt. An introductory discourse to the Canterbury tales, by T. TyrwhittW. Pickering, 1845 |
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accented annuatim ad scaccarium appears Arcita Arms Boccace boke called Canterbury Canterbury Tales Chau Chaucer cui dominus concessit copy cui dominus Rex Decameron denariis sibi liberatis dominus Rex nunc Duchess Duke of Lancaster Earl Easter edition Emilia English France French French language Galfrido Chaucer cui Geoffrey Chaucer Godwin Gower granted Henry House of Fame hujusmodi certo ipsum Issue Roll King King's Knight language Latin Layamon letters liberatis per manus loved loven manus proprios marcas annuatim mentioned Metre Nonne Ormulum Palemone Participle passage pension persolutionem persons Petrarch Plowman's Tale Poem Poet Poetry Preestes printed probably Prologue pronounced proximo preterito Pycard Regis reign Richard Rime Robert of Brunne Robert of Gloucester Roet Roman Roman de Rou Saxon says shew sibi liberandarum Stanza story suppose syllables Tale Theseida Thomas Chaucer thou tion translation Verbs verses versification Vide Note viij.d Wace Wife of Bath words write
Popular passages
Page 144 - The verse of Chaucer, I confess, is not harmonious to us; but 'tis like the eloquence of one whom Tacitus commends, it was auribus istius temporis accommodata: they who lived with him, and some time after him, thought it musical; and it continues so, even in our judgment, if compared with the numbers of Lidgate and Gower, his contemporaries: there is the rude sweetness of a Scotch tune in it, which is natural and pleasing, though not perfect.
Page 29 - Meanwhile in 1374 he was appointed Comptroller of the Customs and Subsidy of Wools, Skins, and Tanned Hides...
Page 144 - I cannot go so far as he who published the last edition of him : for he would make us believe the fault is in our ears, and that there were really ten syllables in a verse where we find but nine...
Page 284 - Harl. 3869. Though perhaps the death of Chaucer at that time had rendered the compliment contained in those verses less proper than it was at first, that alone does not seem to have been a sufficient reason for omitting them, especially as the original date of the work, in the...
Page 288 - The holy Father, by way of recommending celibacy, has exerted all his learning and eloquence (and he certainly was not deficient in either) to collect together and aggravate whatever he could find to the prejudice of the female sex. Among other things he has inserted his own translation (probably) of a long extract from what he calls, Liber aureolus Theophrasti de nuptiis.
Page 80 - And as for me, though that I can but lite, On bookes for to rede I me delite, And to hem yeve I faith and full credence, And in mine herte have hem in reverence So hertely, that there is game none, That fro my bookes maketh me to gone, But it...
Page 159 - So that heymen of thys lond, that of her blod come, Holdeth alle thulke speche that hii of hem nome ; Vor bote a man couthe French me tolth of hym wel lute : Ac lowe men holdeth to Englyss and to her kunde speche yute. Ich wene ther ne be man in world contreyes none That ne holdeth to her kunde speche, bote Engelond one. Ac wel me wot vor to conne both wel yt ys ; Vor the more that a man con, the more worth he ys.
Page 208 - Pr. Le creatour de toute creature. It contains LV Stanzas of 7 verses each, in the last of which is the following apology for the language: "A1'universite de tout le monde Johan Gower ceste Balade envoie, Et si jeo nai de Francois la faconde, Pardonetz moi qe jeo de ceo forsvoie; Jeo suis Englois, si quier par tiele voie Estre excuse-." Chaucer himself seems to have had no great opinion of the performances of his countrymen in French. [Prol. to Test, of Love, ed.
Page 145 - ... in Chaucer's age. It were an easy matter to produce some thousands of his verses, which are lame for want of half a foot, and sometimes a whole one, and which no pronunciation can make otherwise.