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And bathed every veyne 8 in swich licour
Of which vertu engendred is the flour;
Whan Zephirus eek with his swete breeth
Inspired hath in every holt 10 and heeth
The tendre croppes," and the yonge sonne
Hath in the Ram his halfe cours y-ronne,
And smale foweles 13 maken melodye
That slepen al the nyght with open eye,
So priketh hem Nature in hir corages,"
Thanne longen folk to goon on pilgrimages,
And palmeres for to seken straunge strondes,15
To ferne halwes,16 kowthe 17 in sondry londes;
And specially, from every shires ende
Of Engelond, to Caunterbury they wende,
The hooly blisful martir for to seke,
That hem hath holpen whan that they were
seeke.

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1 although 2 know 3 abandon think without doubt do 7 showers sweet 8 vein such 10 forest "twigs 12 In April the sun's course lies partly in the zodiacal sign of the Ram and partly in that of the Bull. 13 birds 14 in their hearts 15 foreign strands 16 distant shrines 17 known 18 it happened 19 heart 20 full chance

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And whiche they weren and of what degree,
And eek in what array that they were inne;
And at a knyght than wol I first bigynne. 42
A Knyght ther was and that a worthy man,
That fro the tyme that he first bigan
To riden out, he lovede chivalrie,
Trouthe and honour, fredom and curteisie.
Ful worthy was he in his lordes werre,
And thereto hadde he riden, no man ferre,7
As wel in Cristendom as in hethenesse,
And ever honoured for his worthynesse.
At Alisaundre he was whan it was wonne;
Ful ofte tyme he hadde the bord bigonne
Aboven alle nacions in Pruce."

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And Frenssh she spak ful faire and fetisly
After the scole of Stratford-atte-Bowe,"
For Frenssh of Parys was to hire unknowe.
At mete wel y-taught was she with-alle,
She leet no morsel from hir lippes falle,
Ne wette hir fyngres in hir sauce depe;
Wel coude she carie a morsel and wel kepe
That no drope ne fille upon hire breste.
In curteisie was set ful muchel hir leste.8
Hire over-lippe wyped she so clene,
That in hir coppe ther was no ferthyng sene
Of grece, whan she dronken hadde hir
draughte.

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Ful semely after hir mete she raughte,'
And sikerly 10 she was of greet desport,11
And ful plesaunt and amyable of port,12
And peyned hire 13 to count refete 14 cheere 15
Of court, and been estatlich 16 of manere, 140
And to ben holden digne 17 of reverence.
But, for to speken of hire conscience,
She was so charitable and so pitous
She wolde wepe if that she saugh a mous
Caught in a trappe, if it were deed or bledde.
Of smale houndes 19 hadde she, that she fedde
With rosted flessh, or milk and wastel-breed; 20
But sore wepte she, if oon of hem were deed,21
Or if men 22 smoot it with a yerde 23 smerte;
And al was conscience and tendre herte. 150
Ful semyly 25 hir wympul 26 pynched 27 was;
Hire nose tretys,28 hir eyen greye as glas,
Hir mouth ful smal and ther-to softe and reed;
But sikerly she hadde a fair forheed;
It was almoost a spanne brood I trowe, 155
For, hardily,29 she was nat undergrowe.

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1 an image of his patron saint 2 cord By St. Eligius, a very mild oath named skilfully A convent near London. pleasure reached certainly good humour bearing 13 exerted herself 14 imitate 15 fashions 16 dignified

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worthy saw little dogs 20 cake bread 21 died any one stick 24 sharply 25 neatly face-cloth 27 pinched, plaited 28 well-formed 29 certainly

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Gynglen in a whistlynge wynd as cleere
And eek as loude as dooth the chapel-belle
Ther-as this lord was kepere of the celle."
The reule of Seint Maure or of Seint Bencit,
By-cause that it was old and som-del streit 10.
This ilke monk leet olde thynges pace
And heeld after the newe world the space.
He yaf nat of that text a pulled 11 hen
That seith that hunters beth nat hooly men,
Ne that a monk when he is recchelees 12
Is likned til a fissh that is waterlees;
This is to seyn, a monk out of his cloystre.
But thilke text heeld he nat worth an oystre;
And I seyde his opinioun was good;
What sholde he studie and make hym-selven
wood, 13

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Upon a book in cloystre alwey to poure, 185
Or swynken 14 with his handes and laboure
As Austyn bit? 15 How shal the world be
served?

Lat Austyn have his swynk 4 to him reserved.
Therfore he was a pricasour 16 aright;
Grehoundes he hadde, as swift as fowel in flight:
Of prikyng 17 and of huntyng for the hare 191
Was al his lust,18 for no cost wolde he spare.
I seigh 19 his sleves purfiled 20 at the hond
With grys,21 and that the fyneste of a lond;
And for to festne his hood under his chyn 195
He hadde of gold y-wroght a curious pyn;
A love-knotte in the gretter ende ther was.
His heed was balled, that shoon as any glas,
And eek his face as it hadde been enoynt.
He was a lord ful fat and in good poynt; 22

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Hise eyen stepe1 and rollynge in his heed,
That stemed 2 as a forneys of a leed; 3
His bootes souple, his hors in greet estaat.
Now certeinly he was a fair prelaat.
He was nat pale, as a forpyned goost;
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A fat swan loved he best of any roost.
His palfrey was as broun as is a berye.
A Frere ther was, a wantown and a merye,
A lymytour," a ful solempne man.
In alle the ordres foure is noon that can
So muchel of daliaunce and fair langage; 211
He hadde maad ful many a mariage
Of yonge wommen at his owene cost.
Unto his ordre he was a noble post;
Ful wel biloved and famulier was he
With frankeleyns over-al in his contree;
And eek with worthy wommen of the toun,
For he hadde power of confessioun,
As seyde hym-self, moore than a curat,
For of his ordre he was licenciat.
Ful swetely herde he confessioun,

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For unto a povre ordre for to yive
Is signe that a man is wel y-shryve.
For, if he 13 yaf, he 14 dorste make avaunt
He wiste that a man was repentaunt;
For many a man so harde is of his herte
He may nat wepe al-thogh hym soore smerte.
Therfore instede of wepynge and preyeres
Men moote yeve silver to the povre freres.
His typet was ay farsed 15 full of knyves 233
And pynnes, for to yeven faire wyves.
And certeinly he hadde a murye 16 note;
Wel coude he synge and pleyen on a rote; 17
Of yeddynges 18 he bar outrely the pris.
His nekke whit was as the flour-de-lys;
Ther-to he strong was as a champioun.
He knew the tavernes well in every toun
And everich hostiler and tappestere 19
Bet 20 than a lazar 21 or a beggestere;
For unto swich a worthy man as he
Acorded nat, as by his facultee,
To have with sike lazars aqueyntaunce;
It is nat honeste,23 it may nat avaunce

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2 gleamed cauldron tortured to death 5 licensed to beg in a certain district imposing

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7 Dominican, Franciscan, Carmelite and Austin 10 plucked friars. 8 knows rich farmers where 11 knew 12 pittance, gift 13 the man 14 the friar 15 stuffed 17 fiddle 23 female beggar beggar

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grey fur

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merry 20 better 21

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popular songs 19 bar-maid

becoming

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Yet wolde he have a ferthyng 7 er he wente:
His purchas was wel bettre than his rente.'
And rage he koude, as it were right a whelpe.10
In love-dayes 11 ther coude he muchel helpe,
For there he was nat lyk a cloysterer
With a thredbare cope, as is a povre scoler,
But he was lyk a maister, or a pope;
Of double worstede was his semi-cope,1
That rounded as a belle, out of the presse.13
Somwhat he lipsed for his wantownesse,14
To make his Englissh swete upon his tonge;
And in his harpyng, whan that he hadde
songe,

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Hise eyen twynkled in his heed aryght
As doon the sterres in the frosty nyght.
This worthy lymytour was cleped Huberd.

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A Marchant was ther with a forked berd, In mottelee,15 and hye on horse he sat; Upon his heed a Flaundrish bever hat, His botes clasped faire and fetisly.16 His resons 17 spak he ful solempnely,18 Souning 19 alway thencrees 20 of his winning. He wolde the see were kept for anything Betwixe Middelburgh and Orewelle. Wel coude he in eschaunge 22 sheeldes 23 selle. This worthy man ful well his wit bisette; Ther wiste 25 no wight that he was in dette, So estatly was he of his governaunce With his bargaynes and with his chevisaunce.26 For sothe he was a worthy man withalle, But sooth to seyn,27 I noot 23 how men him calle.

A Clerk ther was of Oxenford also That unto logyk hadde longe y-go. As leene was his hors as is a rake,

And he nas nat right fat, I undertake,

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3 poor folk 2 everywhere where full of good qualities

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shoe 6 St. John i, 1, used as a greeting. 7 bit gettings what he paid for his begging privileges or his regular income 10 puppy arbitration days 12 short cape 13 the press in which the semi-cope was kept. 14 jollity

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a sober 18 pompously marks, declarations proclaiming 20 the increase at any cost

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Than robes riche, or fithele, or gay sautrie.5
But al be that he was a philosophre,
Yet hadde he but litel gold in cofre;
But al that he myghte of his freendes hente
On bookes and his lernynge he it spente, 300
And bisily gan for the soules preye
Of hem that gaf hym wher-with to scoleye. 6
Of studie took he moost cure and moost
heede;

Noght o word spak he moore than was neede,
And that was seyd in forme and reverence,
And short and quyk and ful of hy sentence.*
Sownynge in moral vertu was his speche,
And gladly wolde he lerne and gladly teche.
A Sergeant of the Lawe, war
10 and wys,
That often hadde been at the parvys,11
Ther was also, ful riche of excellence.
Discreet he was, and of greet reverence
He semed swich, his wordes weren so wyse.
Justice he was ful often in assyse,12

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1 hollow 2 besides 3 outer short coat he had rather musical instrument go to school 7 care meaning tending to 10 cautious 11 the porch of St. Paul's, where lawyers met clients 12 court of assize 13 full 14 conveyancer 15 invalidated was not cases 18 decisions 19 compose and draw up a document 20 find a defect in 21 fully 22 by heart 23 sober grey girdle rich landowner

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An housholdere, and that a greet, was he;
Seint Julian he was in his contree;

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His breed, his ale, was alwey after oon;
A bettre envyned man was no-wher noon.
Withoute bake-mete was nevere his hous,
Of fissh and flessh, and that so plentevous
It snewed in his hous of mete and drynke,
Of alle deyntees that men coude thynke. 346
After the sondry sesons of the yeer,
So chaunged he his mete and his soper.
Ful many a fat partrich hadde he in muwe,10
And many a breem 11 and many a luce" in
stuwe." 12

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Wo was his cook but-if 13 his sauce were
Poynaunt and sharpe, and redy al his geere.
His table dormant 14 in his halle alway
Stood redy covered al the longe day.
At sessiouns ther was he lord and sire;
Ful ofte tyme he was knyght of the shire.
An anlaas,15 and a gipser 16 al of silk
Heeng at his girdel whit as morne milk.
A shirreve hadde he been and a countour;
Was no-wher such a worthy vavasour.18
An haberdassher 19 and a carpenter,
A webbe,20 a dyere, and a tapicer,21
And they were clothed alle in o liveree,2
Of a solempne and greet fraternitee.
Ful fresh and newe hir gere 23 apyked 24 was;
Hir knyves were y-chaped 25 noght with bras,
But al with silver; wroght ful clene and weel
Hir girdles and hir pouches everydeel.
Wel semed ech of hem a fair burgeys,
To sitten in a yeldhalle 26 on a deys.27
Everich, for the wisdom that he can,28
Was shaply for to been an alderman;
For catel 29 hadde they ynogh and rente,30
And eek hir wyves wolde it wel assente;

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1 temperament 2 in the morning 3 sop custom 1 called 2 meetings on the eve of saints' days patron saint of hospitality always of the same 3 them of the right sort, very skilful a tart quality provided with wines pasties snowed flavouring powder a root for flavouring boil coop a kind of fish 12 pond 13 unless 14 a per8 chowders 9 shin 10 sore 11 minced capon with manent table 15 knife 16 pouch treasurer 18 landsugar, cream, and flour 12 dwelling 13 know 14 hackholder 19 keeper of a shop for hats or furnishings ney as well as he could 16 cheap cloth 17 lace, cord one uniform 23 apparel goodfellow rascal 19 merchant 21 threw them into the sea 4 trimmed 25 sheathed 26 guild-hall 27 dais 28 knows 29 property 30 income

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