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THE WYCLIF BIBLE (c. 1380)

THE KING JAMES BIBLE (1611)

MATTHEW III. THE COMING OF JOHN THE MATTHEW III. THE COMING OF JOIN THE

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In tho daies Joon Baptist cam and prechid In those daies came John the Baptist, preachin the desert of Judee, and seide, Do ye pen- ing in the wildernesse of Judea, and saying, aunce, for the kyngdom of hevenes schal nygh. Repent yee: for the kingdome of heaven is at For this is he of whom it is seid bi Isaie the hand. For this is he that was spoken of by the profete, seiynge, A vois of a crier in desert, Prophet Esaias, saying, The voyce of one cryMake ye redi the weyes of the Lord, make yeing in the wildernesse, Prepare ye the way of right the pathis of hym. And this Joon hadde clothing of camels heris, and a girdil of skyn aboute his leendis, and his mete was hony soukis1 and hony of the wode. Thanne Jerusalem wente out to hymn, and al Judee, and al the countre aboute Jordan, and thei werun waischen of hym in Jordan, and knowlechiden her synnes.

But he sigh many of Farisies and of Saduces comynge to his baptem, and seide to hem, Generaciouns of eddris,2 who schewid to you to fle fro wrath that is to come? Therfor do ye worthi fruytis of penaunce. And nyle ye seie3 with ynne you, We han Abraham to fadir: for I seie to you that God is myghti to reise up of thes stones the sones of Abraham. And now the axe is putte to the root of the tre: therfor every tre that makith not good fruyt schal be kutte doun, and schal be cast in to the fire.

I waisch you in watyr in to penaunce: but he that schal come aftir me is stronger than I, whos schoon I am not worthi to bere: he schal baptise you in the Holi Goost, and fier. Whos wenewynge4 clooth is in his hond, and he schal fulli clense his corn floor, and schal gadere his whete in to his berne; but the chaf he schal brenne with fier that mai not be quenchid.

Thanne Jhesus cam fro Galilee in to Jordan to Joon, to be baptisid of him. Jon forbede hym and seide, I owe to be baptisid of thee, and thou comest to me? But Jhesus answerid and seide to hym, Suffre now: for thus it fallith to us to fulfille alle rightfulnesse. Then Joon suffrid hym. And whanne Jhesus was baptisid, anon he wente up fro the watir: and lo, hevenes weren opened to hym, and he say the spirit of God comynge doun as a dowve, and comynge on him. And lo, a vois fro hevenes, seiynge, This is my loved sone, in whiche I have plesid to me. (Punctuation and capitalization modernized.)

1 honey-suckles (Wyclif, translating from the Vulgate, evidently mistook the meaning of the Latin locusta)

2 adders

3 will not ye to say

4 winnowing

the Lord, make his paths straight. And the same John had his raiment of camels haire, and a leatherne girdle about his loynes, and his meate was locusts and wilde honie. Then went out to him Hierusalem, and all Judea, and all the region round about Jordane. And were baptized of him in Jordane, confessing their sinues.

But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his Baptisme, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruits meete for repentance. And thinke not to say within your selves, Wee have Abraham to our father: For I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. And now also the axe is layd unto the roote of the trees: Therefore every tree which bringeth not foorth good fruite, is hewen downe, and cast into the fire. I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that commeth after mee, is mightier than I, whose shooes I am not worthy to beare, hee shall baptize you with the holy Ghost, and with fire. Whose fanne is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floore, and gather his wheate into the garner: but wil burne up the chaffe with unquenchable fire. Then commeth Jesus from Galilee to Jordane, unto John, to be baptized of him: But John forbade him, saying, I have need to bee baptized of thee, and commest thou to me?

And Jesus answering, said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becommeth us to fulfill all righteousnesse. Then he suffered him. And Jesus, when hee was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and loe, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him. And loe, a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Soone, in whom I am well pleased. (Verse numbering omitted.)

CHAUCER'S PRONUNCIATION

=

a longah as in father: bathed [bahth-ed]. a short ah without prolongation, as in aha: at [aht].

ai, ayah'ee (nearly equal to modern long i): day [dah'ee].

u, awah'oo (nearly equal to modern ou in house: straunge [strahwnjë].

e longai as in pair: bere [bearë]. e shorte as in ten: hem [hem]. e finale (pronounced as a very light sep

arate syllable, like the final e in the German eine. So also is es of the plural.): soote [soht]. It is regularly elided before a following vowel, before he, his, him, hire (her), here (their), hem (them), and occasionally before other words beginning with h; also in hire, here, oure, etc. fa, ee our long a; eck [āke]. ei, ey=ah' ee (or our long i, aye): wey [wy]. eu, ew French u: hewe [hü-e].

i longee (nearly): shires [sheer-es]. i shorti in pin: with [with].

o, oo long oa in oar: roote [nearly rōtë]. o shorto in not: [not].

oi, oy=oo' ce (near equal to modern oi): floytinge [floiting].

ou, ow our oo in rood in words that in Mod. Eng. have taken the sound of ou in loud: hous [hoos].

ou, owoh' oo in words that now have the
sound: soule, knowe [sōlë, knowë].
u long=French u (found only in French
words): vertu [vehrtü].

u short u in pull: but [boot].
ck before a, o, u or any consonant.

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soften sharp when final.

never sh or ch (vision has therefore three syllables, condicioun four, etc.).

tas at present; but final -tion two syllables (si-oon).

The following may serve to illustrate the approximate pronunciation of a few lines, without attempting Mr. Skeat's finer distinctions, such as vahyn for veyne, etc. Note that ë is a separate syllable lightly pronounced, that u equals u in full, and ü is French u.

Whan that Ahpreellë with 'is shoorës sohtë The drookht of March hath persëd toh the

rohtë,

of which vertü engendred is the floor;
And bahthëd evree vyne in swich lecoor
Whan Zephirus aik with 'is swaitë braith
Inspeered hath in evry holt and haith
The tendre croopës, and the yungë sunnë
Hath in the Ram 'is halfe coors irunnë,
And smahle foolës makhen melodeeë
That slaipen al the nikht with ohpen eeë,-
So priketh 'em nahtür in her corahgës,-
Than longen folk toh gohn on pilgrimahgës,
And palmerz for toh saiken strahwngë strondës,
Toh fernë halwës kooth in sondree londës;
And spesialee, from evree sheerës endë
Of Engëlond, toh Cahwnterberee thy wendë,
The hohlee blisful marteer for toh saikë,
That hem hath holpen whan that thy wair

saikë.

CHAUCER'S METRE

A large part of Chaucer's work is written in heroic couplets: every two consecutive lines rhyming, and each line containing five iambic feet, that is, five groups of two syllables each, with the accent on the second syllable of each foot; e. g.

And bath'led eve'jry veyn'in swich'li cour'

An extra syllable is often added at the end of the line: e. g.

Whan that] April]le with his shou res soolte Sometimes the first foot is shortened to one long syllable: e. g.

Twenty bolkes clad] in blak] or reed]

THE TEXT

We have followed, with a few changes, the text of The Canterbury Tales printed by Dr. th=th in thin or th in this, as in Mod. Eng. W. W. Skeat in the Clarendon Press Series, w sometimes oo as in herberw.

which is based on the Ellesmere MS.

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10

And bathed every veyne4 in swich licour5,
Of which vertus engendred is the flour?;
Whan Zephiruss eek with his swete breeth
Inspired hath in every holt10 and heeth
The tendre croppes11, and the yonge sonne
Hath in the Ram his halfe cours y-ronne12,
And smale fowles13 maken melodye,
That slepen al the night with open yë14,
(So priketh hem 15 nature in hir16 corages17):
Than18 longen 19 folk to goon on pilgrimages,
And palmers for to seken20 straunge strondes21,
To ferne22 halwes23, couthe24 in sondry londes;
And specially, from every shires ende
Of Engelond, to Caunterbury they wende,
The holy blisful martir25 for to seke,

That hem hath holpen, whan that they were seke26.

Bifel that, in that sesoun on a day,
In Southwerk at the Tabard 27 as I lay
Redy to wenden on my pilgrimage
To Caunterbury with ful devout corage28,
At night was come in-to that hostelrye
Wel29 nyne and twenty in a compaignye,
Of sondry folk, by aventure30 y-falle31

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20

19 Indicative plural of the verb "long".

20 seek

21 shores
22 distant
23 shrines
24 known
25 Thomas à Becket
26 sick

27 An inn (a tabard was a short coat).

12 when the spring sun has passed through the second, or April, half of his course in that constellation of the 28 heart zodiac called the 29 full Ram, i. e., about 30 chance April 11 31 fallen

13 birds

How ex

"I take unceasing delight in Chaucer. quisitely tender he is, and yet how perfectly free from the least touch of sickly melancholy or morbid drooping! The sympathy of the poet with the subjects of his poetry is particularly remarkable in Shakespeare and Chaucer; but what the first effects by a strong act of imagination and mental metamorphosis, the last does without any effort, merely by the inborn kindly joyousness of his nature. How well we seem to know Chaucer! How absolutely nothing do we know of Shakespeare!"-Coleridge. See also Dryden "On Chaucer" in the present volume.

In felawshipe, and pilgrims were they alle,
That toward Caunterbury wolden ryde;
The chambres and the stables weren wyde,

And wel we weren esed32 atte beste.

And shortly, whan the sonne was to33 reste, 30
So hadde I spoken with hem everichon34,
That I was of hir felawshipe anon,

And made forward35 erly for to ryse,
To take our wey, ther as36 I yow devyse37.

But natheles, whyl I have tyme and space,
Er that I ferther in this tale pace,
Me thinketh it acordaunt 38 to resoun,
To telle yow al the condicioun

39

Of ech of hem, so as it semed me,
And whiche they weren39, and of what degree;
And eek in what array40 that they were inne:
And at a knight than wol I first biginne.

A Knight there was, and that a worthy man,
That fro the tyme that he first bigan
To ryden out, he loved chivalrye,
Trouthe and honour, fredom41 and curteisye.
Ful worthy was he in his lordes werre42,
And therto hadde he riden (no man ferre43)
As wel in cristendom as hethenesse,
And evere honoured for his worthinesse.
At Alisaundre44 he was, whan it was wonne;
Ful ofte tyme he hadde the bord bigonne45
Aboven alle naciouns in Pruce46.

In Lettow47 hadde he reysed48 and in Ruce49, No cristen man so ofte of his degree50.

In Gernade51 at the sege eek hadde he be

Of Algezir52, and riden in Belmarye53.

At Lyeys54 was he, and at Satalye54

50

60

Whan they were wonne; and in the Grete See55
At many a noble armee56 hadde he be.
At mortal batailles hadde he been fiftene,
And foughten for our feith at Tramissene57
In listes58 thryes, and ay slayn his foo.
This ilke59 worthy knight hadde been also
Somtyme with the lord of Palatye60,
Ageyn61 another hethen in Turkye:

And everemore he hadde a sovereyn prys62.
And though that he were worthy, he was wys,

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And of his port1 as meek as is a mayde.
He nevere yet no vileinye ne sayde
In al his lyf, un-to no maner wight.
He was a verray parfit gentil knight.
But for to tellen yow of his array,

His hors were goode, but he was nat gay4.
Of fustian5 he wered a gipoun
Al bismotered with his habergeouns.
For he was late y-come from his viage",
And wente for to doon his pilgrimage1".

His arwes drouped noght with fetheres lowe),
And in his hand he bar a mighty bowe.

70 A not-heed34 hadde he, with a broun visage.
Of wode-craft35 wel coude36 he al the usage. 110
Upon his arm he bar a gay bracer37,
And by his syde a swerd and a bokeler38,
And on that other syde a gay daggere,
Harneised39 wel, and sharp as point of spere;
A Cristofre40 on his brest of silver shene11.
An horn he bar, the bawdrik42 was of grene;
A forster43 was he, soothly44, as I gesse.
Ther was also a Nonne, a Prioresse,

With him ther was his sone, a yong Squyer, A lovyer, and a lusty bacheler11,

80

With lokkes crulle12, as13 they were leyd in That of hir smyling was ful simple and coy;

presse.

Of twenty yeer of age he was, I gesse.
Of his stature he was of evene lengthe11,
And wonderly delivere15, and greet
strengthe.

Hir gretteste ooth was but by seynt Loy45;
And she was cleped16 madame Eglentyne.
Ful wel she song the service divyne,

of Entuned in hir nose ful semely;

And he hadde been somtyme in chivachye16,
In Flaundres, in Artoys17, and Picardye17,
And born him wel, as of so litel space18,
In hope to stonden in his lady19 grace.
Embrouded20 was he, as it were a mede21
Al ful of fresshe floures, whyte and rede.
Singinge he was, or floytinge22, al the day;
He was as fresh as is the month of May.
Short was his goune, with sleves longe and
wyde.

Wel coude he sitte on hors, and faire ryde.
He coude songes make and wel endyte23,

120

And Frensh she spak ful faire and fetisly47,
After the scole of Stratford atte Bowe*,
For Frensh of Paris was to hir unknowe.
At mete wel y-taught was she with-alle;
She leet no morsel from hir lippes falle,
Ne wette hir fingres in hir sauce depe.
90 Wel coude she carie a morsel, and wel kepe, 136
That no drope ne fille48 up-on hir brest.
In curteisye was set ful moche hir lest49,
Hir over lippe wyped she so clene,
That in hir coppe50 was no ferthing sene
Of grece, whan she dronken hadde hir draughte.
Ful semely after hir mete she raughte51,

Juste24 and eek daunce, and wel purtreye25 and And sikerly52 she was of greet disport53,

wryte.

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140

And ful plesaunt, and amiable of port54,
And peyned55 hir to countrefete56 chere57
Of court, and been estatlichss of manere,
And to ben holden digne59 of reverence.
But, for to speken of hir conscience,
She was so charitable and so pitous60,
She wolde wepe, if that she sawe a mous
Caught in a trappe, if it were deed or bledde.
Of smale houndes had she, that she fedde
With rosted flesh, or milk and wastel breed61,
But sore weep she if oon of hem were deed,

the 34 nut-head,

24 joust (engage in a

tournament)

give

25 draw

26 hotly

27 night-time

for

28 carved

29 the knight

16 military expeditions

17 An ancient province

of France.

30 no more

31 it pleased him

32 arrowS

33 order his

tackle

(equipment) yeomanlike

ner

in man

a

cropped head

35 wood-craft
36 knew

closely

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46 named

47 daintily, exactly 48 fell

49 pleasure

50 cup

51 reached

52 surely

53 good humor

54 bearing

55 took pains

56 imitate

57 behavior

58 to be dignified

59 worthy

60 compassionate

61 bread made of the

best flour cakebread

*Stratford le Bow, where there was a Benedie. tine nunnery, and where Anglo-French would be spoken, rather than the Parisian kin

Therefor he was a pricasour29 aright; 150 Grehoundes he hadde, as swifte as fowel in flight;

Or if men smoot it with a yerde1 smerte2:
And al was conscience and tendre herte.
Ful semely hir wimpels pinched was;
Hir nose tretys5; hir eyen greye as glas;
Hir mouth ful smal, and ther-to softe and reed;
But sikerly she hadde a fair forheed.
It was almost a spanne brood, I trowe;
For, hardily, she was nat undergrowe.
Ful fetiss was hir cloke, as I was war9.
Of smal coral aboute hir arm she bar
A peire of bedes10, gauded11 al with grene;
And ther-on heng a broche of gold ful shene,
On which ther was first write a crowned A,
And after, Amor vincit omnia12.

159

170

191

Of priking and of hunting for the hare
Was al his lust 30, for no cost wolde he spare.
I seigh31 his sleves purfiled32 at the hond
With grys33, and that the fyneste of a lond;
And, for to festne his hood under his chin,
He hadde of gold y-wroght a curious pin:
A love-knot in the gretter ende ther was.
His heed was balled34, that shoon as any glas,
And eek his face, as he hadde been anoint.
He was a lord ful fat and in good point5; 200
His eyen stepe36, and rollinge in his heed,
That stemed as a forneys of a leed37,
His botes souple, his hors in greet estat.
Now certeinly he was a fair prelat;
He was nat pale as a for-pyned goost38.
A fat swan loved he best of any roost.
His palfrey was as broun as is a berye.

Another Nonne with hir hadde she,
That was hir chapeleyne, and Preestes thre.
A Monk ther was, a fair for the maistrye13,
An out-rydere, that lovede venerye14,
A manly man, to been an abbot able.
Ful many a deyntee15 hors hadde he in stable:
And, whan he rood, men mighte his brydel here
Ginglen in a whistling wynd as clere,
And eek as loude as doth the chapel-belle.
There-as16 this lord was keper of the celle17,
The reule of seint Maure or of seint Beneit18,
By-cause that it was old and som-del streit 19,
This ilke monk leet olde thinges20 pace21,
And held after, the newe world the space22.
He yaf nat of that text a pulled23 hen,
That seith, that hunters been nat holy men;
Ne that a monk, whan he is recchelees24,
Is likned til a fish that is waterlees;
This is to seyn, a monk out of his cloistre.
But thilke text held he nat worth an oistre.
And I seyde his opinioun was good.
What25 sholde he studie, and make him selven He was an esy man to yeve17 penaunce

wood26,

180

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211

A Frere39 there was, a wantown40 and a merye,
A limitour41, a ful solempne42 man.
In alle the ordres foure43 is noon that can44
So moche of daliaunce and fair langage.
He hadde maad ful many a mariage
Of yonge wommen, at his owne cost.
Un-to his ordre he was a noble post.
Ful wel biloved and famulier was he
With frankeleyns45 over-al in his contree,
And eck with worthy wommen of the toun:
For he had power of confessioun,

As seyde him-self, more than a curat,
For of his ordre he was licentiat46.
Ful swetely herde he confessioun,
And plesaunt was his absolucioun;

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220

229

cans (Grey Friars): Carmelites (White Friars); Augustin (or Austin) Friars. 44 knows

45 country gentlemen
46 One licensed to give
absolution.

47 give, assign

48 where he

knew he

could get a good gift

49 give

50 the man

51 the friar

52 boast

53 heart

(Black

54 he suffer sorely

Francis

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