The Canterbury Tales, and Other Poems
bottom, is used to express the perfection or totality of anything.
30. Beknow: avow, acknowledge: German, “bekennen.”
31. Shapen was my death erst than my shert: My death was
decreed before my shirt ws shaped — that is, before any clothes
were made for me, before my birth.
32. Regne: Queen; French, “Reine;” Venus is meant. The
common reading, however, is “regne,” reign or power.
33. Launde: plain. Compare modern English, “lawn,” and
French, “Landes” — flat, bare marshy tracts in the south of
France.
34. Mister: manner, kind; German “muster,” sample, model.
35. In listes: in the lists, prepared for such single combats
between champion and accuser, &c.
36. Thilke: that, contracted from “the ilke,” the same.
37. Mars the Red: referring to the ruddy colour of the planet, to
which was doubtless due the transference to it of the name of
the God of War. In his “Republic,” enumerating the seven
planets, Cicero speaks of the propitious and beneficent light of
Jupiter: “Tum (fulgor) rutilis horribilisque terris, quem Martium
dicitis” — “Then the red glow, horrible to the nations, which
you say to be that of Mars.” Boccaccio opens the “Theseida” by
an invocation to “rubicondo Marte.”
38. Last: lace, leash, noose, snare: from Latin, “laceus.”
39. “Round was the shape, in manner of compass,
Full of degrees, the height of sixty pas”
The building was a circle of steps or benches, as in the ancient
amphitheatre. Either the building was sixty paces high; or, more
probably, there were sixty of the steps or benches.
40. Yellow goldes: The sunflower, turnsol, or girasol, which
turns with and seems to watch the sun, as a jealous lover his
mistress.
41. Citheron: The Isle of Venus, Cythera, in the Aegean Sea;
now called Cerigo: not, as Chaucer’s form of the word might
imply, Mount Cithaeron, in the south-west of Boetia, which was
appropriated to other deities than Venus — to Jupiter, to
Bacchus, and the Muses.
42. It need not be said that Chaucer pays slight heed to
chronology in this passage, where the deeds of Turnus, the
glory of King Solomon, and the fate of Croesus are made
memories of the far past in the time of fabulous Theseus, the
Minotaur-slayer.
43. Champartie: divided power or possession; an old law-term,
signifying the maintenance of a person in a law suit on the
condition of receiving part of the property in dispute, if
recovered.
44. Citole: a kind of dulcimer.
45. The picke-purse: The plunderers that followed armies, and
gave to war a horror all their own.
46. Shepen: stable; Anglo-Saxon, “scypen;” the word
“sheppon” still survives in provincial parlance.
47. This line, perhaps, refers to the deed of Jael.
48. The shippes hoppesteres: The meaning is dubious. We may
understand “the dancing ships,” “the ships that hop” on the
waves; “steres” being taken as the feminine adjectival
termination: or we may, perhaps, read, with one of the
manuscripts, “the ships upon the steres” — that is, even as they
are being steered, or on the open sea — a more picturesque
notion.
49. Freting: devouring; the Germans use “Fressen” to mean
eating by animals, “essen” by men.
50. Julius: i.e. Julius Caesar
51. Puella and Rubeus were two figures in geomancy,
representing two constellations-the one signifying Mars
retrograde, the other Mars direct.
52. Calistope: or Callisto, daughter of Lycaon, seduced by
Jupiter, turned into a bear by Diana, and placed afterwards, with
her son, as the Great Bear among the stars.
53. Dane: Daphne, daughter of the river-god Peneus, in
Thessaly; she was beloved by Apollo, but to avoid his pursuit,
she was, at her own prayer, changed into a laurel-tree.
54. As the goddess of Light, or the goddess who brings to light,
Diana — as well as Juno — was invoked by women in childbirth:
so Horace, Odes iii. 22, says:—
“Montium custos nemorumque, Virgo,
Quae laborantes utero puellas
Ter vocata audis adimisque leto,
Diva triformis.”
(“Virgin custodian of hills and groves, three-formed goddess
who hears and saves from death young women who call upon
her thrice when in childbirth”)
55. Every deal: in every part; “deal” corresponds to the
German “Theil” a portion.
56. Sikerly: surely; German, “sicher;” Scotch, “sikkar,” certain.
When Robert Bruce had escaped from England to assume the
Scottish crown, he stabbed Comyn before the altar at Dumfries;
and, emerging from the church, was asked by his friend
Kirkpatrick if he had slain the traitor. “I doubt it,” said Bruce.
“Doubt,” cried Kirkpatrick. “I’ll mak sikkar;” and he rushed
into the church, and despatched Comyn with repeated thrusts of
his dagger.
57. Kemped: combed; the word survives in “unkempt.”
58. Alauns: greyhounds, mastiffs; from the Spanish word
“Alano,” signifying a mastiff.
59. Y-ment: mixed; German, “mengen,” to mix.
60. Prime: The time of early prayers, between six and nine in
the morning.
61. On the dais: see note 32 to the Prologue.
62. In her hour: in the hour of the day (two hours before
daybreak) which after the astrological system that divided the
twenty-four among the seven ruling planets, was under the
influence of Venus.
63. Adon: Adonis, a beautiful youth beloved of Venus, whose
death by the tusk of a boar she deeply mourned.
64. The third hour unequal: In the third planetary hour;
Palamon had gone forth in the hour of Venus, two hours before
daybreak; the hour of Mercury intervened; the third hour was
that of Luna, or Diana. “Unequal” refers to the astrological
division of day and night, whatever their duration, into twelve
parts, which of necessity varied in length with the season.
65. Smoking: draping; hence the word “smock;” “smokless,” in
Chaucer, means naked.
66. Cerrial: of the species of oak which Pliny, in his “Natural
History,” calls “cerrus.”
67. Stace of Thebes: Statius, the Roman who embodied in the
twelve books of his “Thebaid” the ancient legends connected
with the war of the seven against Thebes.
68. Diana was Luna in heaven, Diana on earth, and Hecate in
hell; hence the direction of the eyes of her statue to “Pluto’s
dark region.” Her statue was set up where three ways met, so
that with a different face she looked down each of the three;
from which she was called Trivia. See the quotation from
Horace, note 54.
69. Las: net; the invisible toils in which Hephaestus caught Ares
and the faithless Aphrodite, and exposed them to the
“inextinguishable laughter” of Olympus.
70. Saturnus the cold: Here, as in “Mars the Red” we have the
person of the deity endowed with the supposed quality of the
planet called after his name.
71. The astrologers ascribed great power to Saturn, and
predicted “much debate” under his ascendancy; hence it was
“against his kind” to compose the heavenly strife.
72. Ayel: grandfather; French “Aieul”.
73. Testers: Helmets; from the French “teste”, “tete”, head.
74. Parements: ornamental garb, French “parer” to deck.
75. Gniding: Rubbing, polishing; Anglo-Saxon “gnidan”, to rub.
76. Nakeres: Drums, used in the cavalry; Boccaccio’s word is
“nachere”.
77. Made an O: Ho! Ho! to command attention; like “oyez”, the
call for silence in law-courts or before proclamations.
78. Sarge: serge, a coarse woollen cloth
79. Heart-spoon: The concave part of the breast, where the
lower ribs join the cartilago ensiformis.
80. To-hewen and to-shred: “to” before a verb implies
extraordinary violence in the action denoted.
81. He through the thickest of the throng etc.. “He” in this
passage refers impersonally to any of the combatants.
82. Galaphay: Galapha, in Mauritania.
83. Belmarie is supposed to have been a Moorish state in
Africa; but “Palmyrie” has been suggested as the correct
reading.
84. As I came never I cannot telle where: Where it went I
cannot tell you, as I was not there. Tyrwhitt thinks that
Chaucer is sneering at Boccacio’s pompous account of the
passage of Arcite’s soul to heaven. Up to this point, the
description of the death-scene is taken literally from the
“Theseida.”
85. With sluttery beard, and ruggy ashy hairs: With neglected
beard, and rough hair strewn with ashes. “Flotery” is the general
reading; but “sluttery” seems to be more in keeping with the
picture of abandonment to grief.
86. Master street: main street; so Froissart speaks of “le
souverain carrefour.”
87. Y-wrie: covered, hid; Anglo-Saxon, “wrigan,” to veil.
88. Emily applied the funeral torch. The “guise” was, among the
ancients, for the nearest relative of the deceased to do this, with
averted face.
89. It was the custom for soldiers to march thrice around the
funeral pile of an emperor or general; “on the left hand” is
added, in reference to the belief that the left hand was
propitious — the Roman augur turning his face southward, and
so placing on his left hand the east, whence good omens came.
With the Greeks, however, their augurs facing the north, it was
just the contrary. The confusion, frequent in classical writers, is
complicated here by the fact that Chaucer’s description of the
funeral of Arcite is taken from Statius’ “Thebaid” — from a
Roman’s account of a Greek solemnity.
90. Lyke-wake: watching by the remains of the dead; from
Anglo-Saxon, “lice,” a corpse; German, “Leichnam.”
91. Chaucer here borrows from Boethius, who says:
“Hanc rerum seriem ligat,
Terras ac pelagus regens,
Et coelo imperitans, amor.”
(Love ties these things together: the earth, and the ruling sea,
and the imperial heavens)
THE MILLER’S TALE.
THE PROLOGUE.
When that the Knight had thus his tale told
In all the rout was neither young nor old,
That he not said it was a noble story,
And worthy to be *drawen to memory*; *recorded*
And *namely the gentles* every one. *especially the gentlefolk*
Our Host then laugh’d and swore, “So may I gon,* *prosper
This goes aright; *unbuckled is the mail;* *the budget is opened*
Let see now who shall tell another tale:
For truely this game is well begun.
Now telleth ye, Sir Monk, if that ye conne*, *know
Somewhat, to quiten* with the Knighte’s tale.” *match
The Miller that fordrunken was all pale,
So that unnethes* upon his horse he sat, *with difficulty
He would avalen* neither hood nor hat, *uncover
Nor abide* no man for his courtesy, *give way to
But in Pilate’s voice<1> he gan to cry,
And swore by armes, and by blood, and bones,
“I can a noble tale for the nones* *occasion,
With which I will now quite* the Knighte’s tale.” *match
Our Host saw well how drunk he was of ale,
And said; “Robin, abide, my leve* brother, *dear
Some better man shall tell us first another:
Abide, and let us worke thriftily.”
By Godde’s soul,” quoth he, “that will not I,
For I will speak, or elles go my way!”
Our Host answer’d; “*Tell on a devil way*; *devil take you!*
Thou art a fool; thy wit is overcome.”
“Now hearken,” quoth the Miller, “all and some:
But first I make a protestatioun.
That I am drunk, I know it by my soun’:
And therefore if that I misspeak or say,
*Wite it* the ale of Southwark, I you pray: *blame it on*<2>
For I will tell a legend and a life
Both of a carpenter and of his wife,
How that a clerk hath *set the wrighte’s cap*.” *fooled the carpenter*
The Reeve answer’d and saide, “*Stint thy clap*, *hold your tongue*
Let be thy lewed drunken harlotry.
It is a sin, and eke a great folly
To apeiren* any man, or him defame, *injure
And eke to bringe wives in evil name.
Thou may’st enough of other thinges sayn.”