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The Canterbury Tales

The Canterbury Tales

Part 2 The Power of Faith

Lydgate and the Canterbury Pilgrims Leaving Canterbury (detail), from the Troy Book and the of Thebes, c. 1412–1422. Vellum. British Library, London.

“And specially, from every ’s end Of , down to Canterbury they wend To seek the holy blissful martyr, quick To give his help to them when they were sick.”

—,

81 British Library, London, UK/Bridgeman Art Library

00081081 U1P2-845482.inddU1P2-845482.indd 8181 66/21/06/21/06 9:16:209:16:20 AMAM BEFORE YOU READ from The Ecclesiastical History of the English People

MEET THE VENERABLE BEDE

bout the same time that a scop may have been singing in a hushed mead-hall about Athe heroic deeds of Beowulf, a named Bede was studying and writing in the equally quiet library of a . Whereas the gifted scop remained forever nameless, this monk’s name became known throughout the world.

A Life of Religious Study When Bede was a boy of seven, he went to study and live in a mon- astery at Wearmouth, England. About two years Writing History Fortunately for us, Bede was a later, Bede moved to a monastery in Jarrow, just a talented storyteller. His histories are far more short distance away. There he remained for the than mere chronicles of events; they present rest of his life, devoting himself to religion and meticulously researched stories of conquests, scholarly pursuits. saints, , and . To write his great works, Bede did research in the library of the monastery, sent letters all over the world, and spoke with artists and scholars from afar “It has ever been my delight to learn or who visited the monastery. Bede reveals in his teach or write.” histories how people actually lived, providing —Bede most of what we know about life in Britain between the years 46 and 731. Except for visits to York and , Bede A man of great learning, Bede had far-ranging never left Jarrow. Nevertheless, his reputation interests that included religion, poetry, grammar, spread widely. About a century after his death, he music, art, mathematics, and science. His passion was given the “Venerable” to honor his wis- for calculating time and dates led him to use a dom and piety. In 1899 he was declared a saint of method of dating still in use today. This method the . Historian Kemp Malone starts from the birth of Jesus in the year A.D. 1 writes of Bede’s legacy, “Bede makes every effort to (A.D. stands for the Anno Domini, “the year be accurate. He admits wonders only after he has of our Lord”). Bede’s use of this form of dating in investigated them and found them well authenti- his histories helped to popularize it. cated. His standards of verification are not ours, of Bede wrote in Latin, the language of religion course. If today a victim of snakebite were to drink and learning, rather than in , the down some scrapings of Irish books and get well, language of the people. With almost forty vol- we should not conclude that the scrapings had umes bearing his name, Bede is the first impor- worked the cure.” tant writer of prose in England and is considered Bede was born in 672 or 673 and died in 735. the father of English history. Bede’s masterpiece, The Ecclesiastical History of the English People, documents the influence of the church on the development of English civilization. Author Search For more about the Venerable Bede, go to www.glencoe.com.

82 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES The Art Archive / British Library

00082-0089082-0089 U1P2APP-845482.inddU1P2APP-845482.indd 8282 66/21/06/21/06 8:09:358:09:35 AMAM LITERATURE PREVIEW READING PREVIEW

Connecting to the Chronicle Reading Strategy Summarizing Have you ever had to face a major change in your life? A summary is a brief restatement, in one’s own words, In The Ecclesiastical History of the English People, two of the main ideas and events in a literary work. men face miraculous changes. As you read the Summarizing what you have read is an excellent tool excerpts, consider what can cause people to make for understanding and remembering a passage. major life changes. Reading Tip: Taking Notes When you read, stop Building Background periodically to summarize and record important ideas The Anglo-Saxon invasions of the mid-fifth century and events. Create a chart to organize your notes. overthrew the Christian society of Celtic Britain. Nearly 150 years later in 596, Gregory I sent missionar- Main Event or Idea Summary ies to convert the Anglo-Saxons. By about 650, Anglo- Paulinus visits the Saxon England was largely Christianized. king. The first selection from Bede’s Ecclesiastical History takes place during the early 600s. In it, Edwin, who has recently conquered his enemies to become king of in , is discussing with Paulinus, his wife’s religious counselor. The second selection takes place in the late 600s in Vocabulary Whitby, England. It tells of the miraculous talent of Caedmon, the first poet to use Old English verse forms expound (iks pound) v. to set forth in detail, to recite religious poetry. explain; p. 86 I didn’t understand the theory, so I asked the teacher to expound its meaning. Setting Purposes for Reading diligently (dilə jənt le¯) adv. persistently; p. 86 Big Idea The Power of Faith After diligently submitting many applications, I As you read the excerpts, note how the power of faith finally found a job. played a role in the lives of people living in Anglo- aspire (əs p¯r) v. to strive for; p. 87 I practice Saxon England. the guitar often because I aspire to become a famous musician. Literary Element Historical Narrative frivolous (friv ə ləs) adj. not serious, silly; p. 87 A historical narrative is a factual account of events that His frivolous manner made him seem incapable of occurred in the past. It is usually presented chronologi- taking on anything responsibly. cally and seeks to provide a detailed, accurate descrip- tion of life in a particular time period. As you read the Vocabulary Tip: Word Origins Word origins, or two excerpts from The Ecclesiastical History of the etymologies, refer to the history and development English People, identify the features that make it a his- of words. Word origins are included in dictionary torical narrative. entries. • See Literary Terms Handbook, p. R8.

Interactive Literary Elements Handbook To review or learn more about the literary elements, go to www.glencoe.com.

OBJECTIVES In studying this selection, you will focus on the following: • evaluating historical narrative • exploring the history of English literature • summarizing text

BEDE 83

00082-0089082-0089 U1P2APP-845482.inddU1P2APP-845482.indd 8383 11/8/07/8/07 9:28:059:28:05 AMAM A Scribe Writing, 12th century. Latin (Durham). Illumination from Bede’s Life and Miracles of St. Cuthbert. British Library, London

84 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES British Library, London/Bridgeman Art Library, London/New York

0084-0088 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 84 1/29/07 8:58:47 AM The Venerable Bede Translated by Bertram Colgrave

commandments of Him who rescued you from your earthly foes and raised you to the honor of an earthly kingdom. If from henceforth you are willing to follow His will which is made known to you through me, He will also rescue you from the everlasting torments of the wicked and make you a partaker with Him of His eternal kingdom King Edwin hesitated to accept the word of in heaven.” God which Paulinus preached but, as we have When the king had heard his words, he said, used to sit alone for hours at a time, ear- answered that he was both willing and bound to nestly debating within himself what he ought accept the faith which Paulinus taught. He said, to do and what religion he should follow. One however, that he would confer about this with day Paulinus came to him and, placing his his loyal chief men and his counsellors so that, if right hand on the king’s head, asked him if he they agreed with him, they might all be conse- recognized this sign. crated together in the waters of life. Paulinus The king began to tremble and would have agreed, and the king did as he had said. A meet- thrown himself at the ’s feet but Paulinus ing of his council was held, and each one was raised him up and said in a voice that seemed asked in turn what he thought of this doctrine1 familiar, “First you have escaped with God’s hitherto unknown to them and this new worship help from the hands of the foes you feared; of God which was being proclaimed. secondly you have acquired by His gift the Coifi, the chief of the , answered at once, kingdom you desired; now, in the third place, “Notice carefully, King, this doctrine which is remember your own promise; do not delay in fulfilling it but receive the faith and keep the 1. A doctrine is a body of principles taught or advocated, as of a religion or a government.

Reading Strategy Summarizing Summarize the argu- Literary Element Historical Narrative In what way is ment that Paulinus makes in the following speech. this detail characteristic of a historical narrative?

BEDE 85

0084-0088 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 85 1/29/07 8:59:00 AM Another of the king’s chief men agreed with this advice and with these wise words and then added, “This is how the present life of man on earth, King, appears to me in comparison with that time which is unknown to us. You are sitting feasting with your eldermen and thanes3 in winter time; the fire is burning on the hearth in the middle of the hall and all inside is warm, while outside the wintry storms of rain and snow are raging; and a sparrow flies swiftly through the hall. It enters in at one door and quickly flies out through the other. For the few moments it is inside, the storm and wintry tempest cannot touch it, but after the briefest moment of calm, it flits from your sight, out of the wintry storm and into it again. So this life of man appears but for a moment; what follows or indeed what went before, we know not at all. If this new doctrine brings us more certain information, it seems right that we should accept it.” Other elders and counsellors of the king continued in the same manner, being divinely prompted to do so. Coifi added that he would like to listen still Illuminated manuscript page. Kungl. Bernadotte- more carefully to what Paulinus himself had to Biblioteket, The Royal Collection, . say about God. The king ordered Paulinus to speak, and when he had said his say, Coifi exclaimed, “For a long time now I have realized now being expounded to us. I frankly admit that, that our religion is worthless; for the more for my part, I have found that the religion which diligently I sought the truth in our cult, the less I we have hitherto held has no virtue nor profit in found it. Now I confess openly that the truth it. None of your followers has devoted himself shines out clearly in this teaching which can more earnestly than I have to the worship of our bestow on us the gift of life, salvation, and eter- gods, but nevertheless there are many who receive nal happiness. Therefore, I advise your Majesty greater benefits and greater honor from you than I that we should promptly abandon and commit to do and are more successful in all their undertak- the flames the temples and the altars which we ings. If the gods had any power, they would have have held sacred without reaping any benefit.” helped me more readily, seeing that I have always Why need I say more? The king publicly served them with greater zeal.2 So it follows that accepted the gospel which Paulinus preached, if, on examination, these new doctrines which renounced idolatry, and confessed his faith in have now been explained to us are found to be better and more effectual, let us accept them at once without any delay.” 3. Eldermen are advisers; thanes are nobles. Big Idea The Power of Faith What point do you think Bede is making about the afterlife by relating this parable of the sparrow? 2. Zeal means “enthusiastic devotion.”

Reading Strategy Summarizing Summarize Coifi’s atti- Literary Element Historical Narrative How might a tude toward religion. modern historian represent this scene differently?

Vocabulary Vocabulary expound (iks pound) v. to set forth in detail; explain diligently (dil ə jənt le¯) adv. persistently

86 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES Kungl. Bernadotte-Biblioteket (The Royal Collection)

0084-0088 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 86 6/21/06 9:17:46 AM Christ. When he asked the high of their religion which of them should be the first to profane4 the altars and the shrines of the idols, together with their precincts, Coifi answered, “I will; for through the wisdom the true God has given me no one can more suitably destroy those things which I once foolishly worshipped, and so set an example to all.” And at once, casting aside his vain superstitions, he asked the king to pro- vide him with arms and a stallion; and mounting it, he set out to destroy the idols. Now a high priest of their religion was not allowed to carry arms or to ride except on a mare. So, girded with a sword, he took a spear in his hand, and mount- ing the king’s stallion, he set off to where the idols were. The common people who saw him thought he was mad. But as soon as he approached the shrine, without any hesitation he profaned it by casting the spear which he held into it; and greatly rejoicing in the knowledge of the worship of the true God, he ordered his com- panions to destroy and set fire to the shrine and all the enclosures. The place where the idols once stood is still shown, not far from York, to the east, over the river Derwent. Today it is Kneeling crusader with his horse behind him (page from called Goodmanham, the place where the high Westminster Psalter), 13th Century. Illuminated manuscript. priest, through the inspiration of the true God, The British Library, London. profaned and destroyed the altars which he him- self had consecrated.5 aspire to heavenly things. Others after him tried to compose religious poems in English, but none could compare with him, for he received this gift of poetry as a gift from God and did not

6 acquire it through any human teacher. For this reason he could never compose any frivolous or Translated by Leo Sherley-Price profane8 verses, but only such as had a religious In this monastery of Whitby there lived a theme fell fittingly from his devout lips. And brother7 whom God’s grace made remarkable. So although he followed a secular9 occupation until skilful was he in composing religious and devo- well advanced in years, he had never learned tional songs, that he could quickly turn what- anything about poetry: indeed, whenever all ever passages of Scripture were explained to him those present at a feast took it in turns to sing into delightful and moving poetry in his own and entertain the company, he would get up English tongue. These verses of his stirred the from table and go home directly he saw the harp hearts of many folk to despise the world and approaching him.

4. Profane means “to treat with disrespect; to desecrate.” 5. Consecrated means “set apart as sacred.” 8. Here, profane means “worldly.” 6. Caedmon (kad mən) 9. Secular means “not religious.” 7. A brother is a member of a religious community who is not a priest or a monk. Vocabulary aspire (əs p¯r) v. to strive for Big Idea The Power of Faith What historical fact about frivolous (friv ə ləs) adj. not serious; silly religion do Coifi’s actions illustrate?

BEDE 87 Ronald Sheridan/Ancient Art & Architecture

0084-0088 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 87 6/21/06 9:18:02 AM On one such occasion he had left the house in their quality and origin. All of them agreed that which the entertainment was being held and went Caedmon’s gift had been given him by our Lord, out to the stable, where it was his duty to look and when they had explained to him a passage of after the beasts that night. He lay down there at scriptural history or doctrine, they asked him to the appointed time and fell asleep, and in a dream render13 it into verse if he could. He promised to he saw a man standing beside him who called him do this, and returned next morning with excel- by name. “Caedmon,” he said, “sing me a song.” “I lent verses as they had ordered him. The abbess don’t know how to sing,” he replied. “It is because was delighted that God had given such grace to I cannot sing that I left the feast and came here.” the man, and advised him to abandon secular life The man who addressed him then said: “But you and adopt the monastic state. And when she had shall sing to me.” “What should I sing about?” he admitted him into the Community as a brother, replied. “Sing about the Creation of all things,” she ordered him to be instructed in the events of the other answered. And Caedmon immediately sacred history.14 So Caedmon stored up in his began to sing verses in praise of God the Creator memory all that he learned, and after meditating that he had never heard before, and their theme on it, turned it into such melodious verse that ran thus: “Let us praise the Maker of the kingdom his delightful renderings turned his instructors of heaven, the power and purpose of our Creator, into his audience. He sang of the creation of the and the acts of the Father of glory. Let us sing how world, the origin of the human race, and the the eternal God, the Author of all marvels, first whole story of Genesis. He sang of Israel’s depar- created the heavens for the sons of men as a roof ture from Egypt, their entry into the land of to cover them, and how their almighty Protector promise, and many other events of scriptural his- gave them the earth for their dwelling place.” tory. He sang of the Lord’s Incarnation, Passion, This is the general sense, but not the actual words Resurrection, and Ascension into heaven, the that Caedmon sang in his dream; for however coming of the Holy Spirit, and the teaching of excellent the verses, it is impossible to translate the Apostles. He also made many poems on the them from one language into another10 without terrors of the Last Judgement, the horrible pains losing much of their beauty and dignity. When of Hell, and the joys of the kingdom of heaven. Caedmon awoke, he remembered everything that In addition to these, he composed several others he had sung in his dream, and soon added more on the blessings and judgements of God, by verses in the same style to the glory of God. which he sought to turn his hearers from delight Early in the morning he went to his superior in wickedness, and to inspire them to love and the reeve,11 and told him about this gift that he do good. For Caedmon was a deeply religious had received. The reeve took him before the man, who humbly submitted to regular disci- abbess,12 who ordered him to give an account of pline, and firmly resisted all who tried to do evil, his dream and repeat the verses in the presence thus winning a happy death.  of many learned men, so that they might decide

10. Caedmon’s poetry was translated from one language into 13. Render means “to express in another form.” another—from Old English to Latin. 14. [The abbess . . . history.] The abbess is delighted with 11. A reeve is the manager of a manor or farm. Caedmon’s gift and advises him to join the monastery and 12. An abbess is the head of a convent or monastery. learn the narratives of the Bible.

Reading Strategy Summarizing Put the “general sense” Big Idea The Power of Faith What does Bede mean of Caedmon’s song into your own words. by a “happy death”?

88 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES

0084-0088 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 88 1/29/07 8:59:18 AM AFTER YOU READ

RESPONDING AND THINKING CRITICALLY Respond Analyze and Evaluate 1. After reading the selections, what questions would 6. (a)Which of Paulinus’s arguments for conversion you like to ask Bede? Why? did you find the most convincing? Explain. (b)Which of the arguments by Edwin’s advisers did Recall and Interpret you find the most convincing? Explain. 2. (a)What arguments convince Edwin to convert to 7. (a)Analyze the poem that came to Caedmon in his Christianity? (b)What does Edwin’s reaction to the dream. To what is heaven compared? (b)Why is arguments reveal about his personality? Caedmon’s dream considered to be a miracle? 3. (a)Summarize the analogy, or comparison, made by one of the king’s chief men. (b)What do the Connect sparrow and the storm symbolize? 8. (a)Why was a humble poet such as Caedmon so revered in his time? (b)Do you think that a poet 4. (a)Why does Coifi volunteer to be the first person could be regarded as equally important today? to profane the shrine? (b)Why might the “common Explain. people” be impressed by Coifi’s actions? 5. (a)What is Caedmon’s life like before his 9. Big Idea The Power of Faith How do the dream? (b)How does it change after the dream? events in the two excerpts from The Ecclesiastical History portray the power of faith in England during the Anglo-Saxon period?

LITERARY ANALYSIS READING AND VOCABULARY

Literary Element Historical Narrative Reading Strategy Summarizing A historical narrative tells the story of real people The best summaries can easily be understood by some- and events during a particular time and place. For this one who has not read the selection being summarized. reason, a historical narrative contains many details 1. What are the main ideas or events in the first about the period that it describes. These details are excerpt, “The Anglo-Saxons Embrace Christianity”? intended to present an objective rendering of reality. 2. What are the main ideas and events in the second 1. In your opinion, do the excerpts from Bede’s excerpt, “Caedmon”? Ecclesiastical History fit the above definition of a historical narrative? Explain. 2. Although historians try to be objective, they are Vocabulary Practice nevertheless influenced by the time in which they Practice with Word Origins Match each vocabu- live. What biases, prejudices, or other “blind spots” lary word with its corresponding Latin root. Use a might have colored Bede’s work? dictionary for assistance.

1. expound a. aspirare, “to breathe upon” Listening and Speaking 2. diligently b. frivolus, “of little weight” With three other students, read aloud the excerpt about the conversion of Edwin. Each student should 3. aspire c. exponere, “to explain” choose one of these “parts”: Paulinus, Coifi, the 4. frivolous d. diligere, “to esteem” unnamed counselor, and the narrator. After rehearsing your parts, do a dramatic reading of the selection for the class. Web Activities For eFlashcards, Selection Quick Checks, and other Web activities, go to www.glencoe.com. BEDE 89

00082-0089082-0089 U1P2APP-845482.inddU1P2APP-845482.indd 8989 11/9/07/9/07 12:20:4812:20:48 PMPM LITERARY HISTORY

The Development of English

“One cannot but be impressed by the amazing hospitality of the .” —Robert Burchfield

ODERN ENGLISH BEGAN AS ENGLISC, THE speech of a scattered population of Anglo- MSaxon peoples on an island off the European coast. Today, English is a global language spoken by perhaps a billion people around the world. This is largely due to the political power and cultural influence of the British Empire and the United States. However, it is also the result of the simplicity that English grammar has acquired during its long history. Modern English passed through two major stages, Old English and Middle English.

Old English: 450–1150 The Anglo-Saxons spoke various Germanic dialects, a mixture of which are the basis of Old English, the form of the English language used from the mid-400s Interior of Scriptorium, School of Segovia. Spanish School. Oil to the early 1100s. To present-day readers of English, on panel. Museo Lazaro Galdiano, Madrid, Spain. Old English looks like a foreign language, as these lines from the Old English epic poem Beowulf show: By the 600s, Christian scribes had further developed English by replacing the ancient Germanic characters Da¯ co¯m of mo¯re under mist-hleoþum known as runes with the Old English alphabet of Grendel gongan, Godes yrre bær twenty-four letters. The scribes who transcribed (translation) Beowulf around the year 1000 used this alphabet. Then out of the marsh, under mist-covered cliffs, Grendel stalked bearing God’s wrath Middle English: 1150–1500 Between 450 and 1200, Latin, Danish, Old Norse, Old English had a significant effect on Modern and Norman French fed the growing English language. English. Although less than one percent of the After the in 1066, England’s new words—4,500 out of 500,000—in the English aristocracy spoke French. Well-educated people Dictionary are from Old English, these words form needed to know three languages, however: French for our most basic (man, wife, work, Friday, house) and dealing with the or the courts; Latin for the functional (to, for, but, and) vocabulary. One church, business, and scholarship; and English for computer analysis revealed that all of the hundred communication with the majority of the common most commonly used English words are of Anglo- people. French had a strong influence on English. Saxon origin. Many French words were introduced into the

90 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES the Bridgeman Art Library/ Getty Images

00090-0091090-0091 U1P2LH-845482.inddU1P2LH-845482.indd 9090 11/29/07/29/07 9:00:169:00:16 AMAM language that was becoming Middle English, and spelling. Middle English slowly developed into a many Old English words were dropped. In fact, language somewhat similar to the English used today. French increased the English vocabulary by a staggering Linguistic diversity, however, remained so great 10,000 words, 7,500 of which are still in use. Today, during this period that people in one part of England almost half of Modern English’s vocabulary comes could often not understand people who lived in from Latin and French. French influence also led to another part. Over time, the dialect spoken in the gradual simplification of English grammar and London—the language in which Geoffrey Chaucer wrote—eventually became the standard. Compare these opening lines of his Canterbury Tales with the passage from Beowulf quoted earlier. Whan that Aprille with his shoures soote The droghte of March hath perced to the roote, And bathed every veyne in swich licour Of which vertu engendred is the flour; Whan Zephirus eek with his sweete breeth Inspired hath in every holt and heeth The tendre croppes, and the yonge sonne Hath in the Ram his halve cours yronne, And smale foweles maken melodye, That slepen al the nyght with open ye (So priketh hem nature in hir corages); Thanne longen folk to goon on pilgrimages, And palmeres for to seken straunge strondes, To ferne halwes, kowthe in sondry londes; And specially from every ende Of Engelond to Caunterbury they wende, The hooly blisful martir for to seke, That hem hath holpen when that they were seeke.

Illuminated page from St. Luke’s Gospel taken from Lindisfarne Gospels, c. 695. Literary History For more about the development of English, go to www.glencoe.com.

RESPONDING AND THINKING CRITICALLY

1. What most surprises you about the development of 3. Why do you think the form of Middle English used in the English language? Explain. the London region became the standard form? 2. Why do you think Old English remained an important 4. In what ways is the passage from The Canterbury influence on the development of English even after Tales more accessible to a modern reader than the the Norman Conquest? passage from Beowulf?

OBJECTIVES • Trace the development of the English language. • Connect to historical context of literature.

LITERARY HISTORY 91 Getty Images

00090-0091090-0091 U1P2LH-845482.inddU1P2LH-845482.indd 9191 11/8/07/8/07 9:31:529:31:52 AMAM BEFORE YOU READ

from The Canterbury Tales

MEET GEOFFREY CHAUCER

eoffrey Chaucer has often been called the father of English poetry. In “The Prologue” Gto The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer presents a portrait gallery virtually unparalleled in English literature. It offers a catalogue of the virtues, vices, and idiosyncrasies of a diverse cross section of medieval English society that still resonates for modern readers.

A Man of the World Chaucer understood how a variety of people spoke and acted. This knowledge proved invaluable to his writing. Chaucer’s father was Initial with a portrait of Chaucer holding a book. English illumination, c.1400. a prosperous middle-class wine merchant, and the young Chaucer was likely exposed to the colorful career, he traveled abroad on diplomatic missions to banter of the characters who frequented the London France, Spain, and and became familiar with docks. Chaucer became a page in the royal house- the literature and culture of these countries. hold while still a teenager. Despite the lowly duties of Thereafter he held a variety of governmental posts. the job, such as running errands, the position offered Chaucer exposure to a world of fine manners and Despite his busy professional duties, Chaucer man- high-born people. In 1359 he went to France to fight aged to write a large body of work. His early poetry, in the Hundred Years’ War. Taken prisoner, he was influenced by the French medieval tradition, includes ransomed in the following year with money contrib- the Book of the Duchess and the Roman of the Rose. uted by King Edward himself. Later he wrote the Parliament of Fowls and the mas- terful Troilus and Cressida. Chaucer’s most mature writing, crafted while he was in his forties, includes the Legend of Good Women and The Canterbury Tales. “Although Chaucer’s invented personages are now six hundred years Literary Innovator The Canterbury Tales is con- old, they are flesh and blood today; sidered Chaucer’s masterpiece for several reasons. First, it marks the beginning of a new tradition— they are, in fact, the people whom we Chaucer was the first writer to use English in a have known all our lives.” major literary work. Before him, literature was composed in French or Latin. Secondly, because —Louis Untermeyer The Canterbury Tales focuses on an assortment of people who are thrown together on a journey, it gives a lifelike and engaging picture of the various Public Servant While in his twenties, Chaucer strata of English society during the 1300s. Finally, was made a court official, an appointment that was it is an outstanding literary achievement. Chaucer the start of many years of public service. During his created approximately 17,000 lines of vivid poetry that still entertain readers six centuries later.

Author Search For more about Geoffrey Chaucer was born about 1342 and died Geoffrey Chaucer, go to www.glencoe.com. in 1400.

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00092-0141092-0141 U1P2APP-845482.inddU1P2APP-845482.indd 9292 66/21/06/21/06 8:14:078:14:07 AMAM LITERATURE PREVIEW READING PREVIEW

Connecting to the Poem Reading Strategy Paraphrasing Have you ever wondered about fellow travelers on a When you paraphrase, you put a text you have read trip and imagined what their lives are like? As you read into your own words. Paraphrasing is a useful strategy “The Prologue” to The Canterbury Tales, think about to to help you review the content of complex passages. A what extent you can judge a person’s character from his paraphrase differs from a summary in that a summary or her profession, appearance, and manners. is always shorter than the original, while a paraphrase may be approximately the same length as the original. Building Background In The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer uses a frame story, Reading Tip: Finding Subjects and Verbs You may which is a plot structure that includes the telling of a find it helpful, especially when paraphrasing long, story within a story. The pilgrims’ contest and journey, complex sentences or passages, to search for the narrated in “The Prologue,” is the frame story. The vari- simple subject and simple predicate in a sentence. ous tales told by the pilgrims on their journey com- Use a standard sentence diagram to find the subject prise the stories within the frame. and predicate of sentences in “The Prologue.” Chaucer’s English was not the same English that we use today. He wrote in what is now known as Middle Vocabulary English, the language that resulted when Old English was infused with the Old French imported by the solicitous (sə lis ə təs) adj. full of concern; p. 98 Norman invaders. The version of The Canterbury Tales The store owner was especially solicitous toward that you will read is a modern English translation. To Helen because her accident occurred on store property. sample Chaucer’s Middle English, read the famous estimable (es tə mə bəl) adj. deserving of opening lines of “The Prologue” in the Literary History esteem; admirable; p. 102 The estimable volun- feature on page 91. teers raised five thousand dollars. Setting Purposes for Reading discreet (dis kre¯t) adj. having or showing care- ful judgment in speech and action; prudent; Big Idea The Power of Faith p. 102 The talk show guest was discreet and did As you read “The Prologue,” note the various ways in not criticize his fellow actors. which the pilgrims interpret and act upon the require- dis da¯n fəl ments of their religious faith. disdainful ( ) adj. feeling or showing contempt; scornful; p. 107 Even though he had come from an impoverished background, Robert Literary Element Characterization was often disdainful toward the homeless. Characterization refers to the methods a writer uses prevarication (pri var ə ka¯ shən) n. the act of to reveal the values and personalities of his or her evading the truth; a lie; p. 111 You had better characters. A writer may make explicit statements tell the truth; your prevarication will only get you about a character or may reveal a character indirectly into more trouble. through well-chosen words, thoughts, and actions. • See Literary Terms Handbook, p. R3. Vocabulary Tip: Synonyms Words that have the same or nearly the same meaning are called syn- onyms. The words fame and renown, for example, are synonyms. Note that synonyms are always the same part of speech. Interactive Literary Elements Handbook To review or learn more about the literary elements, go to www.glencoe.com.

OBJECTIVES In studying this selection, you will focus on the following: • analyzing characterization • analyzing literary periods • paraphrasing text

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 93

00092-0141092-0141 U1P2APP-845482.inddU1P2APP-845482.indd 9393 11/8/07/8/07 9:44:289:44:28 AMAM First page of the Canterbury Tales. Illuminated manuscript, early 15th century. Geoffrey Chaucer Translated by Nevill Coghill

When in April the sweet showers fall And pierce the drought of March to the root, and all The veins are bathed in liquor of such power As brings about the engendering of the flower, 5 When also Zephyrus° with his sweet breath 5 Zephyrus (ze fə rəs): Greek Exhales an air in every grove and heath mythological god of the west wind, which brings mild weather. Upon the tender shoots, and the young sun His half-course in the sign of the Ram° has run, 8 Ram: the constellation Aries and the first And the small fowl are making melody sign of the zodiac. Evidence suggests that the pilgrimage began on April 11, 1387. 10 That sleep away the night with open eye (So nature pricks them and their heart engages) Then people long to go on pilgrimages And palmers° long to seek the stranger strands 13 palmers: pilgrims who wore palm Of far-off saints, hallowed in sundry° lands, leaves as a sign that they had visited the Holy Land. 15 And specially, from every shire’s end 14 hallowed: regarded as sacred or Of England, down to Canterbury they wend holy. sundry: various. To seek the holy blissful martyr,° quick 17 martyr: Thomas à Becket, archbishop To give his help to them when they were sick. of Canterbury, who was murdered in 1170. It happened in that season that one day 20 In Southwark, at The Tabard,° as I lay 20 Southwark (sə thərk): area just Ready to go on pilgrimage and start across the river Thames from London; today, part of Greater London. The For Canterbury, most devout at heart, Tabard (tab ərd): an inn in Southwark. At night there came into that hostelry° 23 hostelry (hos təl re¯): inn.

Reading Strategy Paraphrasing Paraphrase the opening lines (1–12) that introduce the subject of the poem.

94 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES akg-images

00094-0114094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.inddU1P2SEL-845482.indd 9494 66/21/06/21/06 9:22:469:22:46 AMAM Some nine and twenty in a company 25 Of sundry folk happening then to fall In fellowship, and they were pilgrims all That towards Canterbury meant to ride. The rooms and stables of the inn were wide; They made us easy, all was of the best. 30 And, briefly, when the sun had gone to rest, I’d spoken to them all upon the trip And was soon one with them in fellowship, Pledged to rise early and to take the way To Canterbury, as you heard me say. 35 But none the less, while I have time and space, Before my story takes a further pace, It seems a reasonable thing to say What their condition was, the full array° 38 array: a large grouping or collection. Of each of them, as it appeared to me, 40 According to profession and degree, And what apparel they were riding in; And at a Knight I therefore will begin. There was a Knight, a most distinguished man, Who from the day on which he first began 45 To ride abroad had followed chivalry, Truth, honor, generousness and courtesy. He had done nobly in his sovereign’s° war 47 sovereign’s: ruler’s; king’s or And ridden into battle, no man more, queen’s. As well in Christian as in heathen places, 50 And ever honored for his noble graces. When we took ,° he was there. 51 Alexandria: This and the place He often sat at table in the chair names that immediately follow are sites of wide-ranging military campaigns and Of honor, above all nations, when in Prussia. crusades by medieval against In Lithuania he had ridden, and Russia, the Muslims and other non-Christians. 55 No Christian man so often, of his rank. When, in Granada, Algeciras sank Under assault, he had been there, and in North Africa, raiding Benamarin; In he had been as well 60 And fought when Ayas and Attalia fell, For all along the Mediterranean coast He had embarked with many a noble host.° 62 host: army. In fifteen mortal battles he had been And jousted° for our faith at Tramissen 64 jousted: fought in formal combat as 65 Thrice in the lists,° and always killed his man. part of a knightly tournament. 65 lists: the fenced areas where jousts This same distinguished knight had led the van were held. Once with the Bey of Balat,° doing work 67 Bey of Balat: a Turkish governor. For him against another heathen Turk; He was of sovereign value in all eyes.

Reading Strategy Paraphrasing What does the narrator intend to do?

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 95

0094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 95 1/29/07 9:02:57 AM The Pilgrimage to Canterbury, 1806–1807. Thomas Stothard. Oil on wood, 31.8 x 95.2 cm. Tate Gallery, London.

70 And though so much distinguished, he was wise And in his bearing modest as a maid. He never yet a boorish° thing had said 72 boorish: crude; bad-mannered. In all his life to any, come what might; He was a true, a perfect gentle-knight. 75 Speaking of his equipment, he possessed Fine horses, but he was not gaily dressed. He wore a fustian° tunic stained and dark 77 fustian: coarse, heavy fabric of cotton With smudges where his armor had left mark; and linen. Just home from service, he had joined our ranks 80 To do his pilgrimage and render thanks. He had his son with him, a fine young Squire, A lover and cadet, a lad of fire With locks as curly as if they had been pressed. He was some twenty years of age, I guessed. 85 In stature he was of a moderate length, With wonderful agility and strength. He’d seen some service with the cavalry In Flanders and Artois and Picardy° 88 Flanders . . . Picardy: historic regions And had done valiantly in little space of Belgium, Holland, and northern France. 90 Of time, in hope to win his lady’s grace. He was embroidered like a meadow bright And full of freshest flowers, red and white. Singing he was, or fluting all the day;

Literary Element Characterization What qualities does the speaker admire in the Knight?

Literary Element Characterization How does the Squire’s character differ from that of the Knight?

96 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES Thomas Stothard, Tate Gallery, London/Art Resource, NY

0094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 96 1/29/07 9:03:06 AM Viewing the Art: Which of the characters in the match the descriptions of the pilgrims given in the poem? What mood is suggested by the pilgrims’ expressions and stances?

He was as fresh as is the month of May. 95 Short was his gown, the sleeves were long and wide; He knew the way to sit a horse and ride. He could make songs and poems and recite, Knew how to joust and dance, to draw and write. He loved so hotly that till dawn grew pale 100 He slept as little as a nightingale. Courteous he was, lowly and serviceable, And carved to serve his father at the table. There was a Yeoman° with him at his side, 103 Yeoman (yo¯ mən): nobleman’s No other servant; so he chose to ride. attendant. 105 This Yeoman wore a coat and hood of green, And peacock-feathered arrows, bright and keen And neatly sheathed, hung at his belt the while —For he could dress his gear in yeoman style, His arrows never drooped their feathers low— 110 And in his hand he bore a mighty bow. His head was like a nut, his face was brown. He knew the whole of woodcraft up and down. A saucy brace° was on his arm to ward 113 brace: leather guard worn on the It from the bow-string, and a shield and sword archer’s forearm. 115 Hung at one side, and at the other slipped A jaunty dirk,° spear-sharp and well-equipped. 116 dirk: a small dagger. A medal of St. Christopher° he wore 117 St. Christopher: patron saint of Of shining silver on his breast, and bore travelers. A hunting-horn, well slung and burnished clean, 120 That dangled from a baldrick° of bright green. 120 baldrick: shoulder belt. He was a proper forester, I guess. There also was a Nun, a Prioress,° 122 Prioress: the nun ranking next Her way of smiling very simple and coy. below the head nun in an abbey. 124 St. Loy: St. Eligius, patron saint of Her greatest oath was only “By St. Loy!”° goldsmiths and jewelers, known for his 125 And she was known as Madam Eglantyne. good looks and sumptuous attire.

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 97

0094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 97 1/29/07 9:03:14 AM And well she sang a service,° with a fine 126 service: daily prayers. Intoning through her nose, as was most seemly, And she spoke daintily in French, extremely, After the school of Stratford-atte-Bowe;° 129 Stratford-atte-Bowe: a nunnery 130 French in the style she did not know. near London where provincial, rather than courtly, French was taught. At meat her manners were well taught withal; No morsel from her lips did she let fall, Nor dipped her fingers in the sauce too deep; But she could carry a morsel up and keep 135 The smallest drop from falling on her breast. For courtliness she had a special zest, And she would wipe her upper lip so clean That not a trace of grease was to be seen Upon the cup when she had drunk; to eat, 140 She reached a hand sedately for the meat. She certainly was very entertaining, Pleasant and friendly in her ways, and straining To counterfeit a courtly kind of grace, A stately bearing fitting to her place, 145 And to seem dignified in all her dealings. As for her sympathies and tender feelings, She was so charitably solicitous She used to weep if she but saw a mouse Caught in a trap, if it were dead or bleeding. 150 And she had little dogs she would be feeding With roasted flesh, or milk, or fine white bread. And bitterly she wept if one were dead Or someone took a stick and made it smart; She was all sentiment and tender heart. 155 Her veil was gathered in a seemly way, Her nose was elegant, her eyes glass-gray; Her mouth was very small, but soft and red, Her forehead, certainly, was fair of spread, Almost a span° across the brows, I own; 159 span: nine inches. A broad 160 She was indeed by no means undergrown. forehead was a sign of beauty in Chaucer’s day. Her cloak, I noticed, had a graceful charm. She wore a coral trinket on her arm, A set of beads, the gaudies° tricked in green, 163 gaudies: large beads used in Whence hung a golden brooch of brightest sheen counting prayers. 165 On which there first was graven a crowned A,

Big Idea The Power of Faith Does the Prioress conform to your conception of a high-ranking member of the church? Explain.

Literary Element Characterization What is your opinion of the Prioress’s “charity” toward animals? Explain.

Vocabulary solicitous (sə lis ə təs) adj. full of concern

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0094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 98 6/21/06 9:22:57 AM Bird’s eye view of Canterbury. Georg Braun and Franz Hogenberg. Copper engraving. Civitates Orbis Terrarum, Cologne, .

And lower, Amor vincit omnia.° 166 Amor vincit omnia (a mor´ win´ kit om ne¯ ə Another Nun, the secretary at her cell, ): Latin for “Love conquers all.” Was riding with her, and three Priests as well. A Monk there was, one of the finest sort 170 Who rode the country; hunting was his sport. A manly man, to be an ° able; 171 Abbot: the head of a monastery. Many a dainty horse he had in stable. His bridle, when he rode, a man might hear Jingling in a whistling wind as clear, 175 Aye, and as loud as does the chapel bell Where my lord Monk was Prior of the cell.° 176 Prior of the cell: head of a The Rule of good St. Benet or St. Maur° subordinate monastery. 177 St. Benet or St. Maur: French As old and strict he tended to ignore; versions of St. Benedict, who established He let go by the things of yesterday the rules of European monasticism, and St. Maurus, one of his followers. Monastic 180 And took the modern world’s more spacious way. life is governed by strict rules requiring He did not rate that text at a plucked hen poverty, chastity, and obedience. Which says that hunters are not holy men And that a monk uncloistered° is a mere 183 uncloistered: not cloistered, or Fish out of water, flapping on the pier, retired or secluded from the world, as most were. 185 That is to say a monk out of his cloister. That was a text he held not worth an oyster; And I agreed and said his views were sound; Was he to study till his head went round Poring over books in cloisters? Must he toil 190 As Austin° bade and till the very soil? 190 Austin: English version of St. Was he to leave the world upon the shelf? Augustine (A.D. 354–430), church father who instructed monks to avoid idleness Let Austin have his labor to himself. by performing manual labor. This Monk was therefore a good man to horse; Greyhounds he had, as swift as birds, to course.° 194 to course: for hunting. 195 Hunting a hare or riding at a fence Was all his fun, he spared for no expense. I saw his sleeves were garnished at the hand With fine grey fur, the finest in the land, And on his hood, to fasten it at his chin

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 99 akg-images

0094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 99 1/29/07 9:03:34 AM 200 He had a wrought-gold cunningly fashioned pin; Into a lover’s knot it seemed to pass. His head was bald and shone like looking-glass; So did his face, as if it had been greased. He was a fat and personable priest; 205 His prominent eyeballs never seemed to settle. They glittered like the flames beneath a kettle; Supple his boots, his horse in fine condition. He was a prelate° fit for exhibition, 208 prelate: high-ranking clergyman. He was not pale like a tormented soul. 210 He liked a fat swan best, and roasted whole. His palfrey° was as brown as is a berry. 211 palfrey: a horse that is saddled and There was a Friar, a wanton° one and merry, ready for riding. 212 wanton: lively, but here, also A Limiter,° a very festive fellow. meaning morally lax. In all Four Orders° there was none so mellow, 213 Limiter: friar licensed to beg in a 215 So glib with gallant phrase and well-turned speech. certain district. 214 Four Orders: referring to the four He’d fixed up many a marriage, giving each religious orders in which friars lived by Of his young women what he could afford her. begging: Dominicans, Franciscans, He was a noble pillar to his Order. Carmelites, and Augustinians. Highly beloved and intimate was he 220 With County folk° within his boundary, 220 County folk: the wealthy and And city dames of honor and possessions; socially prominent rural landowners. For he was qualified to hear confessions, Or so he said, with more than priestly scope; He had a special license from the Pope. 225 Sweetly he heard his penitents at shrift° 225 shrift: confession. With pleasant absolution,° for a gift. 226 absolution: formal forgiveness. He was an easy man in penance-giving Where he could hope to make a decent living; It’s a sure sign whenever gifts are given 230 To a poor Order that a man’s well shriven,° 230 well shriven: completely forgiven, And should he give enough he knew in verity through confession, of his sins. The penitent repented in sincerity. For many a fellow is so hard of heart He cannot weep, for all his inward smart. 235 Therefore instead of weeping and of prayer One should give silver for a poor Friar’s care. He kept his tippet° stuffed with pins for curls, 237 tippet: hood. And pocket-knives, to give to pretty girls. And certainly his voice was gay and sturdy, 240 For he sang well and played the hurdy-gurdy.° 240 hurdy-gurdy: stringed instrument At sing-songs he was champion of the hour. played by turning a hand crank. His neck was whiter than a lily-flower

Reading Strategy Paraphrasing Paraphrase the Monk’s philosophy of life.

Big Idea The Power of Faith How does the Friar represent the corruption in the medieval church?

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0094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 100 1/29/07 9:03:42 AM But strong enough to butt a bruiser down. He knew the taverns well in every town 245 And every innkeeper and barmaid too Better than lepers, beggars and that crew, For in so eminent a man as he It was not fitting with the dignity Of his position, dealing with a scum 250 Of wretched lepers; nothing good can come Of commerce with such slum-and-gutter dwellers, But only with the rich and victual-sellers. But anywhere a profit might accrue Courteous he was and lowly of service too. 255 Natural gifts like his were hard to match. He was the finest beggar of his batch, And, for his begging-district, paid a rent; His brethren did no poaching where he went. For though a widow mightn’t have a shoe, 260 So pleasant was his holy how-d’ye-do He got his farthing° from her just the same Before he left, and so his income came To more than he laid out. And how he romped, The Monk, c.15th century. Facsimile Just like a puppy! He was ever prompt of Ellesmere Chaucer illuminated 265 To arbitrate disputes on settling days° manuscript. The Victoria and Albert (For a small fee) in many helpful ways, Museum, London. Not then appearing as your cloistered scholar With threadbare habit hardly worth a dollar, 261 farthing: old British coin. But much more like a Doctor or a Pope. 265 settling days: days on which 270 Of double-worsted was the semi-cope° disputes could be settled out of court. Upon his shoulders, and the swelling fold 270 semi-cope: short robe. A robe made of double worsted, a fine woolen About him, like a bell about its mold fabric, would be a luxury unsuitable for a When it is casting, rounded out his dress. friar. He lisped a little out of wantonness 275 To make his English sweet upon his tongue. When he had played his harp, or having sung, His eyes would twinkle in his head as bright As any star upon a frosty night. This worthy’s name was Hubert, it appeared. 280 There was a Merchant with a forking beard And motley° dress; high on his horse he sat, 281 motley: many-colored or varied. Upon his head a Flemish° beaver hat 282 Flemish: from Flanders, a region of And on his feet daintily buckled boots. northwestern . He told of his opinions and pursuits 285 In solemn tones, he harped on his increase Of capital; there should be sea- 287 Harwich-Holland ranges: North (He thought) upon the Harwich-Holland ranges;° Sea shipping lanes between Harwich He was expert at dabbling in exchanges. (har ij), an English port, and Holland.

Big Idea The Power of Faith How does the Friar misuse his position and power within the church?

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 101 By courtesy of The Board of Trustees of the Victoria & Albert Museum, London/ET Archive, London/SuperStock

0094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 101 1/29/07 9:03:48 AM This estimable Merchant so had set 290 His wits to work, none knew he was in debt, He was so stately in administration, In loans and bargains and negotiation. He was an excellent fellow all the same; To tell the truth I do not know his name. 295 An Oxford Cleric, still a student though, One who had taken logic long ago, Was there; his horse was thinner than a rake, And he was not too fat, I undertake, But had a hollow look, a sober stare; 300 The thread upon his overcoat was bare. He had found no preferment° in the church 301 preferment: position; sponsorship. And he was too unworldly to make search For secular employment. By his bed He preferred having twenty books in red 305 And black, of ’s° philosophy, 305 Aristotle’s: referring to the Greek Than costly clothes, fiddle or psaltery.° philosopher (384–322 B.C.). 306 psaltery (sol tər e¯): stringed Though a philosopher, as I have told, musical instrument played by plucking. He had not found the stone for making gold.° 308 stone . . . gold: Medieval Whatever money from his friends he took alchemists believed that there existed a “philosopher’s stone” capable of turning 310 He spent on learning or another book ordinary metals into gold. And prayed for them most earnestly, returning Thanks to them thus for paying for his learning. His only care was study, and indeed He never spoke a word more than was need, 315 Formal at that, respectful in the extreme, Short, to the point, and lofty in his theme. A tone of moral virtue filled his speech And gladly would he learn, and gladly teach. A Sergeant at the Law° who paid his calls, 319 Sergeant at the Law: lawyer 320 Wary and wise, for clients at St. Paul’s° appointed by the king to serve as a judge. 320 St. Paul’s: London cathedral outside There also was, of noted excellence. which lawyers often met clients when the Discreet he was, a man to reverence,° courts were closed. Or so he seemed, his sayings were so wise. 322 reverence: respect deeply. He often had been Justice of Assize° 324 Assize: traveling law court. 325 By letters patent,° and in full commission. 325 letters patent: royal documents His fame and learning and his high position commissioning Assize judges.

Literary Element Characterization How is the Merchant character- ized as a hypocrite?

Literary Element Characterization How does the character of the Cleric contrast with that of the Friar?

Vocabulary estimable (estə mə bəl) adj. deserving of esteem; admirable discreet (dis kre¯t) adj. having or showing careful judgment in speech and action; prudent

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0094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 102 1/29/07 9:03:56 AM Had won him many a robe and many a fee. There was no such conveyancer° as he; 328 conveyancer: The Sergeant All was fee-simple° to his strong digestion, specializes in land sales and leases as well as property disputes. 330 Not one conveyance could be called in question. 329 fee-simple: property owned Though there was nowhere one so busy as he, outright. He was less busy than he seemed to be. He knew of every judgment, case and crime Ever recorded since King William’s° time. 334 King William’s: referring to William 335 He could dictate defenses or draft deeds; the Conqueror, king of England from 1066 to 1087. No one could pinch a comma from his screeds° 336 screeds: long, tiresome writings. And he knew every statute off by rote. He wore a homely parti-colored coat, Girt with a silken belt of pin-stripe stuff; 340 Of his appearance I have said enough. There was a Franklin° with him, it appeared; 341 Franklin: wealthy landowner. White as a daisy-petal was his beard. A sanguine° man, high-colored and benign,° 343 sanguine: cheerful; optimistic. He loved a morning sop° of cake in wine. benign: of a kind or gentle disposition. 344 sop: piece. 345 He lived for pleasure and had always done, For he was Epicurus’° very son, 346 Epicurus’: referring to the Greek In whose opinion sensual delight philosopher (341?–270 b.c.) who taught that the goal of life was real and enduring Was the one true felicity in sight. pleasure, in the sense of peace of mind—a As noted as St. Julian° was for bounty view of pleasure commonly mischaracterized as mere gratification of physical appetites. 350 He made his free to all the County. 349 St. Julian: patron saint of His bread, his ale were finest of the fine hospitality. And no one had a better stock of wine. 360 bream and pike: kinds of fishes. 365 Justice . . . higher: When a justice

His house was never short of bake-meat pies, of the peace heard a case, he was the Of fish and flesh, and these in such supplies presiding judge. 355 It positively snowed with meat and drink 366 Member . . . Shire: representative of his county in Parliament. And all the dainties that a man could think. 369 Sheriff: royal collector. According to the seasons of the year 371 Haberdasher: one who sells men’s Changes of dish were ordered to appear. clothing. He kept fat partridges in coops, beyond, 360 Many a bream and pike° were in his pond. Woe to the cook unless the sauce was hot And sharp, or if he wasn’t on the spot! And in his hall a table stood arrayed And ready all day long, with places laid. 365 As Justice at the Sessions none stood higher;° He often had been Member for the Shire.° A dagger and a little purse of silk Hung at his girdle, white as morning milk. As Sheriff° he checked audit, every entry. 370 He was a model among landed gentry. A Haberdasher,° a Dyer, a Carpenter, A Weaver and a Carpet-maker were

The Man of Law, (detail from The Canterbury Tales), 15th century. Reading Strategy Paraphrasing What motivates the Franklin? English School. Huntington Library Paraphrase lines 345–348. and Art Gallery, San Marino, CA.

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 103 PrivateCollection/Bridgeman Art Library

00094-0114094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.inddU1P2SEL-845482.indd 103103 66/21/06/21/06 9:23:139:23:13 AMAM Among our ranks, all in the livery Of one impressive guild-fraternity.° 373–374 livery . . . guild-fraternity: 375 They were so trim and fresh their gear would pass The five tradesmen all belong to the same fraternal organization and wear its For new. Their knives were not tricked out with brass livery, or identifying uniform. But wrought with purest silver, which avouches A like display on girdles and on pouches. Each seemed a worthy burgess,° fit to grace 379 burgess: citizen or freeman of a 380 A guild-hall with a seat upon the dais. British borough; townsman. Their wisdom would have justified a plan To make each one of them an alderman;° 382 alderman: high-ranking member of They had the capital and revenue, the town council. 388 mantle: cloak; cape. Besides their wives declared it was their due. 396 ulcer: open sore. 385 And if they did not think so, then they ought; 397 blancmange (blə manj): white To be called “Madam” is a glorious thought, pudding made of milk, rice, and seasonings. And so is going to church and being seen Having your mantle° carried, like a queen. They had a Cook with them who stood alone 390 For boiling chicken with a marrow-bone, Sharp flavoring-powder and a spice for savor. He could distinguish London ale by flavor, And he could roast and seethe and broil and fry, Make good thick soup and bake a tasty pie. 395 But what a pity—so it seemed to me, That he should have an ulcer° on his knee. As for blancmange,° he made it with the best. There was a Skipper hailing from far west; He came from Dartmouth, so I understood. 400 He rode a farmer’s horse as best he could, In a woolen gown that reached his knee. A dagger on a lanyard falling free Hung from his neck under his arm and down. The summer heat had tanned his color brown, The , (detail from The Canterbury Tales). Private Collection. 405 And certainly he was an excellent fellow. Many a draught of vintage, red and yellow, He’d drawn at Bordeaux,° while the trader snored. 407 vintage . . . Bordeaux: Bordeaux bor do¯ The nicer rules of conscience he ignored. ( ), France, was famous for its red and white (here, “yellow”) wine. If, when he fought, the enemy vessel sank, 410 He sent his prisoners home; they walked the plank. As for his skill in reckoning his tides, Currents and many another risk besides, Moons, harbors, pilots, he had such dispatch That none from Hull to ° was his match. 414 Hull to Carthage: These and the 415 Hardy he was, prudent in undertaking; place names that immediately follow indicate how widely the Skipper has His beard in many a tempest had its shaking, traveled. And he knew all the havens as they were From Gottland to the Cape of Finisterre,

Literary Element Characterization Given this information, how is line 405 ironic?

104 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES PrivateCollection/Bridgeman Art Library

0094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 104 6/21/06 9:23:27 AM And every creek in Brittany and Spain; 420 The barge he owned was called The Maudelayne. A Doctor too emerged as we proceeded; No one alive could talk as well as he did On points of medicine and of surgery, For, being grounded in astronomy,° 424 astronomy: in Chaucer’s day, 425 He watched his patient closely for the hours astrology. The planets’ positions supposedly determined the best time to When, by his horoscope, he knew the powers treat a patient. Of favorable planets, then ascendent, Worked on the images for his dependent. The cause of every malady you’d got 430 He knew, and whether dry, cold, moist or hot;° 430 dry, cold, moist or hot: In He knew their seat, their humor and condition. Chaucer’s day people believed that the body was composed of four elements: He was a perfect practicing physician. earth (said to be dry and cold), water These causes being known for what they were, (cold and moist), air (hot and moist), and He gave the man his medicine then and there. fire (hot and dry). Excess of one element could lead to illness. 435 All his apothecaries° in a tribe 435 apothecaries: druggists. Were ready with the drugs he would prescribe And each made money from the other’s guile;° 437 guile: cunning; deceit; slyness. They had been friendly for a goodish while. He was well-versed in Aesculapius° too 439 Aesculapius (es´ kyə la¯ pe¯ əs): This 440 And what Hippocrates and Rufus knew and the names that immediately follow identify medical experts from ancient times And Dioscorides, now dead and gone, to Chaucer’s day. Galen and Rhazes, Hali, Serapion, Averroes, Avicenna, Constantine, Scotch Bernard, John of Gaddesden, Gilbertine. 445 In his own diet he observed some measure; There were no superfluities for pleasure, Only digestives, nutritives and such. He did not read the Bible very much. In blood-red garments, slashed with bluish gray 450 And lined with taffeta, he rode his way; Yet he was rather close as to expenses And kept the gold he won in pestilences.° 452 pestilences: plagues. Gold stimulates the heart, or so we’re told. He therefore had a special love of gold. 455 A worthy woman from beside Bath° city 455 Bath: city in southwestern England. Was with us, somewhat deaf, which was a pity. In making cloth she showed so great a bent She bettered those of Ypres and of Ghent.° 458 Ypres (e¯ prə) . . . Ghent: Flemish In all the parish not a dame dared stir cities known for weaving and wool making. 460 Towards the altar steps in front of her, And if indeed they did, so wrath was she As to be quite put out of charity. Her kerchiefs were of finely woven ground;° 463 ground: a composite fabric. I dared have sworn they weighed a good ten pound,

Literary Element Characterization What information in lines 435– 454 about the Doctor contradicts the characterization in line 432?

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 105

0094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 105 1/29/07 9:04:21 AM 465 The ones she wore on Sunday, on her head. Her hose were of the finest scarlet red And gartered tight; her shoes were soft and new. Bold was her face, handsome, and red in hue. A worthy woman all her life, what’s more 470 She’d had five husbands, all at the church door, Apart from other company in youth; No need just now to speak of that, forsooth. And she had thrice been to Jerusalem,° 473 Jerusalem: This and the place names immediately following were famous

Seen many strange rivers and passed over them; pilgrimage sites during the Middle Ages. 475 She’d been to and also to Boulogne, St. James of Compostella and Cologne, And she was skilled in wandering by the way. She had gap-teeth, set widely, truth to say. Easily on an ambling horse she sat 480 Well wimpled° up, and on her head a hat 480 wimpled: A wimple is a cloth that covers the head and neck. As broad as is a buckler° or a shield; 481 buckler: small round shield. She had a flowing mantle that concealed Large hips, her heels spurred sharply under that. In company she liked to laugh and chat 485 And knew the remedies for love’s mischances, An art in which she knew the oldest dances. A holy-minded man of good renown 500 He . . . sufficiency: He required

There was, and poor, the Parson to a town, little to satisfy his own needs.. Yet he was rich in holy thought and work. 490 He also was a learned man, a clerk, Who truly knew Christ’s gospel and would preach it Devoutly to parishioners, and teach it. Benign and wonderfully diligent, And patient when adversity was sent 495 (For so he proved in much adversity) He hated cursing to extort a fee, Nay rather he preferred beyond a doubt Giving to poor parishioners round about Both from church offerings and his property; 500 He could in little find sufficiency.° Wide was his parish, with houses far asunder, Yet he neglected not in rain or thunder, In sickness or in grief, to pay a call On the remotest, whether great or small, 505 Upon his feet, and in his hand a stave.

This noble example to his sheep he gave The Parson, detail from The That first he wrought, and afterwards he taught; Canterbury Tales, by Geoffrey Chaucer, c.1342–1400. English School. Vellum. Huntington Library and Art Gallery, San Marino, CA.

Big Idea The Power of Faith How were religion and traveling linked in the Middle Ages?

Literary Element Characterization What qualifies the Wife of Bath as an expert on love?

106 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES Huntington Library and Art Gallery, San Marino, CA, USA/Bridgeman Art Library

00094-0114094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.inddU1P2SEL-845482.indd 106106 11/29/07/29/07 9:04:279:04:27 AMAM And it was from the Gospel he had caught Those words, and he would add this figure too, 510 That if gold rust, what then will iron do? For if a priest be foul in whom we trust No wonder that a common man should rust;

The true example that a priest should give Is one of cleanness, how the sheep should live. 515 He did not set his benefice to hire° 515 set . . . hire: pay someone else to And leave his sheep encumbered in the mire perform clerical duties. Or run to London to earn easy bread By singing masses for the wealthy dead, Or find some Brotherhood and get enrolled. 520 He stayed at home and watched over his fold So that no wolf should make the sheep miscarry. He was a shepherd and no mercenary. Holy and virtuous he was, but then Never contemptuous of sinful men, 525 Never disdainful, never too proud or fine, But was discreet in teaching and benign. His business was to show a fair behavior And draw men thus to Heaven and their Savior, Unless indeed a man were obstinate; 530 And such, whether of high or low estate, He put to sharp rebuke, to say the least. I think there never was a better priest. He sought no pomp or glory in his dealings, No scrupulosity° had spiced his feelings. 534 scrupulosity: here, overly careful 535 Christ and His Twelve Apostles and their lore attention to social niceties. He taught, but followed it himself before. There was a Plowman with him there, his brother; Many a load of dung one time or other He must have carted through the morning dew. 540 He was an honest worker, good and true, Living in peace and perfect charity, And, as the gospel bade him, so did he, Loving God best with all his heart and mind And then his neighbor as himself, repined 545 At no misfortune, slacked for no content, For steadily about his work he went

Literary Element Characterization How does this proverb contrast the Parson’s character with that of other clerics, such as the Monk and the Friar?

Big Idea The Power of Faith How does the Plowman demonstrate the ideals of the Christian religion?

Vocabulary disdainful (dis da¯n fəl) adj. feeling or showing contempt; scornful

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 107

0094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 107 1/29/07 9:04:34 AM To thrash his corn, to dig or to manure Or make a ditch; and he would help the poor For love of Christ and never take a penny 550 If he could help it, and, as prompt as any, He paid his tithes° in full when they were due On what he owned, and on his earnings too. He wore a tabard smock° and rode a mare. There was a Reeve,° also a Miller, there, 555 A College Manciple from the Inns of Court,° A papal Pardoner and, in close consort,° A Church-Court Summoner,° riding at a trot, And finally myself—that was the lot. The Miller was a chap of sixteen stone,° 560 A great stout fellow big in brawn and bone. The Friar, detail from The He did well out of them, for he could go Canterbury Tales. 15th century. English School. Huntington Library

And win the ram at any wrestling show. and Art Gallery, San Marino, CA. Broad, knotty and short-shouldered, he would boast He could heave any door off hinge and post, t¯thz 565 Or take a run and break it with his head. 551 tithes ( ): offerings made to the church consisting of one-tenth of a His beard, like any sow or fox, was red person’s income. And broad as well, as though it were a spade; 553 tabard smock: loose jacket of And, at its very tip, his nose displayed heavy fabric. 554 Reeve: manager of a landowner’s A wart on which there stood a tuft of hair estate. 570 Red as the bristles in an old sow’s ear. 555 Manciple . . . Court: administrator His nostrils were as black as they were wide. in charge of providing for the lawyers who lived and trained at London’s He had a sword and buckler at his side, Inns of Court. His mighty mouth was like a furnace door. 556 Pardoner: church employee licensed A wrangler and buffoon, he had a store by the pope to dispense papal pardons, which released people from punishment 575 Of tavern stories, filthy in the main. for sins, and to collect money for church His was a master-hand at stealing grain. charities. consort: accompaniment. 557 Summoner: layman charged with He felt it with his thumb and thus he knew summoning sinners before a church court. Its quality and took three times his due— 559 sixteen stone: 224 pounds. A stone is A thumb of gold, by God, to gauge an oat! a British unit of weight equal to 14 pounds. 580 He wore a hood of blue and a white coat. He liked to play his bagpipes up and down And that was how he brought us out of town. The Manciple came from the Inner Temple;° 583 Inner Temple: one of the four Inns All caterers might follow his example of Court. 585 In buying victuals; he was never rash Whether he bought on credit or paid cash. He used to watch the market most precisely And got in first, and so he did quite nicely. Now isn’t it a marvel of God’s grace 590 That an illiterate fellow can outpace The wisdom of a heap of learned men? His masters—he had more than thirty then—

Literary Element Characterization Given the characterization of the Miller, what sort of tale would you expect him to tell when his time comes?

108 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES Huntington Library and Art Gallery, San Marino, CA/Bridgeman Art Library

0094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 108 1/29/07 9:04:39 AM All versed in the abstrusest° legal knowledge, 593 abstrusest: hardest to understand. Could have produced a dozen from their College 595 Fit to be stewards in land and rents and game To any Peer° in England you could name, 596 stewards . . . To any Peer: estate And show him how to live on what he had managers for any nobleman. Debt-free (unless of course the Peer were mad) Or be as frugal as he might desire, 600 And make them fit to help about the Shire In any legal case there was to try; And yet this Manciple could wipe their eye.° 602 wipe their eye: get the better of or The Reeve was old and choleric° and thin; outdo them. 603 choleric: easily irritated or angered. His beard was shaven closely to the skin, 605 His shorn hair came abruptly to a stop Above his ears, and he was docked on top Just like a priest in front; his legs were lean, Like sticks they were, no calf was to be seen. He kept his bins and garners° very trim; 609 garners: buildings for storing grain. 610 No auditor could gain a point on him. And he could judge by watching drought and rain The yield he might expect from seed and grain. His master’s sheep, his animals and hens, Pigs, horses, dairies, stores and cattle-pens 615 Were wholly trusted to his government. He had been under contract to present The accounts, right from his master’s earliest years. No one had ever caught him in arrears. No , serf or herdsman dared to kick, 620 He knew their dodges, knew their every trick; Feared like the plague he was, by those beneath. He had a lovely dwelling on a heath, Shadowed in green by trees above the sward.° 623 sward: grassland; lawn. A better hand at bargains than his lord, 625 He had grown rich and had a store of treasure Well tucked away, yet out it came to pleasure His lord with subtle loans or gifts of goods, To earn his thanks and even coats and hoods. When young he’d learnt a useful trade and still 630 He was a carpenter of first-rate skill. The stallion-cob he rode at a slow trot Was dapple-gray and bore the name of Scot. He wore an overcoat of bluish shade And rather long; he had a rusty blade 635 Slung at his side. He came, as I heard tell, From Norfolk, near a place called Baldeswell. His coat was tucked under his belt and splayed. He rode the hindmost of our cavalcade.

Reading Strategy Paraphrasing Paraphrase Chaucer’s description of the Reeve in lines 603–638.

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 109

0094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 109 1/29/07 9:04:46 AM There was a Summoner with us at that Inn, 640 His face on fire, like a cherubin,° 640 cherubin: one of the angels who, in For he had carbuncles.° His eyes were narrow, medieval art, usually had flame-colored faces. He was as hot and lecherous as a sparrow. 641 carbuncles: large pimples and Black scabby brows he had, and a thin beard. patches of red skin, often seen as a sign of lechery or drunkenness in Chaucer’s time. Children were afraid when he appeared. 645 No quicksilver, lead ointment, tartar creams, No brimstone, no boracic,° so it seems, 645–646 quicksilver . . . boracic: Could make a salve that had the power to bite, medieval skin medicines. Clean up or cure his whelks° of knobby white 648 whelks: pustules. Or purge the pimples sitting on his cheeks. 650 Garlic he loved, and onions too, and leeks, And drinking strong red wine till all was hazy. Then he would shout and jabber as if crazy, And wouldn’t speak a word except in Latin When he was drunk, such tags° as he was pat in; 654 tags: brief quotations. 655 He only had a few, say two or three, That he had mugged up° out of some decree; 656 mugged up: memorized. No wonder, for he heard them every day. And, as you know, a man can teach a jay° 658 jay: a bird that can be taught to To call out “Walter” better than the Pope. mimic human speech but cannot understand what it says. 660 But had you tried to test his wits and grope For more, you’d have found nothing in the bag. Then “Questio quid juris”° was his tag. 662 Questio quid juris: Latin for “The He was a noble varlet° and a kind one, question is, what point of the law applies?” 663 varlet: rascal. You’d meet none better if you went to find one.

665 He and a gentle Pardoner rode together, A bird from Charing Cross° of the same feather, 666 Charing Cross: district of London. Just back from visiting the Court of Rome. He loudly sang “Come hither, love, come home!” The Summoner sang deep seconds to this song, 670 No trumpet ever sounded half so strong. This Pardoner had hair as yellow as wax, Hanging down smoothly like a hank of flax. In driblets fell his locks behind his head Down to his shoulders which they overspread; 675 Thinly they fell, like rat-tails, one by one. He wore no hood upon his head, for fun; The hood inside his wallet° had been stowed, 677 wallet: pack; knapsack. He aimed at riding in the latest mode; But for a little cap his head was bare 680 And he had bulging eye-balls, like a hare. He’d sewed a holy relic° on his cap; 681 relic: an object cherished for its His wallet lay before him on his lap, association with a saint or holy person. Brimful of pardons come from Rome, all hot.

Reading Strategy Paraphrasing What does the speaker say about the Summoner’s knowledge and intelligence? Paraphrase lines 660–662.

110 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES

0094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 110 1/29/07 9:04:53 AM He had the same small voice a goat has got. 685 His chin no beard had harbored, nor would harbor, Smoother than ever chin was left by barber. I judge he was a gelding, or a mare. As to his trade, from Berwick down to Ware There was no pardoner of equal grace, 690 For in his trunk he had a pillow-case Which he asserted was Our Lady’s veil. He said he had a gobbet° of the sail 692 gobbet: large piece. St. had the time when he made bold To walk the waves, till Jesu Christ took hold.° 693–694 St. Peter . . . hold: In the 695 He had a cross of metal set with stones Christian Bible (Matthew 14:29–31), Jesus extended a helping hand to Peter when And, in a glass, a rubble of pigs’ bones. Peter walked on the water and became And with these relics, any time he found afraid. Some poor up-country parson to astound, In one short day, in money down, he drew 700 More than the parson in a month or two, And by his flatteries and prevarication Made monkeys of the priest and congregation. But still to do him justice first and last In church he was a noble ecclesiast.° 704 ecclesiast (i kle¯ ze¯ əst´): 705 How well he read a lesson or told a story! clergyman. But best of all he sang an Offertory,° 706 Offertory: song accompanying the For well he knew that when that song was sung collection of the offering in church. He’d have to preach and tune his honey-tongue And (well he could) win silver from the crowd. 710 That’s why he sang so merrily and loud. Now I have told you shortly, in a clause, The rank, the array, the number and the cause Of our assembly in this company In Southwark, at that high-class hostelry 715 Known as The Tabard, close beside The Bell.° 715 The Bell: another inn. And now the time has come for me to tell How we behaved that evening; I’ll begin After we had alighted at the Inn, Then I’ll report our journey, stage by stage, 720 All the remainder of our pilgrimage. But first I beg of you, in courtesy, Not to condemn me as unmannerly If I speak plainly and with no concealings

Big Idea The Power of Faith How does the Pardoner abuse his holy office and take advantage of the religious faith of his victims?

Reading Strategy Paraphrasing Paraphrase the speaker’s disclaimer in lines 721–723.

Vocabulary prevarication (pri var´ ə ka¯ shən) n. the act of evading the truth; a lie

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 111 Jupiter Images

00094-0114094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.inddU1P2SEL-845482.indd 111111 66/29/06/29/06 9:48:469:48:46 AMAM And give account of all their words and dealings, 725 Using their very phrases as they fell. For certainly, as you all know so well, He who repeats a tale after a man Is bound to say, as nearly as he can, Each single word, if he remembers it, 730 However rudely spoken or unfit, Or else the tale he tells will be untrue, The things pretended and the phrases new. He may not flinch although it were his brother, He may as well say one word as another. 735 And Christ Himself spoke broad° in Holy Writ, 735 broad: bluntly; plainly. Yet there is no scurrility° in it, 736 scurrility: coarseness; indecency. And ° says, for those with power to read, 737 Plato: Greek philosopher (427?– 347? b.c.). “The word should be as cousin to the deed.” 745 victuals (vit əlz): food. Further I beg you to forgive it me 748 marshal in a hall: a manager in 740 If I neglect the order and degree charge of making the arrangements for a banquet. And what is due to rank in what I’ve planned. I’m short of wit as you will understand. Our Host gave us great welcome; everyone Was given a place and supper was begun. 745 He served the finest victuals° you could think, The wine was strong and we were glad to drink. A very striking man our Host withal, And fit to be a marshal in a hall.° His eyes were bright, his girth a little wide; 750 There is no finer burgess in Cheapside.° Bold in his speech, yet wise and full of tact, There was no manly attribute he lacked, What’s more he was a merry-hearted man. After our meal he jokingly began 755 To talk of sport, and, among other things After we’d settled up our reckonings, He said as follows: “Truly, gentlemen, Pilgrims. Illustration from the Troy You’re very welcome and I can’t think when Book and the Siege of Thebes. —Upon my word I’m telling you no lie— 760 I’ve seen a gathering here that looked so spry, No, not this year, as in this tavern now. 750 Cheapside: in Chaucer’s day, I’d think you up some fun if I knew how. London’s main business district. And, as it happens, a thought has just occurred To please you, costing nothing, on my word. 765 You’re off to Canterbury—well, God speed! Blessed St. Thomas° answer to your need! 766 St. Thomas: here, St. Thomas à And I don’t doubt, before the journey’s done Becket. You mean to while the time in tales and fun.

Literary Element Characterization How does the speaker character- ize himself in this passage? How is his self-portrait here consistent with the way he has portrayed himself throughout “The Prologue”?

112 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES Art Resource, NY

0094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 112 6/21/06 9:23:57 AM Indeed, there’s little pleasure for your bones 770 Riding along and all as dumb° as stones. 770 dumb: silent. So let me then propose for your enjoyment, Just as I said, a suitable employment. And if my notion suits and you agree And promise to submit yourselves to me 775 Playing your parts exactly as I say Tomorrow as you ride along the way, Then by my father’s soul (and he is dead) If you don’t like it you can have my head! Hold up your hands, and not another word.” 780 Well, our opinion was not long deferred, It seemed not worth a serious debate; We all agreed to it at any rate And bade him issue what commands he would. “My lords,” he said, “now listen for your good, 785 And please don’t treat my notion with disdain. This is the point. I’ll make it short and plain. Each one of you shall help to make things slip By telling two stories on the outward trip To Canterbury, that’s what I intend, 790 And, on the homeward way to journey’s end Another two, tales from the days of old; And then the man whose story is best told, That is to say who gives the fullest measure Of good morality and general pleasure, 795 He shall be given a supper, paid by all, Here in this tavern, in this very hall, When we come back again from Canterbury. And in the hope to keep you bright and merry I’ll go along with you myself and ride 800 All at my own expense and serve as guide. I’ll be the judge, and those who won’t obey Shall pay for what we spend upon the way. Now if you all agree to what you’ve heard Tell me at once without another word, 805 And I will make arrangements early for it.” Of course we all agreed, in fact we swore it Delightedly, and made entreaty° too 807 entreaty: an enthusiastic request. That he should act as he proposed to do, Become our Governor in short, and be 810 Judge of our tales and general referee, And set the supper at a certain price.

Reading Strategy Paraphrasing What “notion” does the Host propose in lines 785–805?

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 113

0094-0114 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 113 1/29/07 9:05:13 AM We promised to be ruled by his advice Come high, come low; unanimously thus We set him up in judgment over us. 815 More wine was fetched, the business being done; We drank it off and up went everyone To bed without a moment of delay. Early next morning at the spring of day Up rose our Host and roused us like a cock, 820 Gathering us together in a flock, And off we rode at slightly faster pace Than walking to St. Thomas’ watering-place;° 822 St. Thomas’ watering-place: a And there our Host drew up, began to ease brook two miles from London. His horse, and said, “Now, listen if you please, 825 My lords! Remember what you promised me. If evensong and matins will agree° 826 If evensong . . . agree: literally Let’s see who shall be first to tell a tale. referring to evening and morning prayer services; here meaning, “if what you said And as I hope to drink good wine and ale last night is what you mean this morning.” I’ll be your judge. The rebel who disobeys, 830 However much the journey costs, he pays. Now draw for cut and then we can depart; The man who draws the shortest cut shall start. My Lord the Knight,” he said, “step up to me And draw your cut, for that is my decree. 835 And come you near, my Lady Prioress, And you, Sir Cleric, drop your shamefastness, No studying now! A hand from every man!” Immediately the draw for lots began And to tell shortly how the matter went, 840 Whether by chance or fate or accident, The truth is this, the cut fell to the Knight, Which everybody greeted with delight. And tell his tale he must, as reason was Because of our agreement and because 845 He too had sworn. What more is there to say? For when this good man saw how matters lay, Being by wisdom and obedience driven To keep a promise he had freely given, Thomas Becket is consecrated He said, “Since it’s for me to start the game, . 14th 850 Why, welcome be the cut in God’s good name! century illuminated manuscript. Now let us ride, and listen to what I say.” From the Queen Mary Psalter. And at the word we started on our way And in a cheerful style he then began At once to tell his tale, and thus it ran.

Literary Element Characterization What character traits of the Host have gained him the trust of the pilgrims?

Reading Strategy Paraphrasing How does the Host decide who will tell the first tale? Paraphrase lines 838-841.

114 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES akg-images/British Library

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RESPONDING AND THINKING CRITICALLY Respond Analyze and Evaluate 1. (a)Which characters remind you in some way of 5. (a)Categorize the twenty-nine pilgrims according to people you know? Explain. (b)Do any of the char- their roles in fourteenth-century English society. Use acters seem unrealistic to you? Explain. the following categories: 1) or Professions; 2) Church; 3) Feudal System. (b)How well do Recall and Interpret these people represent the whole of medieval soci- 2. (a)Where are the pilgrims traveling and for what ety? Are any groups of people missing? reason? (b)How is the time of year in which they 6. (a)Which character appeals to you the most? Why? are traveling meaningful? (b)Which character appeals to you the least? Why? 3. (a)What narrative point of view does the speaker use? (b)How does this point of view affect the informa- Connect tion you learn about the other pilgrims? 7. (a)How do people today amuse themselves on trips? (b)How do these activities compare with the 4. (a)What information does the speaker give about amusements of Chaucer’s time? himself? (b)Does the speaker seem to fit in with

the band of pilgrims? Explain. 8. Big Idea The Power of Faith How does the Christian faith in the Middle Ages inform the whole of “The Prologue” to The Canterbury Tales?

LITERARY ANALYSIS READING AND VOCABULARY

Literary Element Characterization Reading Strategy Paraphrasing In direct characterization, the writer makes explicit When you paraphrase a passage, you restate it in your statements about a character. In indirect character- own words. ization, the writer reveals a character through the 1. Write the simple subjects and predicates of the two character’s words, thoughts, actions, and appearance, clauses in lines 23–27. as well as through what other characters say or think about the character. 2. Paraphrase Chaucer’s description of the Manciple in lines 583–602. 1. (a)Find an example of direct characterization in “The Prologue.” (b)Find an example of indirect characterization. Vocabulary Practice 2. (a)What details does the speaker use to describe Practice with Synonyms Find the synonyms for the Knight and the Squire? (b)What do the speak- each vocabulary word from “The Prologue” listed in er’s descriptions suggest about these characters? the first column below. 1. discreet a. careless b. careful Writing About Literature 2. disdainful a. scornful b. friendly Explore Author’s Purpose Scholars have noted that 3. estimable a. lowly b. admirable “The Prologue” is an estates satire, a type of medieval 4. prevarication a. truth b. falsehood literary work that pokes fun at the professions and helpful aloof classes, or “estates” of society, in order to expose their 5. solicitous a. b. flaws. What flaws is Chaucer exposing in secular soci- ety and within the church? Write several paragraphs in which you analyze “The Prologue” as an estates satire. Web Activities For eFlashcards, Selection Quick Checks, and other Web activities, go to www.glencoe.com.

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 115

00092-0141092-0141 U1P2APP-845482.inddU1P2APP-845482.indd 115115 11/29/07/29/07 9:01:419:01:41 AMAM BEFORE YOU READ from The Pardoner’s Tale

LITERATURE PREVIEW READING PREVIEW

Connecting to the Poem Reading Strategy Analyzing Tone In “The Pardoner’s Tale,” three young men allow their Tone expresses an author’s attitude toward his or her greed to destroy them. As you read, think about the subject as conveyed through such elements as word following questions: choice, sentence structure, and figures of speech. A writer’s tone may convey a variety of attitudes, such as How far would you go to attain great wealth? • sympathy, irony, objectivity, humor, or sadness. • Is there any goal or reward that would tempt you to betray one of your friends? Reading Tip: Analyzing Objectivity How emotionally Building Background involved or objective a speaker is can contribute to the speaker’s tone. As you read, use a continuum similar to In the Middle Ages, church representatives called par- the one below to denote the tone of a passage. doners were licensed by the pope to preach and to col- lect money for specific goals, such as building a church. A pardoner could also grant indulgences, which were gifts of divine mercy to repentant sinners. Through such Uninvolved Involved indulgences, sinners received pardon, or release, from the pain of punishment. By Chaucer’s time, corrupt par- doners sold indulgences for personal profit rather than Vocabulary granting them to the deserving penitents in return for a adversary (ad vər ser´ e¯) n. opponent; enemy; voluntary donation to a church charity. “The Pardoner’s p. 117 Louise and Frank were worthy adversaries Tale” is an exemplum—a brief story used as an exam- at playing Scrabble because each had an extensive ple to teach a moral lesson. vocabulary. Setting Purposes for Reading prudent (pro¯¯o¯d ənt) adj. cautious; careful; p. 120 Be prudent in divulging your Social Security num- Big Idea The Power of Faith ber because it can be misused by an unscrupulous As you read, notice how the sins of greed and betrayal person. lead to moral chaos and self-destruction. gratify (ratə f¯´) v. to satisfy; indulge; p. 121 Grandfather likes to gratify his sweet tooth with Literary Element Irony chocolate ice cream. Irony is a contrast or discrepancy between expectation deftly (deftle¯) adv. skillfully; nimbly; p. 122 and reality. Situational irony exists when an occur- Working in the bakery window, the pizza chef rence is the opposite of a character’s expectations. deftly spun the dough into a large circle. Dramatic irony occurs when readers or audiences have information unknown to the characters. Verbal Vocabulary Tip: Context Clues Clues to the irony occurs when a character says one thing while meanings of unfamiliar words can often be found meaning another. As you read “The Pardoner’s Tale,” in the surrounding text. look for all three types of irony. • See Literary Terms Handbook, p. R9.

Interactive Literary Elements Handbook To review or learn more about the literary elements, go to www.glencoe.com.

OBJECTIVES In studying this selection, you will focus on the following: • analyzing irony • analyzing literary genres • analyzing tone

116 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES

00092-0141092-0141 U1P2APP-845482.inddU1P2APP-845482.indd 116116 11/8/07/8/07 9:44:419:44:41 AMAM Manuscript illumination of a pharmacy with the scientist and philosopher Ibn Sina. From the Cannon .

It’s of three rioters° I have to tell 1 rioters: those given to unrestrained Who, long before the morning service bell,° revelry and debauchery. 2 long before . . . bell: long before 9 a.m. Were sitting in a tavern for a drink. And as they sat, they heard the hand-bell clink 5 Before a coffin going to the grave;° 4–5 hand-bell . . . grave: During this One of them called the little tavern-knave° time, a bell was rung next to the coffin in a funeral procession. And said “Go and find out at once—look spry!— 6 tavern-knave: serving boy. Whose corpse is in that coffin passing by; And see you get the name correctly too.” 10 “Sir,” said the boy, “no need, I promise you; Two hours before you came here I was told. He was a friend of yours in days of old, And suddenly, last night, the man was slain, Upon his bench, face up, dead drunk again. 15 There came a privy° thief, they call him Death, 15 privy: secretive. Who kills us all round here, and in a breath He speared him through the heart, he never stirred. And then Death went his way without a word. He’s killed a thousand in the present plague,° 19 killed . . . plague: In 1348 and 1349 20 And, sir, it doesn’t do to be too vague at least a third of the population of England perished from the plague called If you should meet him; you had best be wary. the Black Death. Be on your guard with such an adversary, Be primed to meet him everywhere you go, That’s what my mother said. It’s all I know.” 25 The publican° joined in with, “By St. Mary, 25 publican: tavernkeeper or innkeeper.

Reading Strategy Analyzing Tone How would you describe the tone of the tavern-knave’s report?

Vocabulary adversary (advər ser´e¯) n. opponent; enemy

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 117

0117-0122 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 117 6/21/06 9:25:59 AM What the child says is right; you’d best be wary, This very year he killed, in a large village A mile away, man, woman, serf at tillage,° 28 tillage: plowing. Page in the household, children—all there were. 30 Yes, I imagine that he lives round there. It’s well to be prepared in these alarms, He might do you dishonor.” “Huh, God’s arms!” The rioter said, “Is he so fierce to meet? I’ll search for him, by Jesus, street by street. 35 God’s blessed bones! I’ll register a vow! Here, chaps! The three of us together now, Hold up your hands, like me, and we’ll be brothers In this affair, and each defend the others, And we will kill this traitor Death, I say! 40 Away with him as he has made away With all our friends. God’s dignity! Tonight!” They made their bargain, swore with appetite, These three, to live and die for one another As brother-born might swear to his born brother. 45 And up they started in their drunken rage And made towards this village which the page And publican had spoken of before. Many and grisly were the oaths they swore, Tearing Christ’s blessed body to a shred;° 49 Tearing . . . shred: Their swearing 50 “If we can only catch him, Death is dead!” included such expressions as “God’s arms” (line 32) and “God’s blessed When they had gone not fully half a mile, bones” (line 35). Just as they were about to cross a stile,° 52 stile: a stairway used to climb over a They came upon a very poor old man wall or fence. Who humbly greeted them and thus began, 55 “God look to you, my lords, and give you quiet!” To which the proudest of these men of riot Gave back the answer, “What, old fool? Give place! Why are you all wrapped up except your face? Why live so long? Isn’t it time to die?” 60 The old, old fellow looked him in the eye And said, “Because I never yet have found, Though I have walked to , searching round Village and city on my pilgrimage, One who would change his youth to have my age. 65 And so my age is mine and must be still Upon me, for such time as God may will. “Not even Death, alas, will take my life;

Literary Element Irony What is ironic about the rioters’ resolution?

Reading Strategy Analyzing Tone In what tone does the rioter answer the “poor old man”? The Pardoner (detail). Illumination from Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Big Idea The Power of Faith How does the old man show his Canterbury Tales. The Huntington religious faith? Art Collection, San Marino, CA.

118 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens, San Marino, California/Bridgeman Art Library

00117-0122117-0122 U1P2SEL-845482.inddU1P2SEL-845482.indd 118118 11/29/07/29/07 9:06:199:06:19 AMAM So, like a wretched prisoner at strife Within himself, I walk alone and wait 70 About the earth, which is my mother’s gate,° 70 mother’s gate: entrance to the grave. Knock-knocking with my staff from night to noon And crying, ‘Mother, open to me soon! Look at me, mother, won’t you let me in? See how I wither, flesh and blood and skin! 75 Alas! When will these bones be laid to rest? Mother, I would exchange—for that were best— The wardrobe in my chamber, standing there So long, for yours! Aye, for a shirt of hair° 78 shirt of hair: usually a rough shirt To wrap me in!’ She has refused her grace, worn as self-punishment; here, a shroud 80 Whence comes the pallor of my withered face. “But it dishonored you when you began To speak so roughly, sir, to an old man, Unless he had injured you in word or deed. It says in holy writ, as you may read, 85 ‘Thou shalt rise up before the hoary° head 85 hoary: whitened with age. And honor it.’ And therefore be it said ‘Do no more harm to an old man than you, Being now young, would have another do When you are old’—if you should live till then. 90 And so may God be with you, gentlemen, For I must go whither I have to go.” “By God,” the gambler said, “you shan’t do so, You don’t get off so easy, by St. John! I heard you mention, just a moment gone, 95 A certain traitor Death who singles out And kills the fine young fellows hereabout. And you’re his spy, by God! You wait a bit. Say where he is or you shall pay for it, By God and by the Holy Sacrament! 100 I say you’ve joined together by consent To kill us younger folk, you thieving swine!” “Well, sirs,” he said, “if it be your design

To find out Death, turn up this crooked way Chaucer, the Knight and the Towards that grove, I left him there today Squire from “The Pardoner’s 105 Under a tree, and there you’ll find him waiting. Prologue” of The Canterbury Tales. He isn’t one to for all your prating. Harry Mileham (1873–1957). Private Collection. You see that oak? He won’t be far to find. Viewing the Art: Of the figures And God protect you that redeemed mankind, shown here, in your opinion which Aye, and amend° you!” Thus that ancient man. would be Chaucer? What about 110 At once the three young rioters began this character’s body language leads you to that conclusion? To run, and reached the tree, and there they found A pile of golden florins on the ground, New-coined, eight bushels of them as they thought. No longer was it Death those fellows sought, 109 amend: improve.

Literary Element Irony What is ironic about the rioters’ discovery?

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 119 Private Collection/Bridgeman Art Library, London/New York

0117-0122 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 119 6/21/06 9:26:12 AM 115 For they were all so thrilled to see the sight, The florins were so beautiful and bright, That down they sat beside the precious pile. The wickedest spoke first after a while. “Brothers,” he said, “you listen to what I say. 120 I’m pretty sharp although I joke away. It’s clear that Fortune° has bestowed this treasure 121 Fortune: fate. To let us live in jollity and pleasure. Light come, light go! We’ll spend it as we ought. God’s precious dignity! Who would have thought 125 This morning was to be our lucky day? “If one could only get the gold away, Back to my house, or else to yours, perhaps— For as you know, the gold is ours, chaps— We’d all be at the top of fortune, hey? 130 But certainly it can’t be done by day. People would call us robbers—a strong gang, So our own property would make us hang. No, we must bring this treasure back by night Some prudent way, and keep it out of sight. 135 And so as a solution I propose We draw for lots and see the way it goes; The one who draws the longest, lucky man, Shall run to town as quickly as he can To fetch us bread and wine—but keep things dark°— 139 keep things dark: act in secret; 140 While two remain in hiding here to mark don’t give us away. Our heap of treasure. If there’s no delay, When night comes down we’ll carry it away, All three of us, wherever we have planned.” He gathered lots and hid them in his hand 145 Bidding them draw for where the luck should fall. It fell upon the youngest of them all, And off he ran at once towards the town. As soon as he had gone the first sat down And thus began a parley° with the other: 149 parley (par le¯): a discussion, as 150 “You know that you can trust me as a brother; with an enemy. Now let me tell you where your profit lies; You know our friend has gone to get supplies And here’s a lot of gold that is to be Divided equally amongst us three.

Big Idea The Power of Faith How does the rioters’ deduction illus- trate a perversion of Christian faith?

Vocabulary prudent (pro¯¯o¯d ənt) adj. cautious; careful

120 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES

0117-0122 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 120 6/21/06 9:26:27 AM 155 Nevertheless, if I could shape things thus So that we shared it out—the two of us— Wouldn’t you take it as a friendly act?” “But how?” the other said. “He knows the fact That all the gold was left with me and you; 160 What can we tell him? What are we to do?” “Is it a bargain,” said the first, “or no? For I can tell you in a word or so What’s to be done to bring the thing about.” “Trust me,” the other said, “you needn’t doubt 165 My word. I won’t betray you, I’ll be true.” “Well,” said his friend, “you see that we are two, And two are twice as powerful as one. Now look; when he comes back, get up in fun To have a wrestle; then, as you attack, Florin, a coin of the 170 I’ll up and put my dagger through his back thirteenth century While you and he are struggling, as in game; Then draw your dagger too and do the same. Then all this money will be ours to spend, Divided equally of course, dear friend. 175 Then we can gratify our lusts and fill The day with dicing at our own sweet will.” Thus these two miscreants° agreed to slay 177 miscreants (mis kre¯ ənts): The third and youngest, as you heard me say. evildoers, villains. The youngest, as he ran towards the town, 180 Kept turning over, rolling up and down Within his heart the beauty of those bright New florins, saying, “Lord, to think I might Have all that treasure to myself alone! Could there be anyone beneath the throne 185 Of God so happy as I then should be?” And so the Fiend, our common enemy, Was given power to put it in his thought That there was always poison to be bought, And that with poison he could kill his friends. 190 To men in such a state the Devil sends Thoughts of this kind, and has a full permission To lure them on to sorrow and perdition;° 192 perdition: damnation. For this young man was utterly content To kill them both and never to repent. 195 And on he ran, he had no thought to tarry,

Literary Element Irony What ironic thread runs through the dialogue among the three rioters?

Big Idea The Power of Faith What point about the Devil is the Pardoner expressing here?

Vocabulary gratify (rat ə f¯´) v. to satisfy; indulge

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 121

00117-0122117-0122 U1P2SEL-845482.inddU1P2SEL-845482.indd 121121 66/21/06/21/06 9:26:419:26:41 AMAM Came to the town, found an apothecary And said, “Sell me some poison if you will, I have a lot of rats I want to kill And there’s a polecat too about my yard 200 That takes my chickens and it hits me hard; But I’ll get even, as is only right, With vermin that destroy a man by night.” The chemist answered, “I’ve a preparation Which you shall have, and by my soul’s salvation 205 If any living creature eat or drink A mouthful, ere he has the time to think, Though he took less than makes a grain of wheat, You’ll see him fall down dying at your feet; Yes, die he must, and in so short a while 210 You’d hardly have the time to walk a mile, The poison is so strong, you understand.” This cursed fellow grabbed into his hand The box of poison and away he ran Into a neighboring street, and found a man 215 Who lent him three large bottles. He withdrew And deftly poured the poison into two. He kept the third one clean, as well he might, For his own drink, meaning to work all night Stacking the gold and carrying it away. 220 And when this rioter, this devil’s clay, Had filled his bottles up with wine, all three, Back to rejoin his comrades sauntered he. Why make a sermon of it? Why waste breath? Exactly in the way they’d planned his death 225 They fell on him and slew him, two to one. Then said the first of them when this was done, “Now for a drink. Sit down and let’s be merry, For later on there’ll be the corpse to bury.” And, as it happened, reaching for a sup, 230 He took a bottle of poison up And drank; and his companion, nothing loth,° 231 nothing loth: very willingly. Drank from it also, and they perished both. There is, in Avicenna’s long relation° 233 Avicenna’s (av´ ə sen əz) long Concerning poison and its operation, relation: a medieval book on medicines by the Arab physician Avicenna (980–1037), 235 Trust me, no ghastlier section to transcend which contains a chapter on poisons. What these two wretches suffered at their end. Thus these two murderers received their due, So did the treacherous young poisoner too.

Reading Strategy Analyzing Tone How would you describe the Pardoner’s tone in relating the deaths of the last two rioters?

Vocabulary deftly (deftle¯) adv. skillfully; nimbly

122 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES Private Collection/Bridgeman Art Library, London/New York

0117-0122 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 122 1/29/07 9:06:32 AM AFTER YOU READ

RESPONDING AND THINKING CRITICALLY Respond Analyze and Evaluate 1. (a)Were you surprised by the way the tale ends? 5. (a)Why do you think Chaucer decided to personify, Why or why not? (b)Would any other ending have or give human qualities to, Death in this tale? been as satisfactory? Explain. (b)Do you find this personification to be an effec- tive literary device? Explain. Recall and Interpret 6. (a)What do you think is the moral of this 2. (a)What are the three rioters doing at the begin- exemplum? (b)Do you find it ironic that the ning of the story? (b)What do the opening lines Pardoner has told a moralistic tale? Explain. imply about the character of the rioters? (c)Why might an exemplum employ such characters? Connect

3. (a)How does the rioters’ treatment of the tavern- 7. Big Idea The Power of Faith In what way does knave and the old man characterize the rioters? this tale illustrate the power of faith in medieval (b)How does the old man characterize himself? society? 4. (a)When the rioters go in search of Death, what do they find under the oak tree? (b)What symbolic asso- ciation about greed might Chaucer be making here?

LITERARY ANALYSIS READING AND VOCABULARY

Literary Element Irony Reading Strategy Analyzing Tone “The Pardoner’s Tale” contains examples of verbal The tone of a work may include the moral outlook that irony, situational irony, and dramatic irony. the writer conveys through the voice of the narrator. 1. One rioter says, “We’ll be brothers in this affair, and Partner Activity With a partner, discuss the moral each defend the others.” How is this an example of tone of “The Pardoner’s Tale.” Do you think the tone is verbal irony? appropriate? Explain. 2. When the rioters find the treasure, the “wickedest” says that Fortune gave it to them so that they could Vocabulary Practice live “in jollity and pleasure.” How is this an example of situational irony? Practice with Context Clues Identify the context clue that helps you determine the meaning of each 3. What example of dramatic irony occurs near the underlined word below. end of the tale? 1. Tom’s adversary in the game was his greatest Literary Criticism opponent yet. a. game b. greatest c. opponent In line 15, Death is described as a “privy thief.” Scholar Stephen A. Barney notes that this description refers to 2. Sheila was prudent; she saved her money. a passage from the Bible: “The day of the Lord shall so a. Sheila b. saved c. money come, as a thief in the night” (I Thessalonians 5:2). 3. To gratify my hunger, I ate until I was full. Meet in a small group to discuss what this reference a. hunger b. ate c. full to Judgment Day adds to the tale. 4. She deftly typed without making any mistakes. a. without b. typed c. mistakes Web Activities For eFlashcards, Selection Quick Checks, and other Web activities, go to www.glencoe.com.

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 123

00092-0141092-0141 U1P2APP-845482.inddU1P2APP-845482.indd 123123 66/21/06/21/06 8:17:358:17:35 AMAM BEFORE YOU READ from The Wife of Bath’s Tale

LITERATURE PREVIEW READING PREVIEW

Connecting to the Poem Reading Strategy Evaluating Argument When you have a disagreement with someone, how do Argument is a type of persuasive writing or speaking in you resolve the issue? “The Wife of Bath’s Tale” revolves which logic or reason is used to influence a reader’s or around an argument about what women want. As you listener’s ideas or actions. Unlike other forms of persua- read the tale, think about the following questions: sion, argument does not resort to emotional appeals. What does it mean to have mastery over another • Reading Tip: Analyzing Arguments Near the climax human being? of “The Wife of Bath’s Tale,” the knight makes a series What are the benefits of submitting oneself to the • of accusations and the old woman responds with a superior arguments of another? series of arguments. Use a chart similar to the one Building Background below to keep track of their exchanges. That the Wife has had five husbands would not have Knight’s Accusations Old Woman’s Arguments seemed remarkable to Chaucer’s contemporaries. In the Middle Ages, a woman with property was very The old woman is not Gentility is a gift from eligible. What they might have found remarkable— a gentlewoman. God, not one’s ancestry, because women were considered inferior to men—is and is manifested in the Wife’s success in governing her husbands. Another virtuous behavior. remarkable feature about the Wife is her high degree of education given that women of the time received no schooling beyond Bible studies and domestic training. Vocabulary Setting Purposes for Reading reprove (ri pro¯¯o¯v) v. to scold or correct, usu- ally gently or out of kindness; p. 126 Felicia’s Big Idea The Power of Faith mother reproved her for not sharing her toys. The Wife’s tale is set in the shadowy margin between concede (kən se¯d) v. to admit as true; the pagan and Christian worlds. As you read, think acknowledge; p. 128 Reuben had to concede that about which events belong to each of these worlds. Charles’s fundraising scheme was best. disperse (dis purs) v. to scatter about; distrib- Literary Element Humor ute widely; p. 132 After the family reunion, all the The quality of a literary work that makes characters and relatives dispersed to their homes around the country. their situations seem funny, amusing, or ludicrous is arrogance (ar ə əns) n. overbearing pride or called humor. Humor often ridicules human failings and self-importance; p. 134 In his arrogance, the reveals the irony found in many predicaments. Types of ruler built a monument to himself. humor range widely, from puns and word play to broad satire, sarcasm, parody, and subtle wit. suffice (sə f¯s) v. to be enough for; p. 137 You said you hoped for rain; will this downpour suffice? • See Literary Terms Handbook, p. R8. Vocabulary Tip: Analogies To complete an analogy, apply the relationship represented by the first pair

Interactive Literary Elements of words to the second pair of words. Handbook To review or learn more about the literary elements, go to www.glencoe.com.

OBJECTIVES In studying this selection, you will focus on the following: • analyzing humor • understanding historical and cultural context • evaluating argument

124 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES

00092-0141092-0141 U1P2APP-845482.inddU1P2APP-845482.indd 124124 11/8/07/8/07 9:54:409:54:40 AMAM The Wife of Bath (detail.) Illumination from Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales. The Wife of Bath prefaces her tale by saying that she has a The Huntington Art Collection, right to speak of the woes of marriage since she has had consid- San Marino, CA. erable experience in the matter. Apparently, the object of mar- riage for her is to have mastery over her husband, “who shall be both my debtor and my slave.” To support this view, she cites part of a statement by St. Paul that grants a wife power over her husband’s body. This prompts the Pardoner to interrupt.

The Pardoner started up, and thereupon ‘Madam,’ he said, ‘by God and by St John, That’s noble preaching no one could surpass! I was about to take a wife; alas! 5 Am I to buy it on my flesh so dear? There’ll be no marrying for me this year!’ ‘You wait,’ she said, ‘my story’s not begun. You’ll taste another brew before I’ve done; You’ll find it doesn’t taste as good as ale; 10 And when I’ve finished telling you my tale Of tribulation in the married life In which I’ve been an expert as a wife, That is to say, myself have been the whip. So please yourself whether you want to sip 15 At that same cask of marriage I shall broach. Be cautious before making the approach,

Literary Element Humor What is humorous in this exchange between the Wife and the Pardoner?

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 125 The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens, San Marino, CA/SuperStock

0125-0138 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 125 1/29/07 9:15:20 AM For I’ll give instances, and more than ten. And those who won’t be warned by other men, By other men shall suffer their correction, 20 So Ptolemy° has said, in this connection. 20 Ptolemy (ta lə me¯): Claudius Ptolemaeus was a second-century Greek

You read his Almagest; you’ll find it there. astronomer whose work the Almagest ‘Madam, I put it to you as a prayer,’ served as the definitive textbook for The Pardoner said, ‘go on as you began! medieval astronomers. The proverb in the preceding lines was added by someone

Tell us your tale, spare not for any man. else to a particular edition of the 25 Instruct us younger men in your technique.’ Almagest. ‘Gladly,’ she said, ‘if you will let me speak, But still I hope the company won’t reprove me Though I should speak as fantasy may move me, And please don’t be offended at my views; 30 They’re really only offered to amuse.

The Wife proceeds to tell a series of vivid private anecdotes of her five marriages, supposedly as exempla of her beliefs about rela- tionships. She boasts of how she controlled her first three hus- bands by always making them feel at fault. Her last two husbands proved less cooperative. The fourth cheated on her, and the most she could do to retaliate was to pretend to be interested in other men. The fifth would beat her, and yet she loved him most, because “he was disdainful in his love.” A scholar, he would try to educate her to be submissive by forcing her to listen to authori- tative readings on wicked women. This finally provoked her to start a brawl. In the end, she made him burn the texts and sur- render his mastery to her, and from then on, she says, she was kind and true to him and he to her. In the tale that follows, it is the wife who subjects the husband to a course of education.

When good King Arthur ruled in ancient days (A king that every Briton loves to praise) This was a land brim-full of fairy folk. The Elf-Queen and her courtiers joined and broke 35 Their elfin dance on many a green mead,° 35 mead: meadow. Or so was the opinion once, I read, Hundreds of years ago, in days of yore. But no one now sees fairies any more. For now the saintly charity and prayer 40 Of holy friars seem to have purged the air; They search the countryside through field and stream As thick as motes° that speckle a sun-beam, 42 motes: particles of dust. Blessing the halls, the chambers, kitchens, bowers,

Big Idea The Power of Faith How has Christianity supplanted paganism in King Arthur’s day?

Vocabulary reprove (ri pro¯¯o¯v) v. to scold or correct, usually gently or out of kindness

126 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES

0125-0138 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 126 1/29/07 9:15:26 AM The City Weir, Bath, Looking Towards Walcot, 18th century. Thomas Ross. Oil on canvas, 91.5 x 121.5 cm. Victoria Art Gallery, Bath and North East Somerset Council, England.

Cities and boroughs, castles, courts and towers, 45 Thorpes,° barns and stables, outhouses and dairies, 45 Thorpes: villages. And that’s the reason why there are no fairies. Wherever there was wont to walk° an elf 47 wont to walk: habitually walked. To-day there walks the holy friar himself As evening falls or when the daylight springs, 50 Saying his mattins and his holy things, Walking his limit round from town to town. Women can now go safely up and down By every bush or under every tree; There is no other incubus° but he, 54 incubus: evil spirit that attacks 55 So there is really no one else to hurt you women in their sleep. And he will do no more than take your virtue. Now it so happened, I began to say, Long, long ago in good King Arthur’s day, There was a knight who was a lusty liver. 60 One day as he came riding from the river He saw a maiden walking all forlorn Ahead of him, alone as she was born. And of that maiden, spite of all she said, By very force he took her maidenhead. 65 This act of violence made such a stir, So much petitioning to the king for her, That he condemned the knight to lose his head By course of law. He was as good as dead (It seems that then the statutes took that view) 70 But that the queen, and other ladies too, Implored° the king to exercise his grace 71 implored: pleaded with. So ceaselessly, he gave the queen the case And granted her his life, and she could choose

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 127 Thomas Ross/ Victoria Art Gallery, Bath and North East Somerset Council/Bridgeman Art Library

0125-0138 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 127 1/29/07 9:15:32 AM Whether to show him mercy or refuse. 75 The queen returned him thanks with all her might, And then she sent a summons to the knight At her convenience, and expressed her will: ‘You stand, for such is the position still, In no way certain of your life,’ said she, 80 ‘Yet you shall live if you can answer me: What is the thing that women most desire? Beware the axe and say as I require. ‘If you can’t answer on the moment, though, I will concede you this: you are to go 85 A twelvemonth and a day to seek and learn 87 gages: valuable items pledged in Sufficient answer, then you shall return. support of a promise, such as money I shall take gages° from you to extort posted for bail. Surrender of your body to the court.’ Sad was the knight and sorrowfully sighed, 90 But there! All other choices were denied, And in the end he chose to go away And to return after a year and day Armed with such answer as there might be sent To him by God. He took his leave and went. 95 He knocked at every house, searched every place, Yes, anywhere that offered hope of grace. What could it be that women wanted most? But all the same he never touched a coast, Country or town in which there seemed to be 100 Any two people willing to agree. Some said that women wanted wealth and treasure, ‘Honour,’ said some, some ‘Jollity and pleasure,’

Some ‘Gorgeous clothes’ and others ‘Fun in bed,’ 15th-Century Manuscript ‘To be oft widowed and remarried,’ said Illumination of a Knight from the 105 Others again, and some that what most mattered Codex Capodilista. Was that we should be cosseted° and flattered. That’s very near the truth, it seems to me; 106 cosseted: pampered. A man can win us best with flattery. To dance attendance on us, make a fuss, 110 Ensnares° us all, the best and worst of us. 110 ensnares: captures or traps. Some say the things we most desire are these: Freedom to do exactly as we please, With no one to reprove our faults and lies, Rather to have one call us good and wise. 115 Truly there’s not a woman in ten score° 115 ten score: two hundred. Who has a fault, and someone rubs the sore,

Big Idea The Power of Faith How does the knight expect ultimately to free himself through faith?

Vocabulary concede (kən se¯d) v. to admit as true; acknowledge

128 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES Gianni Dagli Orti/CORBIS

0125-0138 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 128 1/29/07 9:15:39 AM Knight Visiting His Lady, 1475 (detail). Artist unknown. Manuscript illumination.

But she will kick if what he says is true; You try it out and you will find so too. However vicious we may be within 120 We like to be thought wise and void of sin. Others assert we women find it sweet When we are thought dependable, discreet And secret, firm of purpose and controlled, Never betraying things that we are told. 125 But that’s not worth the handle of a rake; Women conceal a thing? For Heaven’s sake! Remember Midas? Will you hear the tale? Among some other little things, now stale, Ovid° relates that under his long hair 129 Ovid: Roman poet (43 b.c.?–a.d. 17) best known for the Metamorphoses, a 130 The unhappy Midas grew a splendid pair collection of ancient tales written in verse. Of ass’s ears; as subtly as he might, He kept his foul deformity from sight; Save for his wife, there was not one that knew. He loved her best, and trusted in her too. 135 He begged her not to tell a living creature That he possessed so horrible a feature. And she—she swore, were all the world to win, She would not do such villainy and sin As saddle her husband with so foul a name; 140 Besides to speak would be to share the shame. Nevertheless she thought she would have died Keeping this secret bottled up inside; It seemed to swell her heart and she, no doubt, Thought it was on the point of bursting out. 145 Fearing to speak of it to woman or man, Down to reedy marsh she quickly ran

Literary Element Humor What is the Wife making fun of here?

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 129 Archivo Iconografico, S.A./CORBIS

0125-0138 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 129 6/21/06 9:27:39 AM Illustration of a Knight and Horse in Armor by Friedrich Martin von Reibisch. Stapleton Collection.

And reached the sedge.° Her heart was all on fire 147 sedge: any of a family of marsh plants.

And, as a bittern° bumbles in the mire, 148 bittern: heron. She whispered to the water, near the ground, 150 ‘Betray me not, O water, with thy sound! To thee alone I tell it: it appears My husband has a pair of ass’s ears! Ah! My heart’s well again, the secret’s out! I could no longer keep it, not a doubt.’ 155 And so you see, although we may hold fast° 155 hold fast: restrain firmly. A little while, it must come out at last, We can’t keep secrets; as for Midas, well, Read Ovid for his story°; he will tell. 158 Read . . . story: In the Metamorphoses, the marsh weeds This knight that I am telling you about whisper Midas’s secret whenever the 160 Perceived at last he never would find out wind blows. What it could be that women loved the best. Faint was the soul within his sorrowful breast, As home he went, he dared no longer stay; His year was up and now it was the day. 165 As he rode home in a dejected mood Suddenly, at the margin of a wood,

Reading Strategy Evaluating Argument Is Ovid’s tale convincing proof of the Wife’s argument that women cannot keep secrets? Explain.

130 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES Stapleton Collection/Corbis

0125-0138 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 130 1/29/07 9:15:56 AM He saw a dance upon the leafy floor Of four and twenty ladies, nay, and more. Eagerly he approached, in hope to learn 170 Some words of wisdom ere he should return; But lo! Before he came to where they were, Dancers and dance all vanished into air! There wasn’t a living creature to be seen Save one old woman crouched upon the green. 175 A fouler-looking creature I suppose Could scarcely be imagined. She arose And said, ‘Sir knight, there’s no way on from here. Tell me what you are looking for, my dear, For peradventure° that were best for you; 179 peradventure: perhaps. 180 We old, old women know a thing or two.’ ‘Dear Mother,’ said the knight, ‘alack the day! I am as good as dead if I can’t say What thing it is that women most desire; If you could tell me I would pay your hire.’ 185 ‘Give me your hand,’ she said, ‘and swear to do Whatever I shall next require of you —If so to do should lie within your might— And you shall know the answer before night.’ ‘Upon my honour,’ he answered, ‘I agree.’ 190 ‘Then,’ said the crone,° ‘I dare to guarantee 190 crone: withered old woman. Your life is safe; I shall make good my claim. Upon my life the queen will say the same. Show me the very proudest of them all In costly coverchief or jewelled caul° 194 caul: net cap worn in the hair and 195 That dare say no to what I have to teach. sometimes ornamented. Let us go forward without further speech.’ And then she crooned her gospel in his ear And told him to be glad and not to fear. They came to court. This knight, in full array, 200 Stood forth and said, ‘O Queen, I’ve kept my day And kept my word and have my answer ready.’ There sat the noble matrons and the heady Young girls, and widows too, that have the grace Of wisdom, all assembled in that place, 205 And there the queen herself was throned to hear And judge his answer. Then the knight drew near And silence was commanded through the hall. The queen gave order he should tell them all What thing it was that women wanted most. 210 He stood not silent like a beast or post, But gave his answer with the ringing word Of a man’s voice and the assembly heard:

Big Idea The Power of Faith How does the knight’s encounter at the edge of the wood evoke the pagan world?

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 131

0125-0138 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 131 1/29/07 9:16:03 AM ‘My liege and lady, in general,’ said he, ‘A woman wants the self-same sovereignty° 214 sovereignty: power to rule another 215 Over her husband as over her lover, person or group of people. And master him; he must not be above her. That is your greatest wish, whether you kill Or spare me; please yourself. I wait your will.’ In all the court not one that shook her head 220 Or contradicted what the knight had said; Maid, wife and widow cried, ‘He’s saved his life!’ And on the word up started the old wife, The one the knight saw sitting on the green, And cried, ‘Your mercy, sovereign lady queen! 225 Before the court disperses, do me right! ’Twas I who taught this answer to the knight, For which he swore, and pledged his honour to it, That the first thing I asked of him he’d do it, So far as it should lie within his might. 230 Before this court I ask you then, sir knight, To keep your word and take me for your wife; For well you know that I have saved your life. If this be false, deny it on your sword!’ ‘Alas!’ he said, ‘Old lady, by the Lord 235 I know indeed that such was my behest,° 235 behest: command. But for God’s love think of a new request, Take all my goods, but leave my body free.’ ‘A curse on us,’ she said, ‘If I agree! I may be foul, I may be poor and old, 240 Yet will not choose to be, for all the gold That’s bedded in the earth or lies above, Less than your wife, nay, than your very love!’ ‘My love?’ said he. ‘By heaven, my damnation! Alas that any of my race and station 245 Should ever make so foul a misalliance!’° 245 misalliance: marriage between Yet in the end his pleading and defiance people unsuitable for each other. All went for nothing, he was forced to wed. He takes his ancient wife and goes to bed. Now peradventure some may well suspect 250 A lack of care in me since I neglect To tell of the rejoicing and display Made at the feast upon their wedding-day.

Reading Strategy Evaluating Argument What criterion do the women use to evaluate the knight’s answer?

Literary Element Humor Do you see any humor in the knight’s pre- dicament? Explain.

Vocabulary disperse (dis purs) v. to scatter about; distribute widely

132 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES

0125-0138 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 132 6/21/06 9:27:49 AM Month of May: May Dance and Game of Small Papers, c. 1459. Artist unknown. From the Hours of the Duchess of Burgundy. Musée Condé, Chantilly, France.

I have but a short answer to let fall; I say there was no joy or feast at all, 255 Nothing but heaviness of heart and sorrow. He married her in private on the morrow And all day long stayed hidden like an owl, It was such torture that his wife looked foul. Great was the anguish churning in his head 260 When he and she were piloted to bed; He wallowed back and forth in desperate style. His ancient wife lay smiling all the while; At last she said, ‘Bless us! Is this, my dear, How knights and wives get on together here? 265 Are these the laws of good King Arthur’s house? Are knights of his all so contemptuous? I am your own beloved and your wife, And I am she, indeed, that saved your life; And certainly I never did you wrong. 270 Then why, this first of nights, so sad a song? You’re carrying on as if you were half-witted.

Literary Element Humor How is the old woman making fun of the knight? Why does she appear to be unoffended by his aversion to her age and appearance?

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 133 Musee Conde, Chantilly, France/Giraudon/Art Resource, NY

0125-0138 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 133 1/29/07 9:16:09 AM Say, for God’s love, what sin have I committed? I’ll put things right if you will tell me how.’ ‘Put right?’ he cried. ‘That never can be now! 275 Nothing can ever be put right again! You’re old, and so abominably plain, So poor to start with, so low-bred to follow; It’s little wonder if I twist and wallow! God, that my heart would burst within my breast!’ 280 ‘Is that,’ said she, ‘the cause of your unrest?’ ‘Yes, certainly,’ he said, ‘and can you wonder?’ ‘I could set right what you suppose a blunder, That’s if I cared to, in a day or two, If I were shown more courtesy by you. 285 Just now,’ she said, ‘you spoke of gentle birth, Such as descends from ancient wealth and worth. If that’s the claim you make for gentlemen Such arrogance is hardly worth a hen. Whoever loves to work for virtuous ends, Pilgrims Going to Canterbury, 13th century. Artist unknown. 290 Public and private, and who most intends Stained glass. Canterbury To do what deeds of gentleness he can, Cathedral, , UK. Take him to be the greatest gentleman. Christ wills we take our gentleness from Him, Not from a wealth of ancestry long dim, 295 Though they bequeath their whole establishment By which we claim to be of high descent. Our fathers cannot make us a bequest Of all those virtues that became them best And earned for them the name of gentlemen, 300 But bade us follow them as best we can. ‘Thus the wise poet of the Florentines, Dante° by name, has written in these lines, 302 Dante Alighieri: (dan´ ta¯ a lə ya¯r e¯ For such is the opinion Dante launches; ) Italian poet (1265–1321), author of the Divine Comedy. “Seldom arises by these slender branches° 304 slender branches: branches of the 305 Prowess of men, for it is God, no less, family tree. Wills us to claim of Him our gentleness.” For of our parents nothing can we claim Save temporal° things, and these may hurt and maim. 308 temporal: worldly. ‘But everyone knows this as well as I; 310 For if gentility° were implanted by 310 gentility: courteous behavior The natural course of lineage down the line, befitting a person of noble birth. Public or private, could it cease to shine In doing the fair work of gentle deed?

Reading Strategy Evaluating Argument Summarize and evaluate the old woman’s argument against the knight’s accusation that she is not a gentlewoman.

Vocabulary arrogance (arə əns) n. overbearing pride or self-importance

134 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES , Kent, UK/The Bridgeman Art Library

0125-0138 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 134 6/21/06 9:28:02 AM No vice or villainy could then bear seed. 315 ‘Take fire and carry it to the darkest house Between this kingdom and the Caucasus,° 316 Caucasus: Caucasus Mountains, in And shut the doors on it and leave it there, southeastern Europe. It will burn on, and it will burn as fair As if ten thousand men were there to see, 320 For fire will keep its nature and degree, I can assure you, sir, until it dies. ‘But gentleness, as you will recognize, Is not annexed° in nature to possessions. 323 annexed: attached as a quality or Men fail in living up to their professions; consequence. 325 But fire never ceases to be fire. God knows you’ll often find, if you enquire, Some lording full of villainy and shame. If you would be esteemed for the mere name Of having been by birth a gentleman 330 And stemming from some virtuous, noble clan, And do not live yourself by gentle deed Or take your father’s noble code and creed, You are no gentleman, though duke or . Vice and bad manners are what make a .° 334 churl: discourteous, ill-bred person. 335 ‘Gentility is only the renown For bounty that your fathers handed down, Quite foreign to your person, not your own; Gentility must come from God alone. That we are gentle comes to us by grace 340 And by no means is it bequeathed with place. ‘Reflect how noble (says Valerius)° 341 Valerius Maximus: Roman author Was Tullius surnamed Hostilius, (c. 20 B.C.–A.D. 50), whose work was widely popular as a source for writers. Who rose from poverty to nobleness. And read ,° Seneca° no less, 344 Boethius: (bo¯ e¯ the¯ əs) Roman 345 Thus they express themselves and are agreed: philosopher and statesman (c. 480–c. 524), best known for his Consolation of Philoso- “Gentle is he that does a gentle deed.” phy, written while he was imprisoned for And therefore, my dear husband, I conclude treason. Seneca: Roman playwright and That even if my ancestors were rude, philosopher (4 B.C.?–A.D. 65). Yet God on high—and so I hope He will— 350 Can grant me grace to live in virtue still, A gentlewoman only when beginning To live in virtue and to shrink from sinning. ‘As for my poverty which you reprove, Almighty God Himself in whom we move, 355 Believe and have our being, chose a life Of poverty, and every man or wife

Big Idea The Power of Faith How does the old woman use the power of faith to support her argument?

Big Idea The Power of Faith How does the old woman’s first argu- ment against the knight’s accusation of poverty illustrate her religious faith?

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 135

0125-0138 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 135 1/29/07 9:16:20 AM Chaucer at the Court of Edward III, 1856– 1868. Ford Madox Brown. Oil on canvas, 123.2 x 99.1 cm. Tate Gallery, London

Nay, every child can see our Heavenly King Would never stoop to choose a shameful thing. No shame in poverty if the heart is gay, 360 As Seneca and all the learned say. He who accepts his poverty unhurt I’d say is rich although he lacked a shirt. But truly poor are they who whine and fret And covet what they cannot hope to get. 365 And he that, having nothing, covets not, Is rich, though you may think he is a sot.° 366 sot: habitual drunkard. ‘True poverty can find a song to sing. Juvenal° says a pleasant little thing: 368 Juvenal: Roman poet and satirist “The poor can dance and sing in the relief (A.D. 60?–127 ?). 370 Of having nothing that will tempt a thief.” Though it be hateful, poverty is good, A great incentive to a livelihood, And a great help to our capacity For wisdom, if accepted patiently. 375 Poverty is, though wanting in estate, A kind of wealth that none calumniate.° 376 calumniate: utter false and vicious Poverty often, when the heart is lowly, statements. Brings one to God and teaches what is holy,

Reading Strategy Evaluating Argument The old woman has cited Dante, Valerius, Boethius, Seneca, and now Juvenal. How well do these citations support her argument?

136 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES Tate Gallery, London/Art Resource, NY

0125-0138 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 136 1/29/07 9:16:30 AM Gives knowledge of oneself and even lends 380 A glass° by which to see one’s truest friends. 380 glass: mirror. And since it’s no offence, let me be plain; Do not rebuke my poverty again. ‘Lastly you taxed me, sir, with being old. Yet even if you never had been told 385 By ancient books, you gentlemen engage, Yourselves in honour to respect old age. To call an old man “father” shows good breeding, And this could be supported from my reading. ‘You say I’m old and fouler than a fen.° 389 fen: lowland wholly or partly 390 You need not fear to be a cuckold,° then. covered with water. 390 cuckold: man whose wife is Filth and old age, I’m sure you will agree, unfaithful to him. Are powerful wardens over chastity. Nevertheless, well knowing your delights, I shall fulfil your worldly appetites. 395 ‘You have two choices; which one will you try? To have me old and ugly till I die, But still a loyal, true, and humble wife That never will displease you all her life, Or would you rather I were young and pretty 400 And chance your arm what happens in a city Where friends will visit you because of me, Yes, and in other places too, maybe. Which would you have? The choice is all your own.’ The knight thought long, and with a piteous groan 405 At last he said, with all the care in life, ‘My lady and my love, my dearest wife, I leave the matter to your wise decision. You make the choice yourself, for the provision Of what may be agreeable and rich 410 In honour to us both, I don’t care which; Whatever pleases you suffices me.’ ‘And have I won the mastery?’ said she, ‘Since I’m to choose and rule as I think fit?’ ‘Certainly, wife,’ he answered her, ‘that’s it.’

Reading Strategy Evaluating Argument Summarize the six reasons the old woman uses to support her argument that poverty is beneficial.

Reading Strategy Evaluating Argument Summarize and evaluate the old woman’s argument that the knight should not scorn her for being old and ugly.

Literary Element Humor Do you find any humor in the knight’s response to the choice offered him by the old woman? Explain.

Vocabulary suffice (sə f¯s) v. to be enough for

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 137

0125-0138 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 137 6/21/06 9:28:20 AM Month of April, Wedding Procession. Grimani Breviary. Biblioteca Marciana, , Italy.

415 ‘Kiss me,’ she cried. ‘No quarrels! On my oath And word of honour, you shall find me both, That is, both fair and faithful as a wife; May I go howling mad and take my life Unless I prove to be as good and true 420 As ever wife was since the world was new! And if to-morrow when the sun’s above I seem less fair than any lady-love, Than any queen or empress east or west, Do with my life and death as you think best. 425 Cast up the curtain, husband. Look at me!’ And when indeed the knight had looked to see, Lo, she was young and lovely, rich in charms. In ecstasy he caught her in his arms, His heart went bathing in a bath of blisses 430 And melted in a hundred thousand kisses, And she responded in the fullest measure With all that could delight or give him pleasure. So they lived ever after to the end In perfect bliss; and may Christ Jesus send 435 Us husbands meek and young and fresh in bed, And grace to overbid them when we wed. And—Jesu hear my prayer!—cut short the lives Of those who won’t be governed by their wives; And all old, angry niggards of their pence,° 439 niggards: misers. pence: pennies. 440 God send them soon a very pestilence!

Literary Element Humor Do you find any humor in the Wife’s prayer? Explain.

138 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES Biblioteca Marciana, Venice, Italy/Giraudon/Art Resource, NY

0125-0138 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 138 1/29/07 9:16:41 AM AFTER YOU READ

RESPONDING AND THINKING CRITICALLY Respond Analyze and Evaluate 1. Do you think the knight gets what he deserves? 5. (a)How does the old woman get the knight to Explain. change his attitude toward marrying her? (b)Do you find her method convincing? Explain. Recall and Interpret 6. (a)Through her arguments, what is the old woman 2. (a)What question does the knight have to answer ultimately demanding that the knight acknowledge? in order to save his life? (b)How do you think the (b)How does the knight’s acknowledgment trans- knight feels when he provides the queen with the form both the knight and the old woman? correct answer? Explain. 7. Do you think Chaucer’s portrayal of the Wife indi- 3. (a)What bargain does the old woman make with cates that he was ahead of his time in his view of the knight? (b)What is the ironic connection women? Why or why not? between the answer to the queen’s question and the requirement that the old woman demands of Connect the knight? 8. In your opinion, is the lesson that the Wife teaches 4. (a)Summarize the ending of “The Wife of Bath’s relevant to today’s world? Explain. Tale.” (b)What lesson does the ending teach? 9. Big Idea The Power of Faith To what extent does “The Wife of Bath’s Tale” illustrate the power of Christian faith?

DAILY LIFE AND CULTURE

The Medieval Pilgrimage A pilgrimage is a journey made to a holy place, or 1170 during a struggle for power between church shrine, to venerate it, ask for supernatural aid, or to and state. Becket was made a saint in 1173, and in fulfill a religious obligation. The shrines were spe- the following year Henry II was forced to do pen- cific locations made holy by the birth, life, or death ance at the saint’s tomb. of a prophet or saint. In medieval England the most popular pilgrimage was the one made each year to The journey from London to Canterbury was not Canterbury Cathedral. The cathedral achieved an easy one, but it afforded a challenging adven- renown as the place where Archbishop Thomas à ture. It was expensive because the pilgrims had to Becket was murdered by agents of King Henry II in stay at inns along the way. Also, they had to endure the hardships of life on horseback over unpaved roads for several days on their way to Canterbury and back.

1. Of Chaucer’s 29 pilgrims, which ones strike you as making this pilgrimage for spiritual reasons? 2. Do any of the pilgrims seem to be making this journey for other reasons? Explain.

12th century plan of Canterbury Cathedral.

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 139

00092-0141092-0141 U1P2APP-845482.inddU1P2APP-845482.indd 139139 66/21/06/21/06 8:21:048:21:04 AMAM LITERARY ANALYSIS READING AND VOCABULARY

Literary Element Humor Reading Strategy Evaluating Argument Among the types of humor that Chaucer uses in “The In “The Wife of Bath’s Tale,” the old woman reforms Wife of Bath’s Tale” are exaggeration, understatement, the knight by presenting a series of arguments to and incongruity. Incongruity involves the juxtaposition of refute his accusations. two or more jarring or unexpected pieces of information. 1. What accusations does the knight make against the 1. How is the Wife’s reply to the Pardoner in line 26 old woman? of “The Wife of Bath’s Tale” an example of under- 2. What arguments does the old woman use to statement? answer the knight’s accusations? 2. How is the Wife’s account of the way in which friars 3. How persuasive do you find the old woman’s argu- have banished fairies (lines 38–46) an example of ments? Explain. exaggeration? 3. How is the Wife’s comment on friars in lines 55– 56 an example of incongruity? Vocabulary Practice Practice with Analogies Complete each analogy Review: Characterization below. Use a dictionary if you need help. As you learned on page 93, characterization refers to 1. reprove : fault :: applaud : the various methods a writer uses to develop the per- a. honor b. good deed c. smile sonality of a character. 2. concede : deny :: trust : a. honor b. payment c. doubt Partner Activity Meet with another classmate to dis- cuss the character of the knight in “The Wife of Bath’s 3. disperse : scatter :: spoil : Tale.” Use a graphic organizer similar to the one below a. ruin b. robbery c. improve to describe his character at several points during the 4. arrogance : attitude :: wave : tale. Write your description under the heading in the a. greet b. enjoyment c. gesture first column and cite the knight’s words or actions that 5. suffi ce : lack :: raise : support your descriptions in the second column. When a. lower b. crops c. bonus you finish filling in your chart, summarize how the knight changes throughout the tale.

Academic Vocabulary Character Description Words or Actions At the beginning: “By very force he took Here are two words from the vocabulary list on The knight is immoral her maidenhead.” page R82. These words will help you think, and violent. write, and talk about the selection. On his quest: scheme (ske¯m) n. a systematic plan for achiev- ing some object or end After he is freed: acquire (ə kw¯r) v. to get or gain by one’s own efforts or actions

After he is married: Practice and Apply 1. Do you think the old woman has a scheme to save the knight even before the knight meets At the end: her by the wood? Explain. 2. What does the knight acquire at the end of the tale?

140 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES

00092-0141092-0141 U1P2APP-845482.inddU1P2APP-845482.indd 140140 66/21/06/21/06 8:21:198:21:19 AMAM WRITING AND EXTENDING GRAMMAR AND STYLE

Writing About Literature Chaucer’s Language and Style Analyze Theme Both “The Pardoner’s Tale” and “The Using Indefinite Pronouns A pronoun ordinarily takes Wife of Bath’s Tale” belong to the subgenre known as the place of a noun. However, sometimes pronouns the exemplum, which is a tale used to illustrate a refer to persons, places, and things in a more general moral truth, or theme. Choose either tale and write an way than nouns do. These are called indefinite pro- essay that analyzes its moral, or theme. nouns because they do not take the place of specific nouns. Here are some examples from “The Prologue”: Plan carefully before you begin to write. As its name suggests, an exemplum is an “example,” so you will “ . . . all was of the best.” (line 29) need to show how the tale contains examples of the “It seems a reasonable thing to say . . .” (line 37) moral truth embodied in the theme. You can use a “He who repeats a tale . . .” (line 727) graphic organizer similar to the one below to organize More indefinite pronouns are listed below: your thoughts.

anybody none Situation both no one

each nothing

either one Example of Action or Idea everyone others

everything plenty

few several

Result of Action or Idea many something

Activity Use half of the indefinite pronouns listed Theme or Moral above in original sentences about the pilgrims preparing to leave for Canterbury. Take care that you use these words as pronouns, not as adjectives or other parts of After you complete your draft, meet with a peer speech. For example, in “Many pilgrims were going to reviewer to evaluate each other’s work and to suggest Canterbury,” many is an adjective; in “Many were going revisions. Then proofread and edit your draft for errors to Canterbury,” many is a pronoun. in spelling, grammar, and punctuation.

Revising Check Literature Groups Indefinite Pronouns Review and revise your word Imagine you are creating a movie of one of the choice in the essay you wrote for the Writing About excerpts from The Canterbury Tales that you have just Literature feature. Have you used any indefinite pro- read. In your group, create a casting list detailing the nouns? Have you used them correctly? traits you are looking for in the characters. Then cast the main parts with people from film, television, or your life. Share your list with the class and explain why you chose the people you did.

Web Activities For eFlashcards, Selection Quick Checks, and other Web activities, go to www.glencoe.com.

GEOFFREY CHAUCER 141

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Media Link to The Canterbury Tales

Preview the Article In “The Roads Now Taken,” the writer examines the rise of the secular The Roads Now pilgrimage. It’s a secular 1. Examine the photographs on pages age, but 143 and 144. What clues do they give Europeans still you about the content of the article? go on quests, 2. Skim the first two paragraphs of the treks, and article. What main point do you think the writer might try to prove? pilgrimages to test their limits Set a Purpose for Reading and nourish Read to learn how the traditional their souls. pilgrimage has evolved. BByy JEFF CHU Taken

Reading Strategy HE BENEDICTINE MONKS WERE FED UP. BY 1420, TRAFFIC Connecting to Personal Experience was so bad inside England’s Canterbury Cathedral that Connecting to personal experience means the Benedictines were constantly being diverted from relating what you read to events in your their duties and contemplations by hordes of pilgrims. own life. When you do so, you gain a Ever since the martyrdom of Archbishop Thomas greater understanding of the text and the T writer’s purpose. Becket 250 years earlier, people had been flocking here—to the grand seat of English Christianity and the scene of Becket’s mur- As you read, create a chart similar to the der. They came to ask for Becket’s saintly help in personal prob- one below. lems and to plead for healing and good health. This was all good and holy of the pilgrims, but who could hear themselves pray with My Shared Event all these visitors tramping around? Experience Significance So the monks built a tunnel It was for tourists, their digital Every year, Every year, These events under the stairs at the center of the cameras in hand, visiting one of the thousands my family allow church, a sort of express lane to the most famous cathedrals in England. of people goes camping participants in Germany in the woods to explore a spot where Becket was killed. Over Where have all the pilgrims go on together. common the years, thousands of faithful gone? They serve as a barometer for communal bond. shuffled through the cool, stone the values of an age. Their habits hikes. corridor, but gradually, what with tell us about the spiritual state of a King Henry VIII’s break with people. What temples do they wor- Roman Catholicism, the ship in? To whom do they pay their Reformation, and later, creeping tithes and offerings? Where do they secularization, the pilgrims’ numbers seek their soul food? The fashion- shrank to the point that the able answer is to say that faith in passageway became more useful as a Europe is nearly extinct. Some broom closet. In 2004, however, theologians call the Continent officials at Canterbury reopened the “post-Christian.” But the truth is OBJECTIVES tunnel. This time the passageway that neither faith nor pilgrimage is • Connect a text to personal experience. • Recognize and identify genres such as wasn’t for Benedictines and pilgrims. dead in Europe. magazine articles.

142 UNIT 1

00142-0144142-0144 U1P2TIME-845482.inddU1P2TIME-845482.indd 142142 11/8/07/8/07 10:02:4110:02:41 AMAM Informational Text Xurxo Lobato

THE HARD WAY On Spain’s Camino de Santiago, pilgrims battle blisters, fatigue, and the elements over hundreds of miles of ancient trail.

Spiritual Experiences plation of an English garden. Mass Part of the joy of pilgrimage is a TIME decided to hitch a ride with worship may take place in a football spirit of community that comes from modern-day pilgrims to find out what stadium. Many of today’s most identifying with something bigger moves people today—how travel secular pilgrimages have a ritualistic than oneself. The pilgrim who sets helps test physical limits and nourish quality that makes them part of the out solo shares a bond with others the spirit. Yes, there are still religious ancient tradition. It is what the Very who journey on the same path: the roamers out there: the constantly Rev. Robert Willis, of aches, the pains, and the triumphs. faithful Muslims, whose visits to Canterbury, calls the search for “The experience is very much about Mecca have given us a word for a “blessing and enrichment. In helping other pilgrims,” says Abbot center of shared interest that draws pilgrimage, body, mind, and spirit Christopher Dillon of ’s people from all over; the Christians come together in an individual Glenstal Abbey, who walked the who walk the great pilgrim’s way of quest,” he says. “Jesus was always rugged Camino last year and hosts El Camino de Santiago in Spain. walking, walking, walking—all the occasional pilgrims at his monastery But in a secular age, the spiritual way to Calvary.” Our quest need not in County Limerick. “There is great impulse is more likely to show itself be so momentous: “Any journey that companionship on the road.” That’s in a cycling or mountain-climbing adds a mini-jigsaw piece to the puzzle the whole point of the Volksmarches, adventure, or the quiet contem- of you can be a mini-pilgrimage.” the communal hikes in Germany

THE ROADS NOW TAKEN 143

0142-0144 U1P2TIME-845482.indd 143 1/29/07 9:18:05 AM 0142-0144 U1P2TIME-845482.indd 144 144 144 Informational TextInformational 4. 3. 2. Recall andInterpret 1. Respond RESPONDING AND THINKING CRITICALLYRESPONDING AND THINKING God’s promiseofsalvationorinthe embark withabeliefinanunseen label itfoolishness,whetheryou There willalsoalwaysbethosewho changed, andsohaspilgrimage. sacred forthetimes.”Theworldhas tends toholdupamirrorwhatis “The phenomenonofpilgrimage author of grim, butasPhilCousineau,the only areligiouspersonistruepil- epiphanies abouttheBard’s works. absolutely alonewithone’s own Shakespeare lovers,andyetbe surrounded bythousandsofother celebrate Shakespeare’s writings,be travel toStratford-upon-Avon to into aperson’s soul.Soonecan not justtoaphysicalplacebutalso alone, becauseapilgrimageistrip And yeteachpilgrimisutterly intotheSoul A Journey but willneverforget. honor ancestorstheyneverknew of Europe,wherefamiliesgoto pilgrimages madetothebattlefields bonds isattheheartof The preservationofgenerational that attractthousandseveryyear. UNIT 1 The traditionalmayarguethat of secular pilgrimages thatpeoplegoon? of secularpilgrimages what aresomeexamples According tothearticle, on thesemini-pilgrimages? (b)Why doyouthinkpeoplego “mini-pilgrimage”? (a)How doestheVery Rev. Willis definea Robert dwindle? (b)Why isthisrelevanttothearticle? (a)Why did thenumberofCanterburypilgrims after readingthearticle? changed How haveyourideasaboutpilgrimages The ArtofPilgrimage, THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIODAND THEMIDDLE AGES says, at Canterbury. en route toMecca(top);touristspose PILGRIMS’ PROGRESS 8. 7. Connect 6. 5. Analyze andEvaluate Muslims pray pilgrimages discussedinthisarticle? pilgrimages What doesherjourneyhaveincommon withthe oftheWifeThink ofBath. aboutthepilgrimage Ifso,howdidthatexperienceaffectyou? grimage? orsecularpil- Have youeverbeenonareligious youropinion. examples fromthetexttosupport Citespecific tosecularpilgrimages? from religious How doyouthinkthewriterfeelsaboutshift How aretheyalike? differ? and secularpilgrimages How doreligious

Kent News & Pictures Shamil Zhumatov/Reuters onto thepilgrim’s path. doubter intobelieforforceanyone not rational.You can’t arguea eval onesdoesforothers.Faithis some asthereenactmentofmedi- match—works asmuchmagicfor net ataworldchampionshipsoccer that curledmagneticallyintothe miracle—say, agame-winninggoal Montevarchi, Italy, do.Amodern shoppers atthePradaoutletin as theamazinglycommitted power ofapairdevilishstilettos, traveler. Hismapisintheheart. game. Thepilgrimisnoordinary a greatidea,orevenbeautiful belief inthepowerofareligion,or proof loyalty, fromunwavering springs fromfaith,mockery- pilgrimage. Thelovethatdrivesit all). Thisistrue,notleast,of Amor vincitomnia the Prioresswearsabroochinscribed In Chaucer’s from TIMEInternational, from Canterbury Tales, (Loveconquers —Updated 2005, July 5/12,2004

6/21/06 8:23:10 AM BEFORE YOU READ

from The Book of Margery Kempe

MEET MARGERY KEMPE

aughter of a mayor, wife of a tax collector, and mother of fourteen children, Margery DKempe might seem a conventional woman of the 1400s; however, she was anything but typi- cal. She was a mystic, a pilgrim, and the author of the first English-language autobiography. Born into a prosperous family in Norfolk, England, Kempe had both money and status. She married John Kempe at twenty and soon after, during a serious illness, had an intense religious experience that, she believed, restored her health. The Exorcism of the Demon. Master of Saint Severin. In the following years, Kempe dedicated her Museo Horne, Florence, Italy. energy to her children and two business ven- Despite Kempe’s devotion and her claims to mysti- tures—a brewery and a mill. When both businesses cism, or the direct experience of the reality of failed, she decided to change her life. At the age God, she made some church officials uneasy. She of forty, Kempe devoted her life entirely to Christ. was arrested and tried for the heresy of Lollardy She took a vow of chastity and received permis- but was acquitted. The Lollards were supporters of sion from an archbishop to wear white clothes and John Wycliffe, a priest and Oxford scholar who receive weekly communion. was highly critical of the church and some of its practices. The church, in turn, attempted to sup- press followers of Wycliffe. “This is a short account of someone Staunch in Her Faith Given to spells of “bois- who had high status and worldly terous crying,” mystical visions, and spontaneous reputation but was later drawn to our preaching against all “merriment,” Kempe had few friends, but her faith in God and in her calling Lord by severe poverty, sickness, remained unshaken. Nothing is known of the last humiliation . . . ” years of her life. Medical experts have commented on her excessive weeping and shouting. Feminists —Margery Kempe, from The Book of have pondered her situation as a medieval woman Margery Kempe in a male-dominated society. Theologians have studied the descriptions of her visions and mar- veled at her devotion. Though she related many Spiritual Pilgrim After a visit to Canterbury, details about her life in her autobiography, she Kempe began her life as a pilgrim. She traveled remains an enigma to the modern world. first to Jerusalem and then to Rome. Her spells of Margery Kempe was born about 1373 and died in excessive sobbing, however, annoyed both priests 1439 or 1440. and fellow travelers. After her return to England, she set out on a pilgrimage to Spain and then jour- neyed to Germany and Northern Europe. Later, AuthorAuthor SearchSearch ForFor more about she visited sacred sites in England. AuthorMargery Name, Kempe, go go to towww.literature.glencoe.com www.glencoe.com. .

MARGERY KEMPE 145 Scala/Art Resource, NY

00145-0150145-0150 U1P2APP-845482.inddU1P2APP-845482.indd 145145 11/29/07/29/07 9:18:509:18:50 AMAM LITERATURE PREVIEW READING PREVIEW

Connecting to the Autobiography Reading Strategy Analyzing Cause-and- If you were to write the story of your life, what events Effect Relationships would you include? In this selection, Margery Kempe When you analyze cause-and-effect relationships, you describes a turning point in her life. As you read the look for the causes, or reasons, why something hap- selection, think about the following questions: pened and relate them to the effects or results. Writers • Which autobiographies have you enjoyed reading? often signal cause-and-effect relationships, using words Why do you think people write autobiographies? such as therefore, because, subsequently, and conse- • quently. Identifying these relationships will help you bet- ter understand the connections between events. Building Background Although Margery Kempe wanted to record the events Reading Tip: Using a Cause-Effect Organizer Use of her life so that others might learn from them, she, a chart to record cause-and-effect relationships. like most women of her time, was illiterate. Therefore, Kempe dictated her autobiography to a scribe, possibly Cause Effect her eldest son. Unfortunately, he had poor handwriting and an even poorer grasp of English grammar, and he Something She sends for her died before the manuscript was completed. The auto- troubles Kempe’s priest. biography was then revised by a priest, who had to conscience. “sett a peyr of spectacles on hys nose” in order to accomplish the task. The Book of Margery Kempe, lost for centuries, was rediscovered in 1934 and published in its entirety for the first time in 1936. Vocabulary Setting Purposes for Reading divulge (di vulj) v. to make known; disclose; p. 148 Though many people knew the secret, no Big Idea The Power of Faith one divulged it. As you read, consider what this selection reveals about slander (slan dər) v. to utter false or malicious the importance of the church in medieval life. statements about; p. 148 By spreading rumors and telling lies, he slandered his former friend. Literary Element Autobiography instigation (in´stə a¯ shən) n. the act of incit- An autobiography is a person’s account of his or her ing or urging on; p. 148 At the instigation of the own life. Told from the first-person point of view, auto- leader, the crowd shouted and stamped their feet. biographies can offer revealing insights into a person’s restrain (ri stra¯n) v. to hold back; restrict; view of herself or himself. As you read, consider what p. 149 The owner used a leash to restrain his dog. the details in this autobiography reveal about Margery Kempe’s personality. composure (kəm po¯ zhər) n. a calm or tranquil state of mind; p. 149 After barely avoiding a head- • See Literary Terms Handbook, p. R2. on collision, we could not regain our composure.

Vocabulary Tip: Antonyms Antonyms are words that have opposite or nearly opposite meanings. Interactive Literary Elements The words bright and dim are antonyms. Handbook To review or learn more about the literary elements, go to www.glencoe.com.

OBJECTIVES In studying this selection, you will focus on the following: • analyzing an autobiography • understanding the historical period • examining cause-and-effect relationships

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00145-0150145-0150 U1P2APP-845482.inddU1P2APP-845482.indd 146146 11/8/07/8/07 10:17:4110:17:41 AMAM Saint Bernard exorcising an evil spirit, Panel from the Altar of Saint Bernard. 1500. Jörg Breu the Elder. Tempera on Wood.

Margery Kempe

147 Erich Lessing/Art Resource, NY

00147-0149147-0149 U1P2SEL-845482.inddU1P2SEL-845482.indd 147147 66/21/06/21/06 9:34:519:34:51 AMAM When I was twenty, or a little older, I was mar- too hasty with me; he began to tell me off in no ried to a well-respected burgess,1 and, things uncertain terms, before I had even covered all I being what they are, I quickly found myself preg- meant to say; and after that, try as he might, he nant. During the pregnancy and up to the time couldn’t get me to say a word. the child was born I suffered from severe attacks Eventually, what with my fear of damnation of illness; and then, what with the labor of on one hand and the priest’s sharp tongue on giving birth on top of my previous illness, I the other, I became insane, and for half a year, despaired of my life and thought that I would eight weeks and a few days I was prodigiously5 not survive. plagued and tormented by spirits. At that point I sent for my priest, because I During that time I saw (or I believed I saw) had something on my conscience which I had devils opening their mouths as if to swallow never before divulged in my life. For I was con- me, and revealing waves of fire that were burn- stantly hindered by my enemy, the devil, who ing inside their bodies. Sometimes they grabbed was always telling me that so long as I was in at me, sometimes they threatened me; they good health I had no need to make confession; tugged and pulled me, night and day for a I should just do penance2 by myself, in private, whole eight months. They also bayed6 at me and God, in his all-sufficient mercy, would for- fearsomely, and told me to forsake the church give me for everything. and its faith and deny my God, his mother, and And therefore I often did harsh penances, all the saints in heaven. restricting myself to bread and water; I also They told me to deny my good works and all did other godly deeds, praying devoutly but my good qualities, and turn my back on my father, never revealing my guilty secret in the course my mother, and all my friends. And that’s what I of confession. did: I slandered my husband, my friends, and my But when I was ever sick or out of spirits, the own self. I said many wicked and cruel things; I devil whispered to me that I would be damned was empty of any virtue or goodness; I was bent because I had not been absolved of 3 that special on every wickedness; I said and did whatever sin. Therefore, not expecting to survive the birth the spirits tempted me to say and do. At their of my child, I sent for my priest, as I’ve already instigation I would have destroyed myself many told you, fully intending to be absolved for every- times over and been damned to hell; and as if to thing I had done in my life. show determination I bit my own hand so sav- But when I was on the point of revealing my agely that the mark has been visible ever since. long-concealed secret, my confessor4 was a little

5. Prodigiously means “strangely.” 1. A burgess is a citizen of an English borough, or town. 6. Bayed means “shouted” or “roared.” 2. Penance is a religious act, such as praying, done to show Literary Element sorrow or repentance for sin. Autobiography Read ahead to the end 3. Absolved of means “pardoned for.” of the next paragraph. Why does Kempe include this detail 4. The confessor was the priest to whom Kempe confessed. about the devils here?

Reading Strategy Analyzing Cause-and-Effect Vocabulary Relationships Why does Kempe put off confessing her sin? slander (slan dər) v. to utter false or malicious state- ments about Vocabulary instigation (in´ stə a¯ shən) n. the act of inciting or divulge (di vulj) v. to make known; disclose urging on

148 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES

00147-0149147-0149 U1P2SEL-845482.inddU1P2SEL-845482.indd 148148 11/29/07/29/07 9:20:109:20:10 AMAM silk, he sat by the bed, looking at me with so much holiness in his face that I felt myself inwardly fortified. And he spoke to me in the following way: “Daughter, why have you abandoned me, when I never thought to abandon you?” And instantly, as he spoke these words, I swear that I saw the air open up as brightly as any shaft of lightning. And he rose up into the air, not very fast or quickly but with grace and ease, so that I could clearly see him in the air until it closed again. And at once my composure and mental facul- ties came back to me, just as they had been before, and I begged my husband, as soon as he came, for the keys of the cellar so that I could get myself food and drink as I had done in the past. My maids and attendants advised him not to hand over any keys; they said I would only give away any such stores8 as we had, for they thought that I was beside myself. Nevertheless, my husband, who was always The birth of Louis, son of Isabella, future Louis VIII the Good, in kind and sympathetic to me, ordered them to 1187. From “Histoire des nobles princes de Hainaut”, late 15th give me the keys; and I got myself food and century. Jacques de Guise Bibliotheque Municipale, Boulogne- sur-Mer, France. drink, insofar as my physical health would allow me to do so. And I recognized my friends, the members of my household, and all the oth- What’s more, I used my nails (for I had no ers who came to see the act of mercy which our other instrument) to scratch myself viciously, rip- Lord Jesus Christ had performed on me. Blessed ping the skin on my chest near my heart. And if may he be, who is always close to us in our I’d had my own way I would have done even troubles. When people think he is far away, he more to myself, but I was bound and restrained is right beside them, full of grace. by force day and night. I suffered from these and Afterwards, I returned to all my other house- other temptations for such a long while that peo- hold duties, doing everything in a quite level- ple thought I’d never recover or even survive, headed and sober way but not really knowing the but then something happened: as I lay by myself, call of our Lord.9  without my attendants, our merciful Lord Jesus Christ—ever to be trusted! his name be praised!—never forsaking his servant in a time of need, appeared to me—his creature who had for- saken him—in human form, the most pleasing, most beautiful, loveliest sight that human eyes 8. Here, stores refers to food stored for future use. 9. Not . . . our Lord indicates that Kempe had not yet devoted 7 could ever behold. Dressed in a mantle of purple herself fully to God.

Big Idea The Power of Faith To what does Kempe credit the restoration of her mental faculties? 7. A mantle is a long sleeveless garment worn over other clothes. Vocabulary Vocabulary composure (kəm po¯ zher) n. a calm or tranquil state restrain (ri stra¯n) v. to hold back; restrict of mind

MARGERY KEMPE 149 Bibliotheque Municipale, Boulogne-sur-Mer, France/Giraudon/Art Resource, NY

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RESPONDING AND THINKING CRITICALLY Respond 6. In your opinion, would the selection be more inter- esting if Kempe had revealed her secret to readers? 1. What questions would you like to ask Margery Explain why or why not. Kempe? 7. Poet William Wordsworth once wrote, “From the Recall and Interpret body of one guilty deed, / A thousand ghostly 2. (a)Why does Kempe refuse to tell her secret to the fears, and haunting thoughts, proceed!” Would priest? (b)What does this refusal reveal about her Kempe agree with this statement? Support your character? answer with evidence from the selection. 3. (a)How does Kempe’s illness affect her Connect personality? (b)Why was she “restrained by force”? 8. Big Idea The Power of Faith Which of the (a)Describe the vision that changes the course of 4. church’s teachings about confession and Jesus Kempe’s illness. (b)Why was that vision a turning profoundly affect Kempe’s life? Explain. point in her life? Explain. Analyze and Evaluate 5. Which images in the selection did you find the most powerful? Why?

LITERARY ANALYSIS READING AND VOCABULARY

Literary Element Autobiography Reading Strategy Analyzing Cause-and- Autobiographies not only provide details about the Effect Relationships author’s personality but usually impart information To understand this selection, you must consider the about the society in which the author lived. reasons why Margery Kempe and the people in her 1. What did you learn about medieval life in an life act as they do. Review the cause-and-effect chart English town from reading this selection? you filled in as you read the selection. 2. From the details Kempe chose to include in this 1. What caused Kempe to inflict pain on herself? excerpt, what values do you think were most 2. After her recovery, why do her attendants advise important to her? her husband not to give her the keys to the cellar? 3. Why does her husband disregard this advice? Writing About Literature Writers of autobiographies Analyze Genre Elements Vocabulary Practice treat literary elements in distinctive ways. In a brief essay, analyze how Kempe handles the following ele- Practice with Antonyms Choose the antonym ments in the selection: point of view, characterization, for each vocabulary word below. motivation, description, sequence of events, historical 1. divulge a. conceal b. reveal and social context, and theme. Support your analysis with examples from the text. 2. slander a. malign b. flatter 3. instigation a. urging b. impediment 4. restrain a. release b. restrict Web Activities For eFlashcards, 5. composure a. distress b. poise Selection Quick Checks, and other Web activities, go to www.glencoe.com.

150 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES

00145-0150145-0150 U1P2APP-845482.inddU1P2APP-845482.indd 150150 66/21/06/21/06 8:25:158:25:15 AMAM Grammar Workshop Language Usage

Correcting Verb Tense º Verb Tenses “And at once my composure and mental faculties came back to me, just as they Verb Tenses are the differ- had been before . . . ” ent forms verbs take to indicate when an action —Margery Kempe, from The Book of Margery Kempe occurred.

Connecting to Literature The tenses of a verb are different forms that help º Test-Taking Tip show time. Margery Kempe uses the past tense form came to describe events at a To identify the correct verb particular past time. Then she uses the past perfect form had been to describe an tense in a test-taking situ- earlier situation. In your writing and speaking, using the correct verb tense ation, think about how dif- informs your audience of when an event occurred and helps the audience keep ferent verb forms would track of a sequence of events. sound in the sentence. Often, an irregular verb Here are some ways to recognize and solve problems with verb tense. will sound incorrect if you add an -ed. Problem 1 A verb ending is incorrect or missing. Margery Kempe confess to her priest before giving birth. º Language Handbook Mental illness torment Kempe for more than eight months. For more about verb tenses, see Language Solution Add -ed to a regular verb to form its past tense or past participle. Handbook, p. R51. Margery Kempe confessed to her priest before giving birth. Mental illness tormented Kempe for more than eight months.

Problem 2 The past tense and the past participle forms are confused. She had wrote her autobiography in order to describe her faith.

Solution Irregular verbs may have different past tense and past participle forms. For example, the past tense of write is wrote; the past partici- ple of write is written. eWorkbooks To link to She had written her autobiography in order to describe her faith. the Grammar and Language eWorkbook, go to www.glencoe.com. Exercise A. Revise for Clarity Rewrite the following sentences, correcting any errors in verb form. OBJECTIVES 1. Margery Kempe travel on several religious pilgrimages. • Understand and use correct verb tenses. 2. Like Kempe, the Venerable Bede record English history. • Recognize rules of gram- mar and language. 3. Chaucer, Kempe, and Bede had influence society. 4. Kempe stay in bed most of the time when she was ill.

B. Partner Activity Write a short paragraph that contains four incorrect verb tenses. Exchange papers with a partner. Revise the paragraph to cor- rect any errors.

151

00151151 U1P2GW-845482.inddU1P2GW-845482.indd 151151 11/8/07/8/07 10:20:2910:20:29 AMAM LITERARY HISTORY

Miracle and Morality Plays

HE PRIME ENTERTAINERS IN ANGLO-SAXON Britain were storytellers and singing poets. TNot until later medieval times did drama as public entertainment take hold. Like most forms of culture in those times, the theater had its beginnings in religion.

Rise of Medieval Drama Though the church had condemned plays as immoral in 692, it revived theater later in the Middle Ages for religious purposes. Medieval theater developed in the early 900s from the annual cycle of the church liturgy (religious rites) that presented events in the life of Christ. It began as a dialogue about Christ’s Resurrection performed by priests at services. Later, clerical plays presented the events of Christmas and the Epiphany—the revelation of God to human- kind in the form of Jesus—(the latter including a mechanical star of Bethlehem).

Miracle and Mystery Plays By the 1100s, the church had developed religious drama in order to teach Bible stories and the lives of saints to a mostly illiterate populace. Originally, mem- bers of the clergy performed these plays in church The Beginnings of the Christmas Play, cover of The Illustrated sanctuaries, acting out the parts of biblical characters London News, 1935. Muriel Broderick. or saints. These short, one-act dramas were called mir- acle plays, after the miracles performed by the saints. Though thou stand all the day and rave. Later, after the performances were taken over by the Noah: Lord, that women be crabbed aye! trade guilds known as “mysteries” (from mystery, mean- And never are meek, that I dare say. ing “trade” or “craft,” related to the modern English word ministry), they became known as mystery plays. As time went on, the plays grew more popular and the costumes and settings more elaborate—so much Although based on religious subjects, medieval drama so that the churches could no longer hold such large included elements of secular humor. In Noah’s Flood, audiences. The dramas moved outdoors and their for example, Noah has an easy time building the ark production was taken over by the trade guilds. Guild but a difficult time persuading his wife to get aboard. members made scenery, props, and costumes and loaded them onto wagons (known as “pageants”) so Noah: Wife in this castle we shall be kept: that the plays could be performed at fairs, in market- My children and thou I would in leaped! places, at crossroads and, if the producers were Wife: In faith, Noe, I had as lief thou had slept, lucky, in the great halls of castles, where people paid for all thy frankishfare [nonsense] good money for entertainment. For I will not do after thy rede [advice]. Noah: Good wife, do as I thee bid. Guild records indicate that performances featured Wife: By Christ not, or I see more need, music, dancing, and comedy. Some performances

152 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES Muriel Broderick/The Illustrated London News Picture Library, London, UK/Bridgeman Art Library

00152-0153152-0153 U1P2LH-845482.inddU1P2LH-845482.indd 152152 11/29/07/29/07 9:20:549:20:54 AMAM Stage set of Mystery play, c.1547. Hubert Cailleau. Wash gouache, ink. Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris.

even included special effects. For example, to depict The Morality Play the drowning of the Pharaoh’s army in the Red Sea, In the early 1400s, a corps of professional actors arose stagehands covered the actors with a large blue cloth, who performed morality plays—plays that dramatized shaking it to imitate the movement of waves. No points of religious doctrine. Morality plays, as their feast days were complete without miracle plays, and name implies, centered on the moral struggles of every- everyone turned out for these performances. Audi- day people. The characters in these plays had names ences were anything but silent—cheers greeted heroes such as Patience, Greed, and Good Works, and their and saints, while villains such as Lucifer and Herod dialogue was designed to teach people important les- were enthusiastically booed and hissed. sons about salvation and the struggle between virtue Gradually, these short plays began to be presented in and vice. As the popularity of morality plays grew, day-long cycles, beginning with the story of the cre- their staging became more sophisticated, while their ation of the world and ending with the story of Christ. subject matter moved from the church to the secular By the late 1300s, cycles that lasted for several days world. The morality plays established a theater tradi- were being performed on wagon stages through out tion in England that eventually led to the plays such English towns as York and Wakefield. As time of and George Bernard Shaw. passed, plays were not limited to biblical stories in cycles. A non-cycle play, Robin Hood and the Sheriff of Literary History For more about Nottingham, was often presented at May Day festivals. miracle and morality plays, go to www.glencoe.com.

RESPONDING AND THINKING CRITICALLY

1. What do you think would have been the most 3. Why do you think the guilds gradually took over the interesting features of medieval theater? production of medieval theater? 2. In what way was the church involved in both the 4. In what way are morality plays more closely linked to decline and revival of theater in medieval Europe? modern drama than miracle plays?

OBJECTIVES • Analyze the development of British drama. • Analyze the characteristics of miracle and morality plays.

LITERARY HISTORY 153 Giraudon/ Art Resource, NY

00152-0153152-0153 U1P2LH-845482.inddU1P2LH-845482.indd 153153 11/8/07/8/07 10:24:5410:24:54 AMAM BEFORE YOU READ from Everyman

LITERATURE PREVIEW READING PREVIEW

Connecting to the Play Reading Strategy Recognizing Author’s Do all human beings have certain characteristics in Purpose common? If you were to create a character for a play When you recognize an author’s purpose, you iden- who was meant to represent all people, think about tify the author’s intent in writing a piece of literature. the traits your character would have. As you read To recognize an author’s purpose, look for clues to Everyman, think about the following questions: help you infer if the author wrote to persuade, inform, • Which characteristics are common to everyone, explain, or entertain. regardless of class, religion, race, age, or era? • Why might a story that explores the characteristics Reading Tip: Creating a Checklist As you read, use of an “everyman” remain popular for centuries? a checklist to record evidence of the four purposes listed above. Building Background Everyman is probably based on the Flemish play Elckerlijc (Everyman), which was first printed in 1495. Vocabulary (Flemish is the language of Flanders, a historical region reckoning (rek ən in) n. a settlement of of northwestern Europe that today is part of France, accounts; p. 156 Some people feel they will be Belgium, and the Netherlands.) The two anonymous called to a spiritual reckoning when they die. plays are connected by their similar reflection of north- perceive (pər se¯v) v. to become aware of; com- ern European religious thought at the end of the fif- prehend; p. 156 Elsa had to return to her crum- teenth century. Both are based on the orthodox bled town to perceive the full damage of the teachings of the Christian Church but hint at the need earthquake. for reform—an issue that was present in late fifteenth- century English sermons and lyrics. respite (respit) n. a delay or extension; p. 158 Saul felt he needed a respite from studying Setting Purposes for Reading to remain alert during exam time. Big Idea The Power of Faith adversity (ad vursə te¯) n. a state of hardship; As you read, keep in mind the function of morality plays misfortune; p. 163 The boy had faced much in medieval England and the influence of the church. adversity while growing up, but he was determined not to give up hope. Literary Element Allegory Vocabulary Tip: Word Parts Greek, Latin, and An allegory is a work of fiction or drama in which the Anglo-Saxon roots may appear in combination with elements—characters, settings, and plot—symbolize prefixes, suffixes, or both. Recognizing them can ideas, qualities, or figures beyond themselves. The help you to unlock the meaning of unfamiliar words. overall purpose of an allegory is to teach a moral les- son. As you read the play, explore what the characters symbolize and how their actions and words help to teach a moral lesson. • See Literary Terms Handbook, p. R1.

Interactive Literary Elements Handbook To review or learn more about the literary elements, go to www.glencoe.com.

OBJECTIVES In studying this selection, you will focus on the following: • analyzing allegory • analyzing literary periods • recognizing author’s purpose

154 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES

00154-0170154-0170 U1P2APP-845482.inddU1P2APP-845482.indd 154154 11/8/07/8/07 10:29:1010:29:10 AMAM The Triumph of Death, 15th century. Flemish. Musée du Berry, Bourges, France.

155 Giraudon/Art Resource, NY

0155-0167 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 155 1/29/07 9:22:58 AM CHARACTERS

GOD CONFESSION MESSENGER BEAUTY DEATH STRENGTH EVERYMAN DISCRETION FELLOWSHIP FIVE WITS GOODS ANGEL GOOD DEEDS DOCTOR KNOWLEDGE

Here beginneth a treatise how the High Father of Heaven sendeth Death to summon every creature to come and give account of their lives in this world, and is in manner of a moral play.

MESSENGER. I pray you all give your audience And hear this matter with reverence, By figure° a moral play: 3 By figure: in form The Summoning of Everyman called it is, 5 That of our lives and ending shows How transitory we be all day.° 6 all day: always This matter is wondrous precious, But the intent of it is more gracious, And sweet to bear away. 10 The story saith: Man, in the beginning, Look well, and take good heed to the ending, Be you never so gay! Ye think sin in the beginning full sweet, Which in the end causeth the soul to weep, 15 When the body lieth in clay. Here shall you see how Fellowship and Jollity, Both Strength, Pleasure, and Beauty, Will fade from thee as flower in May; For ye shall hear how our Heaven King 20 Calleth Everyman to a general reckoning: Give audience, and hear what he doth say. [Exit MESSENGER.] [Enter GOD.]

GOD. I perceive, here in my majesty, How that all creatures be to me unkind,

Reading Strategy Recognizing Author’s Purpose Why might the author have the Messenger mention the full title of the play and what the play “shows”?

Vocabulary reckoning (rek ən in) n. a settlement of accounts perceive (pər se¯v) v. to become aware of; comprehend

156 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES

0155-0167 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 156 6/21/06 9:36:54 AM Living without dread in worldly prosperity. 25 Of ghostly° sight the people be so blind, Drowned in sin, they know me not for their God; In worldly riches is all their mind, They fear not my righteousness, the sharp rod. . . . Every man liveth so after his own pleasure, 30 And yet of their life they be nothing sure: I see the more that I them forbear, The worse they be from year to year. All that liveth appaireth° fast; Therefore, I will, in all the haste, 35 Have a reckoning of every man’s person; . . . On every man living without fear. Where art thou, Death, thou mighty messenger? [Enter DEATH.] DEATH. Almighty God, I am here at your will, Your commandment to fulfill. 40 GOD. Go thou to Everyman, And show him, in my name, A pilgrimage he must on him take, Which he in no wise may escape; And that he bring with him a sure reckoning 45 Without delay or any tarrying. [GOD withdraws.]

DEATH. Lord, I will in the world go run overall,° Last Judgment. 1452. Petrus And cruelly outsearch both great and small; Christus. Right wing of a triptych, Every man will I beset° that liveth beastly, oil on oak panel, 134 x 56 cm. Out of God’s laws, and dreadeth not folly. . . . Gemaeldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Germany. 50 Lo, yonder I see Everyman walking. Full little he thinketh on my coming; His mind is on fleshly lusts and his treasure, 25 ghostly: spiritual 33 appaireth: degenerate And great pain it shall cause him to endure 46 overall: everywhere Before the Lord, Heaven King. 48 beset: attack [Enter EVERYMAN.] 55 Everyman, stand still! Whither art thou going Thus gaily? Hast thou thy Maker forget?° 56 forget: forgotten EVERYMAN. Why askest thou? Wouldest thou wit?° 58 wit: know DEATH. Yea sir; I will show you: 60 In great haste I am sent to thee From God out of his majesty.

Big Idea The Power of Faith Why might a speech like God’s have been familiar to an audience at an early performance of Everyman?

Literary Element Allegory How does the author reveal that Everyman is a symbol for “every man”?

EVERYMAN 157 Bildarchiv Preussischer Kulturbesitz/Art Resource, NY

0155-0167 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 157 6/21/06 9:37:03 AM EVERYMAN. What, sent to me? DEATH. Yea, certainly. Though thou have forgot him here, 65 He thinketh on thee in the heavenly sphere, As, ere we depart, thou shalt know. EVERYMAN. What desireth God of me? DEATH. That shall I show thee: A reckoning he will needs have 70 Without any longer respite. EVERYMAN. To give a reckoning longer leisure I crave; This blind° matter troubleth my wit.° DEATH. On thee thou must take a long journey; Therefore, thy book of count° with thee thou bring, 75 For turn again thou cannot by no way. And look thou be sure of thy reckoning, For before God thou shalt answer, and show Thy many bad deeds and, good but a few;

How thou hast spent thy life, and in what wise, “Totenkasel”. Chasuble for funeral 80 Before the chief Lord of Paradise. . . . mass, with a skeleton triumphant above broken crowns, sceptres EVERYMAN. Full unready I am such reckoning to give. and papal tiara, c. 1630. Velvet, I know thee not. What messenger art thou? embroidery, applique. 118 x 78 cm. DEATH. I am Death, that no man dreadeth,° Abbey, Kremsmuenster, Austria. For every man I rest,° and no man spareth; 85 For it is God’s commandment That all to me should be obedient. 72 blind: unclear. wit: mind EVERYMAN. O Death, thou comest when I had thee least in 74 count: accounts mind! 83 no man dreadeth: dreads no man In thy power it lieth me to save; 84 rest: arrest Yet of my good° will I give thee, if thou will be kind— 89 good: worldly goods 90 Yea, a thousand pound shalt thou have— And defer this matter till another day. DEATH. Everyman, it may not be, by no way. I set not by° gold, silver, nor riches, 93 I set not by: I care not for Nor by pope, emperor, king, duke, nor princes; 95 For, and° I would receive gifts great, 95 and: if All the world I might get; But my custom is clean contrary.

Big Idea The Power of Faith What does Death’s statement tell you about the beliefs of many Christians in the Middle Ages?

Reading Strategy Recognizing Author’s Purpose What is Everyman doing here, and why would the author want to include such a passage?

Vocabulary respite (res pit) n. a delay or extension

158 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford. The Ella Gallup Sumner and Mary Catlin Sumner Collection Fund

0155-0167 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 158 1/29/07 9:23:36 AM I give thee no respite. Come hence, and not tarry. EVERYMAN. Alas, shall I have no longer respite? 100 I may say Death giveth no warning! To think on thee, it maketh my heart sick, For all unready is my book of reckoning. But twelve year and I might have abiding, My counting-book I would make so clear 105 That my reckoning I should not need to fear.° 105 But twelve year . . . need to fear: Wherefore, Death, I pray thee, for God’s mercy, If I had twelve more years, I could improve my record. Spare me till I be provided of remedy. DEATH. Thee availeth not to cry, weep, and pray; But haste thee lightly° that thou were gone that journey, 109 lightly: quickly 110 And prove° thy friends if thou can; 110 prove: seek help from For, wit thou well, the tide abideth no man, And in the world each living creature For Adam’s sin must die of nature. EVERYMAN. Death, if I should this pilgrimage take, 115 And my reckoning surely make, Show me, for saint° charity, 116 saint: holy Should I not come again shortly? DEATH. No, Everyman; and thou be once there, Thou mayst never more come here, 120 Trust me verily.° 120 verily: truly EVERYMAN. O gracious God in the high seat celestial, Have mercy on me in this most need! Shall I have no company from this vale terrestrial° 123 terrestrial: earthly Of mine acquaintance, that way me to lead? 125 DEATH. Yea, if any be so hardy That would go with thee and bear thee company. Hie° thee that thou were gone to God’s magnificence, 127 Hie: hurry Thy reckoning to give before his presence. What, weenest° thou thy life is given thee, 129 weenest: think 130 And thy worldly goods also? EVERYMAN. I had wend so, verily. DEATH. Nay, nay, it was but lent thee; For as soon as thou art go, Another a while shall have it, and then go therefro, 135 Even as thou hast done. Everyman, thou art mad! Thou hast thy wits five,° 136 thy wits five: The five wits were And here on earth will not amend thy life; sense, imagination, fantasy, estimation, and memory. For suddenly I do come. EVERYMAN. O wretched caitiff,° whither shall I flee, 139 caitiff: coward 140 That I might scape° this endless sorrow? 140 scape: escape Now, gentle Death, spare me till tomorrow That I may amend me With good advisement.° 143 advisement: preparation DEATH. Nay, thereto I will not consent, 145 Nor no man will I respite;

EVERYMAN 159

0155-0167 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 159 1/29/07 9:23:43 AM But to the heart suddenly I shall smite Without any advisement. And now out of thy sight I will me hie; See thou make thee ready shortly, 150 For thou mayst say this is the day That no man living may scape away.

[Exit DEATH.]

EVERYMAN. Alas, I may well weep with sighs deep! Now have I no manner of company To help me in my journey and me to keep;° 154 keep: guard 155 And also my writing° is full unready. . . . 155 writing: the record of Everyman’s To whom were I best my complaint to make? accounts What and I to Fellowship thereof spake, And showed him of this sudden chance? For in him is all mine affiance;° 159 affiance: trust 160 We have in the world so many a day Be good friends in sport and play. I see him yonder, certainly. I trust that he will bear me company; Therefore to him will I speak to ease my sorrow. 165 Well met, good Fellowship, and good morrow! FELLOWSHIP. Everyman, good morrow, by this day! Sir, why lookest thou so piteously? If anything be amiss, I pray thee me say, That I may help to remedy. 170 EVERYMAN. Yea, good Fellowship, yea; I am in great jeopardy. FELLOWSHIP. My true friend, show to me your mind; I will not forsake thee to my life’s end, In the way of good company. 175 EVERYMAN. That was well spoken, and lovingly.

FELLOWSHIP. Sir, I must needs know your heaviness;° 176 heaviness: sorrow I have pity to see you in any distress. If any have you wronged, ye shall revenged be: Though I on the ground be slain for thee— 180 Though that I know before that I should die. EVERYMAN. Verily, Fellowship, gramercy.° 181 gramercy: many thanks FELLOWSHIP. Tush! by thy thanks I set not a straw. Show me your grief and say no more. . . . EVERYMAN. Ye speak like a good friend; I believe you well. 185 I shall deserve° it, and I may. 185 deserve: repay

Reading Strategy Recognizing Author’s Purpose What point is the author emphasizing about Death?

Literary Element Allegory What does the character Fellowship represent?

160 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES

0155-0167 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 160 1/29/07 9:23:49 AM Young Girl and the Angel of Death. c. 1900. Adrian Stokes. Musée d’Orsay, Paris, France.

FELLOWSHIP. I speak of no deserving, by this day! For he that will say, and nothing do, Is not worthy with good company to go; Therefore show me the grief of your mind, 190 As to your friend most loving and kind. EVERYMAN. I shall show you how it is: Commanded I am to go a journey, A long way, hard and dangerous, And give a strait count,° without delay, 194 strait count: strict account 195 Before the high Judge, Adonai.° 195 Adonai: God Wherefore, I pray you, bear me company, As ye have promised, in this journey. FELLOWSHIP. That is matter, indeed. Promise is duty; But, and I should take such a voyage on me, 200 I know it well, it should be to my pain; Also it maketh me afeard, certain. But let us take counsel here as well as we can, For your words would fear° a strong man. 203 fear: frighten EVERYMAN. Why, ye said if I had need 205 Ye would me never forsake, quick° ne dead, 205 quick: living Though it were to hell, truly. FELLOWSHIP. So I said, certainly, But such pleasures° be set aside, the sooth° to say; 208 pleasures: pleasantries. sooth: truth And also, if we took such a journey, 210 When should we come again? EVERYMAN. Nay, never again, till the day of doom.° 211 day of doom: judgment day FELLOWSHIP. In faith, then will not I come there! . . .

Literary Element Allegory What is Fellowship’s response to Everyman’s request? What does Fellowship’s response suggest about the “journey”?

EVERYMAN 161 Giraudon/Art Resource, NY

0155-0167 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 161 1/29/07 9:23:54 AM Allegory of Death (In Ictu Oculi). Juan de Valdes Leal. Hopital de la Caridad, , Spain.

EVERYMAN. Whither away, Fellowship? Will thou forsake me? FELLOWSHIP. Yea, by my fay!° To God I betake° thee. 214 fay: faith. betake: commend 215 EVERYMAN. Farewell, good Fellowship; for thee my heart is sore. Adieu forever! I shall see thee no more. FELLOWSHIP. In faith, Everyman, farewell now at the ending; For you I will remember that parting is mourning. [Exit FELLOWSHIP.] . . . Everyman next appeals to Kindred and Cousin, but they, too, refuse to accompany him on his journey.

EVERYMAN. My kinsmen promised me faithfully 220 For to abide with me steadfastly, And now fast away do they flee: Even so Fellowship promised me. What friend were best me of to provide?° 223 me of to provide: to provide myself with I lose my time here longer to abide,° 224 abide: stay

Literary Element Allegory On an allegorical level, what does Fellowship reveal about the limits of his character?

162 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES Scala/Art Resource, NY

0155-0167 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 162 1/29/07 9:24:01 AM 225 Yet in my mind a thing there is: All my life I have loved riches; If that my Good° now help me might, 227 Good: worldly goods He would make my heart full light. I will speak to him in this distress— 230 Where art thou, my Goods and riches? [GOODS speaks from a corner.]

GOODS. Who calleth me? Everyman? What! hast thou haste? I lie here in corners, trussed° and piled so high, 232 trussed: tied up And in chests I am locked so fast, Also sacked in bags. Thou mayst see with thine eye 235 I cannot stir; in packs low I lie. What would ye have? Lightly me say.° 236 Lightly me say: Tell me quickly EVERYMAN. Come hither, Good, in all the haste thou may, For of counsel I must desire thee. GOODS. Sir, and ye in the world have sorrow or adversity, 240 That can I help you to remedy shortly.

EVERYMAN. It is another disease° that grieveth me; 241 disease: trouble In this world it is not, I tell thee so. I am sent for another way to go, To give a strait count general 245 Before the highest Jupiter of all; And all my life I have had joy and pleasure in thee, Therefore, I pray thee, go with me; For, peradventure,° thou mayst before God Almighty 248 peradventure: perhaps My reckoning help to clean and purify; 250 For it is said ever among That money maketh all right that is wrong. GOODS. Nay, Everyman, I sing another song. I follow no man in such voyages; For, and I went with thee, 255 Thou shouldst fear much the worse for me; For because on me thou did set thy mind, Thy reckoning I have made blotted and blind, That thine account thou cannot make truly; And that hast thou for the love of me. 260 EVERYMAN. That would grieve me full sore, When I should come to that fearful answer. Up, let us go thither together.

Reading Strategy Recognizing Author’s Purpose What might be the author’s purpose in describing Goods this way?

Vocabulary adversity (ad vur sə te¯) n. a state of hardship; misfortune

EVERYMAN 163

0155-0167 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 163 1/29/07 9:24:11 AM GOODS. Nay, not so! I am too brittle, I may not endure; I will follow no man one foot, be ye sure. 265 EVERYMAN. Alas, I have thee loved, and had great pleasure All my life-days on goods and treasure. GOODS. That is to thy damnation, without leasing,° 267 leasing: lying For my love is contrary to the love everlasting; But if thou had me loved moderately during,° 269 during: during life 270 As to the poor to give part of me, Then shouldst thou not in this dolor° be, 271 dolor: sorrow Nor in this great sorrow and care. EVERYMAN. Lo, now was I deceived ere I was ware,° 273 ware: aware And all I may wite° my spending of time; 274 wite: blame on 275 GOODS. What, weenest thou that I am thine? EVERYMAN. I had wend so. GOODS. Nay, Everyman, I say no. As for a while I was lent thee; A season thou hast had me in prosperity. 280 My condition is man’s soul to kill; If I save one, a thousand I do spill. Weenest thou that I will follow thee? Nay, not from this world, verily. . . . EVERYMAN. Ah, Good, thou hast had long my heartly love; 285 I gave thee that which should be the Lord’s above. But wilt thou not go with me indeed? I pray thee truth to say. GOODS. No, so God me speed! Therefore farewell, and have good day. [Exit GOODS.] . . .

Everyman calls next on his Good Deeds.

290 EVERYMAN. I think that I shall never speed° 290 speed: prosper Till that I go to my Good Deed. But, alas, she is so weak That she can neither go nor speak; Yet will I venture on her now. 295 My Good Deeds, where be you?

[GOOD DEEDS speaks from the ground.]

Big Idea The Power of Faith How is the value of charity reflected by Goods?

Literary Element Allegory What does Goods’s statement reveal about the limits of his character?

164 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES

0155-0167 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 164 1/29/07 9:24:16 AM GOOD DEEDS. Here I lie, cold in the ground; Thy sins hath me sore bound, That I cannot stir. EVERYMAN. O Good Deeds, I stand in fear! 300 I must you pray of counsel, For help now should come right well.° 301 come right well: be welcome GOOD DEEDS. Everyman, I have understanding That ye be summoned account to make Before Messiah, of Jerusalem King; 305 And you do by me,° that journey with you will I take. 305 And you do by me: If you do as I suggest EVERYMAN. Therefore, I come to you, my moan to make; I pray you that ye will go with me.

GOOD DEEDS. I would full fain,° but I cannot stand, verily. 308 fain: gladly EVERYMAN. Why, is there anything on you fall?° 309 fall: befallen 310 GOOD DEEDS. Yea, sir, I may thank you of all; If ye had perfectly cheered° me, 311 cheered: nourished Your book of count full ready had be. Look, the books of your works and deeds eke!° 313 eke: also Behold how they lie under the feet, 315 To your soul’s heaviness. EVERYMAN. Our Lord Jesus, help me! For one letter here I cannot see.

GOOD DEEDS. There is a blind reckoning° in time of distress. . . . 318 There is a blind reckoning: The record is difficult to read. EVERYMAN. Good Deeds, your counsel I pray you give me. 320 GOOD DEEDS. That shall I do verily. Though that on my feet I may not go, I have a sister that shall with you also, Called Knowledge, which shall with you abide To help you make that dreadful reckoning. . . .

Knowledge escorts Everyman to Confession. Everyman then does penance for his sins and receives contrition. Good Deeds is thus restored to health. Good Deeds and Knowledge advise Everyman to call on Discretion, Strength, Beauty, and Five Wits to help him on his journey. When Everyman and the others reach his grave, all but Good Deeds and Knowledge refuse to accompany him further and leave.

325 EVERYMAN. O Jesu, help! All hath forsaken me.

Reading Strategy Recognizing Author’s Purpose How does the author describe Good Deeds, and what is the situation meant to symbolize?

Big Idea The Power of Faith How does Knowledge help Everyman? What does this suggest about the relationship between knowledge and the Christian church at the time?

EVERYMAN 165

0155-0167 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 165 1/29/07 9:24:24 AM GOOD DEEDS. Nay, Everyman; I will bide with thee. I will not forsake thee indeed; Thou shalt find me a good friend at need. EVERYMAN. Gramercy, Good Deeds! Now may I true friends see. 330 They have forsaken me, every one; I loved them better than my Good Deeds alone. Knowledge, will ye forsake me also? KNOWLEDGE. Yea, Everyman, when ye to death shall go; But not yet, for no manner of danger. 335 EVERYMAN. Gramercy, Knowledge, with all my heart. KNOWLEDGE. Nay, yet I will not from hence depart Till I see where ye shall become.° 337 Till I see where ye shall become: till I see what will become EVERYMAN. Methink, alas, that I must be gone of you To make my reckoning and my debts pay, 340 For I see my time is nigh spent away. Take example, all ye that this do hear or see, How they that I loved best do forsake me, Except my Good Deeds that bideth truly. GOOD DEEDS. All earthly things is but vanity: 345 Beauty, Strength, and Discretion do man forsake, Foolish friends, and kinsmen, that fair spake— All fleeth save Good Deeds, and that am I. EVERYMAN. Have mercy on me, God most mighty; And stand by me, thou mother and maid, holy Mary. 350 GOOD DEEDS. Fear not; I will speak for thee. EVERYMAN. Here I cry God mercy.

GOOD DEEDS. Short° our end, and minish° our pain; 352 Short: shorten. minish: diminish Let us go and never come again. EVERYMAN. Into thy hands, Lord, my soul I commend; 355 Receive it, Lord, that it be not lost. As thou me boughtest,° so me defend, 356 boughtest: redeemed And save me from the fiend’s boast, That I may appear with that blessed host That shall be saved at the day of doom. 360 In manus tuas,° of mights most 360 In manus tuas: into your hands Forever, commendo spiritum meum.° 361 commendo spiritum meum: [He sinks into his grave.] I commend my spirit.

KNOWLEDGE. Now hath he suffered that we all shall endure; The Good Deeds shall make all sure.

Reading Strategy Recognizing Author’s Purpose Who is Everyman addressing here, and what might be the author’s purpose for the address?

Literary Element Allegory What does this statement imply about the char- acter of Good Deeds?

166 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES

0155-0167 U1P2SEL-845482.indd 166 1/29/07 9:24:30 AM Now hath he made ending; 365 Methinketh that I hear angels sing, And make great joy and melody Where Everyman’s soul received shall be. ANGEL. Come, excellent elect spouse,° to Jesu! 368 spouse: soul Hereabove thou shalt go 370 Because of thy singular virtue. Now the soul is taken the body fro, Thy reckoning is crystal clear. Now shalt thou into the heavenly sphere, Unto the which all ye shall come 375 That liveth well before the day of doom. [Enter DOCTOR.]

DOCTOR. This moral men may have in mind. Ye hearers, take it of worth, old and young, And forsake Pride, for he deceiveth you in the end; And remember Beauty, Five Wits, Strength, and Discretion, 380 They all at the last do every man forsake, Save his Good Deeds there doth he take. But beware, for and they be small Before God, he hath no help at all; None excuse may be there for every man. 385 Alas, how shall he do then? For after death, amends may no man make, For then mercy and pity doth him forsake. If his reckoning be not clear when he doth come, God will say, “Ite, maledicti, in ignem eternum.”° 389 Ite, maledicti, in ignem eternum: Depart, ye cursed, into everlasting fire. 390 And he that hath his account whole and sound, High in heaven he shall be crowned; Unto which place God bring us all thither, That we may live body and soul together. Thereto help the Trinity! 395 Amen, say ye, for saint charity.

THUS ENDETH THIS MORAL PLAY OF EVERYMAN

Literary Element Allegory What moral lesson does the play teach?

Heaven from the Last Judgment, 15th Century (detail). Fra Angelico. Tempera on panel. Museo di San marco dell’Angelico, Florence, Italy.

EVERYMAN 167 Museo di San Marco dell’Angelico, Florence, Italy, Giraudon/ The Bridgeman Art Library International

00155-0167155-0167 U1P2SEL-845482.inddU1P2SEL-845482.indd 167167 66/29/06/29/06 9:50:449:50:44 AMAM AFTER YOU READ

RESPONDING AND THINKING CRITICALLY Respond Analyze and Evaluate 1. Did you find yourself identifying with Everyman—his 5. Everyman learns that, like Goods, neither needs, his fears, his weaknesses? Explain. Fellowship nor Knowledge will accompany him in death. What is the effect of showing that none of Recall and Interpret these characters, whether good or bad, will accom- 2. (a)At the beginning of the play, what does the pany Everyman in death? Messenger say that Everyman will be 6. (a)What is the effect of using symbolic figures about? (b)How do the Messenger’s words (lines instead of real characters in the play? (b)How 1–21) further the purpose of the play? would the play be different if the characters were 3. (a)Why does God send Death to visit round instead of flat? Everyman? (b)In what ways are the relationships 7. (a)What is the effect of ending the play at between God, Death, and Everyman similar to Everyman’s death? (b)Does this ending express those between the playwright, messenger, and hope or despair for the human condition? Explain. audience? 4. (a)How would you summarize the reaction of the Connect character called Goods to Everyman’s plea for 8. In your opinion, how effective are morality plays or help? (b)What does the dialogue between Goods similar messages today? Explain. and Everyman reveal about people living in medieval times? 9. Big Idea The Power of Faith How does a morality play like Everyman promote religious faith?

VISUAL LITERACY: Fine Art

Death and Everyman

The of Joseph Wright of Derby reflect a 2. How do you think the artist’s purpose for The fusion of science and art. Wright’s artwork reveals Old Man and Death might contrast with the the influence of both the Enlightenment of the author’s purpose for Everyman? eighteenth century and Romanticism of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Rather than religious truths, the Enlightenment sought rational, empirical knowledge. Romanticism valued the expression of emotion and individuality. The Old Man and Death portrays an emotional, symbolic image of a man personally confronting Death. Death, however, is personified almost scientifically, as a realistic skeleton—the most obvious evidence of human mortality. The painting is based on Aes- op’s fable of the same name, in which an old laborer carelessly wishes that Death would take him, spar- ing him from his toil.

1. (a)What is the old man’s reaction to Death in the painting? (b)How does Everyman describe a similar encounter? The Old Man and Death 1773. Joseph Wright of Derby 1 (1734–1797). Oil on canvas, 40 in x 50 /16 in. Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford, CT.

168 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford. The Ella Gallup Sumner and Mary Catlin Sumner Collection Fund

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Literary Element Allegory Reading Strategy Recognizing Author’s In an allegory, all or most of the characters, settings, Purpose and events symbolize ideas, qualities, or figures Everyman, like most morality plays, has an explicit beyond themselves in order to teach a moral lesson. purpose: to teach a moral lesson to the audience. In In Everyman, as in most other allegories, the names of Everyman, the Messenger appears onstage alone to characters indicate the abstract quality that they repre- reveal this purpose before the action begins. sent. Typically, an allegory can be read on both a lit- eral level and a figurative level. For example, the 1. What does the author wish to achieve by having exchange between Fellowship and Everyman is both a the Messenger reveal the purpose of the play in portrayal of one friend’s refusal to help another and a the opening lines? representation of the loneliness of death. 2. How might the author’s purpose be revealed differ- 1. What abstract ideas and figures do the characters in ently in a play written today? Everyman represent?

2. Choose a short scene between Everyman and Vocabulary Practice Death or another character. Explain the literal and Practice with Word Parts Choose the correct figurative meanings of the scene. answer for each question below. Use a dictionary if you need help. Review: Mood 1. Which word comes from the Middle English As you learned on page 74, mood refers to the emo- word reknen? tional quality or atmosphere of a literary work. For a. reckoning b. respite c. perceive example, moods can be somber, mysterious, peaceful, 2. Which word comes from the Latin word or joyous. A writer’s choice of language, subject mat- advertere, meaning “to turn toward”? ter, setting, and tone, as well as such sound devices a. respite b. adversity c. perceive as rhyme and rhythm, contribute to the mood. 3. Which word comes from the Latin word Partner Activity Meet with a partner to discuss the percipere, meaning “to see all the way through”? prevailing atmosphere, or mood, of Everyman. Create a. adversity b. perceive c. reckoning a graphic like the one below and fill it in with exam- 4. Which word comes from the Latin word ples from the selection to help determine the mood. respicere, meaning “to look back”? Then in the bottom triangle write what the mood is. a. perceive b. adversity c. respite

Subject: Setting: Language: Tone: Sound Devices: Academic Vocabulary

Here are two words from the vocabulary list on page R82. Mood: strategy (strat ə je¯) n. a plan of action foundation (foun da¯shən) n. the basis on which something stands or is supported

Practice and Apply 1. What reading strategies could you use to understand the events in Everyman? 2. What historical foundation contributed to the importance of Everyman?

EVERYMAN 169

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Writing About Literature Everyman’s Language and Style Explore Author’s Purpose It is unknown whether Using Adjectives The author of Everyman uses a Everyman was originally written to be staged. Since its variety of adjectives—words that modify nouns or pro- creation, however, it has been translated, adapted, and nouns by limiting their meaning. Adjectives tell what performed, and it is still staged today. Write a review of kind, which, how many, or how much. this excerpt from Everyman. Include a brief plot sum- Notice that the adjectives in columns two and three of mary, a statement of the purpose of the play, and an the chart are familiar words that add information but evaluation of the play’s effectiveness in meeting that contribute little to the style of the writing. Adjectives purpose. Support your evaluation with specific exam- that tell what kind are often more colorful and precise. ples from the play. Before you draft, outline the parts of your review. How many What kind? Which? or how much?

I. Plot Summary moral play our lives all creatures II. Statement of Purpose

III. Evaluation dreadful their mind twelve years A. Supporting Idea 1 reckoning B. Supporting Idea 2 C. Supporting Idea 3 worldly riches every man any respite IV. Conclusion An adjective can come before or after the word it modifies. In the following passage, notice the position of the italicized adjectives in relation to the boldface After you complete your draft, exchange papers with a nouns they modify. partner to review each other’s work. Then proofread and edit your draft for errors in spelling, grammar, and punctuation. “That is to thy damnation, without leasing,

Performing For my love is contrary to the love everlasting” With one or two classmates, choose a scene from Everyman to perform. Rehearse your parts, keeping in mind the idea or figure your character represents. Activity Scan Everyman to find colorful adjectives. Make your voice and gestures fit your part. Then per- Think about what those adjectives contribute to the form the scene for the rest of the class. style of the play.

Revising Check Adjectives Work with a partner to review your use of adjectives in your review of Everyman. Look for opportunities to use colorful adjectives to make your style more lively. In addition, look for ways to clarify your ideas with adjectives.

Web Activities For eFlashcards, Selection Quick Checks, and other Web activities, go to www.glencoe.com.

170 UNIT 1 THE ANGLO-SAXON PERIOD AND THE MIDDLE AGES

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