Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 — Romaunt of the Rose; Minor PoemsChaucer, Geoffrey
General
Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 — Romaunt of the Rose; Minor Poems
Chaucer, Geoffrey
English poetry -- Middle English, 1100-1500
Lydgate describes the Parliament of Foules in terms which clearly shew that
he had read it. He also enables us to add to our list the Complaint of
Anelida and the Complaint of Mars; for it is the latter poem which contains
the story of the _broche_ of Thebes. We have, accordingly, complete
authority for the genuineness of the House of Fame and the four longest of
the Minor Poems, which, as arranged in order of length, are these: The
House of Fame (2158 lines); Book of the Duchesse (1334 lines); Parliament
of Foules (699 lines); Anelida and Arcite (357 lines); and Complaint of
Mars (298 lines). This gives us a total of 4846 lines, furnishing a very
fair standard of comparison whereby to consider the claims to genuineness
of other poems. Lydgate further tells us that Chaucer
'Made and compiled many a freshe dittie,
Complaynts, ballades, rou_n_dels, vyrelaies.'
§ 4. TESTIMONY OF JOHN SHIRLEY.
The next best evidence is that afforded by notes in the existing MSS.; and
here, in particular, we should first consider the remarks by Chaucer's
great admirer, John Shirley, who took considerable pains to copy out and
preserve his poems, and is said by Stowe to have died Oct. 21, 1456, at the
great age of ninety, so that he was born more than 30 years before Chaucer
died. On his authority, we may attribute to Chaucer the A. B. C.; the
Complaint to Pity; the Complaint of Mars (according to a heading in MS.
T.); the Complaint of Anelida (according to a heading in MS. Addit. 16165);
the Lines to Adam, called in MS. T. 'Chauciers Wordes a. Geffrey vn-to Adam
his owen scryveyne'; Fortune; Truth; Gentilesse; Lak of Stedfastnesse; the
Compleint of Venus; and the Compleint to his Empty Purse. The MSS. due to
Shirley are the Sion College MS., Trin. Coll. Cam. R. 3. 20, Addit. 16165,
Ashmole 59, Harl. 78, Harl. 2251, and Harl. 7333. See also § 23, p. 75.
§ 5. TESTIMONY OF SCRIBES OF THE MSS.
The Fairfax MS. 16, a very fair MS. of the fifteenth century, contains
several of the Minor Poems; and in this the name of Chaucer is written at
the end of the poem on Truth and of the Compleint to his Purse; it also
appears in the title of Lenvoy de _Chaucer_ a Scogan; in that of Lenvoy de
_Chaucer_ a Bukton; in that of the Compleint of _Chaucer_ to his empty
Purse, and in that of 'Proverbe of _Chaucer_.'
Again, the Pepys MS. no. 2006 attributes to Chaucer the A. B. C., the title
there given being 'Pryer a nostre Dame, per Chaucer'; as well as the
Compleint to his Purse, the title being 'La Compleint de Chaucer a sa
Bourse Voide.' It also has the title 'Lenvoy de Chaucer a Scogan.' See also
p. 80, note 2.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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