Loading your reading…

Chaucer's Works, Volume 3 — The House of Fame; The Legend of Good Women; The Treatise on the Astrolabe; The Sources of the Canterbury TalesChaucer, Geoffrey

General

Chaucer's Works, Volume 3 — The House of Fame; The Legend of Good Women; The Treatise on the Astrolabe; The Sources of the Canterbury Tales

Name: Chaucer's Works, Volume 3 — The House of Fame; The Legend of Good Women; The Treatise on the Astrolabe; The Sources of the Canterbury Tales
Author: Chaucer, Geoffrey

Chaucer, Geoffrey

English poetry -- Middle English, 1100-1500

That him was tid upon the see.                                        255
    And after grave was, how she
  Made of him, shortly, at oo word,
  Hir lyf, hir love, hir lust, hir lord;
  And dide him al the reverence,
  And leyde on him al the dispence,                                     260
  That any woman mighte do,
  Weninge hit had al be so,
  As he hir swoor; and her-by demed
  That he was good, for he swich semed.
  Allas! what harm doth apparence,                                      265
  Whan hit is fals in existence!
  For he to hir a traitour was;
  Wherfor she slow hir-self, allas!
    Lo, how a woman doth amis,
  To love him that unknowen is!                                         270
  For, by Crist, lo! thus hit fareth;
  'Hit is not al gold, that glareth.'
  For, al-so brouke I wel myn heed,
  Ther may be under goodliheed
  Kevered many a shrewed vyce;                                          275
  Therfor be no wight so nyce,
  To take a love only for chere,
  For speche, or for frendly manere;
  For this shal every woman finde
  That som man, of his pure kinde,                                      280
  Wol shewen outward the faireste,
  Til he have caught that what him leste;
  And thanne wol he causes finde,
  And swere how that she is unkinde,
  Or fals, or prevy, or double was.                                     285
  Al this seye I by Eneas
  And Dido, and hir nyce lest,
  That lovede al to sone a gest;
  Therfor I wol seye a proverbe,
  That 'he that fully knoweth therbe                                    290
  May saufly leye hit to his yë';
  Withoute dreed, this is no lye.
    But let us speke of Eneas,
  How he betrayed hir, allas!
  And lefte hir ful unkindely.                                          295
  So whan she saw al-utterly,
  That he wolde hir of trouthe faile,
  And wende fro hir to Itaile,
  She gan to wringe hir hondes two.
    'Allas!' quod she, 'what me is wo!                                  300
  Allas! is every man thus trewe,
  That every yere wolde have a newe,
  If hit so longe tyme dure,
  Or elles three, peraventure?
  As thus: of oon he wolde have fame                                    305
  In magnifying of his name;
  Another for frendship, seith he;
  And yet ther shal the thridde be,
  That shal be taken for delyt,
  Lo, or for singular profyt.'                                          310
    In swiche wordes gan to pleyne
  Dido of hir grete peyne,
  As me mette redely;
  Non other auctour alegge I.
  'Allas!' quod she, 'my swete herte,                                   315
  Have pitee on my sorwes smerte,
  And slee me not! go noght away!
  O woful Dido, wel away!'
  Quod she to hir-selve tho.
  'O Eneas! what wil ye do?                                             320
  O, that your love, ne your bonde,
  That ye han sworn with your right honde,
  Ne my cruel deeth,' quod she,
  'May holde yow still heer with me!

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

Chaucer's Works, Volume 3 — The House of Fame; The Legend of Good Women; The Treatise on the Astrolabe; The Sources of the Canterbury Tales

No reviews yet