LIFE OF CHAUCER THE CANTERBURY TALES The General Prologue The Knight's Tale The Miller's tale The Reeve's Tale The Cook's Tale The Man of Law's Tale The Wife of Bath's Tale The Friar's Tale The Sompnour's Tale The Clerk's Tale The Merchant's Tale The Squire's Tale The Franklin's Tale The Doctor's Tale The Pardoner's Tale The Shipman's Tale The Prioress's Tale Chaucer's Tale of Sir Thopas Chaucer's Tale of Meliboeus The Monk's Tale The Nun's Priest's Tale The Second Nun's Tale The Canon's Yeoman's Tale The Manciple's Tale The Parson's Tale Preces de Chauceres THE COURT OF LOVE THE CUCKOO AND THE NIGHTINGALE THE ASSEMBLY OF FOWLS THE FLOWER AND THE LEAF THE HOUSE OF FAME TROILUS AND CRESSIDA CHAUCER'S DREAM THE PROLOGUE TO THE LEGEND OF GOOD WOMEN CHAUCER'S A.B.C. MISCELLANEOUS POEMS

THE object of this volume is to place before the general reader our two early poetic masterpieces — The Canterbury Tales and The Faerie Queen; to do so in a way that will render their "popular perusal" easy in a time of little leisure and unbounded temptations to intellectual languor; and, on the same conditions, to present a liberal and fairly representative selection from the less important and familiar poems of Chaucer and Spenser. There is, it may be said at the outset, peculiar advantage and propriety in placing the two poets side by side in the manner now attempted for the first time. Although two centuries divide them, yet Spenser is the direct and really the immediate successor to the poetical inheritance of Chaucer. Those two hundred years, eventful as they were, produced no poet at all worthy to take up the mantle that fell from Chaucer's shoulders; and Spenser does not need his affected archaisms, nor his frequent and reverent appeals to "Dan Geffrey," to vindicate for himself a place very close to his great predecessor in the literary history of England. If Chaucer is the "Well of English undefiled," Spenser is the broad and stately river that yet holds the tenure of its very life from the fountain far away in other and ruder scenes. The Canterbury Tales, so far as they are in verse, have been printed without any abridgement or designed change in the sense. But the two Tales in prose — Chaucer's Tale of Meliboeus, and the Parson's long Sermon on Penitence — have been contracted, so as to exclude thirty pages of unattractive prose, and to admit the same amount of interesting and characteristic poetry. The gaps thus made in the prose Tales, however, are supplied by careful outlines of the omitted matter, so that the reader need be at no loss to comprehend the whole scope and sequence of the original. With The Faerie Queen a bolder course has been pursued.

"The Canterbury Tales and Other Poems" by Geoffrey Chaucer stands as a cornerstone in English literature, offering a captivating glimpse into the social fabric of medieval England. Written in the late 14th century, Chaucer's magnum opus is a collection of stories narrated by a diverse group of pilgrims en route to the shrine of Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral. At the heart of "The Canterbury Tales" is Chaucer's keen observational wit, as he paints vivid portraits of individuals from various walks of life. Through the tales told by knights, clerics, merchants, and more, Chaucer explores themes of love, morality, and human nature, providing a rich tapestry of medieval society. The General Prologue sets the stage for the pilgrimage, introducing readers to the colorful cast of characters and their unique personalities. Each pilgrim's tale reflects their worldview, creating a dynamic mosaic that encompasses romance, tragedy, comedy, and moral allegory. Beyond "The Canterbury Tales," Chaucer's collection includes a variety of shorter poems, such as the dream vision "The Parliament of Fowls" and the elegiac "The Book of the Duchess." These poems showcase Chaucer's poetic range and depth of expression. "The Canterbury Tales and Other Poems" is a literary treasure that not only entertains with its narrative flair but also provides profound insights into the complexities of human experience. Immerse yourself in the linguistic richness and cultural panorama of Chaucer's work, where each tale unfolds as a masterpiece in the mosaic of medieval storytelling.

Geoffrey Chaucer , known as the Father of English literature, is widely considered the greatest English poet of the Middle Ages. He was the first poet to be buried in Poets' Corner of Westminster Abbey.While he achieved fame during his lifetime as an author, philosopher, and astronomer, composing a scientific treatise on the astrolabe for his ten-year-old son Lewis, Chaucer also maintained an active career in the civil service as a bureaucrat, courtier and diplomat. Among his many works are The Book of the Duchess, The House of Fame, The Legend of Good Women and Troilus and Criseyde. He is best known today for The Canterbury Tales.Chaucer's work was crucial in legitimizing the literary use of the Middle English vernacular at a time when the dominant literary languages in England were French and Latin.