Geoffrey Chaucer - The Canterbury Tales

I speke as for my suster Emelye,

For whom ye have this stryf and Ielousye;

1835

Ye woot your-self, she may not wedden two

At ones, though ye fighten ever-mo:

That oon of yow, al be him looth or leef,

(980)

He moot go pypen in an ivy-leef;

This is to seyn, she may nat now han bothe,

1840

Al be ye never so Ielous, ne so wrothe.

And for-thy I yow putte in this degree,

That ech of yow shal have his destinee

As him is shape; and herkneth in what wyse;

Lo, heer your ende of that I shal devyse.

1832. E. wrongly repeats doutelees. 1834. E. Hn. Cp. Ialousye. 1837. E. Hn. Pt. lief. 1838. E. om. go. 1840. E. Hn. Cp. Ialouse.

1845

My wil is this, for plat conclusioun,

With-outen any replicacioun,

If that yow lyketh, tak it for the beste,

(990)

That everich of yow shal gon wher him leste

Frely, with-outen raunson or daunger;

1850

And this day fifty wykes, fer ne ner,

Everich of yow shal bringe an hundred knightes,

Armed for listes up at alle rightes,

Al redy to darreyne hir by bataille.

And this bihote I yow, with-outen faille,

1855

Up-on my trouthe, and as I am a knight,

That whether of yow bothe that hath might,

This is to seyn, that whether he or thou

[54: T. 1860-1892.]

(1000)

May with his hundred, as I spak of now,

Sleen his contrarie, or out of listes dryve,

1860

Him shal I yeve Emelya to wyve,

To whom that fortune yeveth so fair a grace.

The listes shal I maken in this place,

And God so wisly on my soule rewe,

As I shal even Iuge been and trewe.

1865

Ye shul non other ende with me maken,

That oon of yow ne shal be deed or taken.

And if yow thinketh this is wel y-sayd,

(1010)

Seyeth your avys, and holdeth yow apayd.

This is your ende and your conclusioun.'

1856, 7. E. wheither. 1860. Hl. Him; Cp. Ln. That; E. Hn. Thanne; Cm. Pt. Than. E. Cp. Ln. Emelya; Hl. Hn. Emelye.

1870

Who loketh lightly now but Palamoun?

Who springeth up for Ioye but Arcite?

Who couthe telle, or who couthe it endyte,

The Ioye that is maked in the place

Whan Theseus hath doon so fair a grace?

1875

But doun on knees wente every maner wight,

And thanked him with al her herte and might,

And namely the Thebans ofte sythe.

(1020)

And thus with good hope and with herte blythe

They take hir leve, and hom-ward gonne they ryde

1880

To Thebes, with his olde walles wyde.

1872. E. Cm. Hl. om. it. 1876. Hl. thanked; Cm. thankede; Cp. Pt. Ln. thonked; E. Hn. thonken. 1877. E. often; Ln. oft; Pt. mony; rest ofte.

Explicit secunda pars. Sequitur pars tercia.

I trowe men wolde deme it necligence,

If I foryete to tellen the dispence

Of Theseus, that goth so bisily

To maken up the listes royally;

1885

That swich a noble theatre as it was,

I dar wel seyn that in this world ther nas.

The circuit a myle was aboute,

(1030)

Walled of stoon, and diched al with-oute.

Round was the shap, in maner of compas,

1890

Ful of degrees, the heighte of sixty pas,

[55: T. 1893-1928.]

That, whan a man was set on o degree,

He letted nat his felawe for to see.

1886. Hl. that; rest om. 1889. E. compaas. 1892. E. lette; Cm. lettyth; rest letted.

Est-ward ther stood a gate of marbel whyt,

West-ward, right swich another in the opposit.

1895

And shortly to concluden, swich a place

Was noon in erthe, as in so litel space;

For in the lond ther nas no crafty man,

(1040)

That geometrie or ars-metrik can,

Ne purtreyour, ne kerver of images,

1900

That Theseus ne yaf him mete and wages

The theatre for to maken and devyse.

And for to doon his ryte and sacrifyse,

He est-ward hath, up-on the gate above,

In worship of Venus, goddesse of love,

1905

Don make an auter and an oratorie;

And west-ward, in the minde and in memorie

Of Mars, he maked hath right swich another,

(1050)

That coste largely of gold a fother.

And north-ward, in a touret on the wal,

1910

Of alabastre whyt and reed coral

An oratorie riche for to see,

In worship of Dyane of chastitee,

Hath Theseus don wroght in noble wyse.

1893. E. Hn. Hl. marbul. 1899. Hl. Hn. Cp. purtreyour; E. portreitour. 1900. Cp. Pt. Cm. him; Hl. hem; rest om. 1906. So Hl.; E. Hn. Cm. ( wrongly ) And on the west-ward in memorie.

But yet hadde I foryeten to devyse

1915

The noble kerving, and the portreitures,

The shap, the countenaunce, and the figures,

That weren in thise oratories three.

(1060)

First in the temple of Venus maystow see

Wroght on the wal, ful pitous to biholde,

1920

The broken slepes, and the sykes colde;

The sacred teres, and the waymenting;

The fyry strokes of the desiring,

That loves servaunts in this lyf enduren;

The othes, that hir covenants assuren;

1925

Plesaunce and hope, desyr, fool-hardinesse,

Beautee and youthe, bauderie, richesse,

[56: T. 1929-1963.]

Charmes and force, lesinges, flaterye,

(1070)

Dispense, bisynesse, and Ielousye,

That wered of yelwe goldes a gerland,

1930

And a cokkow sitting on hir hand;

Festes, instruments, caroles, daunces,

Lust and array, and alle the circumstaunces

Of love, whiche that I rekne and rekne shal,

By ordre weren peynted on the wal,

1935

And mo than I can make of mencioun.

For soothly, al the mount of Citheroun,

Ther Venus hath hir principal dwelling,

(1080)

Was shewed on the wal in portreying,

With al the gardin, and the lustinesse.

1940

Nat was foryeten the porter Ydelnesse,

Ne Narcisus the faire of yore agon,

Ne yet the folye of king Salamon,

Ne yet the grete strengthe of Hercules—

Thenchauntements of Medea and Circes—

1945

Ne of Turnus, with the hardy fiers corage,

The riche Cresus, caytif in servage.

Thus may ye seen that wisdom ne richesse,

(1090)

Beautee ne sleighte, strengthe, ne hardinesse,

Ne may with Venus holde champartye;

1950

For as hir list the world than may she gye.

Lo, alle thise folk so caught were in hir las,

Til they for wo ful ofte seyde 'allas!'

Suffyceth heer ensamples oon or two,

And though I coude rekne a thousand mo.

1922. E. Hl. and; rest of. 1928. E. Hn. Cp. Ialousye. 1929. Hl. guldes. 1930. Cp. Ln. Cm. his. 1933. Cm. I reken and rekne schal; Hn. Hl. I rekned and rekne shal; E. I rekned haue and rekne shal ( too long ). 1942. E. Cm. And; rest Ne. 1943. E. Cm. And eek; Hn. Cp. Pt. Ln. Ne yet; Hl. Ne eek. E. Hn. Cm. Ercules. 1948. E. Hn. Pt. om. ne.

1955

The statue of Venus, glorious for to see,

Was naked fleting in the large see,

And fro the navele doun all covered was

(1100)

With wawes grene, and brighte as any glas.

A citole in hir right hand hadde she,

1960

And on hir heed, ful semely for to see,

A rose gerland, fresh and wel smellinge;

[57: T. 1964-1997.]

Above hir heed hir dowves flikeringe.

Biforn hir stood hir sone Cupido,

Up-on his shuldres winges hadde he two;

1965

And blind he was, as it is ofte sene;

A bowe he bar and arwes brighte and kene.

1965. E. it was; rest it is.

Why sholde I noght as wel eek telle yow al

(1110)

The portreiture, that was up-on the wal

With-inne the temple of mighty Mars the rede?