The Knight's Tale
Folio 36r
25 of 35 folios
And haddest gold I now / and Emelye
¶ Noman myght gladen / Theseus
Sauyng his old fader / Egeus
1975
That knew this worldlis / tansmutacioū
As he had seyn it chaunge / boþe vp & douñ
Ioye after woo / and woo after gladnes
And shewed hī ensample / and lyknes
¶ Rigħt as there deyed neuere man / qd he
1980
That he ne loued in erthe / in som degre
Rigħt so þere lyued neuere man / he seide
In al this world / þt somtyme he ne deyede
This world nys but a thurgħ feire / ful of woo
And we ben pilgimes / passyng to and froo
1985
Deth is an ende / of euery worldly sore
And ouer al this / ȝet seide he meche more
To this effect / ful wysly to enhorte
The peeple / þt they shuld hī / recomforte
¶ Duke Theseus / with al his bysy cure
1990
Cast now where / that the sepulture
Of goode Arcite / mymaymay best I maked be
And eke most honorable / in his degre
And at the last / he tok conclusioū
That there as first / Arcite & Palamoū
1995
Hadden for loue / the bataylle hē bytwene
That in the selue Groue / swete & grene
There as he had / his amorous desires
Hys compleynt / and for loue / his hote fires
He wold make a fir / in which the office
2000
Funeraƚƚ / he mygħt al accomplice
And lete a non comaunde / to hakke and hewe
The Okes olde / and leyn hem on a rewe
In culpons / wel arayed for to brenne
¶ His officers / wt swift fet they renne
2005
And ride a non / at his comandement
And after this / Theseus hath I sent
After a Bere / and it al ouer spredde
W clothes of gold / the richest þt he hadde
And of þe same seute / he clad Arcite
2010
Vp on his handes / his glowys whyte
Eke on his hede / a corone of laurere grene
And in his hand / a swerd ful brigħt and kene
He leid hī bare / the visage / on the bere
Ther wt he wepte / that pite was to here
2015
And for the peeple / shuld sen hī alle
Whan it was day / he brouȝt hī to þe halle
Thax roreth of the criyng and the souñ