The Wife of Bath's Prologue
Folio 69r
16 of 20 folios
The transcription of the Wife of Bath's Prologue was created by Orietta Da Rold and has no relationship to the transcription which appears on the Cambridge University Press CD-ROM.
Vp on his fleessħ / while that I am his wyf
I haue the power / duryng al my lyf
Vp on his propre body / and nat he
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Rigħt thus the Apostel / told it vn to me
And bad oure husbondes / for to loue vs wele
Al this sentence / me liketħ euerydele
¶ Vp stirte the Pardoner / and that a noon
Now Dame qd he / by god & by Seynt Ioħn
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Ȝe ben a noble prechour / in this caas
I was a boute to wedde a wyf / Allas
What shulde I bye it / on my flessħ so deere
Ȝet had I leuere / wedde noon to ȝere
A byde qd she / my tale is nat bygonne
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Nay þu shalt drynken / of a nother tonne
Er that I go / shal sauer wers than Ale
Whan that I haue told the / fortħ my tale
Of tribulacione / that is in mariage
Of whicħ I am expert / in al myn age
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This is to seyn / my self hatħ ben the whippe
Than maist þu chese / whider þt thow wylt skippe
Of thilke Tonne / that I wyl a broche
By war of it / or þu to ny approche
For I shal telle ensaumples / moo than ten
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Who so that nyl / be war / by othere men
By hī shulñ othere men / corrected be
Theise same wordes / wrytetħ Protholomee
Rede in his Almagest / and take it there
Dame I wold preye ȝow / if ȝoure wyl were
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Seide this Pardoner / as ȝe bygan
Telletħ fortħ ȝoure tale / & sparetħ for noman
And techetħ vs ȝonge men / of ȝoure practike
Gladly qd she / syn that it may ȝow lyke
But that I praye / to alle this companye
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If that I speke / after my fantasye
As taketħ it nougħt a gref / of that I seye
For myn entent is nat / but for to pleye
Now sires than shal I / tellen ȝow fortħ my tale
As euere mot I / drynken wyn or Ale
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I shal seye sotħ / the husbondes that I had
As thre of hem weren goode / & twoo weren bad
The thre of hem weren goode/ and riche & olde
Vn ethe mygħten they / the statut holde
In whicħ that they were bounden / vn to me
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Ȝe wot wel what I mene / of this pardee