The Wife of Bath's Prologue
Folio 71r
20 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.
Ȝe shuln haue queynte rigħt I now / at eeue
He is to gret a nygard / that wol werne
A man to ligħt a candele / at his lanterne
335
He shal haue / neuere the lasse ligħt / pardee
Haue thow I now / the thar nat pleyne thee
Thow seist also / if that we make vs gay
Witħ clothynge / or witħ precious array
That it is perile / of oure chastitee
340
And ȝet witħ sorwe / þu must enforce the
And seyn theise wordes / in the Aposteles name
In habyt mad / witħ chastite and shame
Ȝe wommen / shulde apparaille ȝow qd he
And nat in tressed heer / and riche perre
345
As peerles ne gold / ne clothes riche
After thy text / ne after thy rubriche
I wol nat werche / as meche as dotħ a gnat
Thow seist als / I walke out lyke a kat
For who so wolde senge / the Cattes skyn
350
Than wolde the kat / dwellen in his In
And if the kattes skyn / be slyke and gay
She wol nat dwelle / in house half a day
But fortħ she wol / or any day be dawed
To shewe hire skyn / & go on Caterwawed
355
This is to seyn / if I be gay sire shrewe
I wol renne out / my borel for to shewe
Sire olde foole / what helpetħ the to aspyen
Thougħ thow preye Argus / wt his hundred eyen
To be my wardecors / as he can best
360
In feitħ he shal nat kepe me / but me list
Ȝet coude I make his berd / also mote I thee
Thow seidest eke / þat there ben thynges three
The whiche thynges / troublen al this erthe
And that no wygħt / may endure the ferthe
365
O leue sire shrewe / Iħc short thy lyf
Ȝet precest þu and seist / an hateful wyf
I rekened is / for oon of theise meschaunces
Betħ there noone othere / resemblaunces
That ȝe may likne / ȝoure parables to
370
But if a seely wyf / be on of thoo
Thow likenest eke / womannes loue to helle
To bareyn lond / there water may nat dwelle
Thow likenest it also / to wylde fyre
The more it brennetħ / the more it hatħ desire
375
To consume euery thyng / that wol brent be