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1. The General Prologue
2. The Knight's Tale
3. The Miller's Prologue
4. The Miller's Tale
5. The Reeve's Prologue
6. The Reeve's Tale
7. The Cook's Prologue
8. The Cook's Tale
9. Introduction to the Man of Law's Tale
10. The Man of Law's Tale
11. The Wife of Bath's Prologue
12. The Wife of Bath's Tale
13. The Friar's Prologue
14. The Friar's Tale
15. The Summoner's Prologue
16. The Summoner's Tale
17. The Clerk's Tale
18. Lenvoye de Chaucer
19. Words of the Host
20. The Merchant's Prologue
21. The Merchant's Tale
22. Epilogue to the Merchant's Tale
23. The Squire's Tale
24. The Franklin's Tale
25. The Physician's Tale
26. Introduction to the Pardoner's Tale
27. The Pardoner's Prologue & Tale
28. The Shipman's Tale
29. The Prioress' Tale
30. The Tale of Sir Thopas
31. Here the Host 'stynteth' Chaucer's Tale of Sir Thopas
32. The Tale of Melibeus
33. The Monk's Prologue
34. The Monk's Tale
35. The Nun's Priest's Prologue
36. The Nun's Priest's Tale
37. Epilogue to the Nun's Priest's Tale
38. The Second Nun's Tale
39. The Canon's Yeoman's Prologue
40. The Canon's Yeoman's Tale
The Man of Law's Tale Folio 55r 1 of 21 folios
Nolde neuer e wryte / in none of hise sermouns
Of swicħ vnkynde / abhominacions
Ne I wyl noon reherce / if þ at I may
90
But of my tale / how shal I don this day
Me were lotħ / be likned doutelees
To muses / that men clepe pierides
Methamorphosios / woot what I mene
But natheles / I recche not a bene
95
Thougħ I come after hī / witħ hawe bake
I speke in prose / and lat hī rymes make
And with that word / he with a sober chere
Bygan his tale / as ȝe shuln after here
Ohateful harme / condicione of pouerte
With thrust wt cold / with honger so confounded
To asken helpe / the shametħ in thyn herte
If thow noon aske / so sore art þ ow I wounded
5
That verray nede / vnwrappeth alle thy wounde hid
Maugre thyn heede / thow must for indigence
Or stele or begge / or borwe thyn dispence
He mysdepartetħ / ricchesse temporal
10
Thy neyghebore / thow wytest synfully
And seist þ u hast to lite / and he hatħ al
Parfey seist þ u / sumtyme he rekne shal
Whan þ t his taylle / shal brennen in the glede
For he nougħ t helpetħ / nedeful in here nede
15
Bette is to deyen / than haue indigence
Thy selue neyghebore / wyl the despise
If thow be pore / fare wel thy reuerence
Ȝet if the wyse man / take this sentence
20
Alle the dayes of poore men / ben wykke
Be war þ er fore / er þ u come to þ t prikke
And alle thyne frendes / flen from the / allas
O riche marchauntez / ful of wele ben ȝe
25
O noble o prudent folk / as in this cas
Ȝoure bagges be nouȝt filled / wt aumbes as
But with sys synk / þ t rennetħ for ȝoure chaunce