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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 Wife of Bath's Prologue Folio 70v 19 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.
And so ben pottes / clothes and array
290
But men of wommen / maken noon assay
Til they ben wedded / olde doted shrewe
And thañ e seist þ u / we wol oure vices shewe
Thow seist also / that it displesetħ me
But if þ at þ u wylt preyse / my beaute
295
And but thow poure / alwey Corrected from: invp onin vp on my face
And clepe me fair dame / in euer y place
That I was born / and make me fressħ and gay
And but thow do / to my norice honour
300
Thus seist þ u olde barel / ful of lyes
And ȝet of oure Corrected from: p<nothing> p Apprentys / Iankyn
For his crispe heer shynynge / as gold fyn
305
And for he squyeretħ me / vp and doun
Ȝet hast þ u caugħ t / a fals suspeciou
I wol hī nougħ t / thougħ þ u were ded to morwe
But telle me Corrected from: <nothing> <nothing> þ is why / hidest thow witħ sorwe
The keyes of thy chest / a wey fro me
310
It is my good / as wel as thyn / parde
What wenest thow / to make an Idiote of oure dame
Now by that lord / that cleped is Seynt Iame
Thow shalt nat bothe / thougħ þ at þ u were wood
Be maistre of my body / and of my good
315
That oon þ u shalt for gon / maugre thyne eyen
What nedetħ the of me / to enqueren & spyen
I trowe þ u woldest lokke me / in thy cheste
Thow shuldest seye good wyf / go where the liste
Taketħ ȝoure disport / I wol nat leue no tales
320
I knowe ȝow for a trewe wyf / Dame Alys
We loue noman / that taketħ kepe or charge
Where þ at we goo / we wol be at oure large
Of alle men / I blessed mot he be
The wyse Astrologien / Dan Protholomee
325
That seitħ this pro uerbe / in his almagest
Of alle men / his wysdom is heyest
That rekketħ nat / who hatħ the world in honde
By this prouerbe / þ u shalt vnderstonde
Haue thow I now / what thar the rekke or care
330
How merily / that othere folkes fare
For certes olde dotard / be ȝoure leue