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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 Tale Folio 79r 7 of 10 folios
For goddes loue / as chese a newe requeste
Take al my good / and late my body goo
1035
Nay thanne qd she / I shrewe vs bothe twoo
For thougħ that I be foul / old and pore
I nold for al the metal / ne for ore
That vnder erthe is graue / or litħ a boue
But if thy wyf I were / and eke thy loue
1040
Allas that ony / of my nacione
Shulde euer e so foule / despar aged be
But al for nougħ t / the ende is this / that he
Constreyned was / he nedes must hire wedde
1045
And taketħ this old wyf / & gotħ to bedde
Now wolde som e men seyn / per auenture
That for my negligence / I do no cure
To telle ȝow the ioye / and al the array
That at the fest was / that ilke day
1050
To whicħ thyng / shortly answeren I shal
I seye there was no feest / ne ioye at al
There nas but heuynesse / and mechel sorwe
For preuyly he wedded hire / on the morwe
And al day after / hid hī as an Owle
1055
So woo was hī / his wyf loked so foule
Gret was the woo / the knygħ t had in his thougħ t
Whan he was witħ his wyf / abedde I brougħ t
He waluetħ . and he turnetħ to and froo
This olde wyf / lay smylyng euer e moo
1060
And seide / o dere husbonde benedicite
Faretħ euer y knygħ t thus / witħ his wyf as ȝe
Is this the lawe / of kyng Arthoures hous
Is euer y knygħ t of his / thus daungerous
I am ȝoure owen loue / & eke ȝoure wyf
1065
I am she / whicħ þ at saued hatħ / ȝoure lyf
And certes / ȝet ne dide I ȝow / neuer e vnrigħ t
Why fare ȝe thus witħ me / this first nygħ t
Ȝe faren like a man / had lost his wytte
What is my gilt / for goddes loue telle itte
1070
And it shal ben amended / if I may
Amendid qd this knygħ t / allas nay nay
It wol not ben amended / neuer e moo
Thow art so lotħ ly / and so old also
And ther to comen / of so lowe a kynde
1075
That lytel wonder is / thougħ I walwe & wynde
So wolde god / myn hert wold brest
Is this qd she / the cause of ȝoure vnrest
Ȝee certeynly qd he / no wonder is