Chaucer Colloquium

"...after hym they ran,
And eek with staves many another man,
Ran Colle, oure dogge, and Talbot, and Gerland,
And Malkyn with a dystaf in hir hand,
Ran cow and calf, and eek the verray hogges,
So were they fered for berkying of the dogges,
And shoutyng of the men and wommen eek,
They ronne so, hem thoughte hir herte breek;
They yolleden as feends doon in helle,
The dokes cryden as men wolde hem quelle,
The gees for feere flowen over the trees,
Out of the hyve cam the swarm of bees,
So hydous was the noyse, a! benedicitee!
Certes, he Jakke Straw and his meynee
Ne made nevere shoutes half so shille,
Whan that they wolden any Flemyng kille"
(561-76)

Continue reading "Angry Mobs" »

http://imdb.com/title/tt0102802/trailers-screenplay-E20592-310

Continue reading "From Canterbury to "Rock-a-Doodle"" »

"We alle desiren, if it mighte be,
To han housbondes hardy, wyse, and free,
And secree, and no nigard, ne no fool,
Ne him that is agast of every tool,
Ne noon avauntour." (2914-2917)

[a. F. hardi, nom. sing. hardiz (11th c. in Hatz.-Darm.) = Pr. ardit, It. ardito, pa. pple. of OF. hardir, Pr. ardir, It. ardire to harden, make hard, bold, etc., a. WGer. *hardjan, Goth. hardjan, OHG. hartjan to make hard, f. hard HARD a.]

1. Bold, courageous, daring.
2. opprobriously. Presumptuously bold, audacious; rashly bold, showing temerity.
3. Strong, enduring, tough. Obs.
4. a. Capable of enduring fatigue, hardship, rigour of the weather, etc.; physically robust, vigorous.

Continue reading "hardy" »

http://www.imagesonline.bl.uk/pr/597488833/Images_Online_079139.jpg

Continue reading "Body of Chauntecleer" »

"Lo, swich it is for to be recchelees
And necligent, and trust on flaterye."

-(lines 3436-37)

Continue reading "flaterye" »

And knew by kynde, and by noon other lore,
That it was pryme, and crew with blissful stevene.
“The sonne,” he sayde, “is clomben up on hevene
Fourty degrees and oon, and more, ywis.
Madame Pertelote, my worldes blis,
Herkeneth thise blissful briddes how they singe,
And see the fresshe floures how they springe;
Ful is myn herte of revel and solas.” (3196 - 3203)

Continue reading "Blis" »

From Macrobius, On Dreams
"We call a dream a prophetic vision if it actually comes true."

Continue reading "Dreams in The Nun's Priest's Tale" »

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This image of the rooster's eye comments on the different realms of seeing, perception, and deception that operate within the Nun's Priests Tale.

Continue reading "Image as Lemma: Eyes" »

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y215/Megusta327/foxtree.jpg
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y215/Megusta327/renards.jpg

I thought these two images worked nicely as they help us visualize a key scene within the tale. The first image is more or less self-explanatory. Here (this is a cropped and zommed in section of the second image) we see the rooster, or for our purposes Chanticleer, looking down upon the fox from the safety of a tree. However the second image, which shows us the piece of art in its entirety, is more provocative. The violence that is occuring in the rest of the image is somewhat unexpected in comparison to the relative calm of the fox gazing up at Chanticleer in the tree. The image as a whole effectively portrays both the terror of Chanticleer's dream coming to life and the inescapability of these dreams.

Continue reading "Imagery and the Nun's Priest's Tale" »

"'O litel child, allas! What is they gilt,
That nevere wroghtest synne as yet, pardee?
Why wil thyn harde fader han thee spilt?
O mercy, deere constable,' quod she,
'As lat my litel child dwelle heer with thee;
And if thou darst nat saven hum, for blame,
So kys hym ones in his fadres name!'" (lines 855-861)

Continue reading "Gilt" »