The Canterbury Tales; The Seconde Nonnes Tale Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: A B C C DDDDDAA EFEFFAA EDEDDBB DGDGGCC H CACAA II GIGIIAA DDDDDII DADIAJJ ACACCKK DDDDDGG AGAGGDD ADADDAA CDCAALL MAMMDD IAIAACC EDEDADD AMAMMAA C NAOAAAA GMGMMII ADE DAA GDGDDE DDDDDFF AEAEED ADADDD DDDDDCC AAAAAG GMGMMAA CPart | A |
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GROUP G | B |
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THE SECONDE NONNES TALE | C |
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The Prologe of the Seconde Nonnes Tale | C |
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The ministre and the norice unto vices | D |
Which that men clepe in Englissh ydelnesse | D |
That porter of the gate is of delices | D |
To eschue and by hir contrarie hir oppresse | D |
That is to seyn by leveful bisynesse | D |
Wel oghten we to doon al oure entente | A |
Lest that the feend thurgh ydelnesse us shente | A |
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For he that with hise thousand cordes slye | E |
Continuelly us waiteth to biclappe | F |
Whan he may man in ydelnesse espye | E |
He kan so lightly cacche hym in his trappe | F |
Til that a man be hent right by the lappe | F |
He nys nat war the feend hath hym in honde | A |
Wel oghte us werche and ydelnesse withstonde | A |
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And though men dradden nevere for to dye | E |
Yet seen men wel by resoun doutelees | D |
That ydelnesse is roten slogardye | E |
Of which ther nevere comth no good encrees | D |
And seen that slouthe hir holdeth in a lees | D |
Oonly to slepe and for to ete and drynke | B |
And to devouren al that othere swynke | B |
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And for to putte us fro swich ydelnesse | D |
That cause is of so greet confusioun | G |
I have heer doon my feithful bisynesse | D |
After the legende in translacioun | G |
Right of thy glorious lyf and passioun | G |
Thou with thy gerland wroght with rose and lilie | C |
Thee meene I mayde and martir seint Cecilie | C |
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Invocacio ad Mariam | H |
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And thow that flour of virgines art alle | C |
Of whom that Bernard list so wel to write | A |
To thee at my bigynnyng first I calle | C |
Thou confort of us wrecches do me endite | A |
Thy maydens deeth that wan thurgh hir merite | A |
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The eterneel lyf and of the feend victorie | I |
As man may after reden in hir storie | I |
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Thow mayde and mooder doghter of thy sone | G |
Thow welle of mercy synful soules cure | I |
In whom that God for bountee chees to wone | G |
Thow humble and heigh over every creature | I |
Thow nobledest so ferforth oure nature | I |
That no desdeyn the makere hadde of kynde | A |
His sone in blood and flessh to clothe and wynde | A |
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Withinne the cloistre blisful of thy sydis | D |
Took mannes shape the eterneel love and pees | D |
That of the tryne compas lord and gyde is | D |
Whom erthe and see and hevene out of relees | D |
Ay heryen and thou virgine wemmelees | D |
Baar of thy body and dweltest mayden pure | I |
The creatour of every creature | I |
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Assembled is in thee magnificence | D |
With mercy goodnesse and with swich pitee | A |
That thou that art the sonne of excellence | D |
Nat oonly helpest hem that preyen thee | I |
But oftentyme of thy benygnytee | A |
Ful frely er that men thyn help biseche | J |
Thou goost biforn and art hir lyves leche | J |
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Now help thow meeke and blisful faire mayde | A |
Me flemed wrecche in this desert of galle | C |
Thynk on the womman Cananee that sayde | A |
That whelpes eten somme of the crommes alle | C |
That from hir lordes table been yfalle | C |
And though that I unworthy sone of Eve | K |
Be synful yet accepte my bileve | K |
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And for that feith is deed withouten werkis | D |
So for to werken yif me wit and space | D |
That I be quit fro thennes that moost derk is | D |
O thou that art so fair and ful of grace | D |
Be myn advocat in that heighe place | D |
Ther as withouten ende is songe Osanne | G |
Thow Cristes mooder doghter deere of Anne | G |
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And of thy light my soule in prison lighte | A |
That troubled is by the contagioun | G |
Of my body and also by the wighte | A |
Of erthely lust and fals affeccioun | G |
O havene of refut O salvacioune | G |
Of hem that been in sorwe and in distresse | D |
Now help for to my werk I wol me dresse | D |
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Yet preye I yow that reden that I write | A |
Foryeve me that I do no diligence | D |
This ilke storie subtilly to endite | A |
For bothe have I the wordes and sentence | D |
Of hym that at the seintes reverence | D |
The storie wroot and folwe hir legende | A |
I pray yow that ye wole my werk amende | A |
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First wolde I yow the name of seinte Cecile | C |
Expowne as men may in hir storie see | D |
It is to seye in Englissh hevenes lilie' | C |
For pure chaastnesse of virginitee | A |
Or for she whitnesse hadde of honestee | A |
And grene of conscience and of good fame | L |
The soote savour lilie was hir name | L |
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Or Cecilie is to seye the wey to blynde ' | - |
For she ensample was by good techynge | M |
Or elles Cecile as I writen fynde | A |
Is joyned by a manere conjoynynge | M |
Of hevene' and lia ' and heere in figurynge | M |
The hevene' is set for thoght of hoolynesse | D |
And lia' for hir lastynge bisynesse | D |
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Cecile may eek be seyd in this manere | I |
Wantynge of blyndnesse ' for hir grete light | A |
Of sapience and for hire thewes cleere | I |
Or elles loo this maydens name bright | A |
Of hevene' and leos' comth for which by right | A |
Men myghte hir wel the hevene of peple' calle | C |
Ensample of goode and wise werkes alle | C |
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For leos' peple' in Englissh is to seye | E |
And right as men may in the hevene see | D |
The sonne and moone and sterres every weye | E |
Right so men goostly in this mayden free | D |
Syen of feith the magnanymytee | A |
And eek the cleernesse hool of sapience | D |
And sondry werkes brighte of excellence | D |
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And right so as thise philosophres write | A |
That hevene is swift and round and eek brennynge | M |
Right so was faire Cecilie the white | A |
Ful swift and bisy evere in good werkynge | M |
And round and hool in good perseverynge | M |
And brennynge evere in charite ful brighte | A |
Now have I yow declared what she highte | A |
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Here bigynneth the Seconde Nonnes tale of the lyf of Seinte Cecile | C |
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This mayden bright Cecilie as hir lyf seith | N |
Was comen of Romayns and of noble kynde | A |
And from hir cradel up fostred in the feith | O |
Of Crist and bar his gospel in hir mynde | A |
She nevere cessed as I writen fynde | A |
Of hir preyere and God to love and drede | A |
Bisekynge hym to kepe hir maydenhede | A |
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And whan this mayden sholde unto a man | G |
Ywedded be that was ful yong of age | M |
Which that ycleped was Valerian | G |
And day was comen of hir mariage | M |
She ful devout and humble in hir corage | M |
Under hir robe of gold that sat ful faire | I |
Hadde next hir flessh yclad hir in an haire | I |
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And whil the orgnes maden melodie | A |
To God allone in herte thus sang she | D |
'O Lord my soule and eek my body gye | E |
Unwemmed lest that I confounded be ' | - |
And for his love that dyde upon a tree | D |
Every seconde and thridde day she faste | A |
Ay biddynge in hir orisons ful faste | A |
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The nyght cam and to bedde moste she gon | G |
With hir housbonde as ofte is the manere | D |
And pryvely to hym she seyde anon | G |
'O sweete and wel biloved spouse deere | D |
Ther is a conseil and ye wolde it heere | D |
Which that right fayn I wolde unto yow seye | E |
So that ye swere ye shul me nat biwreye ' | - |
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Valerian gan faste unto hire swere | D |
That for no cas ne thyng that myghte be | D |
He sholde nevere mo biwreyen here | D |
And thanne at erst to hym thus seyde she | D |
'I have an Aungel which that loveth me | D |
That with greet love wher so I wake or sleepe | F |
Is redy ay my body for to kepe | F |
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And if that he may feelen out of drede | A |
That ye me touche or love in vileynye | E |
He right anon wol sle yow with the dede | A |
And in youre yowthe thus ye sholden dye | E |
And if that ye in clene love me gye | E |
He wol yow loven as me for youre clennesse | D |
And shewen yow his joye and his brightnesse ' | - |
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Valerian corrected as God wolde | A |
Answerde agayn 'If I shal trusten thee | D |
Lat me that aungel se and hym biholde | A |
And if that it a verray aungel bee | D |
Thanne wol I doon as thou hast prayed me | D |
And if thou love another man forsothe | D |
Right with this swerd thanne wol I sle yow bothe ' | - |
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Cecile answerde anon right in this wise | D |
'If that yow list the aungel shul ye see | D |
So that ye trowe in Crist and yow baptize | D |
Gooth forth to Via Apia ' quod she | D |
'That fro this toun ne stant but miles thre | D |
And to the povre folkes that ther dwelle | C |
Sey hem right thus as that I shal yow telle | C |
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Telle hem that I Cecile yow to hem sente | A |
To shewen yow the goode Urban the olde | A |
For secree thynges and for good entente | A |
And whan that ye Seint Urban han biholde | A |
Telle hym the wordes whiche that I to yow tolde | A |
And whan that he hath purged yow fro synne | G |
Thanne shul ye se that aungel er ye twynne ' | - |
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Valerian is to the place ygon | G |
And right as hym was taught by his lernynge | M |
He foond this hooly olde Urban anon | G |
Among the seintes buryeles lotynge | M |
And he anon withouten tariynge | M |
Dide his message and whan that he it tolde | A |
Urban for joye his handes gan up holde | A |
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The teeris from hise eyen leet he falle | C |
Geoffrey Chaucer
(1)
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