The Nun's Priest's Tale Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: ABCBBBBBDEFCCG HIJCCKKBBCLMMBNOOPPK KBBCC QARKRKRKK ABRKK R RSTTUUVRRVWXYRRSARRX RRAARRRRXZRKZRKKRRZW KBXXBBBBRRXZRRVNAABR A AWWRRRXRX VA2ZRKKRRRRRBBB2R RC2C2NNCCRZRC2RRBTHE PROLOGUE | A |
'Ho ' quoth the Knight 'good sir no more of this | B |
That ye have said is right enough y wis of a surety | C |
And muche more for little heaviness | B |
Is right enough to muche folk I guess | B |
I say for me it is a great disease source of distress annoyance | B |
Where as men have been in great wealth and ease | B |
To hearen of their sudden fall alas | B |
And the contrary is joy and great solas delight comfort | D |
As when a man hath been in poor estate | E |
And climbeth up and waxeth fortunate | F |
And there abideth in prosperity | C |
Such thing is gladsome as it thinketh me | C |
And of such thing were goodly for to tell ' | G |
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'Yea ' quoth our Hoste 'by Saint Paule's bell | H |
Ye say right sooth this monk hath clapped loud talked | I |
He spake how Fortune cover'd with a cloud | J |
I wot not what and als' of a tragedy | C |
Right now ye heard and pardie no remedy | C |
It is for to bewaile nor complain | K |
That that is done and also it is pain | K |
As ye have said to hear of heaviness | B |
Sir Monk no more of this so God you bless | B |
Your tale annoyeth all this company | C |
Such talking is not worth a butterfly | L |
For therein is there no sport nor game | M |
Therefore Sir Monke Dan Piers by your name | M |
I pray you heart'ly tell us somewhat else | B |
For sickerly n'ere clinking of your bells were it not for the | N |
That on your bridle hang on every side | O |
By heaven's king that for us alle died | O |
I should ere this have fallen down for sleep | P |
Although the slough had been never so deep | P |
Then had your tale been all told in vain | K |
For certainly as these clerkes sayn | K |
Where as a man may have no audience | B |
Nought helpeth it to telle his sentence | B |
And well I wot the substance is in me | C |
If anything shall well reported be | C |
Sir say somewhat of hunting lt gt I you pray ' | - |
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'Nay ' quoth the Monk 'I have no lust to play no fondness for | Q |
Now let another tell as I have told ' jesting | A |
Then spake our Host with rude speech and bold | R |
And said unto the Nunne's Priest anon | K |
'Come near thou Priest come hither thou Sir John lt gt | R |
Tell us such thing as may our heartes glade gladden | K |
Be blithe although thou ride upon a jade | R |
What though thine horse be bothe foul and lean | K |
If he will serve thee reck thou not a bean | K |
Look that thine heart be merry evermo' ' | - |
- | |
'Yes Host ' quoth he 'so may I ride or go | A |
But I be merry y wis I will be blamed ' unless | B |
And right anon his tale he hath attamed commenced lt gt | R |
And thus he said unto us every one | K |
This sweete priest this goodly man Sir John | K |
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THE TALE lt gt | R |
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- | |
A poor widow somedeal y stept in age somewhat advanced | R |
Was whilom dwelling in a poor cottage | S |
Beside a grove standing in a dale | T |
This widow of which I telle you my tale | T |
Since thilke day that she was last a wife | U |
In patience led a full simple life | U |
For little was her chattel and her rent her goods and her income | V |
By husbandry of such as God her sent thrifty management | R |
She found herself and eke her daughters two maintained | R |
Three large sowes had she and no mo' | V |
Three kine and eke a sheep that highte Mall | W |
Full sooty was her bow'r and eke her hall chamber | X |
In which she ate full many a slender meal | Y |
Of poignant sauce knew she never a deal whit | R |
No dainty morsel passed through her throat | R |
Her diet was accordant to her cote in keeping with her cottage | S |
Repletion her made never sick | A |
Attemper diet was all her physic moderate | R |
And exercise and hearte's suffisance contentment of heart | R |
The goute let her nothing for to dance did not prevent her | X |
Nor apoplexy shente not her head from dancing hurt | R |
No wine drank she neither white nor red | R |
Her board was served most with white and black | A |
Milk and brown bread in which she found no lack | A |
Seind bacon and sometimes an egg or tway singed | R |
For she was as it were a manner dey kind of day labourer lt gt | R |
A yard she had enclosed all about | R |
With stickes and a drye ditch without | R |
In which she had a cock hight Chanticleer | X |
In all the land of crowing n'as his peer was not his equal | Z |
His voice was merrier than the merry orgon organ lt gt | R |
On masse days that in the churches gon | K |
Well sickerer was his crowing in his lodge more punctual | Z |
Than is a clock or an abbay horloge clock lt gt | R |
By nature he knew each ascension | K |
Of th' equinoctial in thilke town | K |
For when degrees fiftene were ascended | R |
Then crew he that it might not be amended | R |
His comb was redder than the fine coral | Z |
Embattell'd lt gt as it were a castle wall | W |
His bill was black and as the jet it shone | K |
Like azure were his legges and his tone toes | B |
His nailes whiter than the lily flow'r | X |
And like the burnish'd gold was his colour | X |
This gentle cock had in his governance | B |
Sev'n hennes for to do all his pleasance | B |
Which were his sisters and his paramours | B |
And wondrous like to him as of colours | B |
Of which the fairest hued in the throat | R |
Was called Damoselle Partelote | R |
Courteous she was discreet and debonair | X |
And companiable and bare herself so fair sociable | Z |
Since the day that she sev'n night was old | R |
That truely she had the heart in hold | R |
Of Chanticleer locked in every lith limb | V |
He lov'd her so that well was him therewith | N |
But such a joy it was to hear them sing | A |
When that the brighte sunne gan to spring | A |
In sweet accord 'My lefe is fare in land ' lt gt my love is | B |
For at that time as I have understand gone abroad | R |
Beastes and birdes coulde speak and sing | A |
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And so befell that in a dawening | A |
As Chanticleer among his wives all | W |
Sat on his perche that was in the hall | W |
And next him sat this faire Partelote | R |
This Chanticleer gan groanen in his throat | R |
As man that in his dream is dretched sore oppressed | R |
And when that Partelote thus heard him roar | X |
She was aghast and saide 'Hearte dear afraid | R |
What aileth you to groan in this mannere | X |
Ye be a very sleeper fy for shame ' | - |
And he answer'd and saide thus 'Madame | V |
I pray you that ye take it not agrief amiss in umbrage | A2 |
By God me mette I was in such mischief I dreamed trouble | Z |
Right now that yet mine heart is sore affright' | R |
Now God ' quoth he 'my sweven read aright dream vision | K |
And keep my body out of foul prisoun | K |
Me mette how that I roamed up and down I dreamed | R |
Within our yard where as I saw a beast | R |
Was like an hound and would have made arrest siezed | R |
Upon my body and would have had me dead | R |
His colour was betwixt yellow and red | R |
And tipped was his tail and both his ears | B |
With black unlike the remnant of his hairs | B |
His snout was small with glowing eyen tway | B2 |
Yet of his look almost for fear I dey died | R |
This caused me my groaning doubteless ' | - |
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'Away ' lt gt quoth she 'fy on you hearteless coward | R |
Alas ' quoth she 'for by that God above | C2 |
Now have ye lost my heart and all my love | C2 |
I cannot love a coward by my faith | N |
For certes what so any woman saith | N |
We all desiren if it mighte be | C |
To have husbandes hardy wise and free | C |
And secret and no niggard nor no fool discreet | R |
Nor him that is aghast of every tool afraid rag trifle | Z |
Nor no avantour by that God above braggart | R |
How durste ye for shame say to your love | C2 |
That anything might make you afear'd | R |
Have ye no manne's heart and have a beard | R |
Alas and can ye be aghast of swevenes | B |
Geoffrey Chaucer
(1)
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