The Canterbury Tales · Chaucer’s Tale of Meliboeus · The Prologue

The Prologue

“No more of this, for Goddë’s dignity!”

Quoth ourë Hostë; “for thou makest me

So weary of thy very lewëdness,3928

That, all so wisly3929 God my soulë bless,

Mine earës achë for thy drafty3930 speech.

Now such a rhyme the devil I beteche:3931

This may well be rhyme doggerel,” quoth he.

“Why so?” quoth I; “why wilt thou lettë3932 me

More of my tale than any other man,

Since that it is the best rhyme that I can?”

“By God!” quoth he, “for, plainly at one word,

Thy drafty rhyming is not worth a tord:

Thou dost naught ellës but dispendest3933 time.

Sir, at one word, thou shalt no longer rhyme.

Let see whe’er3934 thou canst tellen aught in gest,3935

Or tell in prosë somewhat, at the least,

In which there be some mirth or some doctríne.”3936

“Gladly,” quoth I, “by Goddë’s sweetë pine,3937

I will you tell a little thing in prose,

That oughtë likë you,3938 as I suppose,

Or else certés ye be too dangerous.3939

It is a moral talë virtuous,

All be it3940 told sometimes in sundry wise

By sundry folk, as I shall you devise.

As thus, ye wot that ev’ry Evangelist,

That telleth us the pain3941 of Jesus Christ,

He saith not all thing as his fellow doth;

But natheless their sentence is all soth,3942

And all accorden as in their senténce,3943

All be there in their telling differénce;

For some of them say more, and some say less,

When they his piteous passión express;

I mean of Mark and Matthew, Luke and John;

But doubtëless their sentence is all one.

Therefore, lordingës all, I you beseech,

If that ye think I vary in my speech,

As thus, though that I tellë some deal more

Of proverbës, than ye have heard before

Comprehended in this little treatise here,

T’ enforcë with3944 the effect of my mattére,

And though I not the same wordës say

As ye have heard, yet to you all I pray

Blame me not; for as in my senténce

Shall ye nowhere findë no differénce

From the senténce of thilkë3945 treatise lite,3946

After the which this merry tale I write.

And therefore hearken to what I shall say,

And let me tellen all my tale, I pray.”