Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 — Romaunt of the Rose; Minor Poems

Transcriber's note: A few typographical errors have been corrected: they
are listed at the end of the text.

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In this text [*e] represents the "schwa" or obscure vowel, printed as
inverted-e, and [gh] represents the Middle English letter "yogh", similar
to the numeral 3. [=a] signifies "a macron", and so forth.

Parallel bilingual texts are marked with << for Chaucer's text, >> for the
original, in blocks as printed page by page.

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[Illustration: Vol. I. _Frontispiece._

GEOFFREY CHAUCER: FROM MS. HARL. 4866]

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THE COMPLETE WORKS

OF

GEOFFREY CHAUCER

_EDITED, FROM NUMEROUS MANUSCRIPTS_

BY THE

REV. WALTER W. SKEAT, M.A.
LITT.D., LL.D., D.C.L., PH.D.
ELRINGTON AND BOSWORTH PROFESSOR OF ANGLO-SAXON
AND FELLOW OF CHRIST'S COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE

*

ROMAUNT OF THE ROSE

MINOR POEMS

                      ----'blanda sonantibus
                      Chordis carmina temperans.'
                              BOETHIUS, _De Cons. Phil._ Lib. III. Met. 12.

 'He temprede hise blaundisshinge songes by resowninge strenges.'
                                             _Chaucer's Translation._

SECOND EDITION

Oxford

AT THE CLARENDON PRESS

MDCCCXCIX

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Oxford

PRINTED AT THE CLARENDON PRESS
BY HORACE HART, M.A.,
PRINTER TO THE UNIVERSITY

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CONTENTS.

*** The Portrait of Chaucer in the frontispiece is noticed at p. lix.

                                                                       PAGE
  GENERAL INTRODUCTION                                                  vii

  LIFE OF CHAUCER                                                        ix

  LIST OF CHAUCER'S WORKS                                              lxii

  ERRATA AND ADDENDA                                                   lxiv

  INTRODUCTION TO THE ROMAUNT OF THE ROSE.--§ 1. Why (the chief part
  of) the Romaunt of the Rose is not Chaucer's. § 2. The English
  Version of the Romaunt. § 3. Internal evidence. § 4. Dr. Lidner's
  opinion. § 5. Dr. Kaluza's opinion. The three Fragments. § 6.
  Discussion of Fragment B. Test. I.--Proportion of English to
  French. § 7. Test II.--Dialect. § 8. Test III.--The Riming of
  _-y_ with _-yë_. § 9. Test IV.--Assonant Rimes. § 10.
  Result: Fragment B is not by Chaucer. § 11. Discussion of Fragment
  C. § 12. Rime-tests. § 13. Further considerations. § 14. Result:
  Fragment C is not by the author of Fragment B, and perhaps not by
  Chaucer. § 15. Discussion of Fragment A. (1) Rimes in _-y._
  (2) Rimes in _-yë_ § 16. No false rimes. § 17. The three
  Fragments seem to be all distinct. § 18. Fragment A is probably
  Chaucer's. § 19. Summary. § 20. Probability of the results. § 21.
  The external evidence. § 22. The Glasgow MS. § 23. Th.--Thynne's
  Edition; 1532. § 24. Reprints. § 25. The Present Edition. § 26.
  Some corrections. § 27. The French Text. §§ 28, 29. Brief Analysis
  of the French Poem: G. de Lorris. § 30. Jean de Meun; to the end
  of Fragment B. § 31. Gap in the Translation. § 32. Fragment C.
  § 33. Chaucer's use of 'Le Roman.' § 34. Méon's French text             1

  INTRODUCTION TO THE MINOR POEMS.--§ 1. Principles of selection.
  § 2. Testimony of Chaucer regarding his Works. § 3. Lydgate's
  List. § 4. Testimony of Shirley. § 5. Testimony of Scribes.
  § 6. Testimony of Caxton. § 7. Early Editions of Chaucer.
  § 8. Contents of Stowe's Edition (1561): Part I.--Reprinted
  Matter. § 9. Part II.--Additions by Stowe. § 10. Part I. discussed.
  § 11. Part II. discussed. § 12. Poems added by Speght.
  § 13. Poems added by Morris. § 14. Description of the MSS.
  List of the MSS. § 15. Remarks on the MSS. at Oxford.
  § 16. MSS. at Cambridge. § 17. London MSS. § 18. I.--A. B. C.
  § 19. II.--The Compleynt unto Pitè. § 20. III.--The Book of
  the Duchesse. § 21. IV.--The Compleynt of Mars. § 22. V.--The
  Parlement of Foules. § 23. VI.--A Compleint to his Lady.
  § 24. VII.--Anelida and Arcite. § 25. VIII. Chaucers Wordes
  unto Adam. § 26. IX.--The Former Age. § 27. X.--Fortune.
  § 28. XI.--Merciless Beauty. § 29. XII.--To Rosemounde.
  § 30. XIII.--Truth. § 31. XIV.--Gentilesse. § 32. XV.--Lak
  of Stedfastnesse. § 33. XVI--Lenvoy to Scogan. § 34.
  XVII.--Lenvoy to Bukton. § 35. XVIII.--Compleynt of Venus.
  § 36. XIX.--The Compleint to his Purse. § 37. XX.--Proverbs.
  § 38. XXI.--Against Women Unconstaunt. § 39. XXII.--An
  Amorous Complaint. § 40. XXIII.--Balade of Compleynt. § 41.
  Concluding Remarks                                                     20

  THE ROMAUNT OF THE ROSE.
  FRAGMENT A. (with the French Text)                                     93
  FRAGMENT B. (containing Northern forms)                               164
  FRAGMENT C.                                                           229

  THE MINOR POEMS.
      I.