'Whoever best acquits himself, and tells The most amusing and instructive tale, Shall have a dinner, paid for by us all...' In Chaucer's most ambitious poem, The Canterbury Tales (c. 1387), a group of pilgrims assembles in an inn just outside London and agree to entertain each other on the way to Canterbury by telling stories. The pilgrims come from all ranks of society, from the crusading Knight and burly Miller to the worldly Monk and lusty Wife of Bath. Their tales are as various as the tellers, including romance, ...
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'Whoever best acquits himself, and tells The most amusing and instructive tale, Shall have a dinner, paid for by us all...' In Chaucer's most ambitious poem, The Canterbury Tales (c. 1387), a group of pilgrims assembles in an inn just outside London and agree to entertain each other on the way to Canterbury by telling stories. The pilgrims come from all ranks of society, from the crusading Knight and burly Miller to the worldly Monk and lusty Wife of Bath. Their tales are as various as the tellers, including romance, bawdy comedy, beast fable, learned debate, parable, and Eastern adventure. The resulting collection gives us a set of characters so vivid that they have often been taken as portraits from real life, and a series of stories as hilarious in their comedy as they are affecting in their tragedy. Even after 600 years, their account of the human condition seems both fresh and true. This new edition of David Wright's acclaimed translation includes a new critical introduction and invaluable notes by a leading Chaucer scholar. ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.
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Add this copy of The Canterbury Tales (Puffin Classics) to cart. $0.99, good condition, Sold by More Than Words rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Waltham, MA, UNITED STATES, published 1997 by Puffin Books.
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Add this copy of The Canterbury Tales to cart. $0.99, good condition, Sold by Jenson Books Inc rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Logan, UT, UNITED STATES, published 1990 by Simon & Schuster.
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I thought I was buying the Canterbury Tales. That's what the title says, but it is some little paraphrase of the Canterbury tales, a few pages long and in modern English. They should call it what it is. I didn't want to give it any stars but it wouldn't publish without a rating. The real rating is Zero Stars.
Khlit
Jun 23, 2009
Crummy, boring
I had to read this for medieval literature and it was my least favorite book. The stories are either boring, bawdy, or cliche. The plot lines, despite being written long ago, are uninteresting and easy to predict. It is not worth the time it takes to read. Don't be deceived by the fact that it is a so-called classic. And I don't say this as a classic-hater, being a classicist myself, but as a critic.
The Pageturner
Oct 29, 2008
Pilgrimage Through Reading
This book was assigned to us in British Literature class. We only read a few selected story, but each one made me laugh, especially "The Wife of Bath". If the you, the reader reads nothing else in the book, you MUST read "The Wife of Bath". It is exceedingly comical. It is a good idea to have Cliff notes next to you as you, that way you can catch the slang terms and inuendos. Wonderful read and superb portrayal of characters, making them "real".
brin1956
Apr 3, 2007
A classic
This is a wonderful story and based on real life. Chaucer was one on the greatest writers of his time.
