Menu

Free Literature Study Guides
The Great Gatsby
Hamlet

Free Literature Study Guides
The Great Gatsby
Hamlet

Canterbury Tales Merchant Quotes

Though I be hoor, I fare as dooth a tree
That blosmeth er that fruyt ywoxen bee;
And blosmy tree nys neither drye ne deed.
I feele me nowhere hoor but on myn heed;
Myn herte and alle my lymes been as grene
As laurer thurgh the yeer is for to sene.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. January blindly refuses to acknowledge his old age and compares himself to a blossoming tree. Though he is white-haired, he fares like a tree that blossoms before the fruit is grown. In fact he boasts that he is old nowhere but on his white head, his heart and limbs are as green as laurel. But he is being dishonest when you consider the aphrodisiacs that he must take on his wedding night and the deep sleep he falls into after sex!

The yongeste man that is in al this route
Is bisy ynough to bryngen it aboute
To han his wyf allone. Trusteth me,
Ye shul nat plesen hire fully yeres thre.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. Although elder knight January has bragged that he is like a blossoming tree, Justinus warns his brother that young women have demanding sexual appetites and he is not going to please her for very long. This is forewhadowing of his young wife turning to the younger man Damian.

Many fair shap and many a fair visage
Ther passeth thurgh his herte nyght by nyght,
As whoso tooke a mirour, polisshed bryght,
And sette it in a commune market-place.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. Old January in his search for a young wife completely focuses on appearance and beauty. Fair women and fair bodies pass through his head like images reflected on a mirror set up in a market-place. He is only interested in a young girl’s looks and he objectifies women like they are goods to be traded.

For love is blynd alday, and may nat see.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. When January decides upon a young beautiful girl for a wife, the Merchant comments that love is blind always and cannot see. But it is lust more than love that blinds the self-deceiving January to reality and the truth.

Hir fresshe beautee and hir age tendre.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. January’s main concern in choosing May for his wife is her outward appearance. He sees her as physically beautiful.

Which mayde, he seyde, he wolde han to his wyf,
To lede in ese and hoolynesse his lyf.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. January lives in his imagination rather than in reality. He deceives himself into thinking that life with a wife – young May – will be easy and holy. He is in for an unholy upset.

Dispeire yow noght, but have in youre memorie,
Paraunter she may be youre purgatorie!
She may be Goddes meene and Goddes whippe;
Thanne shal youre soule up to hevene skippe
Swifter than dooth an arwe out of a bowe.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. Justinus to brother January after the old knight expresses fears that marriage will be such a heaven on earth it will supersede the rewards of the afterlife. Justinus, who is against January marrying a woman so much younger than himself, warns him that she may turn out to be his purgatory on earth!

That she was lyk the brighte morwe of May,
Fulfild of alle beautee and plesaunce.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. We get our first glimpse of January’s young bride May. The Merchant uses a smile to describe her beauty as being like the bright morning of May.

Tendre youthe hath wedded stoupyng age.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. The contrast emphasises the difference in age between old January and young May in this marriage.

This Januarie is ravysshed in a traunce
At every tyme he looked on hir face.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. January’s immediate response to May is that he is overcome by lust for her. He is ravished in a trance every time he looks at her, underlining how superficial and shallow he is when it comes to engaging with the opposite sex. Women are sexual symbols for him.

He was so ravysshed on his lady May
That for the verray peyne he was ny wood.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. The youthful Damian’s lust for May is so bad that he is nearly driven crazy with the pain! As with January, May is objectified by Damian and degraded as a sexual symbol.

O servant traytour, false hoomly hewe.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. The Merchant on January’s false and traitorous servant Damian, who lusts after his employer’s young wife.

O Januarie, dronken in plesaunce
In mariage, se how thy Damyan,
Thyn owene squier and thy borne man,
Entendeth for to do thee vileynye.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. Old January, drunk with pleasure on marrying a young bride, deceives himself that all is well in paradise. But there are none so blind as those who will not see. He is blind to the threat from his own squire who plans to do him villainy.

For in this world nys worse pestilence
Than hoomly foo al day in thy presence.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. His young handsome squire Damian is the foe in January’s household referred to here. He is secretly lusting after January’s wife May and has betrayal in his heart. As Princess Di once famously said: "There were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded."

He drynketh ypocras, clarree, and vernage
Of spices hoote t’ encreessen his corage;
And many a letuarie hath he ful fyn.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. Old January has deceived himself into believing that he is as virile and sexually able as a young man. Yet on his wedding night he needs the medieval equivalent of Viagra to perform for his much younger wife. He drinks strong wines with hot spices and takes aphrodisiacs to increase his desire.

Ther nys no werkman, whatsoevere he be,
That may bothe werke wel and hastily;
This wol be doon at leyser parfitly.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. The old knight January comically likens himself to a craftsman at work on consummating his marriage on his wedding night. He deceives himself into thinking he is doing a great job. No workman can work both well and hastily, he tells young bride May, this will be done at leisure and perfectly! But his labor of love turns out far from perfect as far as May is concerned.

A man may do no synne with his wyf,
Ne hurte hymselven with his owene knyf.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. January self-deceivingly says that a man cannot sin with his wife, no more than he can hurt himself with his own knife. His claim that legally he can do whatever he likes to his wife’s body shows him as a deluded and no noble knight. For him wives are there to provide sexual services for men as and when required.

Thus laboureth he til that the day gan dawe.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. For January his love-making to May on their wedding night turns out to be a monumental task. The sex between them is described as labor and it goes on all night until dawn! It certainly was no quickie for the old boy!

But God woot what that May thoughte in hir herte.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. While May hasn’t spoken of it yet, God knows that she doesn’t enjoy January’s company and performance in bed.

She preyseth nat his pleyyng worth a bene.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. Despite fooling himself that he is a perfect lover, January isn’t so fresh in the bedroom at he thinks. Dissatisfied with his love-making, new bride May gives it the thumbs down – "not worth a bean."

This sike Damyan in Venus fyr
So brenneth that he dyeth for desyr.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. Here we have a metaphor on how Damian is struck down by lovesickeness from his burning sexual passion for May.

And in a lettre wroot he al his sorwe,
In manere of a compleynt or a lay,
Unto his faire, fresshe lady May;
And in a purs of sylk heng on his sherte
He hath it put, and leyde it at his herte.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. Initiating his seduction plan, the lovelorn Damian writes a love letter setting out his desire for January’s wife May. He puts the yet undelivered letter in a silk purse which he hangs on his shirt next to his heart.

She feyned hire as that she moste gon
Ther as ye woot that every wight moot neede;
And whan she of this bille hath taken heede,
She rente it al to cloutes atte laste,
And in the pryvee softely it caste.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. May excuses herself from January and pretends to go to the toilet. There she reads Damian’s love letter expressing his strong lustful desire for her. After taking it in she tears it into pieces and throws it into the toilet, so as not to be discovered. January moves another step closer to being cuckolded by his new young wife.

Anon he preyde hire strepen hire al naked;
He wolde of hire, he seyde, han som plesaunce;
He seyde hir clothes dide hym encombraunce,
And she obeyeth, be hire lief or looth.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. January wakes up in bed and instructs May to strip for sex on demand. She obeys, whether she wants to or not, we are told – suggesting that she is not turned on her husband’s love-making.

How that he wroghte, I dar nat to yow telle,
Or wheither hire thoughte it paradys or helle.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. This is reference to May’s dissatisfaction with January’s performance in bed – following her reading of Damian’s love letter to her. This foreshadows that the unfulfilled May will soon seek out new sexual pastures with her young lovestruck suitor Damian.

"Certeyn," thoghte she, "whom that this thyng displese
I rekke noght, for heere I hym assure
To love hym best of any creature,
Though he namoore hadde than his sherte."

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. These are the first words of May in the tale. Unhappy with her old husband’s performance between the sheets, she makes up her mind that she wants young Damian. While all he has is the shirt on his back, she will "love hym best of any creature." But it’s clear that pure lust rather than true love is her motivation in accepting her husband’s young squire.

Lo, pitee renneth soone in gentil herte!

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. This line about pity running soon in gentle or noble heart is highly ironic. It is a comment on May’s motivation and feelings regarding her decision to commit adultery with Damian, when she has pledged her love to January.

Right of hire hand a lettre made she,
In which she graunteth hym hire verray grace.
Ther lakketh noght oonly but day and place
Wher that she myghte unto his lust suffise.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. May writes a letter to Damian granting him his wish to be her lover. Now nothing remained but to arrange a time and place where she might satisy his desires.

He made a gardyn, walled al with stoon;
So fair a gardyn woot I nowher noon.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. January’s jealousy over his young wife May prompts him to construct a magnificent garden walled with stone in which to hide May. This shows the old man’s restrictive control of his young wife.

Swich deyntee hath in it to walke and pleye,
That he wol no wight suffren bere the keye
Save he hymself; for of the smale wyket
He baar alwey of silver a clyket,
With which, whan that hym leste, he it unshette.
And whan he wolde paye his wyf hir dette
In somer seson, thider wolde he go.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale. In summer whenever he desires it January has sex with his beautiful young wife in his walled garden. The garden gate is kept locked and only January has the key which he has always on his person. He likes to keep beauty in a prison.

- 1
- 2
- 3