Nun’s Priest’s Tale Quotes

This wydwe, of which I telle yow my tale,
Syn thilke day that she was last a wyf
In pacience ladde a ful symple lyf,
For litel was hir catel and hir rente.
By housbondrie of swich as God hire sente
She foond hirself and eek hir doghtren two.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Nun’s Priest’s Tale. This describes the poor widow who has little possessions and income and leads a simple life, working hard to support herself and her two daughters. The poverty of the elderly widow is meant to contrast with the magnificence of the elegant Chauntecleer – the noble farmyard cock – in this beast fable.

No wyn ne drank she, neither whit ne reed;
Hir bord was served moost with whit and blak –
Milk and broun breed, in which she foond no lak,
Seynd bacoun, and somtyme an ey or tweye,
For she was, as it were, a maner deye.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Nun’s Priest’s Tale. This is a humorous description of the widowed dairywoman’s modest circumstances and simple diet of bread, bacon and occasional egg. Notably absent are the luxuries and delicacies enjoyed daily by aristocratic and rich folk.

His coomb was redder than the fyn coral,
And batailled as it were a castel wal;
His byle was blak, and as the jeet it shoon;
Lyk asure were his legges and his toon;
His nayles whitter than the lylye flour,
And lyk the burned gold was his colour.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Nun’s Priest’s Tale. The magnificent rooster Chauntecleer is quite the dandy. In his physical description the same words could be used to describe a noble knight or warrior. We get splendid similes like "batailled as it were a castel wal," "fyn coral," "asure," "burned gold," "lily flour, "as the jeet it shoon." The vain and handsome Chauntecleer is brilliantly detailed: fine coral comb battlemented like a castle wall, azure legs, lily white spurs, bill shining like jet stone, and plumage of burnished gold. He is the very image of a royal rooster.

This gentil cok hadde in his governaunce
Sevene hennes for to doon al his plesaunce,
Whiche were his sustres and his paramours.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Nun’s Priest’s Tale. The noble Chauntecleer is elevated to a high courtly position as the only male in a farmyard of females. There he has a haren of seven hens to do all his pleasure – just like the Nun’s Priest is surrounded by a community of nuns whom he serves. The hens are described as Chauntecleer’s sisters and lovers.

Of whiche the faireste hewed on hir throte
Was cleped faire damoysele Pertelote.
Curteys she was, discreet, and debonaire
And compaignable, and bar hyrself so faire
Syn thilke day that she was seven nyght oold,
That trewely she hath the herte in hoold
Of Chauntecleer loken in every lith.
He loved hire so, that wel was hym therwith.
But swich a joye was it to here hem synge
Whan that the brighte sonne gan to sprynge,
In sweete accord, "My lief is faren in londe!"

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Nun’s Priest’s Tale. The most beautiful of the hens, Pertelote, is described in courtly terms like fair, courteous, discreet, debonaire and she is in possession of Chauntecleer’s heart. He prizes her for her good looks. He sings to her romantic songs like "My lief is faren in londe" (My love walks through the land) and he loves her above all the other hens.

And he answerde, and seyde thus: "Madame,
I pray yow that ye take it nat agrief.
By God, me mette I was in swich meschief
Right now that yet myn herte is soore afright.
Now God," quod he, "my swevene recche aright,
And kepe my body out of foul prisoun!"

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Nun’s Priest’s Tale. One spring morning Chauntecleer awakens from a terrible dream which strikes terrible fear in him. He mentions it to Pertelote, appealing to her to help him interpret his dream correctly to keep his body out of foul captivity.

His colour was bitwixe yelow and reed…
His snowte smal, with glowynge eyen tweye.
Yet of his look for feere almoost I deye.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Nun’s Priest’s Tale. Pertelote listens as Chauntecleer describes the terrifying, hound-like beast that attacks him in his dream. His color is between yellow and red, his snout small, with two glowing eyes, and for fear of his look the terrified rooster says he almost dies. This is the Fox that will later attack Chauntecleer.

"Avoy!" quod she, "fy on yow, hertelees!
Allas," quod she, "for, by that God above,
Now han ye lost myn herte and al my love!
I kan nat love a coward, by my feith!

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Nun’s Priest’s Tale. Chauntecleer gets short shrift from Pertelote when he recounts his terrible, frightening dream to her of a beast roaming in the yard trying to seize him. Far from offering him sympathy, the judgmental hen shames and belittles him. She sternly rebukes him for making so much of a dream, brands him a coward, and says that he has lost all her love for she cannot love a coward!

For certes, what so any womman seith,
We alle desiren, if it myghte bee,
To han housbondes hardy, wise, and free,
And secree – and no nygard, ne no fool,
Ne hym that is agast of every tool,
Ne noon avauntour, by that God above!

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Nun’s Priest’s Tale. In her rebuke and put-down of husband Chauntecleer for being frightened of a dream, Pertelote gives him the list of qualities that she demands in a husband. She claims that all women desire their husbands to be hardy, wise, generous, no miser or fool, not a boaster and not to be afraid of every tool. She is basically telling him to man up!

Mordre is so wlatsom and abhomynable
To God that is so just and resonable,
That he ne wol nat suffre it heled be,
Though it abyde a yeer, or two, or thre.
Mordre wol out, this my conclusioun.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Nun’s Priest’s Tale. Chauntecleer argues the significance of dreams, citing the story of a man who uncovers the murder of his friend for his gold through a dream. Murder is so hateful and abominable to God, says Chauntecleer, that he will not suffer it to be hidden, and it will eventually out, even if it takes one, two, three years.

For al so siker as in principio
Mulier est hominis confusio, –
Madame, the sentence of this Latyn is,
"Womman is mannes joye and al his blis."

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Nun’s Priest’s Tale. The henpecked Chauntecleer allows his wife Pertelote to manipulate him into dismissing his ominous dream. Here he quotes to her the Latin phrase "Mulier es hominus confusio," as meaning: "woman is man’s joy and all his bliss." But this is an unfortunate mistranslation, as the real meaning would have warned him about his wife’s dangerous advice: "Woman is the ruin of man." He really should have studied his Latin better, then he might not have listened to his wife’s bad counsel.

"The sonne," he seyde, "is clomben up on hevene
Fourty degrees and oon, and moore ywis.
Madame Pertelote, my worldes blis,
Herkneth thise blisful briddes how they synge,
And se the fresshe floures how they sprynge.
Ful is myn herte of revel and solas."

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Nun’s Priest’s Tale. The pompous rooster is walking with his seven wives. He tells his favorite Pertelote how his heart is full of happiness and pleasure as the sun climbs high in the heaven, the happy birds are singing and the fresh flowers are blooming.
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