The fourteenth-century poem here edited is held to support the view that Chaucer's depiction of the Franklin in GP is straightforward and favorable, not ironic or satiric.
In Form Age, as in medieval tradition, Nimrod represents the final stages of decline, especially the lust for political dominance, in the world after Adam's Fall.
Investigates traditions of medieval antifeminism to show the ambivalences present in the Wife, whom Chaucer presents as both a satire on womanhood and a threat to orthodox male authority.
In HF, Chaucer makes parodic use of traditional topics of the "artes grammaticae," especially in the Eagle's explanation of the propagation of sound and in Chaucer's treatment of the reliability and importance of "auctores."
Baswell, Christopher C.,and Paul Beekman Taylor.
Speculum 63 (1988): 293-311.
Borrowing from classical, mythographical, and iconographic sources, Chaucer uses Helen of Troy in TC both as a character and as a model to parallel and emphasize Criseyde's calm detachment and ultimate infidelity, leading to betrayal of Troilus and…
Presents a theory of irony, examines various ironic interpretations of "De amore," including those by Alfred Karnein, Betsy Bowden, and D. W. Robertson, Jr., and concludes that the numerous inconsistencies in the work either were unintentional on…
The absence of holographs and of other early manuscripts, along with other evidence, suggests that Chaucer left only "foul papers" or copies of his works, especially CT and TC, in a state of more or less continual revision, from which different…
The source of PhyT 30-120 and 238-50 is the thirteenth-century "Communiloquium" of John of Wales, not (as argued by Martha S. Waller in 1976) a fourteenth-century commentary by Castrojeriz.
ParsT makes use of a tradition of penitential mediation (cf. ParsP 55 and 69) on the virtues and vices. In the plan of CT, ParsT abandons the emotive fiction and fables of the earlier tales for the solid ground of meditation, transforming an earthly…
The public evidence of Edward III's religious devotion reveals his rather conventional piety, "imbued with a strong and confident nationalism" and dedicated largely to commendation of his dynasty.
Studies the national and regional prominence of the Gloucestershire magnate Sir Thomas Berkeley (1352-1417) in relation to his literary patronage, especially of John Trevisa and of John Walton's verse translation (partly based on Chaucer's Bo) of…
Dates the macaronic lyric "On the Times" ("Syng y wold, butt, alas!") at 1380, reading it as a commentary on events and attitudes leading to the Peasants' Revolt of 1381.
Although the Merchant's voice and attitudes are cynical and misogynistic, the "marriage encomium, Justinus's speeches, and the episode of Pluto and Proserpine" counter them. Tensions between the narrator and the material of MerT represent "competing…
Examines the word "raptus" in late-fourteenth-century English law and concludes that it meant "forced coitus." Also prints a newly discovered document relating to Cecily Chaumpaigne's case against Chaucer and suggests that the phrase "de raptu meo,"…
Argues that the autobiographical portion of Hoccleve's "Regement of Princes" and its "praise and portrait" of Chaucer indicate that the poem is part of a broader "program of kingly self-representation" undertaken by Henry, Prince of Wales, who…
Griselda's assent to Walter's wishes, which goes beyond the patience or concealment that he demands, represents complete identification or unity of will. In the theological terms of Rudolph Otto, her assent is not "moral" but "numinous." The…
Relates the GP portraits to the philosophy of realism expressed by Scotus and Peirce. Chaucer's realism is especially like Peirce's in its emphasis on behavior, historical coordinates, and the use of lively action or dynamic process to define the…
Linguistic claims that Chaucer's English is the origin of English literary language are self-fulfilling, based on the "myth," in the sense of Levi-Strauss, that Chaucer originated English poetic tradition. The OED credits Chaucer with the first…
Assesses Pandarus's house and its literary functions in light of architectural details of fourteenth-century houses such as the "privy," "stewe," and "trappe" and in relation to conventions of medieval dramatic staging. Pandarus, leading Troilus…
There is little or no archival or topographical evidence to suggest that the Prioress's convent of St. Leonard's Priory in Stratford-at-Bow profited from houses of prostitution in Southwark. Bordellos existed along the Thames (and were duly taxed and…
English political poetry of the 1380s and 1390s was deeply marked by the self-image of the monarch, which shifted about the time of the Merciless Parliament (1388), as Richard II became more experienced and less playful. Chaucer's PF and revision of…
A critique of psychoanalytic approaches to medieval literature--based on the "fatal flaws" of "Freudian methods of inquiry"-and a rejection of psychoanalytic approaches to Chaucer's Pardoner, including Patterson's previous work. Patterson suggests an…
