What Chaucer Really Did to 'Le Livre de Melibee'

Description: Argues that in translating Renaud de Louens's "Le Livre de Mellibee" in his own Mel, Chaucer created an "overtly rhetorical style for purposes of parody." Probably an expansion of an earlier, abridged translation by Chaucer, Mel is characterized by sonic repetitions, amplifications, and overt rhythms that show the narrator to be "bumbling" and, in turn, help characterize the Host as a flawed critic. Mel contributes to the Marriage Group and the Literature Group of CT.

Chaucer Subjects: Tale of Melibee; Sources, Analogues, and Literary Relations; Style and Versification