The Canterbury Tales [Paperback]

Geoffrey Chaucer (Author), Larry Benson (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0395978238 | ISBN-13: 978-0395978238 | Publication Date: April 13, 2000

Based on the definitive Riverside Chaucer, this edition of The Canterbury Tales contains the complete text of all 24 Tales, thoroughly updated scholarship from the past 20 years, and extensive editorial support. This volume is ideal for instructors who want to assign only the Tales and have no need for the complete Chaucer. An overview briefly outlines the basic plot and main idea of each Tale, while a section on language and versification helps students with pronunciation. Explanatory notes provide information on sources, problematic passages, and critical interpretations. Additional pedagogy includes a glossary, a section on Chaucer's life, an index, a general bibliography, and a list of abbreviations.

Product Details

• Paperback: 574 pages
• Publisher: Wadsworth Publishing (April 13, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0395978238
• ISBN-13: 978-0395978238
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #77,969 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #17 in Books > Christian Books & Bibles > Literature & Fiction > Poetry

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Authoritative edition, but overpriced, September 4, 2006

By 

Wanda B. Red (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Canterbury Tales (Paperback)

Based on the Riverside Chaucer, this edition is the critical text of Chaucer's *Canterbury Tales.* It is accompanied by glosses of the Middle English at the bottom of the page, a useful glossary, and explanatory notes that guide the reader to further criticism. All of the above make it a good trustworthy teaching text as well as a resource for the serious amateur reader who wants to get to know Chaucer's most famous poem in its own language.

The price of the book, however, is a scandal. I teach Chaucer, and I'm embarrassed to assign a flimsy paperback like this to my students, expecting them to pay $55 for it. If perchance someone from Houghton Mifflin ever happens to read this review, please revisit the question of how you price textbooks like this one. Next time around I'm planning to use the Norton Critical edition; it may not have all twenty-four tales (it has fifteen), but the glosses are better, and it also includes a rich offering of primary contexts (Boccaccio, Petrarch, the Romance of the Rose, etc.) and criticism. And it costs less than $15.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Travelling mercies..., January 31, 2005

By 

FrKurt Messick "FrKurt Messick" (Bloomington, IN USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Canterbury Tales (Paperback)

In Chaucer's work, 'The Canterbury Tales', perhaps the greatest of English literary works from the period of the language known as Middle English, there is one particular piece that have always stood out for me.

'A Clerk ther was of Oxenford also,'

This is perhaps my favourite character, as when I first read it, it seemed to epitomise what I hoped for in my own life.

'That unto logik hadde longe y-go.
....
For him was lever have at his beddes heed
Twenty bokes, clad in blak or reed,

Of Aristotle and his philosophye,
Than robes riche, of fithele, or gay sautrye,
But al be that he was a philosophre,
Yet hadde he but litel gold in cofre,
But al that he mighte of his freendes hente,
On bokes and on lerninge he it spente,
and bisily gan for the soules preye
Of hem that yaf him wherwith to scoleye.
....
...gladly wolde he lerne, and gladly teche.'

Every now and then I cannot help but re-read this part of the Prologue, for a reminder of what I'm aiming for in my own life.

Chaucer was son of a wine merchant, something near and dear to my heart. Chaucer was well-read, well-phrased, well-mannered, industrious in literary and legal/administrative pursuits, as I trust I will become, if not already so qualified.

As one can see from the above examples, English has changed much over the past 600 years, but not so much as to make these passages unrecognisable. Compare for yourself with a modern translation, and see how much you can decipher.

Chaucer is one of the first great English authors of name; most (but not all) literary output in English prior to this time was anonymous. Living in the 1300s, he held administrative posts of importance under Kings from the time of Edward III to Henry IV. Never one to shrink from spending too much money (he had to reapply for pensions and ask for advances several times in his life) or shying away from controversy (he fell out of and came back into favour several times). When he died, he was laid to rest in Westminster Abbey, in a section on the south side that has since become Poet's Corner, largely due to Chaucer, the first great English poet, having been buried there.

In addition to his magnus opus, 'The Canterbury Tales', a collection of stories with prologue told by pilgrims on their journey to Canterbury (car radios and in-flight movies were rare in those days), Chaucer wrote minor poems to suit various occasions (his first record as poet comes from having written a poem as elegy on the death of John of Gaunt's first wife, Blanche, in 1369), and the major work for which he was noted for 'Troilus and Criseyde', which showed his sense of humour, power of observation and attention to detail, and keen dramatic skills in language. This work is often compared to Dante and Boccaccio, perhaps the most famous poets of the day. 'The Canterbury Tales' is actually intended to be much longer - 120 tales told by 30 pilgrims (two each on the way to Canterbury, and two each returning). As it is, there are only 24 tales plus a prologue - had it been completed, it would be by far the longest poem in the English language.

There is a strong, practical side to Chaucer's writing, sophisticated yet not aloof and removed from the affairs of the world, cultured yet in tune with the better (and more interesting) aspects of the common people, too.

This edition by Larry Benson is designed for those who only want the Canterbury Tales, not the other writings of Chaucer, but want a set of the complete tales and prologue from standard texts. This comes from the Riverside Chaucer, with introductory notes explaining plot, versification, and various issues that might arise in the translation of the tales. The indexes include one for proper names. There is also a timeline showing Chaucer's life that is handy for students.

For those who want the Canterbury Tales in good form, this is a good volume to get.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A superior edition for scholars and novices alike, August 30, 2006

By 

Nouche "Nouche!" (Winthrop, MA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Canterbury Tales (Paperback)

This edition of the Canterbury Tales, edited by Larry Benson, is superb. It is based on the Riverside Chaucer, Third Edition (also edited by Benson) and is as authoritative as you can get. It's greatest attribute is the presentation of a highly readable text that will be appreciated by scholars and lovers of Chaucer of all levels. It's beautifully glossed, but in an unobtrusive manner that allows the language to sing off the page without any unneccesary interruptions; the copious (and useful) vocab and grammar notes are clearly marked by line and placed below the body text, thus one can read (aloud preferably!) at one's own pace without being constantly interrupted. The placement and economy of the notes also makes for a clear presentation and a great reading text that allows one to approach the Tales at one's own pace. Highly informative and entertaining essays on Chaucer's life, outlining the history and conext in which he lived and wrote, and on the language and versification of the Tales introduce the volume and provide an excellent jumping off point into the them. The latter essay is a decent - albeit brief - introduction to reading and pronounciation of the Middle English that Chaucer employs in the Tales, but it is far from comprehensive in that it confines its survey to just the Tales. Although covering only the most basic elements thereof while paying scant attention to the nuances of inflection and grammar (and, again, variations and specifics of Middle English in general and Chaucer's language in his other works), it is still a great gateway, especially for the novice reader of Chaucer who wishes to engage the author and the work in their original vernacular. And this is really where this edition acheives - it presents a highly readable and accesible version of Chaucer's masterpiece and allows readers of all levels to approach the poem(s) on their own terms, unencumbered by an intrusive or burdensome sholarly apparatus. In other words, one can approach the Tales with just enough context, historically and linguistically, to engage with it in a manner as close to possible as a fluent reader of Middle English would have. And the perfect balance between inspiring the novice reader to venture forth independently and the superior guidance that is readily available with just a quick glance toward the bottom of the page, will undoubtadly improve one's reading and comprehension of Middle English. Scholars of all levels will appreciate and enjoy this edition. Larry Benson (still teaching at Harvard, by the way) is one of the great Chaucerians and has given us one of the best editions of Chaucer available - one that is equally beneficial and interesting to both the student and the layman. The point is, you can't outgrow this one. If anything, you can grow into it. What more could one want?