Today | News | Books | Recipes Adventure | Science Fiction | Ghost stories | Poetry | Children | History Chaucer's Works, Volume 2 — Boethius and TroilusThe Project Gutenberg eBook of Chaucer's Works, Volume 2 - Boethius and Troilus This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook. Title: Chaucer's Works, Volume 2 - Boethius and Troilus Author: Geoffrey Chaucer Editor: Walter W. Skeat Release date: February 5, 2014 [eBook #44833] Most recently updated: October 24, 2024 Language: English Other information and formats: www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/44833 Credits: Produced by Jonathan Ingram, Keith Edkins and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net *** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CHAUCER'S WORKS, VOLUME 2 - BOETHIUS AND TROILUS *** Transcriber's note: Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_). [=a] signifies "a with macron"; [)a] "a with breve"; and so forth. [gh] represents yogh, [*e] the schwa. A carat character is used to denote superscription: a single character following the carat is superscripted (example: 4^o). Project Gutenberg has Volume VI of Skeat's edition, which contains a Glossary covering the two texts in this volume. See: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/43097 * * * * * [Illustration: MS. CORP. CHR. COLL., CAMBRIDGE. Troil. iv. 575-588 _Frontispiece**_] THE COMPLETE WORKS OF GEOFFREY CHAUCER _EDITED, FROM NUMEROUS MANUSCRIPTS_ BY THE REV. WALTER W. SKEAT, M.A. LITT.D., LL.D., D.C.L., PH.D. ELRINGTON AND BOSWORTH PROFESSOR OF ANGLO-SAXON AND FELLOW OF CHRIST'S COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE * * BOETHIUS AND TROILUS 'Adam scriveyn, if ever it thee befalle Boece or Troilus to wryten newe, Under thy lokkes thou most have the scalle, But after my making thou wryte trewe.' _Chaucers Wordes unto Adam._ SECOND EDITION Oxford AT THE CLARENDON PRESS M DCCCC * * * * * * Oxford PRINTED AT THE CLARENDON PRESS BY HORACE HART, M.A. PRINTER TO THE UNIVERSITY * * * * * * CONTENTS. PAGE INTRODUCTION TO BOETHIUS.--§ 1. Date of the Work. § 2. Boethius. § 3. The Consolation of Philosophy; and fate of its author. § 4. Jean de Meun. § 5. References by Boethius to current events. § 6. Cassiodorus. § 7. Form of the Treatise. § 8. Brief sketch of its general contents. § 9. Early translations. § 10. Translation by Ælfred. § 11. MS. copy, with A.S. glosses. § 12. Chaucer's translation mentioned. § 13. Walton's verse translation. § 14. Specimen of the same. § 15. His translation of Book ii. met. 5. § 16. M. E. prose translation; and others. § 17. Chaucer's translation and le Roman de la Rose. § 18. Chaucer's scholarship. § 19. Chaucer's prose. § 20. Some of his mistakes. § 21. Other variations considered. § 22. Imitations of Boethius in Chaucer's works. § 23. Comparison with 'Boece' of other works by Chaucer. § 24. Chronology of Chaucer's works, as illustrated by 'Boece.' § 25. The Manuscripts. § 26. The Printed Editions. § 27. The Present Edition vii INTRODUCTION TO TROILUS.--§ 1. Date of the Work. § 2. Sources of the Work; Boccaccio's Filostrato. §§ 3, 4. Other sources. § 5. Chaucer's share in it. § 6. Vagueness of reference to sources. § 7. Medieval note-books. § 8. Lollius. § 9. Guido delle Colonne. § 10. 'Trophee.' §§ 11, 12. The same continued. §§ 13-17. Passages from Guido. §§ 18, 19. Dares, Dictys, and Benôit de Ste-More. § 20. The names; Troilus, &c. § 21. Roman de la Rose. § 22. Gest Historiale. § 23. Lydgate's Siege of Troye. § 24. Henrysoun's Testament of Criseyde. § 25. The MSS. § 26. The Editions. § 27. The Present Edition. § 28. Deficient lines. § 29. Proverbs. § 30. Kinaston's Latin translation. § 31. Sidnam's translation xlix BOETHIUS DE CONSOLATIONE PHILOSOPHIE 1 BOOK I. 1 BOOK II. 23 BOOK III. 51 BOOK IV. 92 BOOK V. 126 TROILUS AND CRISEYDE 153 BOOK I. 153 BOOK II. 189 BOOK III. 244 BOOK IV. 302 BOOK V. 357 NOTES TO BOETHIUS 419 NOTES TO TROILUS 461 INTRODUCTION TO BOETHIUS. § 1. DATE OF THE WORK. In my introductory remarks to the Legend of Good Women, I refer to the close connection that is easily seen to subsist between Chaucer's translation of Boethius and his Troilus and Criseyde. All critics seem now to agree in placing these two works in close conjunction, and in making the prose work somewhat the earlier of the two; though it is not at all unlikely that, for a short time, both works were in hand together. It is also clear that they were completed before the author commenced the House of Fame, the date of which is, almost certainly, about 1383-4. Dr. Koch, in his Essay on the Chronology of Chaucer's Writings, proposes to date 'Boethius' about 1377-8, and 'Troilus' about 1380-1. It is sufficient to be able to infer, as we can with tolerable certainty, that these two works belong to the period between 1377 and 1383. And we may also feel sure that the well-known lines to Adam, beginning-- 'Adam scriveyn, if ever it thee befalle _Boece_ or _Troilus_ to wryten newe'-- were composed at the time when the fair copy of Troilus had just been finished, and may be dated, without fear of mistake, in 1381-3. It is not likely that we shall be able to determine these dates within closer limits; nor is it at all necessary that we should be able to do so. A few further remarks upon this subject are given below. § 2. BOETHIUS. Before proceeding to remark upon Chaucer's translation of Boethius, or (as he calls him) Boece, it is necessary to say a few words as to the original work, and its author. Anicius Manlius Torquatus Severinus Boethius, the most learned philosopher of his time, was born at Rome about A. D. 480, and was put to death A. D. 524. In his youth, he had the advantage of a liberal training, and enjoyed the rare privilege of being able to read the Greek philosophers in their own tongue. In the particular treatise which here most concerns us, his Greek quotations are mostly taken from Plato, and there are a few references to Aristotle, Homer, and to the _Andromache_ of Euripides. His extant works shew that he was well acquainted with geometry, mechanics, astronomy, and music, as well as with logic and theology; and it is an interesting fact that an illustration of the way in which waves of sound are propagated through the air, introduced by Chaucer into his House of Fame, ll. 788-822, is almost certainly derived from the treatise of Boethius _De Musica_, as pointed out in the note upon that passage. At any rate, there is an unequivocal reference to 'the felinge' of Boece 'in musik' in the Nonnes Preestes Tale, B 4484. § 3. The most important part of his political life was passed in the service of the celebrated Theodoric the Goth, who, aft |