A Concise Companion to Chaucer

This concise companion provides a succinct introduction to Chaucer's major works, the contexts in which he wrote, and to medieval thought more generally. Opens with a general introductory section discussing London life and politics, books and authority, manuscripts and readers. Subsequent sections focus on Chaucer’s major works – the dream visions, Troilus and Criseyde and The Canterbury Tales. Essays highlight the key religious, political and intellectual contexts for each major work. Also covers important general topics, including: medieval literary genres; dream theory; the Church; gender and sexuality; and reading Chaucer aloud. Designed so that each contextual essay can be read alongside one of Chaucer’s major works.

List of Illustrations vii Acknowledgements viii Notes on Contributors ix Note on Edition xii Introduction 1 Part I: Chaucer in Context 11 1 Politics and London Life 13 Marion Turner 2 Manuscripts and Audience 34 Julia Boffey and A. S. G. Edwards 3 Books and Authority 51 R. F. Yeager Part II: Dream Visions 69 4 Dreaming 71 Steven F. Kruger 5 Courtly Writing 90 Barry Windeatt Part III: Troilus and Criseyde 111 6 Love in Wartime: Troilus and Criseyde as Trojan History 113 Andrew Lynch 7 Love and the Making of the Self: Troilus and Criseyde 134 Corinne Saunders 8 Tragedy and Romance in Chaucer’s ‘Litel Bok’ of Troilus and Criseyde 156 Norm Klassen Part IV: The Canterbury Tales 177 9 Genre in and of the Canterbury Tales 179 Judith Ferster 10 Morality and Immorality 199 Richard Firth Green 11 Marriage, Sexuality and the Family 218 Neil Cartlidge 12 Christianity and the Church 241 John C. Hirsh Part V: The Sound of Chaucer 261 13 Reading Chaucer Aloud 263 David Fuller Index 285