This site serves as an introduction to Geoffrey Chaucer and his medieval world through his most famous work, The Canterbury Tales.
Inside are pages on Middle English language, the period of English history encompassing Chaucer's life, a brief Chaucer biography, a map of Canterbury's location in England and a possible route of pilgrimage leading from London to Canterbury, a brief history of Canterbury and its cathedral, complete with a virtual tour, information on the manuscripts containing the Tales, along with relevant and reliable links for further study and exploration. Each page is illustrated and has links specific to its subject matter. Pages on other aspects of life, such as religion, courtly love, fabliaux, and music, will be forthcoming.
Geoffrey Chaucer
Image Source:
The
Luminarium.
By linking the Harvard version of the Canterbury Tales with the Middle English Dictionary (MED) maintained by the University of Michigan on one webpage, students and scholars can browse that version of the text in Middle English while receiving convenient, direct access to the MED's language database.
Permission to use the Harvard Chaucer texts is gratefully acknowledged under a non-commercial license granted by the site:
http://www.courses.fas.harvard.edu/~chaucer.
