title: The Canterbury Tales: The New Translation
author: Geoffrey Chaucer
description: "As Chaucer is the father of English poetry, so I hold him in the same degree of veneration as the Greeks held Homer or the Romans held Virgil. He is a perpetual fountain of good sense, learned in all sciences, and therefore speaks properly on all subjects."-John Dryden.<br /><br /><b>Four Stars ****<br /><strong></strong><br /><strong>"Chaucer's classic stories are given new life in this accessible translation.</strong></b><strong><br /><i>Geoffrey Chaucer's CANTERBURY TALES is one of those long-living books which has embedded itself into literary critique, English 101 reading lists, cultural consciousness, and the history of the English language. Gerald J. Davis's new translation offers readers an accessible entre into this masterpiece of early English literature.<br /><em>Davis is no novice at translating classics into modern English, having previously published translations of GILGAMESH, BEOWULF, and DON QUIXOTE, alongside his own work in fiction. This experience shows as he tries to walk the tightrope described in his introduction of "rendering the voice and tone of Chaucer in a form of prose accessible to the modern reader."</em><br /><em>Those expecting a wholesome collection of stories from pious pilgrims may be surprised by the bawdiness of the text. Chaucer's characterizations aren't Christian allegories for virtuous behavior, but are of everyday people who contain the high and base qualities of human nature. Humor, including fondness for jokes of cuckoldry, humanizes the text, and highlights why THE CANTERBURY TALES is such an enduring book.</em><br /><em>This version is a reliable option for those looking to join the walk down the road to Canterbury. Davis's translation highlights the flow of Chaucer's stories, which are still funny and poignant centuries after they were first put to paper."-ForeWord Clarion Reviews</em></i></strong><br /><br />Four Stars ****<br />"An adored classic and, of course, a canonical giant, Geoffrey Chaucer's<i>The Canterbury Talesbears infinite recreation and translation. That's precisely why Gerald J. Davis has put countless hours of work into researching and translating the tales from Middle English into a more contemporary, accessible dialect. Make no mistake, though, all of that reworking certainly hasn't stripped the original text of its wit or its caustic humor. The vignettes that Chaucer has painted of the various facets of English society remain as sharp as ever, and Davis has made perfectly sure that none of those biting observations ever gets lost in translation. No summary of the tales would do their portraiture justice, but suffice it to say that there are dozens of short stories that comprise the work, and each is more delightful than the last. From The Knight's Tale to The Parson's Tale and everything in between, you won't be disappointed by this literary smorgasbord.<br />Few versions of<em>The Canterbury Tales</em></i><em>have done the work such justice as Davis's has. His interpretations of the original language bring it to life in a vibrant, enthralling way. If you're a fan of Chaucer's, you really must get your hands on a copy." -<i>Red City Review</i></em>
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  * * *
  
  # The Adventures of Hugh Trevor
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ### Thomas Holcroft
  
  
  This page copyright © 2001 Munsey's.
  
  
  http://www.munseys.com
  
  PREFACE.
  
  
  
  
  
  VOLUME I.
  
  
    
  CHAP. I.
  
  
    
  CHAP. II.
  
  
    
  CHAP. III.
  
  
    
  CHAP. IV.
  
  
    
  CHAP. V.
  
  
    
  CHAP. VI.
  
  
    
  CHAP. VII.
  
  
    
  CHAP. VIII.
  
  
    
  CHAP. IX.
  
  
    
  CHAP. X.
  
  
    
  CHAP. XI.
  
  
    
  CHAP. XII.
  
  
    
  CHAP. XIII.
  
  
    
  CHAP. XIV.
  
  
    
  CHAP. XV.
  
  
    
  CHAP. XVI.
  
  
    
  CHAP. XVII.
  
  
  VOLUME II.
  
  
    
  CHAP. I.
  
  
    
  CHAP. II.
  
  
    
  CHAP. III.
  
  
    
  CHAP. IV.
  
  
    
  CHAP. V.
  
  
    
  CHAP. VI.
  
  
    
  CHAP. VII.
  
  
    
  CHAP. VIII.
  
  
    
  CHAP. IX.
  
  
    
  CHAP. X.
  
  
    
  CHAP. XI.
  
  
    
  CHAP. XII.
  
  
    
  CHAP. XIII.
  
  
    
  CHAP. XIV.
  
  
  VOLUME III.
  
  
    
  CHAP. I.
  
  
    
  CHAP. II.
  
  
    
  CHAP. III.
  
  
    
  CHAP. IV.
  
  
    
  CHAP. V.
  
  
    
  CHAP. VI.
  
  
    
  CHAP. VII.
  
  
    
  I.
  
  
    
  II.
  
  
    
  III.
  
  
    
  IV.
  
  
    
  CHAP. VIII.
  
  
    
  I.
  
  
    
  II.
  
  
    
  III.
  
  
    