Find the perfect quote to float your boat. Shmoop breaks down key quotations from The Canterbury Tales: General Prologue & Frame Story.
Literature and Writing Quotes
[The Squire] koude songes make and wel endyte, Juste and eek daunce, and wel purtreye and wryte. (General Prologue 95 – 96)
Competition Quotes
At many a noble armee hadde [the Knight] be, At mortaille batailles hadde he been fiftene And foughten for oure feith at Tramyssene In lystes thries and ay slayn his foo. (General Prologue 60 ̵...
Society and Class Quotes
[The Prioress] peyned hire to countrefete chere Of court, and to ben estatlich of manere, And to ben holden digne of reverence. (General Prologue 139 – 141)
Wealth Quotes
His resons [the Merchant] spak ful solempnely, Souninge always th'encrees of his winning. (General Prologue 274 – 275)
Friendship Quotes
At night was come into that hostelrye Wel nyne and twenty in a companye Of sondry folk, by aventure y-falle In felawshipe, and pilgrims were they all. (General Prologue 23 – 26)
Time Quotes
Whan that Aprill with his shoures sote The droghte of Marche hath perced to the rote, (General Prologue 1 – 2)
Lies and Deceit Quotes
[The Prioress] peyned hire to countrefete chere Of court, and to been estatlich of manere, And to ben holden digne of reverence. (General Prologue 139 – 141)
Spirituality Quotes
And specially, from every shires ende Of Engelond to Caunterbury they wende, The holy blisful martir for to seke, That hem hath holpen, whan that they were seke. (General Prologue 14 – 17)