The Canterbury Tales, and Other Poems

A company of pilgrims journeying to the shrine of Thomas Becket at Canterbury agree to pass the time by telling stories, and the result is one of the greatest works in English literature—a dazzling collection of tales bawdy and pious, comic and tragic, told by a cross-section of medieval society from the noble Knight to the earthy Wife of Bath. Written in vivid Middle English verse, Chaucer’s masterpiece brims with humor, humanity, and sharp observation of every rank and folly. A founding work of English poetry, The Canterbury Tales gave the language one of its first great voices and remains endlessly rich, funny, and alive.