Canterbury Tales Alison Quotes

This carpenter hadde wedded newe a wyf,
Which that he lovede moore than his lyf;
Of eighteteene yeer she was of age.
Jalous he was, and heeld hire narwe in cage,
For she was wylde and yong, and he was old
And demed hymself been lik a cokewold.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Miller’s Tale. Carpenter John loves his new wife Alison more than his life. So much so that the jealous and paranoid guy keeps her locked up in the house fearful that she will cheat on him with other men. For she is young and wild and he is old and he believes that he is will be cuckolded.

A ceynt she werede, barred al of silk,
A barmclooth as whit as morne milk
Upon hir lendes, ful of many a goore.
And eek bihynde, on hir coler aboute,
Of col-blak silk, withinne and eek withoute.
The tapes of hir white voluper
Were of the same suyte of hir coler;
Hir filet brood of silk, and set ful hye.
And sikerly she hadde a likerous ye.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Miller’s Tale. The carpenter’s much younger lusty wife Alison is flirtatious and has a wandering eye for the men. So she likes to dress like a little doll, with a belt of striped silk and smock embroidered on both the front and back. Her collar is silk as are her bonnet ribbons.

But of hir song, it was as loude and yerne
As any swalwe sittynge on a berne.
Therto she koude skippe and make game,
As any kyde or calf folwynge his dame.
Hir mouth was sweete as bragot or the meeth,
Or hoord of apples leyd in hey or heeth.
Wynsynge she was, as is a joly colt,
Long as a mast, and upright as a bolt.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Miller’s Tale. Using a succession of similes, the narrator compares Alison’s voice to a swallow’s song, says that she could skip and play like any kid or calf following its mother, has a mouth as sweet as ale or apples, and is skittish as a spirited colt.

"Myn housbonde is so ful of jalousie
That but ye wayte wel and been privee,
I woot right wel I nam but deed," quod she.
"Ye moste been ful deerne, as in this cas."
"Nay, therof care thee nought," quod Nicholas.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Miller’s Tale. Alison warns her soon-to-be new lover Nicholas that her husband John is a very jealous man and unless Nicholas is very discreet and careful she is as good as dead. But the ever so confident Nicholas tells her not to worry about that, he will take care of it.

Whan Nicholas had doon thus everideel
And thakked hire aboute the lendes weel,
He kiste hire sweete and taketh his sawtrie,
And pleyeth faste, and maketh melodie.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Miller’s Tale. After Alison signals her agreement to have an illicit affair with him, Nicholas pats her on the bottom and kisses her tenderly. Then he retrests to his quarters, grabs his psaltery (medieval stringed instrument), plays fast and makes melody – not hard to escape the masturbatory clues here!

Thanne fil it thus, that to the paryssh chirche,
Cristes owene werkes for to wirche,
This goode wyf went on an haliday.
Hir forheed shoon as bright as any day,
So was it wasshen whan she leet hir werk.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Miller’s Tale. Alison’s pious appointment at her parish church is a little ironical and hypocritical, since it comes after her swearing an oath that she will be available to the womanizing Nicholas the first chance they get. There is a hint too that she goes to church to be admired, and there she very quickly attracts the attentions of another admirer Absolon.

He ne hadde for his labour but a scorn.
And thus she maketh Absolon hire ape,
And al his ernest turneth til a jape.
Ful sooth is this proverb, it is no lye,
Men seyn right thus, "Alwey the nye slye
Maketh the ferre leeve to be looth."
For though that Absolon be wood or wrooth,
By cause that he fer was from hire sight,
This nye Nicholas stood in his light.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Miller’s Tale. The Miller speaks about Alison’s two admirers. Absolon is the distant lover who tries to woo her by singing to her outside her window, but she and Nicholas make him into a fool and a joke by laughing at him. Nicholas is the lover closer to Alison, so if Absolon was crazy with love Alison would not notice him, because he was so far from her sight Nicholas "stood in his light" and cast him in the shadow, metaphorically speaking. The proverb suggests the nearby lover has the advantage over the distant one.

And hende Nicholas and Alisoun
Acorded been to this conclusioun,
That Nicholas shal shapen hym a wyle
This sely jalous housbonde to bigyle;
And if so be the game wente aright,
She sholde slepen in his arm al nyght.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Miller’s Tale. The competition for Alison between clever Nicholas and not-so-clever John heats up. Nicholas cooks up a devious plan to trick Alison’s unsuspecting husband John, and if the "game" goes right she will sleep in Nicholas’s arms all night.

Thy wyf shal I wel saven, out of doute.
Go now thy wey, and speed thee heer-aboute.
But whan thou hast, for hire and thee and me,
Ygeten us thise knedyng tubbes thre,
Thanne shaltow hange hem in the roof ful hye,
That no man of oure purveiaunce espye.
And whan thou thus hast doon as I have seyd,
And hast oure vitaille faire in hem yleyd,
And eek an ax to smyte the corde atwo,
Whan that the water comth, that we may go.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Miller’s Tale. The scheming lovers Nicholas and Alison have an elaborate plan to trick gullible John. It involves hanging three tubs to be used as boats from the roof. When the great flood (a fiction concocted by Nicholas) is about to happen they are to go into the boat-tubs so they will survive the flood waters. What Nicholas won’t do to have a night of sex with Alison!

This sely carpenter bigynneth quake;
Hym thynketh verraily that he may see
Noees flood come walwynge as the see
To drenchen Alisoun, his hony deere.
He wepeth, weyleth, maketh sory cheere.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Miller’s Tale. The cruelty of Nicholas’s and Alison’s deception is underlined here. As a result of their lies, the hapless John agonizes over the picture in his head of his wife drowning in the threatened flood that Nicholas has invented. He weeps and he wails at the thought of losing his love.

Aboute corfew-tyme, or litel moore;
For travaille of his goost he groneth soore,
And eft he routeth, for his heed myslay.
Doun of the laddre stalketh Nicholay,
And Alisoun ful softe adoun she spedde;
Withouten wordes mo they goon to bedde.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Miller’s Tale. With John safely asleep and snoring in a tub in the rafters, Nicholas sneaks down the ladder closely followed by Alison and they head off to bed together without a word. Nicholas’s elaborate ruse involving an invented flood and tubs in the rafters has achieved its goal: a night of hot sex with Alison!

Withouten wordes mo they goon to bedde,
Ther as the carpenter is wont to lye.
Ther was the revel and the melodye;
And thus lith Alison and Nicholas,
In bisynesse of myrthe and of solas,
Til that the belle of laudes gan to rynge,
And freres in the chauncel gonne synge.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Miller’s Tale. The amorous clerk Nicholas and adulterous Alison are not just content to have sex under her husband John’s nose. But they do it in his bed! And they carry on their pleasure-making until the morning service chapel bells ring and the friars start to sing.
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