Canterbury Tales Love Quotes

Ful fetys was hir cloke, as I was war.
Of smal coral aboute hire arm she bar
A peire of bedes, gauded al with grene,
And theron heng a brooch of gold ful sheene,
On which ther was first write a crowned A,
Amor Vincit Omnia.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, General Prologue. In keeping with her desire to appear courtly, the Prioress is beautifully dressed in a well made cloak. On her arm she wore a string of coral beads from which hung a bright gold brooch engraved with a crowned "A" and the inscription "Amor Vincit Omnia," or "Love Conquers All." Coral beads and gold brooch? Not the usual attire for a nun, whom you would expect to be wearing rosary beads rather than a gold brooch with a romantic inscription. A little whiff of someone in this convent enjoying the good life, it seems. The Prioress’ character is ironically represented in complete contrast to how a prioress is usually expected to live and behave.

For May wole have no slagardie anyght.
The sesoun priketh every gentil herte,
And maketh it out of his slep to sterte.
And seith "Arys, and do thyn observaunce."

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Knight’s Tale. The young and beautiful Emily rises early one morning in May. The Knight says it is the season that bids every gentle heart to awaken and rise with the sun, which Emily does and sings to herself and picks flowers to make a garland for her hair. The imprisoned cousins Palamon and Arcite are about to catch sight of her and fall in love with the young sister of Theseus’s wife.

This prison caused me nat for to crye,
But I was hurt right now thurghout myn ye
Into myn herte, that wol my bane be.
The fairnesse of that lady that I see
Yond in the gardyn romen to and fro
Is cause of al my criyng and my wo.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Knight’s Tale. Nazareth were right when they made a hit song about it – Love hurts! Lovesick prisoner Palamon speaks of his love at first sight for fair Emily as hurting him like a poison that has entered his eye and then made its way to his heart. The sight of her roaming to and fro yonder in the garden makes him cry with pain and woe, as he remains locked in his tower.

"I noot wher she be womman or goddesse,
But Venus is it soothly, as I gesse."
And therwithal on knees doun he fil,
And seyde, "Venus, if it be thy wil
Yow in this gardyn thus to transfigure
Bifore me, sorweful, wrecched creature,
Out of this prisoun help that we may scapen."

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Knight’s Tale. At first the love-struck Palamon, speaking to fellow prisoner Arcite, says he does not know whether Emily is a woman or the goddess of love Venus herself. He then falls down on his knees and starts praying to Venus (Emily) to help him escape from his prison.

And with that word Arcite gan espye
Wher as this lady romed to and fro,
And with that sighte hir beautee hurte hym so,
That, if that Palamon was wounded sore,
Arcite is hurt as muche as he, or moore.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Knight’s Tale. Arcite and Palamon aren’t just soldiers-in-arms and cousins, but they have similar tastes in women too. Like Palamon was, Arcite’s is hit with a bad case of love at first sight as he watches the beautiful Emily in the garden. And it hurts him just as much, and even more than Palamon – the competition between the pair has started already.

"It nere," quod he, "to thee no greet honour
For to be fals, ne for to be traitour
To me, that am thy cosyn and thy brother
Ysworn ful depe, and ech of us til oother,
That nevere, for to dyen in the peyne,
Til that the deeth departe shal us tweyne,
Neither of us in love to hyndre oother,
Ne in noon oother cas, my leeve brother,
But that thou sholdest trewely forthren me
In every cas, as I shal forthren thee –
This was thyn ooth, and myn also, certeyn.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Knight’s Tale. Palamon is not happy that Arcite has declared his love for the same woman, Emily. He claims that he and Arcite are sworn brothers, who took an oath to never hinder one other in love or in any other case. It would be no great honor for his cousin and brother to be false and a traitor, Palamon warns his friend and love rival.

And now thow woldest falsly been aboute
To love my lady, whom I love and serve,
And evere shal til that myn herte sterve.
And ever shall until my heart dies.
Nay, certes, false Arcite, thow shalt nat so.
I loved hire first, and tolde thee my wo
As to my conseil and my brother sworn.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Knight’s Tale. Palamon tells Arcite that he has first claim on Emily, simply because he loved her first and told his sworn brother and confidant Arcite "my wo." He accuses Arcite of falsely preparing to love his lady, whom he is pledged to love and serve until his heart dies. He warns Arcite that he will not do so, foreshadowing the bloody feud that later happens between the two.

"Thow shalt," quod he, "be rather fals than I;
And thou art fals, I telle thee outrely,
For paramour I loved hire first er thow.
What wiltow seyen? Thou woost nat yet now
Wheither she be a womman or goddesse!
Thyn is affeccioun of hoolynesse,
And myn is love as to a creature.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Knight’s Tale. Arcite disputes Palamon claim that he loved Emily first. He says Palamon’s affection for Emily is as to a goddess, it is a feeling of holiness and spirituality. Arcite is adament that he loved her first as a mistress, his love "is love as to a creature" not a goddess. He says Palamon is the false one in their sworn brotherhood.

Wostow nat wel the olde clerkes sawe,
That "who shal yeve a lovere any lawe?"
Love is a gretter lawe, by my pan,
Than may be yeve to any erthely man;
And therfore positif lawe and swich decree
Is broken al day for love in ech degree.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Knight’s Tale. Ancite responds to Palamon’s claim that Ancite will be breaking their oath of brotherhood if he continues to love Emily. Who would give a lover any law, Ancite asks, adding that love is a greater law than any earthy one. Man-made laws are broken every day for love, he points out. As the rivaly between the two knights progresses, they begin failing to live up to their code of chivalry and become governed more by the laws of love.

For in this world he loved no man so,
And he loved hym als tendrely agayn.
So wel they lovede, as olde bookes sayn,
That whan that oon was deed, soothly to telle,
His felawe wente and soughte hym doun in helle.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Knight’s Tale. The bond of love and friendship between Theseus and Perotheus runs very deep that they would follow each other to hell! And it is about to have an important impact on how the tale develops. It turns out Perotheus also knows and loves Arcite and he intercedes on his behalf with Theseus.

He wepeth, wayleth, crieth pitously;
To sleen hymself he waiteth prively.
He seyde, "Allas that day that I was born!
Now is my prisoun worse than biforn;
Now is me shape eternally to dwelle
Noght in purgatorie, but in helle.
Allas, that evere knew I Perotheus!"

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Knight’s Tale. On his release from prison and banishment from Athens, Arcite is distraught at having to leave behind the woman he loves, Emily. He feels he is now in an even worse prison. Separated from Emily he is not in Purgatory, but in Hell. He wishes he had never known Perotheus, who was instrumental in having him freed from prison. Arcite’s speech is full of dramatic irony.

"O deere cosyn Palamon," quod he,
"Thyn is the victorie of this aventure.
Ful blisfully in prison maistow dure –
In prison? Certes nay, but in paradys!"

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Knight’s Tale. While Arcite wins his freedom and his cousin Palamon remains in prison, Arcite says Palamon is the victor in this adventure. For Palamon has sight of Emily, the woman they both love, and Arcite does not. In an example of dramatic irony Arcite says he envies Palamon’s prison "paradise."

Wel hath Fortune yturned thee the dys,
That hast the sighte of hire, and I th’absence.
For possible is, syn thou hast hire presence,
And art a knyght, a worthy and an able,
That by som cas, syn Fortune is chaungeable,
Thow maist to thy desir somtyme atteyne.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Knight’s Tale. The newly released prisoner Arcite says that Fortune has turned the dice for Palamon. For his love rival is able to see Emily from his tower cell every day, and Arcite is not. And an able and worthy knight such as Palamon may sometime attain her desire.

Allas, why pleynen folk so in commune
On purveiaunce of God, or of Fortune,
That yeveth hem ful ofte in many a gyse
Wel bettre than they kan hemself devyse?

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Knight’s Tale. Why do people complain about the providence of God, or of Fortune, that gives them something better than they can themselves imagine, Arcite asks? He is referring to the fact that when he was a prisoner in Theseus’s tower he could see the woman he loves Emily, but now that he has freedom and is banished from Athens he cannot see her.

So muche sorwe hadde nevere creature
That is, or shal, whil that the world may dure.
His slep, his mete, his drynke, is hym biraft,
That lene he wex and drye as is a shaft;
His eyen holwe and grisly to biholde,
His hewe falow and pale as asshen colde,
And solitarie he was and evere allone,
And waillynge al the nyght, makynge his mone.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Knight’s Tale. After Arcite is released from prison by Theseus on condition he never returns to Athens, he sinks into a state of lover’s melancholy in Thebes. Separated from Emily, he cannot sleep, eat or drink. He is as pale as cold ashes (use of simile). While he has his freedom, he is unhappy because he is unable to exist or function without his love.

Sith his face was so disfigured
Of maladye the which he hadde endured,
He myghte wel, if that he bar hym lowe,
Lyve in Atthenes everemoore unknowe,
And seen his lady wel ny day by day.
And right anon he chaunged his array,
And cladde hym as a povre laborer.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Knight’s Tale. Arcite looks in the mirror and realizes he has become so gaunt and thin from his lovesickness, that he can disguise himself as a poor laborer and return to Athens and have a chance to see Emily every day.

He fil in office with a chamberleyn
The which that dwellynge was with Emelye,
For he was wys and koude soone espye,
Of every servaunt, which that serveth here.
Wel koude he hewen wode, and water bere,
For he was yong and myghty for the nones,
And therto he was long and big of bones
To doon that any wight kan hym devyse.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Knight’s Tale. Arcite has grown thin and frail from lovesickness. He knows he can re-enter Athens disguised and no one will recognize him. Using the fake name Philostrate, this knight gets a job as as a humble servant in the house of Emily, the woman he loves.

Arcite, false traytour wikke,
Now artow hent, that lovest my lady so,
For whom that I have al this peyne and wo,
And art my blood, and to my conseil sworn,
As I ful ofte have told thee heerbiforn,
And hast byjaped heere duc Theseus,
And falsly chaunged hast thy name thus!

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Knight’s Tale. Palamon says that his sworn friend and confidante Arcite is a traitor. Palamon feels he saw Emily first and has the rightful claim to her love. He accuses Arcite "that lovest my lady" of betraying him. He also says he broke Theseus’s condition of his release that he stay away from Athens and deceived everyone by changing his name and appearance.
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