Thou seyst also, that if we make us gay With clothyng, and with precious array, That it is peril of oure chastitee; And yet - with sorwe! - thou most enforce thee, And seye thise wordes in the Apostles name: "In habit maad with chastitee and shame Ye wommen shul apparaille yow," quod he, "And noght in tressed heer and gay perree, As perles, ne with gold, ne clothes riche."

Thou seyst also, that if we make us gay
With clothyng, and with precious array,
That it is peril of oure chastitee;
And yet – with sorwe! – thou most enforce thee,
And seye thise wordes in the Apostles name:
"In habit maad with chastitee and shame
Ye wommen shul apparaille yow," quod he,
"And noght in tressed heer and gay perree,
As perles, ne with gold, ne clothes riche."

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Wife of Bath’s Prologue. This is a Biblical allusion to what Saint Paul said in 1 Timothy 2:9 – "I also want the women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, adorning themselves, not with elaborate hairstyles or gold or pearls or expensive clothes." The Wife of Bath scolds her husbands for telling her in the Apostle’s words that if women dress themselves up in expensive clothes, fancy hairstyes or pearls or gold, they are endangering their chastity. She later admits they never said this.

Geoffrey Chaucer Quotes