"My lord," quod she, "I woot, and wiste alway,
How that bitwixen youre magnificence
And my poverte no wight kan ne may
Maken comparison; it is no nay.
I ne heeld me nevere digne in no manere
To be youre wyf, no, ne youre chamberere."
– Geoffrey Chaucer
The Canterbury Tales, The Clerk’s Tale. Griselda tells Walter that she always knew no one could compare his magnificence with her poverty. She deems herself unworthy to be his chambermaid, let alone his wife. This foreshadows her later role as a palace servant, when Walter aasks her to plan his wedding ceremony.