No Fear Literature: The Canterbury Tales: The Wife of Bath's Tale Prologue to the Wife of Bath’s Tale Page 1

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Original Text	Modern Text
THE PROLOGE OF THE WYVES TALE OF BATHE.	THE PROLOGE OF THE WYVES TALE OF BATHE.
‘Experience, though noon auctoritee Were in this world, were right y-nough to me To speke of wo that is in mariage; For, lordinges, sith I twelf yeer was of age, Thonked be God that is eterne on lyve, Housbondes at chirche-dore I have had fyve; For I so ofte have y-wedded be; And alle were worthy men in hir degree. But me was told certeyn, nat longe agon is, That sith that Crist ne wente never but onis To wedding in the Cane of Galilee, That by the same ensample taughte he me That I ne sholde wedded be but ones. Herke eek, lo! which a sharp word for the nones Besyde a welle Iesus, God and man, Spak in repreve of the Samaritan: “Thou hast y-had fyve housbondes,” quod he, “And thilke man, the which that hath now thee, Is noght thyn housbond;” thus seyde he certeyn; What that he mente ther-by, I can nat seyn; But that I axe, why that the fifthe man Was noon housbond to the Samaritan? How manye mighte she have in mariage? Yet herde I never tellen in myn age Upon this nombre diffinicioun; Men may devyne and glosen up and doun. But wel I woot expres, with-oute lye, God bad us for to wexe and multiplye; That gentil text can I wel understonde. Eek wel I woot he seyde, myn housbonde Sholde lete fader and moder, and take me; But of no nombre mencioun made he, Of bigamye or of octogamye; Why sholde men speke of it vileinye?	‘Experience, though noon auctoritee Were in this world, were right y-nough to me To speke of wo that is in mariage; For, lordinges, sith I twelf yeer was of age, Thonked be God that is eterne on lyve, Housbondes at chirche-dore I have had fyve; For I so ofte have y-wedded be; And alle were worthy men in hir degree. But me was told certeyn, nat longe agon is, That sith that Crist ne wente never but onis To wedding in the Cane of Galilee, That by the same ensample taughte he me That I ne sholde wedded be but ones. Herke eek, lo! which a sharp word for the nones Besyde a welle Iesus, God and man, Spak in repreve of the Samaritan: “Thou hast y-had fyve housbondes,” quod he, “And thilke man, the which that hath now thee, Is noght thyn housbond;” thus seyde he certeyn; What that he mente ther-by, I can nat seyn; But that I axe, why that the fifthe man Was noon housbond to the Samaritan? How manye mighte she have in mariage? Yet herde I never tellen in myn age Upon this nombre diffinicioun; Men may devyne and glosen up and doun. But wel I woot expres, with-oute lye, God bad us for to wexe and multiplye; That gentil text can I wel understonde. Eek wel I woot he seyde, myn housbonde Sholde lete fader and moder, and take me; But of no nombre mencioun made he, Of bigamye or of octogamye; Why sholde men speke of it vileinye?

Original Text	Modern Text
THE PROLOGE OF THE WYVES TALE OF BATHE.	THE PROLOGE OF THE WYVES TALE OF BATHE.
‘Experience, though noon auctoritee Were in this world, were right y-nough to me To speke of wo that is in mariage; For, lordinges, sith I twelf yeer was of age, Thonked be God that is eterne on lyve, Housbondes at chirche-dore I have had fyve; For I so ofte have y-wedded be; And alle were worthy men in hir degree. But me was told certeyn, nat longe agon is, That sith that Crist ne wente never but onis To wedding in the Cane of Galilee, That by the same ensample taughte he me That I ne sholde wedded be but ones. Herke eek, lo! which a sharp word for the nones Besyde a welle Iesus, God and man, Spak in repreve of the Samaritan: “Thou hast y-had fyve housbondes,” quod he, “And thilke man, the which that hath now thee, Is noght thyn housbond;” thus seyde he certeyn; What that he mente ther-by, I can nat seyn; But that I axe, why that the fifthe man Was noon housbond to the Samaritan? How manye mighte she have in mariage? Yet herde I never tellen in myn age Upon this nombre diffinicioun; Men may devyne and glosen up and doun. But wel I woot expres, with-oute lye, God bad us for to wexe and multiplye; That gentil text can I wel understonde. Eek wel I woot he seyde, myn housbonde Sholde lete fader and moder, and take me; But of no nombre mencioun made he, Of bigamye or of octogamye; Why sholde men speke of it vileinye?	‘Experience, though noon auctoritee Were in this world, were right y-nough to me To speke of wo that is in mariage; For, lordinges, sith I twelf yeer was of age, Thonked be God that is eterne on lyve, Housbondes at chirche-dore I have had fyve; For I so ofte have y-wedded be; And alle were worthy men in hir degree. But me was told certeyn, nat longe agon is, That sith that Crist ne wente never but onis To wedding in the Cane of Galilee, That by the same ensample taughte he me That I ne sholde wedded be but ones. Herke eek, lo! which a sharp word for the nones Besyde a welle Iesus, God and man, Spak in repreve of the Samaritan: “Thou hast y-had fyve housbondes,” quod he, “And thilke man, the which that hath now thee, Is noght thyn housbond;” thus seyde he certeyn; What that he mente ther-by, I can nat seyn; But that I axe, why that the fifthe man Was noon housbond to the Samaritan? How manye mighte she have in mariage? Yet herde I never tellen in myn age Upon this nombre diffinicioun; Men may devyne and glosen up and doun. But wel I woot expres, with-oute lye, God bad us for to wexe and multiplye; That gentil text can I wel understonde. Eek wel I woot he seyde, myn housbonde Sholde lete fader and moder, and take me; But of no nombre mencioun made he, Of bigamye or of octogamye; Why sholde men speke of it vileinye?