GEORGE NOEL GORDON, LORD BYRON (1788–1824).

Vision of Belshazzar

The Destruction of Sennacherib

The Isles of Greece

Sonnet on Chillon

The Prisoner of Chillon

PERCY BYSSHE SHELLEY (1792-1822).

205

206

207

208

209

210

212

213

217

217

PAGE

281

282

ELIZABETH BARRETT BROWNING (1806-1861).

Sonnets from the Portuguese-XXII, XLIII

A Musical Instrument.

ROBERT BROWNING (1812-1889).

Sonnet XIX-Silent Noon.

Sonnet LXXXVI- Lost Days

ALGERNON CHARLES SWINBURNE (1837-

Chorus from Atalanta in Calydon

The Salt of the Earth.

ALFRED TENNYSON (1809-1892).

ENGLISH POEMS

PERIOD OF PREPARATION

GEOFFREY CHAUCER

1340?-1400

NOW WELCOM SOMER

[From The Parlement of Foules]

'Now welcom somer with thy sonne softe, That hast this wintres weders over-shake, And driven awey the longe nightes blake!

Seynt Valentyn, that art ful hy on-lofte;
Thus singen smale foules for thy sake

Now welcom somer, with thy sonne softe,
That hast this wintres weders over-shake.

Wel han they cause for to gladen ofte,
Sith ech of hem recovered hath his make;
Ful blisful may they singen whan they wake;
Now welcom somer, with thy sonne softe,
That hast this wintres weders over-shake,
And driven awey the longe nightes blake.

5

ΙΟ

THE PROLOGUE

HERE BIGINNETH THE BOOK OF THE TALES OF CAUNTERBURY

WHAN that Aprille with his shoures sote

The droghte of Marche hath perced to the rote,
And bathed every veyne in swich licour
Of which vertu engendred is the flour;
Whan Zephirus eek with his swete breeth
Inspired hath in every holt and heeth
The tendre croppes, and the yonge sonne
Hath in the Ram his halfe cours y-ronne,
And smale fowles maken melodye,
That slepen al the night with open yë,
(So priketh hem nature in hir corages):
Than longen folk to goon on pilgrimages
(And palmers for to seken straunge strondes)
To ferne halwes, couthe in sondry londes;
And specially, from every shires ende
Of Engelond, to Caunterbury they wende,

The holy blisful martir for to seke,

That hem hath holpen whan that they were seke.

Bifel that, in that seson on a day,

In Southwerk at the Tabard as I lay
Redy to wenden on my pilgrimage
To Caunterbury with ful devout corage,
At night was come in-to that hostelrye,
Wel nyne and twenty in a companye,
Of sondry folk, by aventure y-falle

In felawshipe, and pilgrims were they alle,
That toward Caunterbury wolden ryde.
The chambres and the stables weren wyde,
And wel we weren esed atte beste.

And shortly, whan the sonne was to reste,
So hadde I spoken with hem everichon,
That I was of hir felawshipe anon,

And made forward erly for to ryse,

To take our wey, ther as I yow devyse.

But natheles, whyl I have tyme and space, Er that I ferther in this tale pace,

Me thinketh it accordaunt to resoun

To telle yow al the condicioun

Of ech of hem, so as it semed me,

And whiche they weren, and of what degree,
And eek in what array that they were inne :
And at a knight than wol I first biginne.

A KNIGHT ther was and that a worthy man,
That fro the tyme that he first bigan
To ryden out, he loved chivalrye,
Trouthe and honour, fredom and curteisye.
Ful worthy was he in his lordes werre,
And thereto hadde he riden (no man ferre)
As wel in Cristendom as hethenesse,
And ever honoured for his worthinesse.

At Alisaundre he was, whan it was wonne ;
Ful ofte tyme he hadde the bord bigonne
Aboven alle naciouns in Pruce.

In Lettow hadde he reysed and in Ruce,
No Cristen man so ofte of his degree.
In Gernade at the sege eek hadde he be
Of Algezir, and riden in Belmarye.

At Lyeys was he, and at Satalye,

Whan they were wonne; and in the Grete See
At many a noble aryve hadde he be.

At mortal batailles hadde he been fiftene,
And foughten for oure feith at Tramissene
In listes thryes, and ay slayn his foo.
This ilke worthy knight had been also
Somtyme with the lord of Palatye
Ageyn another hethen in Turkye: