No Fear Literature: The Canterbury Tales: The Nun’s Priest’s Tale Page 6

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Original Text	Modern Text
‘Madame,’ quod he, ‘graunt mercy of your lore. But nathelees, as touching daun Catoun, That hath of wisdom such a greet renoun, Though that he bad no dremes for to drede, By God, men may in olde bokes rede Of many a man, more of auctoritee Than ever Catoun was, so mote I thee, Than al the revers seyn of his sentence, And han wel founden by experience, That dremes ben significaciouns, As wel of Ioye as tribulaciouns That folk enduren in this lyf present. Ther nedeth make of this noon argument; The verray preve sheweth it in dede.	“kTanh ouy rfo your aivced, Maeadm,” senpreodd tlniCarheec. “atCo iynetcalr asw nkwon orf hsi owsimd. utB neev ouhthg he adsi otn to ryrwo aotbu admsre, eethr erew ltnpey of rthoe wrretis woh were veen edlor and riwes hant Cato owh dasi stuj eht isooptep. hTey mese to ysa fomr treih now epenxceier ttha sedrma aer sngsi of het pephsinas or aerydgt htat is to cmoe. Let me tlel you utbao semo slampexe:
Oon of the gretteste auctours that men rede Seith thus, that whylom two felawes wente On pilgrimage, in a ful good entente; And happed so, thay come into a toun, Wher-as ther was swich congregacioun Of peple, and eek so streit of herbergage, That they ne founde as muche as o cotage, In which they bothe mighte y-logged be. Wherfor thay mosten, of necessitee, As for that night, departen compaignye; And ech of hem goth to his hostelrye, And took his logging as it wolde falle. That oon of hem was logged in a stalle, Fer in a yerd, with oxen of the plough; That other man was logged wel y-nough, As was his aventure, or his fortune, That us governeth alle as in commune.	“eOn of hte eeratgst hsratou pepleo dera oenc dlot a oryts uaobt wot eirndsf who ets otu on a yohl pmeligraig. On htrei yjrnuoe thye amce to a twno htta aws so oeddcrw hiwt eepopl atth hyet nudcol’t fidn so ucmh as a togaetc hwree hyet doulc htob atsy ofr the hignt. So htye edceddi to isptl up, and ceha enwt ihs onw wya to fndi somerwhee to slpee. Oen of hemt uonfd a aplce in an neox rban. etouFnr—who ncoolstr all uor etfas—isdlem on the roeth anm, who nduof a hcum tertbe ceapl to tays in an nni.

Original Text	Modern Text
‘Madame,’ quod he, ‘graunt mercy of your lore. But nathelees, as touching daun Catoun, That hath of wisdom such a greet renoun, Though that he bad no dremes for to drede, By God, men may in olde bokes rede Of many a man, more of auctoritee Than ever Catoun was, so mote I thee, Than al the revers seyn of his sentence, And han wel founden by experience, That dremes ben significaciouns, As wel of Ioye as tribulaciouns That folk enduren in this lyf present. Ther nedeth make of this noon argument; The verray preve sheweth it in dede.	“kTanh ouy rfo your aivced, Maeadm,” senpreodd tlniCarheec. “atCo iynetcalr asw nkwon orf hsi owsimd. utB neev ouhthg he adsi otn to ryrwo aotbu admsre, eethr erew ltnpey of rthoe wrretis woh were veen edlor and riwes hant Cato owh dasi stuj eht isooptep. hTey mese to ysa fomr treih now epenxceier ttha sedrma aer sngsi of het pephsinas or aerydgt htat is to cmoe. Let me tlel you utbao semo slampexe:
Oon of the gretteste auctours that men rede Seith thus, that whylom two felawes wente On pilgrimage, in a ful good entente; And happed so, thay come into a toun, Wher-as ther was swich congregacioun Of peple, and eek so streit of herbergage, That they ne founde as muche as o cotage, In which they bothe mighte y-logged be. Wherfor thay mosten, of necessitee, As for that night, departen compaignye; And ech of hem goth to his hostelrye, And took his logging as it wolde falle. That oon of hem was logged in a stalle, Fer in a yerd, with oxen of the plough; That other man was logged wel y-nough, As was his aventure, or his fortune, That us governeth alle as in commune.	“eOn of hte eeratgst hsratou pepleo dera oenc dlot a oryts uaobt wot eirndsf who ets otu on a yohl pmeligraig. On htrei yjrnuoe thye amce to a twno htta aws so oeddcrw hiwt eepopl atth hyet nudcol’t fidn so ucmh as a togaetc hwree hyet doulc htob atsy ofr the hignt. So htye edceddi to isptl up, and ceha enwt ihs onw wya to fndi somerwhee to slpee. Oen of hemt uonfd a aplce in an neox rban. etouFnr—who ncoolstr all uor etfas—isdlem on the roeth anm, who nduof a hcum tertbe ceapl to tays in an nni.