Skip to main content
Home

Main navigation

  • Home
  • Series
  • People
  • Depts & Colleges
  • Open Education

Main navigation

  • Home
  • Series
  • People
  • Depts & Colleges
  • Open Education

Chaucer 5 - The Language of Chaucer

Series
Chaucer for Beginners
Audio Embed
Professor Marion Turner delves into Geoffrey Chaucer's language and writing style. Chaucer championed a vernacular English form of writing, a departure from the prevalent use of Latin or French in poetry and the law.
In this illuminating episode, Professor Marion Turner engages in a captivating conversation with Karen Carey, delving into the intricacies of Geoffrey Chaucer's language and writing style. The episode offers an immersive experience, commencing with Marion's eloquent recital of the opening lines of the Canterbury Tales in Middle English. From the outset, listeners are transported to the linguistic landscape of Chaucer's era, marked by irregular spellings and the unique nuances of early English.

Marion and Karen unravel the challenges posed by this early form of the English language, shedding light on its evolution into the modern tongue. Despite the irregularities, much of Chaucer's vocabulary remains recognisable to contemporary readers. The discussion extends to Chaucer's role as the originator of iambic pentameter verse, exploring how the rhythm and stress of words contribute to the richness of his writing when spoken aloud.

The podcast also explores Chaucer's pivotal role in championing a vernacular English form of writing, a departure from the prevalent use of Latin or French in poetry, government, and the law during his time. Marion and Karen examine the significance of this linguistic shift and its impact on the accessibility of literature to a broader audience.

As the conversation unfolds, listeners gain many insights into Chaucer's lasting linguistic contributions to modern English. The episode concludes with an exploration of words and phrases attributed to Chaucer, such as the timeless adage "Love is Blind," underscoring the enduring influence of his language on contemporary expression and writers such as Shakespeare who followed him. This episode serves as a valuable resource for students and enthusiasts seeking to navigate the linguistic intricacies and appreciate the linguistic legacy of Geoffrey Chaucer.

More in this series

View Series
Chaucer for Beginners

Chaucer 4 - The Wife of Bath's Prologue and Tale

Professor Marion Turner introduces one of the most famous and intricate tales from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales – "The Wife of Bath."
Previous
Chaucer for Beginners

Chaucer 6 - Chaucer’s legacy

Professor Marion Turner looks at Chaucer's legacy and the changes in societal perception of Chaucer. She also looks at online resources to help the beginner study Chaucer.
Next
Licence
Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.0 UK: England & Wales; http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/uk/

Episode Information

Series
Chaucer for Beginners
People
Marion Turner
Karen Carey
Keywords
chaucer
Middle English
poetry
Canterbury Tales
Geoffrey Chaucer
iambic pentameter
verse
literature
linguistics
Modern English
Department: Faculty of English Language and Literature
Date Added: 08/02/2024
Duration: 00:16:34

Subscribe

Apple Podcast Audio Audio RSS Feed

Download

Download Audio

Footer

  • About
  • Accessibility
  • Contribute
  • Copyright
  • Contact
  • Privacy
'Oxford Podcasts' Twitter Account @oxfordpodcasts | MediaPub Publishing Portal for Oxford Podcast Contributors | Upcoming Talks in Oxford | © 2011-2022 The University of Oxford