Cuz why?

"Cause why? " in The Reeves Tale, v 293, means "Why?"

The Canterbury Tales.

The Miller's Tale

Ll 408 - 413.

'Now John,' quod Nicholas, 'I wod not lye;
I have y-found in myn astrologye,
As I have loked in the moone bright,
That now on Monday next, at quarter night,
Schal falle a reyn, and that so wilde and wood,
That half so gret was never Noe's flood.

To which the editor found it necessary to add a footnote.

God destroyed the world because of people's sins, but saved Noah and his family because he was faithful.

Canterbury Tales.

A rarely seen survival

Lief

Perfectly legit, standard, modern English, brought to mind by a passage in Chaucer.

The Miller's Tale, ll 432 ff,

Nicolas speaking of Noah to the carpenter, of his concern that his wife might survive the flood.

Him hadde wel lever, I dar well undertake,

At thilke tyme [at such a time - PV] than all his wetheres blake [black sheep - PV],

That sche hadde a schip hirself allone.

The Canterbury Tales.

The word is at least that old

The word "wake" is used twice within 2 lines concerning the funeral rites of Arcyte.

It is familiar in English and American literature and commonly used in New England, anyway, and in Ireland.

In my childhood, a wake was held at home for a dead great uncle, as I recall.

The body was in a coffin, food and drink were served, the rooms were full of smoke.

Catholic Canadian French in Spencer, Massachusetts.

So why is the word unfamiliar to people in the Pittsburgh region?

The Knight's Tale, 2082, 2084.

Canterbury Tales.

Theseus marries Emily to Palomon because he has earned it.

She loves him.

"Axe" for "ask"

The Knight's Tale, Canterbury Tales, line 487.

"Now loveres, axe I this question,"

Scotsman's English

Seems just like it.

The Knight's Tale.

The Canterbury Tales.

Chaucer

Your chances were probably better if you couldn't afford him.

The doctor/surgeon whose training and methods are described in the General Prologue of The Canterbury Tales.

Lines 411 - 444.

When did that change, I wonder?

In the last few days I have been lucky enough to obtain a fine, like-new but used, hard-cover copy of The Riverside Chaucer for $15 and a new Wordsworth paperback edition of The Canterbury Tales for $7, both beautiful books.

And bargains!

I have read the Tales before only in Modern English translation.

Not this time.