Table of Contents

List of Illustrations. The Contributors. Acknowledgements. Abbreviations of Chaucer's Work. The Idea of a Chaucer Companion: Peter Brown. 1. Afterlife: Carolyn Collette. 2. Authority: Andrew Galloway. 3. Bodies: Linda Voigts. 4. Chivalry: Derek Brewer. 5. Christian Ideologies: Nicholas Watson. 6. Comedy: Laura Kendrick. 7. Contemporary English Writers: James Simpson. 8. Crisis and Dissent: Alcuin Blamires. 9. France: Michael Hanly. 10. Games: Malcolm Andrew. 11. Genre: Caroline Eckhardt. 12. Geography and Travel: Scott Westrem. 13. Italy: David Wallace. 14. Language: David Burnley. 15. Life Histories: Janette Dillon. 16. London: Michael Hanrahan. 17. Love: Helen Phillips. 18 Modes of Representation: Edward Wheatley. 19. Narrative: Robert G. Edwards. 20. Other Thought-Worlds: Susanna Fein. 21. Pagan Survivals: John Fyler. 22. Personal Identity: Lynn Staley. 23. Science: Irma Taavitsainen. 24. Social Structures: Robert Swanson. 25. Style: John Plummer. 26. Texts: Tim Machan. 27. Translation: Roger Ellis. 28. Visualizing: Sarah Stanbury. 29. Women: Nicky Hallett. Index.

About the Author

Peter Brown is Senior Lecturer in English at the University of Kent and Chair of its School of English. His publications include Reading Dreams: The Interpretation of Dreams from Chaucer to Shakespeare (editor and contributor), Chaucer at Work: The Making of the Canterbury Tales, and, with Andrew Butcher, The Age of Saturn: Literature and History in the Canterbury Tales.

Reviews

'This collection of accessible, informative essays provides students and teachers with a balance of textual analysis and cultural contexts designed to enhance the understanding of Chaucer's major and minor works ... Both serious first-time readers of Chaucer and veterans looking for credible information on more recent avenues of inquiry will find this a valuable source of information and bibliography.' Choice "This work, the latest entry in Blackwell's "Companions to Literature and Culture" series... provides an inclusive and scholarly orientation to current theories and interpretation of Chaucer's works." "Each essay... places Chaucer's texts into cultural context by examining the medieval point of view, and includes notes, references, and suggestions for further readings." "The text... will serve well as a one-volume introduction for new students. It also provides access to original research and new ideas sought by graduate students and faculty." Library Journal "Overall, this is useful book. providing an up-to-date survey of the state of Chaucer scholarship on a wide range of issues...it will provoke interesting and educational debates in and out of the classroom." Reference Reviews "[This book] is both highly readable and rich in its diversity, a book which any Chaucerian, novice or seasoned, will often pick up simply for the pleasure of browsing[...] Every student of Chaucer, from undergraduate to emiritus professor, will want to have access to it." English Studies: A Journal of English Language and Literature