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Article: B. W. Lindeboom, Venus' Owne Clerk: Chaucer's Debt to the 'Confessio Amantis'.(Book review)
- Article from:
- Medium Aevum
- Article date:
- March 22, 2008
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2008 Society for the Study of Mediaeval Languages and Literature. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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B. W. Lindeboom, Venus' Owne Clerk: Chaucer's Debt to the 'Confessio Amantis', Costerus, NS 267 (Amsterdam and New York: Rodopi, 2007). 477 PP. ISBN 9-789042-021501. $130.00.
B. W. Lindeboom argues provocatively that Chaucer dramatically changed his plans for the Canterbury Tales as a result of John Gower's literary challenge at the end of the 1390 Confessio Amantis asking Chaucer to write a 'Testament of Love'. From roughly 1390 to 1391 (when Gower removed the challenge), Chaucer (re)wrote parts of the Canterbury Tales in a courtly game between the two poets, a game that most likely took place through readings or circulation of manuscripts. Chaucer's Testament ...