--- product_id: 290367 title: "The Canterbury Tales (The Penguin Classics)" price: "Rp431316" currency: IDR in_stock: true reviews_count: 13 url: https://www.desertcart.id/products/290367-the-canterbury-tales-the-penguin-classics store_origin: ID region: Indonesia --- # The Canterbury Tales (The Penguin Classics) **Price:** Rp431316 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** The Canterbury Tales (The Penguin Classics) - **How much does it cost?** Rp431316 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.id](https://www.desertcart.id/products/290367-the-canterbury-tales-the-penguin-classics) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description Nevill Coghill’s masterly and vivid modern English verse translation with all the vigor and poetry of Chaucer’s fourteenth-century Middle English A Penguin Classic In The Canterbury Tales Chaucer created one of the great touchstones of English literature, a masterly collection of chivalric romances, moral allegories and low farce. A story-telling competition between a group of pilgrims from all walks of life is the occasion for a series of tales that range from the Knight’s account of courtly love and the ebullient Wife of Bath’s Arthurian legend, to the ribald anecdotes of the Miller and the Cook. Rich and diverse, The Canterbury Tales offer us an unrivalled glimpse into the life and mind of medieval England. For more than sixty-five years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,500 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators. Review: Ready For The Climb? - This edition of The Canterbury Tales actually contains the tales combined with other poetry (disputedly written or not written by Chaucer), depending on the work. I am no English scholar, so my review, like my knowledge of poetry, is limited. I honestly purchased this work after wishing to know what a chanticleer was. I'm sure you are familiar with the phrase "biting off more than you can chew". Years ago I read Great Expectations, which is not an easy read. The Canterbury Tales made that seem easy. I am not educated enough to explain the form of poetry within, even knowing it is not the iambic pentameter that Shakespeare used. I consider this the Mount Everest of literature. Even modernized in translation, this poetry from the Middle Ages is not simple to read due to two factors: the juxtaposition of the words in each line throws your present-day reading comprehension for a loop, although sometimes you luckily fall into a rhythm, once you get the hang of it. Also, due to the use of Old (?) English terms we may not understand (followed by asterisks), the modern substitutes for them are provided at the end of the line, helpful but requiring one to start a line, jump to the end and then jump back to continue the line. I understand the meaning of "you knew the job was hard when you took it" and my personal quirks required me to finish this important work of literature once I started it. Reading this work required a substantial time investment. Maybe because this material exceeds my intelligence and a true scholar finds it a cake walk. But, honestly, once I finished, I felt like my brain had climbed Everest and was ready for something lighter. Whatever your motivation to read this, your most important qualities are patience and perseverence as you press on. Enjoy what I consider a hard-won battle to read Chaucer and learn about poetry from the Middle Ages and its contribution to English literature. Review: Beware! The Penguin cloth bound version is nice, but not the original language of Chaucer! - I have purchased several of these well-constructed little Penguin editions. For Chaucer's CANTERBURY TALES I was expecting, perhaps, a bilingual version on opposing pages or an interlinear transliteration of the Middle English original, but these were not to be. Instead, this version contains a very readable "modern English" verse rendition by Nevill Coghill, the first printing of which occurred in 1951. It is certainly not the language of Chaucer, but Coghill does an admiral job of maintaining the humor and spirit of the tales. He is an able rhymer and reminds that there is merit (and considerable effort, apparently) in compiling a version that is accessible enough to unfamiliar readers to be easily followed and understood, but still lyrical enough to signal that they are experiencing something special in the history of English Letters -- the unique underlying forms and style that make Chaucer "the father of English poetry." For readers who wish to graduate to the actual Middle English text, that version is available in a relatively inexpensive Penguin Classics paperback edition that the publisher identifies as the original [Middle English] language of Chaucer. Readers are advised to choose carefully when ordering, lest they receive an inappropriate version for their needs! ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Best Sellers Rank | #20,194 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #6 in British & Irish Poetry #42 in Epic Poetry (Books) #193 in Classic Literature & Fiction | | Customer Reviews | 4.6 out of 5 stars 2,797 Reviews | ## Images ![The Canterbury Tales (The Penguin Classics) - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81HaX7b7Z1L.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Ready For The Climb? *by F***S on October 1, 2025* This edition of The Canterbury Tales actually contains the tales combined with other poetry (disputedly written or not written by Chaucer), depending on the work. I am no English scholar, so my review, like my knowledge of poetry, is limited. I honestly purchased this work after wishing to know what a chanticleer was. I'm sure you are familiar with the phrase "biting off more than you can chew". Years ago I read Great Expectations, which is not an easy read. The Canterbury Tales made that seem easy. I am not educated enough to explain the form of poetry within, even knowing it is not the iambic pentameter that Shakespeare used. I consider this the Mount Everest of literature. Even modernized in translation, this poetry from the Middle Ages is not simple to read due to two factors: the juxtaposition of the words in each line throws your present-day reading comprehension for a loop, although sometimes you luckily fall into a rhythm, once you get the hang of it. Also, due to the use of Old (?) English terms we may not understand (followed by asterisks), the modern substitutes for them are provided at the end of the line, helpful but requiring one to start a line, jump to the end and then jump back to continue the line. I understand the meaning of "you knew the job was hard when you took it" and my personal quirks required me to finish this important work of literature once I started it. Reading this work required a substantial time investment. Maybe because this material exceeds my intelligence and a true scholar finds it a cake walk. But, honestly, once I finished, I felt like my brain had climbed Everest and was ready for something lighter. Whatever your motivation to read this, your most important qualities are patience and perseverence as you press on. Enjoy what I consider a hard-won battle to read Chaucer and learn about poetry from the Middle Ages and its contribution to English literature. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Beware! The Penguin cloth bound version is nice, but not the original language of Chaucer! *by C***R on July 22, 2020* I have purchased several of these well-constructed little Penguin editions. For Chaucer's CANTERBURY TALES I was expecting, perhaps, a bilingual version on opposing pages or an interlinear transliteration of the Middle English original, but these were not to be. Instead, this version contains a very readable "modern English" verse rendition by Nevill Coghill, the first printing of which occurred in 1951. It is certainly not the language of Chaucer, but Coghill does an admiral job of maintaining the humor and spirit of the tales. He is an able rhymer and reminds that there is merit (and considerable effort, apparently) in compiling a version that is accessible enough to unfamiliar readers to be easily followed and understood, but still lyrical enough to signal that they are experiencing something special in the history of English Letters -- the unique underlying forms and style that make Chaucer "the father of English poetry." For readers who wish to graduate to the actual Middle English text, that version is available in a relatively inexpensive Penguin Classics paperback edition that the publisher identifies as the original [Middle English] language of Chaucer. Readers are advised to choose carefully when ordering, lest they receive an inappropriate version for their needs! ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ A masterpiece of literature! *by F***S on October 19, 2025* Burton Raffel’s unabridged translation into modern English of The Canterbury Tales, by Geoffrey Chaucer, and published by Modern Library in a luxurious hardcover sewn binding edition with deckled edges, is a must have in any library or home. A beautiful book, and one of the best translations. Geoffrey Chaucer‘s The Canterbury Tales, is a masterpiece of literature! ## Frequently Bought Together - The Canterbury Tales - The Divine Comedy (The Inferno, The Purgatorio, and The Paradiso) - Paradise Lost (Penguin Classics) --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.id/products/290367-the-canterbury-tales-the-penguin-classics](https://www.desertcart.id/products/290367-the-canterbury-tales-the-penguin-classics) --- *Product available on Desertcart Indonesia* *Store origin: ID* *Last updated: 2026-05-14*