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ckohrs

Dr. Higl

Chaucer

Fall 2016

Let’s Get Crafty, My Love

The opening line of Chaucer’s poem The Parliament of Fowls reads “The lyf so short, the

craft so long to lerne,” (PoF 1). Later the reader learns that the “craft” that the narrator is

speaking of, is love. The MED provides fourteen uses of this word in Chaucer’s canonical works

and each use has been categorized into one six different definitions. As renowned

Deconstructionist Ferdinand de Saussure wrote in Course on General Linguistics, “A linguistic

system is a series of differences of sound combined with a series of differences of ideas.” The

meaning of a word can be fairly arbitrary, as exemplified by eleven different definitions the

MED gives for this one. Investigation into the multitude of definitions, with reference to

information in the OED shows the different possible commentaries on love that Chaucer presents

in this poem with his use of the word “craft.”

The definition that the MED pairs with the use in PoF reads “(a) [a]n art, a handicraft; art

(as opposed to nature)” (MED). It would seem appropriate for this definition by modern

standards. Love today is described in many qualitative ways, as an ephemeral “splendored thing”

that “lifts us up,” rather than a strict science. The MED also cites Chaucer’s use of the word craft

in the Legend of Good Women in the line “coude of love al the art and craft pleyner” (LGW

1607). Here love and art and craft are all in the same line and the definition fits perfectly.

However, in the context of the PoF, the definition starts to stretch.

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Firstly, the narrator is attempting to study love in books, making this “craft” akin to a

science. There are conflicting views on this, however, as this act of studying is commonly

critiqued by critics as being a bad way to learn about love. What truly brings into question the

MED’s choice of definition, is how “craft” is denoted to be the antithesis of nature. In PoF,

Nature appears as a character, and in lines 302 to 305, Chaucer writes: “And in a launde, upon an

hille of floures, / Was set this noble goddesse Nature; / Of braunches were hir halles and hir

boures, / Y-wrought after hir craft and hir mesure” (302-305). Nature is presented as having her

own craft. As the MED collaborators have chosen to only give the initial use of “craft” in the

PoF, this instance appears to supersede the choice of definition in the MED.

If the craft of love is a science, then the MED’s second definition might be more

appropriate: “(a) Skill, dexterity, cleverness, ingenuity” (MED). This outlines love as something

that could be taught from a book. The MED gives the example of the “The Canon’s Yeoman’s

Tale” where Chaucer writes: “Of his craft som what I wol yow shewe” (CT CY 619). The craft

that is being described is alchemy, more strongly tied to the realm of science than ambiguous

love. The other possible definitions presented by the MED mostly include reference to

woodworking and specific trade crafts, leaving the “craft” of love, without a proper placement.

The OED provides some similar definitions, and some new ones. The main difference is

the order and grouping of definitions. The first definition is almost identical to that in the MED,

using the words “force,” “power,” and “strength” in a list with like terms (OED). This is written

off as obsolete, and the second definition raises suggests some interesting ideas. The OED’s

definition 2b, suggests “[o]ccult art, magic” (OED). This is not specific to the OED, the MED

also mentions magic, less favorably, placing it as definition 3d. Love as a magic, is not a new

idea, but both the MED seems to suggest dark magic. The MED provides the head words
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“develes” and “fendes” referring to the devils witchcraft. Negative or positive, magical love ties

neatly into the fantastic elements of the dream that follows in the body of PoF.

Love is a craft, and love is definitely very crafty. The found meaning of love is often

different from person to person, and when Chaucer uses the word “craft” in place of it, he offers

interesting insight on his, or at least his narrator’s view on love. From a science, to an art, to a

magical alchemistic mixture of the two, the OED and the MED help deconstruct, and offer a

multitude of possibilities for this ultimately ambiguous term correlating to an equally wide array

of possible meanings for Chaucer’s craft of love.

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Works Cited

Chaucer, Geoffrey. “The Canon's Yeoman's Prologue and Tale.” The Geoffrey Chaucer Page.

Ed. Larry D. Benson. Harvard University Information Technology. Web.

Chaucer, Geoffrey. “The Legend of Good Women.” Dream Visions and Other Poems. Ed.

Kathryn L. Lynch. New York City: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc. Print.

Chaucer, Geoffrey. “The Parliament of Fowls.” Dream Visions and Other Poems. Ed. Kathryn L.

Lynch. New York City: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc. Print.

“craft, n.” The Middle English Dictionary. Web.

“craft, n.” OED Online. Oxford University Press, February 2016. Web.