FLORILEGIUM 10, 1988-91
CHAUCER’S DECIBELS
Beverly Boyd
T h e decibel is a num erical expression of th e relative loudness of a sound.
A ccording to W ebster’s New World Dictionary, th e difference in decibels of
tw o sounds is ten tim es th e com m on lo g arith m o f th e ra tio o f th eir power
levels. F o rtu n a te ly for th e p o in t to be m ade in this discussion, C haucer
never heard of a decibel; equally fo rtu n ately for lite rary considerations, the
te rm decibel has entered th e general vocabulary as an expression m eaning
“noise level.” T h e analysis which follows will be a b o u t exactly th a t: the
noise levels in C h au cer’s po etry , noise being p a rt o f th e h u m an condition
a b o u t w hich he w rote so m em orably.
O ne sees th e fam ous m in iatu res o f th e Ellesm ere M anuscript of The
Canterbury Tales w ith awe an d reverence for th e a rtis t o f graceful horses and
riders tru e to C h au cer’s descriptions. T h ey are cap tu red in th e ir fictitious
m om en t of tim e — even th o u g h scholars know th a t the horses were traced
— n o ta b le for em broidery, wim ples, saddles, spurs, bells, and physiognom y.1
Alike, pictu res an d p o e try assum e a certain am o u n t of cacophony th a t w ent
w ith real life, b o th in such hostels as th e T a b a rd Inn in Southw ark and
on th e ro ad to C an terb u ry . H orses’ hoofs, bridle-bells, b arking dogs, loud
voices, an d even a set o f bagpipes accom panied th is fam ous assem bly along
th e road. T h eir hostels, of which H arry B ailly’s estab lish m en t is the m ost
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fam ous, received “W ei nyne and tw enty in a com paignye” (1.24)2 w ith con­
siderable h u b b u b a n d din: voices, hoofs on cobblestones, ru n n in g a b o u t of
serv an ts, d ism o u n tin g an d unloading — all to th e c la tte r of kitchen and
scullery noises. T hese m a tte rs p e rta in to th e “G eneral Prologue” an d the
links as th e fram in g technique for C h au cer’s collection o f sh o rt stories. T h e
stories them selves have noise levels w hich are p a rt o f th e ir p o e t’s m ilieu:
tow ns, w ars, oceans, b arn y ard s, forges, m an u re-carts, gristm ills, and so on.
D iscussion o f C h au cer’s noise-levels requires som e prefatory com m ents
o f a n o th e r so rt, reg ard in g th e o ral-au ral s itu a tio n for w hich th is p o e try
w as w ritte n a n d th e s itu a tio n in w hich it is now read. For it is widely
believed th a t C h au cer’s p o e try w as w ritte n to be read aloud, th o u g h th e
g eneralizatio n is m ore in terestin g th a n provable. Even w ith such a caveat,
C haucer h a s set u p a t least his Canterbury Tales in an in tric a te oral-au ral
schem e w ith his p erson a p resenting a fram e-co n struct in which a variety of
n a rra to rs do th e tale-tellin g . T h e fram e-story, w ith its own noises, contains
th e voices o f n a rra to rs, th e voices them selves being noise. T h ro u g h this
vocal noise th e pilgrim -audience hears an d also delivers individually the
Canterbury Tales, th e tales them selves h av in g th e ir ow n kinds o f noise. T o
th is com plicatio n m u st be ad ded th e fact th a t, read now in M iddle English,
C h a u c e r’s o ra l-a u ra l situ a tio n has to be learned anew by undoing th e G rea t
Vowel S hift o f th e fifteenth cen tu ry an d by pronouncing th e unstressed final
e in m an y constructions, especially a t th e ends o f lines. In sh o rt, C h au c er’s
verse is ap p ro ach ed by teach in g people to read it aloud. N evertheless, a
genius such as C haucer can m a n ip u la te credibility even th ro u g h layers of
voices: th e p e rso n a ’s, th e n a rra to rs ’, an d o u r ow n a tte m p ts to get his w orks
read correctly.
In dealing w ith C h au cer’s sounds, we are o f course involved w ith a so­
ciety a n cestral to o u r ow n w hich can no longer be experienced directly. A
day in th e co u n try m ay be as close as it is possible to get to th e world
as C hau cer knew it, provided, o f course, th a t cars an d com bines are o u t
o f e arsh o t, th a t u tility poles are hidden by trees, th a t no airplanes pass
overhead, a n d th a t dom estic a c tiv ity involves n eith er food-processors nor
rin g in g telephones. T h e sounds o f n a tu re live on: bird-song, w ind in grass
an d trees, voices o f sheep an d c a ttle , b ark in g of dogs. B oth th e “N u n ’s
P rie s t’s T ale” an d th e ta le o f th e P ard o n er concern ru ra l life, its low-level
sounds stirre d u p w ith th e sh o u tin g an d shrieking o f th e chase th a t follows
C h au n te c le e r’s m isad v en tu re, an d th e d eath-agonies o f th e P a rd o n e r’s rois­
terers as th e y do each o th e r in b e n e a th th e tree w here th ey have sought and
found d e a th personified.
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T h e N u n ’s P riest an d th e P ard o n er com e to a tte n tio n in itially n o t as
tellers o f ru ral tales b u t as p a rt o f an u rb an scene as th eir pilgrim age as­
sem bles a t th e T a b a rd Inn in S outhw ark. T h e T a b a rd was no H oliday Inn.
T h ere m u st have been noise of m an y horses and of th e ir ow ners’ su p p li­
ers — blacksm iths, saddlers, provisioners, groom s, hucksters, beggars, and
purveyors o f personal services, n o t to m ention dogs. Inns were b u ilt around
co u rty ard s. W h atev er th e actu al figure C haucer m ean t to convey by “Wei
nyne an d tw enty,” th a t n u m b er o f horses riding in to a flagged y ard far o u t­
did a fleet o f autom obiles in generatin g noise, tho u g h a fleet o f m otorcycles
m ig h t have overw helm ed H arry Bailly. T h e guests, once inside th e ir inn,
found rush-strew n floors an d com m on (th o u g h not unisex) sleeping accom ­
m o d atio n s. R ushes pro b ab ly h ad acoustical properties, and buildings of
th e tim e certainly had thick er w alls th a n m odern buildings, b u ilt of stone,
brick, or p laster an d tim b e r, if n o t som e of each. Even so, o u tsid e racket
in ev itab ly com bined w ith kitchen-scullery c la tte r in to noise levels no longer
acceptable unless one is housed over a night-club, cheaply.
K itchen noises o f such a place are in terestin g to co n tem p late in th e ab ­
sence o f a u to m a tio n or indeed o f serfdom , no longer e x ta n t in C h au ce r’s
E ngland. T h e p rincipal noises o f th e kitchen, besides voices of every tone,
w ould have been those o f bellows, fires crackling, spits tu rn in g , cauldrons
bubbling, steam hissing, an d th e general th u d d in g of knives, m allets, knead­
ing, g ratin g , and sieving, th e la tte r done m ore th a n a t present as th e n orm al
way to deal w ith th e m ediaeval egg. T o these should be added scraping,
pro b ab ly by w ooden spoons, an d knocking o f p o ts m ade o f copper an d iron.
Since refrigeration was unknow n, chickens m ay have clucked th eir la st in
th e kitchen.
T h e scullery was a place o f clean-up, tho u g h guests b ro u g h t th eir own
eatin g equ ip m en t and napery, cleansed a t th e table. Scullery noise w as th a t
of p o ts and p la tte rs scraped an d sluiced to a general cacophony o f shouting,
laughing, how ling, an d o ath -m ak in g . P erh ap s guests were used to com m o­
tion, b u t there is no disguising th e fact th a t a m ediaeval inn w as a noisy
place. It is interestin g , however, th a t C haucer takes all th is for g ra n ted ,
describing n o th in g of congenial snoring or o th er physical a ttrib u te s o f being
“esed a tte b este” (1.29), tho u g h such noise w as called to th e im ag in atio n by
th e m ere m ention of an inn.
Noise in th e rest o f th e “G eneral Prologue” works in m uch th e sam e
way, as C haucer assum es, ra th e r th a n details, th e K n ig h t’s w ars, th e P ri­
oress’s sen tim en tal tears, an d th e S h ip m a n ’s survived tem pests. T h e m ost
prevalent noise is, o f course, th a t of voices. O therw ise, w hat sta n d s o u t is
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m usical sound. C haucer says of th e Squire, “Syngynge he was, or floytynge,
al th e d a y ” (1.91); he rem ark s upon th e M onk’s bridle-bells, “G ynglen in a
w histlynge w ynd als cleere / A nd eek as loude as d o o th th e chapel belle”
(1.170-71); he says th a t th e F riar has “a m urye note / W ei koude he synge
an d pleyen on a ro te” (1.235-36); he rem arks th a t th e P ard o n er and Sum m oner sing a d u et, “ ‘C om hider, love, to m e!’” (1.672-73) and th a t the
P a rd o n e r is also good a t singing an offertory, alth o u g h he does n o t show
th a t in d iv id u al in th e act of doing so. T he M iller ap p ears to be th e noisiest
pilgrim , since C haucer says th a t he can break dow n a door w ith his head,
th o u g h th e sp lin terin g exists only in th e im agination; again, there is no de­
scription , an d th e M iller’s a b ility to do so is n o t d em o n strated . W h a t he
actu ally does p erform is m usic upon th e bagpipes, w ith w hich he leads the
p ilgrim age o u t o f tow n. In sum m ary, th e “G eneral P rologue” stirs up sound
by th e pow er o f suggestion. R arely does C haucer give details.
A fter th e “G eneral Prologue,” th e next actio n in The Canterbury Tales
is th e K n ig h t’s ta le o f tw o knights, P alam on and A rcite, left for dead in the
T h e b a n W ar by edict of th e cruel Creon, and his account o f th e ir rescue and
im p riso n m en t by T heseus, D uke o f A thens, on his w ay hom e after conquer­
ing th e A m azon H ip p o ly ta, w hom he has w edded an d who is accom panied
by her sister, th e virginal Em elye. L ater on, w hen th e tw o prisoners, having
fallen in love w ith E m elye an d eventually escaped from th eir prison-tow er,
m eet in a grove an d arran g e to fight a m o rtal co m b at over th e girl, we know
th a t th ey are a b o u t to hack each o th e r to d eath . C haucer has little to say
except th a t th e lion h as m e t th e tiger, and, d oubling th e m e tap h o r, th a t
th ey fight as w ild b o ars fight, fro th in g for ire. A t th is p o in t, th e n a rra to r
— supposedly th e K n ig h t, b u t o f course th e presiding genius is C haucer —
breaks in w ith a favo u rite device, occupatio: th e necessity o f doing som e­
th in g else. T h is leaves th e m sta n d in g in th e ir own blood as th e K night
(C haucer) tells how T heseus h as gone M aying w ith his fam ily, accidentally
com ing u p o n th e foes, th e ir sw ords going as if to fell an oak (1.1702), at
w hich p o in t he intervenes. T h e im agery is far m ore visual th a t audial, the
noise-level being only th a t o f chopping down an oak, alb eit th e sto u te st of
trees. T h e visual im agery an d th e m eagre description tu rn on p len ty o f noise
in th e im a g in a tio n . C haucer h as saved th e real noise for th e lists T heseus
decrees for th e tru e co m b at. Here th ere is m uch com m otion, as arm orers
w ith files get people in to th e ir b a ttle gear.
T h e o p p o n en ts, m oreover, com e w ith m usical in stru m en ts. T h eir sound
is less like th e g rap es o f w ra th th a n it is like squires h aving a w onderful
tim e w ith pipes, d ru m s, nakers, and clarions. T hese are w ar-gam es fought
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for th e h an d of a princess. K ingdom s are not a t stake, alth o u g h th e p lan ets
have tak en sides. Indeed, it is m usic th a t aw akens T heseus on th e fateful
m orning. He issues stern rules: only spears are allowed in th e lists, th u s
elim in atin g th e noisiest and bloodiest kinds o f co m b at. B ut riding a t speed
w ith clarions blow ing an d breaking spears upon shields can n o t be o ther
th a n C h a u c e r’s m axim um use o f sound, C haucer a t his loudest, though he
is still n o t giving his audience th e sounds o f w ar as he m u st have known
th em him self in France. O ddly enough, th is to u rn am e n t for the h and of
Em elye is far noisier th a n th e T ro ja n W ar o f Troilus and Criseyde.
C haucer has no b a ttle s a t sea, except by allusion, as in his p o rtra it of
th e K nig h t in th e “G eneral P rologue.” B u t th ere are glim pses of sea-life in
his stories, including th e storm -tossed m isadventures of the M an of L aw ’s
C onstance, tw ice set ad rift in a rudderless ship. T hro ugh prayer, endurance,
virtue, and m iracle, th is em p e ro r’s d au g h ter survives the terro rs o f the deep
an d poetic ju stic e prevails in th e end. B u t after five years o f this peril, we
learn of th e sea only th a t it is salt an d th a t it can be tem pestuous. C haucer,
th ro u g h his M an of Law, does n o t actu ally describe the terrifying noise of
angry sto rm s a t sea; no r does he delineate th e peaceful c o n trast of sound
w hen w ind an d waves are gentle. C haucer has assum ed th e seascape and
its noises for an audience insular enough th a t th e sea was never far away.
T h ere are o th er references to th e sea in C h a u c e r’s poetry, b u t its noise is
n o t given in detail. T h e sto ry of C onstance creates th e te rro r of wild seas
by using o th e r im agery, which tu rn s on th e im agination th ro u g h allusion.
C haucer gives m ore detail to noise produced by people and by creatures
th a n to th a t resu ltin g from p henom ena of n a tu re , as show n in the sugges­
tive ra th e r th a n overt dealing w ith C onstance in her rudderless ship. He
could have m ade far m ore o f th e sto rm th a t rages in Book III of Troilus
and Criseyde, alth o u g h th is is n o t to say th a t th e lines which are in fact
descriptive lack pow er, as for exam ple, “A nd evere m o so sterneliche it
ron, / A nd blew th e rw ith so w ondirliche loude, / T h a t wel neigh no m an
heren o th er koude” (677-79). C haucer uses th is scene to bring T roilus and
C riseyde together. He invests in th e events th a t follow, n o t in th e noise of
th is prov id en tial sto rm .
Noises o f m usical in stru m en ts, people, an d creatures — in th is case
birds, horses, an d hounds — are vivid in The Book of the Duchess, w hich,
alth o u g h a d ream vision, is one of his poem s richest in noise. He awakens
(or m akes his p erso n a do so) to birds singing loudly on a spring m orning.
T here follow sounds o f h unting-horns, of people an d horses being readied for
th e h u n t. T h e d ream er finds him self involved as th e hounds are uncoupled
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and th e h u n t streak s in to th e forest w ith tra d itio n a l cries and sh o u ts th a t
can n o t have been un fam iliar to a po et who h ad been a page in an aristo cratic
household. T h e poem th u s sta rts w ith noises fortissim o, b u t as th e dream er
becom es sep arated from th e h u n t he finds him self deep in a quiet grove
where he interview s a m a n in m ourning. T h is scene posseses serenity. T he
dream er has ju s t learned w hy th e m an in black is m o urning when th e h u n t
crashes back and his d ream falls a p a rt as dream s will. T h e technique here
uses violent noise in c o n tra st w ith near silence. T b e effect is m em orable,
even th o u g h The Book of the Duchess is one o f C h a u ce r’s early works.
T h e chase in a m ore comic m ilieu ap p ears in th e fable re-told in The
Canterbury Tales by th e N u n ’s P riest. T h e p oor w idow ’s chicken-coop can
h a rd ly be considered in te rm s o f decibels, despite C h au n tecleer’s prowess a t
crow ing a n d P e rte lo te ’s skill a t herbalism an d dream -psychology, u n til the
elegant cock falls victim to a wily fox. A t th is p o in t a chase ensues, w ith
shrieking a n d o th er a p p ro p ria te noises, including noises o f livestock in h o t
p u rsu it, a caricatu re o f a h u n t. T h e situ a tio n is th e reverse o f th e situ a tio n of
noise in The Book of the Duchess as C haucer, th ro u g h th e p ilg rim -n arrato r,
uses th e chase as a m a d c o n trast to th e form erly peaceful co u n try scene. It
is noise used for delight, th o u g h th e delight is certainly n o t C h au n tecleer’s.
Noise used for delig h t ap p ears also in th e best-know n o f C h au cer’s fabli­
aux, th a t to ld by th e M iller, already cited as th e noisiest o f th e C a n terb u ry
pilgrim s. I t is com m on knowledge th a t th e skill in th is fabliau lies in th e
carefully set-u p elem ents o f th e sto ry an d th e speed w ith which they are
cu t loose in to a pile-up o f th e comic results of p ra c tica l jokes. T h e use of
noise follows th e sam e technique. In th e descriptions w ith which th e story
begins, th e s tu d e n t’s room contains a psaltery, o f w hich C haucer gives us a
still-life. T h e s tu d e n t’s c o m p etito r for th e love of his la n d lo rd ’s wife sings
a serenade u n d er her w indow , th a t fixture becom ing th e fram e o f ensuing
events. T h e fa c t th a t th e landlord, a carpenter, has a noisy tra d e is only
im plied: he never knocks in a nail d uring th e story. T h e serenade re-appears
in th e course o f a trick th e stu d e n t has devised so th a t he can enjoy the
c a rp e n te r’s wife while th a t p o o r dupe, her h u sb an d, believing th a t he will
escape an im p en d in g re tu rn o f N oah’s flood, sleeps in a tu b tied to th e roof.
T h e w ould-be tro u b a d o u r, th w a rte d by a m isdirected kiss, goes to a forge
— o f all possible places th e noisiest, though C haucer does n o t tro u b le w ith
th a t obvious fact — an d secures a h o t tool, which produces a yell from
th e in ten d ed p e rp e tra to r o f a second d irty kiss. T h a t in tu rn causes the
dup ed c a rp e n te r to cut loose his tu b in th e belief th a t it will float since the
flood has arriv ed , so, in crashing to th e cou rty ard , he causes a noisy crowd to
BEVERLY BOYD
105
gather. Chaucer has progressed from a described musical instrument to soft
sound in the form of a serenade, to a forge, to a yell, to a crash and ensuing
commotion, this crescendo running exactly parallel to the development of
the tale.
This discussion is necessarily incomplete, since all of Chaucer's works
cannot be considered here, but it permits some interesting observations.
Frequently, if not usually, Chaucer does not describe noise directly but
plants it in the imagination by suggestion rather than delineation. lIe uses
occupatio and other evasions to avoid describing noise of war and other
violence, though jousting is an exception as in the "Knight's Tale." His most
descriptive noise-passages involve chases, comic situations, games such as
tournaments, and events involving musical instruments. These listings can
overlap and do so often. Otherwise, Chaucer centres his poetic attention
on the voices of people, people in the vocal act of narration and in the
conviviality as well as the sorrows of their living.
The University of Kansas
NOTES
1 Herbert C. Schultz, The Elle6mere Man'U6cript of Chaucer'6 "Canterbury Tale6"
(San Marino, CA: The Huntington Library, 1966), 3-4.
2 All references to Chaucer's works are to The River6ide Chaucer, 3rd edn., Larry
D. Benson, ed. (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1987).
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