Identifying Chaucer Allusions, 1991-2000: An Annotated Bibliography

Abstract

Identifying Chaucer Allusions, 1991–2000:An Annotated Bibliography James D. Johnsonjjohnson94@cox.net The appeal of collecting allusions to famous authors is suggested by the book-length compilations available for such writers as Shakespeare, Spenser, and Jonson, as well as for lesser figures such as George Herbert.1 Because of Chaucer's early date, achievements in poetry, and impact on several centuries of readers and writers, he has been an especially fruitful and rewarding subject for "allusion-chasers." Collecting Chaucer allusions dates back at least as far as 1598 when Thomas Speght included a selection in his edition of Chaucer's Works, but the primary repository of Chaucer allusions remains, of course, Caroline F. E. Spurgeon's Five Hundred Years of Chaucer Criticism and Allusion, 1357–1900, first published serially by the Chaucer Society from 1908 to 1917 and subsequently in three volumes in 1925.2 It was Spurgeon herself who first began to augment her collection. "Appendix A" of the third volume of 1925 contains 109 pages of "Additional English and Latin References" ranging in date from 1391 to 1787.3 In 1920, Spurgeon also produced a privately printed supplement of allusions for the years 1868–1900.4 It was in the 1920s, too, that other scholars' additions and corrections to Spurgeon's compilation began to appear in scholarly journals, and these contributions continue to the present day.5 At first, these supplementary allusions usually followed Spurgeon's basic format of identification with minimal or no accompanying commentary. Such raw information is of limited value, however, and in order to be truly beneficial allusions must be put to use, not just cited. Spurgeon recognized this necessity, and in her "Introduction" detailed several possible uses for Chaucer allusions.6 Recent literary theory has added more refined methods of analysis, such as intertextuality, in which allusions are primary evidence. [End Page 436] Chaucer allusions reflect a variety of influences and a multitude of perspectives, from those of casual readers scribbling comments in the margins of manuscripts and books to major authors creating masterpieces. Basically, however, the possible uses of allusions can be divided into three broad areas. The first area focuses on Chaucer's own popularity and literary reputation. Allusions enable scholars to identify the kinds of people reading Chaucer, establish which of his works were most popular at a given time, and chart fluctuations in his critical reception and in the astounding variety of ways he has been perceived over the centuries—sage, Protestant reformer, alchemist, moralist, and so on. The second area focuses on the authors who have alluded to Chaucer. Their allusions indicate not only the nature and depth of Chaucer's influence on other writers, but the analysis of how allusions are used and altered by other writers can also provide insights into the creative transformations of Chaucer's works and a view of how those writers' minds worked. In the third area, on a wider scale, allusions to Chaucer constitute a representative history of cultural evolution and literary taste, criticism, and scholarship over a span of more than six centuries. In two previous bibliographies, I tried to facilitate access to the publications identifying Chaucer allusions that appeared in the years 1953–1980 and 1981–1990, respectively.7 That purpose also guided the present bibliography, which continues this coverage for the ten-year span from 1991 to 2000, with fifty-seven entries representing the work of some fifty scholars. Also included are a few earlier references previously overlooked. The format and method of annotation follow those of the earlier bibliographies. Spurgeon did not offer a definition of allusion, but her practice indicates that her conception of it was broad, and her example has been embraced by those who have supplemented her work. Following this well-established lead, I have adopted a definition of allusion that encompasses direct references in the form of quotations, poems, parodies, biographical and critical essays, and so on, as well as other references to Chaucer or his works, both named and unnamed, whether the publications label them allusions, borrowings, echoes, supplements to Spurgeon, or whatever, or even if they bear no such label at all. I have, however, sought to distinguish allusion from...