Macaulay, George Campbell, ed., Confessio Amantis, or, Tales of the Seven Deadly Sins (Project Gutenberg, 1995). View Source Online

Text name(s): Confessio Amantis

Number of pages of primary source text: 0

Medieval Author(s): Gower, John

Dates: 1377 - 1381

Archival Reference:

Original Language(s): English - Middle English; Latin;

Translation: Original language included.

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Geopolitical Region(s): England;

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Comments:

John Gower was a contemporary and friend of Geoffrey Chaucer, and played a large role in the flourishing of Middle English literature in the fourteenth century. Gower’s Confessio Amantis is a rich and complex work in Latin and Middle English, full of references to earlier literature. In this poem, Gower-the-speaker confesses his sins against the Laws of Love to a chaplain appointed by Venus. The poem goes through each of the seven deadly sins, with a parallel story illustrating sins (of Pride, Lust, etc.) committed against the church and against love. Gower ultimately intended his texts to lead his reader to a better understanding of not only the external world, but the internal soul as well. An edition of the text by George Macaulay (1852-1915) is available on Project Gutenberg.

Introduction Summary:

Cataloger: MK