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Geoffrey Chaucer was born a wine-merchant\u2019s son in 1340s London. He survived the plague, the Hundred Years\u2019 War, the Great Rising, and an adolescence spent wearing tight pants in a rich woman\u2019s house to become one of the most celebrated poets in English. In the first biography of Chaucer in a generation, historian Marion Turner makes the case that the man we think of as a great English poet was, in fact, a great European one. He was inspired by the literature of Italy, Spain, France, and elsewhere\u2014but more importantly, he drew on his interactions with the people he encountered during his travels, and from the places he visited. For example, how did the frescoes of Florence give rise to the perspectives in The House of Fame? Did Chaucer\u2019s visits to his daughter\u2019s none-too-chaste nunnery influence the bawdy Nun\u2019s Priest\u2019s Tale? Marion Turner takes us back to the Middle Ages to find out. This episode originally aired in 2019.

Go beyond the episode:

• Marion Turner\u2019s Chaucer: A European Life
• Brush up on your Middle English with the Norton edition of The Canterbury Tales or The Riverside Chaucer

Tune in every week to catch interviews with the liveliest voices from literature, the arts, sciences, history, and public affairs; reports on cutting-edge works in progress; long-form narratives; and compelling excerpts from new books. Hosted by Stephanie Bastek. Follow us on Twitter @TheAmScho or on Facebook.

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