SOURCE: "Chaucer and the Rhetoricians," in Proceedings of the British Academy, Oxford University Press, 1926, pp. 95-113.

Manly was an esteemed professor of Medieval English known for his valuable contribution to Chaucer studies through his lectures and his eight-volume collection. The Text of the Canterbury Tales, Studied on the Basis of All Known Manuscripts. In the following excerpt from his published lectures, Manly describes the rhetorical styles of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, Book of the Duchess, Parlement of Foules, and other poems. He traces Chaucer's style to the lessons given in medieval rhetorical texts, suggesting that Chaucer was following set conventions in his poetry, which he later imaginatively expanded.

… In investigating the sources of Chaucer's notions of literature and his conceptions of style, scholars have hitherto discussed only the writings of other authors which may have served as models for imitation. The possibility of his acquaintance with formal rhetorical theory...