by Candace Barrington

I was delighted to learn about a fairly recent project headed by Mary Flannery, Amy Brown, and Kristen Haas Curtis. Its name, COMMode, wittily points to the scatological humor many readers associate with Chaucer and his Tales. The project investigates and queries the relationship between Chaucer’s modern reception and his obscenity, a set of important questions that have fascinated me for a couple of decades. Moreover, they are reaching beyond the usual suspects. Already the site’s blog has featured descriptions of two global Chaucers: Shing Yin Khor’s oracle cards (link and images above) and Chaucer in 19th-century Australia.