Chaucer DH Project

In my Chaucer class, I'm considering writing an essay over what influence The Canterbury Tales might of had in laying the groundwork for the Protestant Reformation. Different editions of the text would have varied in their inclusion/organization of certain sections. If all editions were grouped together in a digital archive, this would open the doorway for much more efficient analysis. Additionally, having an archive that also included other works by Chaucer could provide additional evidence that supports or disproves a connection between his own socio-religious leanings and those held by leaders of the Reformation. 

Beyond analyzing the history of the text's reception as a single entity, I'll need to find out which of the tales are most relevant to the discussion, how those segments were printed and distributed, and who was their target audience. In class we discussed how some of the more popular tales were combined thematically with other texts. These collections, if they could be found digitally, would speak to a variety of questions relating to the ways different factions used Chaucer's work to promote their own agendas.