Valentine's Day originally was celebrated as Lupercalia in ancient rome. This was a feast to honor Roman gods, Lupercus and Faunus. Couples would be paired up during the feast for the year to come. It was renamed after St. Valentine, a priest who performed secret marraiges on soldiers who were mandated to remain single. While there are a number of factors leading up to the day we celebrate today- Valentine's Day became associated with romance after Geoffery Chaucer wrote "The Parliament of Fowls" in 1381.


Geoffery Chaucer, sometimes referred to as the father of literature, was asked to write a poem to celebrate the engagement of Richard II of England and Anne of Behemia. Thus, he created "The Parliament of Fowls" in honor of their love. An interesting and very entertaining piece of literature, Chaucer wrote about a dream that he had after reading a book. In this very vivid dream, he is disturbed by a gate that he encounters. The gate is two sided with etchings. One side eblazened in gold and the second side in black. He is faced with the duality of love.


The wonder of love:
Through me men go into that blessed place
Where hearts find health and deadly wounds find cure,
Through me men go unto the fount of Grace,
Where green and lusty May shall ever endure.
I lead men to blithe peace and joy secure.
Reader, be glad; throw off your sorrows past.
Open am I; press in and make haste fast."


The curse of love:
Through me men go where all mischance betides,
Where is the mortal striking of the spear,
To which Disdain and Coldness are the guides,
Where trees no fruit or leaf shall ever bear.
This stream shall lead you to the sorrowful weir
Where fish in baleful prison lie all dry.
To shun it is the only remedy."


As Chaucer is disturbed by this vision of love. Should he lose himself in it? Or will he save himself from it? After pondering these thoughts, he is led into the courtyard of "the noblest godess, Nature". Within this courtyard, he sees many of the characters we associate today with Valentine's day. In the courtyard, he sees: Cupid filing arrows; Venus, the goddess of love, off in her private corner; Bacchus, the god of wine; and many other watchers. These watchers are personified feelings we typically associate with romance. He named these characters as: Delight, Joy, Deception, Beauty, Youth, Foolhardiness, Flattery, Desire, and Massage.


What happens next is quite comical. There are birds of every type separated by type all around the courtyard. In the middle, there is a single female waiting to be chosen.
Nature announces: "Birds, take heed of what I say; and for your welfare and to further your needs I will hasten as fast as I can speak. You well know how on Saint Valentine's day, by my statute and through my ordinance, you come to choose your mates, as I prick you with sweet pain, and then fly on your way....... he who is most worthy may begin."


The ultimate challenge, who is most worthy to face the sweet pain of love?

Chaucer goes on to describe an argument among three of the birds of prey. They were arguing over who was most devoted to a female, each having their own answer. Each claiming to love and serve a single female more than the next. After arguing all day over one female they call upon Nature to help. She then asks the counsel of birds to decide. These birds have their own Valentine's day advice about love:


The water fowl, represented by the goose and duck, think its simple: If she doesn't love you leave- why be tied to one person?
The worm eating birds, represented by the Cuckoo advise: find a mate and remain single
The seed eating birds, represented by the turtle dove, advise: love for life- even after death


The birds of prey decided that these birds were fools and knew nothing of love.
Finding no help from the other birds, they once more asked Nature's advice. Her advice? Let the woman choose.


After the discussion, she sends the birds out with their mates. As they leave singing, Chaucer puts their song to words. In the second verse they sing:

Saint Valentine, throned aloft,
Thus little birds sing for your sake:
Welcome, summer, with sunshine soft,
The winter's tempest you will shake



"The Parliament of Fowls" ties St. Valentine's day with the symbols of romance that we use today. Chaucer's imagination and vivid writing about the two faces of love gave a new dimension of romance to an ancient holiday.


Citation. Chaucer, Geoffrey. The Parliament of Fowls. NeCastro, Gerard, ed. and trans. eChaucer: http://www.umm.maine.edu/faculty/necastro/chaucer