Geoffrey Chaucer's The House of Fame was written sometime between 1374 and 1385, making it one of Chaucer's earliest works. Written in Middle English, The House of Fame is over 2,000 lines long and tells the story of an unnamed poet who one day falls asleep and dreams of a glass temple. In that glass temple, the poet sees images of famous people and some of the things that they have done. With the help of an eagle, who acts as the poet's guide, the poet meditates on fame and its role in society, as well as the role he and other poets play in reporting on the famous.
Chaucer's work can be divided into periods he was influenced by other countries and their cultures. The House of Fame marks the start of the period where Chaucer's works were inspired by Italian culture and Italian writers, like Dante. In fact, some critics and historians think that The House of Fame is a parody of Dante's Divine Comedy.
Although not widely read in modern times, The House of Fame was hugely popular when it was published in the 1300s. In fact, there are records of other artists performing and/or adapting Chaucer's work in a number of contexts through the 1600s.
