The most famous example of Middle English is Chaucer’s “The Canterbury Tales”, a collection of stories about a group of thirty people who travel as pilgrims to Canterbury England. The portraits that he paints in his Tales give us an idea of what life was like in fourteenth century England.
Modern English (1500 to the present): Modern English developed after William Caxton established his printing press at Westminster Abbey in1476. Johann Gutenberg invented the printing press in Germany around 1450, but Caxon set up England’s first press. The Bible and some valuable manuscripts were printed. The invention of the printing press made books available to more people. The books became cheaper and more people learned to read. Printing also brought standardization to English.