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Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales

Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales. Chaucer’s Life. Born to a wealthy wine merchant Was made a page in court Served various kings as a soldier, diplomat, and civil servant Was well traveled and well-spoken Likely met Boccaccio and Petrarch

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Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales

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  1. Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales

  2. Chaucer’s Life • Born to a wealthy wine merchant • Was made a page in court • Served various kings as a soldier, diplomat, and civil servant • Was well traveled and well-spoken • Likely met Boccaccio and Petrarch • Stayed mostly in London, but eventually to Kent and Canterbury • Died while working on The Canterbury Tales

  3. History of the Tales • Geoffrey Chaucer began writing the tales around 1387 AD • Uncompleted manuscript published 1400AD, the year he died • First book of poetry purposely written in the English language • Set a precedent and poets from Shakespeare to Dryden and Keats to Eliot owe him a debt of gratitude

  4. Artistry of Form • As a work of art it encompasses individuality and universality • Narrative structure allowed Chaucer the freedom to create a variety of matter in a unified form • Many genres incorporated including; • Fabliaux • Romance • Melodrama • Parable • And more…

  5. Artistry of Form (cont’d.) • Despite being unfinished, clear indications of a plan • Each pilgrim to tell at least two stories maybe four • Chaucer was writing and collecting whatever occurred to him, but it was likely to find a more firmly constructed structure as it neared completion.

  6. Artistry of Language • Chaucer wrote in English • It was becoming more solid and widespread • He used verse, which was the norm, but varied it according to his purpose • Despite borrowing much of his material, his use of language injects these tales with new life

  7. Mastery of Character • Part of his master rests with creating characters • The characters take turns telling tales • They have depth and verisimilitude • Characters are created through: • Physical descriptions (some quite graphic) • Characters interacting with each other • The tales themselves reflecting character (often specifically their personalities and motivations)

  8. Merits of Meaning • Chaucer is free to use tales to convey multiple themes • Creates a microcosm of medieval English life (almost a sociological exploration possible) • Paints a multifaceted picture of humanity • Parodies forms of literature • Entertains

  9. Here Bygynneth the Book of the tales of Caunterbury 1: Whan that aprill with his shoures soote2: The droghte of march hath perced to the roote,3: And bathed every veyne in swich licour4: Of which vertu engendred is the flour;5: Whan zephirus eek with his sweete breeth6: Inspired hath in every holt and heeth7: Tendre croppes, and the yonge sonne8: Hath in the ram his halve cours yronne,

  10. 9: And smale foweles maken melodye,10: That slepen al the nyght with open ye11: (so priketh hem nature in hir corages);12: Thanne longen folk to goon on pilgrimages,13: And palmeres for to seken straunge strondes,14: To ferne halwes, kowthe in sondry londes;15: And specially from every shires ende16: Of engelond to caunterbury they wende,17: The hooly blisful martir for to seke,

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