Age and Immaturity
It is a universal truth that with age comes maturity. This composition will analyze the correlation of age and maturity in the works of Geoffrey Chaucer, focusing exclusively on The Canterbury Tales. By analyzing the Knight, the Squire, “The Squire’s Tale,” and “The Miller’s Tale,” one can see a positive correlation between age and level of maturity. In Chaucer’s writing as the age of an individual increases, his level of immaturity decreases. Adolescence, or youth, is seen as a time of confusion, overindulgence, and ardor. English literature has proven that “the way that youth are depicted…remains remarkably stable over time” (Violato and Wiley). Geoffrey Chaucer, in The Canterbury Tales, corroborates the notion of the …show more content…
The most obvious similarity between the stories is the two men pining for the same woman. There is no doubt why Chaucer brilliantly places “The Miller’s Tale” directly after “The Knight’s Tale.” The Miller also pokes fun at the Squire, “crul was his heer, and as the gold it shoon,” is how he describes his character Absolon and it also very similar to what Chaucer tells the readers about the Squire (Chaucer 269). “The Miller’s Tale” is the first story we see with age being an important factor on relationships. Morgan shows us immaturity in “The Miller’s Tale” by emphasizing the use of vulgar language …show more content…
John’s new wife, Alisoun, is just eighteen years old and quite a wild young woman. The stress between the young and the old can be seen in the story when John is saying that he knew “men sholde wedden after hir estat, for youthe and elde is often at debat” (Chaucer 267). According to Blamires, “The Miller’s Tale” is a “piece of comic wizardry focused on the capacity of heedless youth, armed with cunning imagination, to inflict ingenious sexual and intellectual humiliation on the sentimentally incompetent, the middle-aged, [and] the patriarchal” (623). The Miller seemingly aims solely to entertain not caring who is wounded in the process. “The Knight’s Tale” is a romance that captures the morals of a courtly love. Palamon and Arcite each yearn for an unattainable woman. Arcite wishes to be free of prison, but once free he grows jealous of Palamon. Palamon wishes to be able to continue to see Emelye and he ends up remaining in prison where he believes that Arcite now has the advantage. Each of the men receive what they ask for, yet realize that ultimately their fate is in the hands of a higher power. It is apparent that the tales are intended to expose different views of the world as well as reveal information about the person telling them. The Knight is the stereotypical gentleman in his demeanor and the serious nature of his story while the Miller, a drunk, is
It is a universal truth that with age comes maturity. This composition will analyze the correlation of age and maturity in the works of Geoffrey Chaucer, focusing exclusively on The Canterbury Tales. By analyzing the Knight, the Squire, “The Squire’s Tale,” and “The Miller’s Tale,” one can see a positive correlation between age and level of maturity. In Chaucer’s writing as the age of an individual increases, his level of immaturity decreases. Adolescence, or youth, is seen as a time of confusion, overindulgence, and ardor. English literature has proven that “the way that youth are depicted…remains remarkably stable over time” (Violato and Wiley). Geoffrey Chaucer, in The Canterbury Tales, corroborates the notion of the …show more content…
The most obvious similarity between the stories is the two men pining for the same woman. There is no doubt why Chaucer brilliantly places “The Miller’s Tale” directly after “The Knight’s Tale.” The Miller also pokes fun at the Squire, “crul was his heer, and as the gold it shoon,” is how he describes his character Absolon and it also very similar to what Chaucer tells the readers about the Squire (Chaucer 269). “The Miller’s Tale” is the first story we see with age being an important factor on relationships. Morgan shows us immaturity in “The Miller’s Tale” by emphasizing the use of vulgar language …show more content…
John’s new wife, Alisoun, is just eighteen years old and quite a wild young woman. The stress between the young and the old can be seen in the story when John is saying that he knew “men sholde wedden after hir estat, for youthe and elde is often at debat” (Chaucer 267). According to Blamires, “The Miller’s Tale” is a “piece of comic wizardry focused on the capacity of heedless youth, armed with cunning imagination, to inflict ingenious sexual and intellectual humiliation on the sentimentally incompetent, the middle-aged, [and] the patriarchal” (623). The Miller seemingly aims solely to entertain not caring who is wounded in the process. “The Knight’s Tale” is a romance that captures the morals of a courtly love. Palamon and Arcite each yearn for an unattainable woman. Arcite wishes to be free of prison, but once free he grows jealous of Palamon. Palamon wishes to be able to continue to see Emelye and he ends up remaining in prison where he believes that Arcite now has the advantage. Each of the men receive what they ask for, yet realize that ultimately their fate is in the hands of a higher power. It is apparent that the tales are intended to expose different views of the world as well as reveal information about the person telling them. The Knight is the stereotypical gentleman in his demeanor and the serious nature of his story while the Miller, a drunk, is