City of Canterbury

Among the most memorable tales from Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales, two of them are also the most religious in their structure. Both the Prioress and her traveling companion and secretary, the Second Nun, are women of faith, so it is only fair and true that both of their stories revolve around the subject of religion. The Prioress who begins with a prayer of praise to the Virgin Mary tells the tale of a young Christian boy who proudly sings Alma Redemptoris Mater. The Second Nun, who…

Although the Canterbury tales is a satiric story about pilgrims, each character presents personality traits, appearances and tales that do not fit them in to absolute good or evil. However, instead of leaving the sinful characters to only be defined by their evil deeds, Chaucer manages to rationalize their deed to be a result of their nature. Giving them more of an amplified version of evil characteristics every human beings possesses. Through this rationale, Chaucer was able to show that no…

answers to the riddles, but they have been answered by scholars over the years. Some riddles were double-entendres, such as Riddle 25 ("I am a wondrous creature: to women a thing of joyful expectation, to close-lying companions serviceable. I harm no city-dweller excepting my slayer alone. My stem is erect and tall––I stand up in bed––and whiskery somewhere down below. Sometimes a countryman's quite comely daughter will venture, bumptious girl, to get a grip…

As the story unfolds, the motley crew of pilgrims is on their way to Canterbury. Along the way, the pilgrims are convinced to share their stories in a contest to determine the best story and storyteller. The Host recommends the characters tell two stories on the way to Canterbury and then two stories on the return trip. The winner of the best storytelling contest will receive a free dinner at the Inn at the conclusion of their journey. The telling of the tales could be symbolic for admitting…

Death, an ominous and dark subject, is very frequent in medieval literature. In the passages read so far this semester, each have had some mention of death literal and figurative, which is a dismal subject, but still brings about celebration. What an author emphasizes and how he delivers the message of death in his work shows what he celebrates in his work. Different writers focus on different aspects of death to convey and reveal to the reader what he celebrates in death. Some praise the…

Those of Importance (An Addition to Canterbury Tales) Around the year 1300, Chaucer wrote “The Canterbury Tales”. In this story, he begins to describe the people that he takes on his adventure to Canterbury. As he begins to describe each person who embarks on this journey alongside him, he tells of who they are and the kind of affect they might have on other people. After he tells of who these people are, he then makes the effort to tell of personal stories from each of the characters. Through…

As said in an article by the Biography Staff “ Despite its erratic qualities, The Canterbury Tales continues to be acknowledged for the beautiful rhythm of Chaucer’s language and his characteristic use of clever, satirical wit.”(Bio Staff) When Chaucer addresses the church, he addresses them with an unforgiving and biting satire, knowing…

The Canterbury tales clearly illustrates that the institutional church was still a very prominent and established symbol of importance in England around the 1400’s. However, a more prominent theme in the Canterbury Tales is that the Church was in a corrupt state. The Institutional church is well represented in the Canterbury tales. The book, in its entirety, is based around religion because the book is a tale of 29 pilgrims, and the stories they tell to entertain one another on their journey to…

In The Canterbury Tales, the narrator introduces the audience to a handful of pilgrims going on a pilgrimage. The pilgrims are introduced and they meet the Host of the hotel. The Host creates a story telling game and explains the rules. He wants two stories on the way there and two on the way back home from each pilgrim. Furthermore, the stories are judged based on their moral education and entertainment value. Comparing “The Knight’s Tale” and “The Pardoner’s Tale” considering the rules, “The…

In The Canterbury Tales, a quite diverse group of people gather together in the Tabard Inn, waiting to embark on a journey to Canterbury. Each pilgrim has a unique personality and aura, which the reader discovers in the prologue of the story. The journey to Canterbury is fairly lengthy, ergo the Host decides to ask the pilgrims to play a game. The game consists of each pilgrim telling four stories: two on the voyage to Canterbury, and two on the way back. The Host also determines two categories…