The Canterbury Tales

most of 1300 Europe and the way it has operated for hundreds of years. In his story The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer writes of twenty-five people (including himself) who take a pilgrimage or holy trip the city of Canterbury to see the famous church. The story is entirely made up by Chaucer, there was no pilgrimage, but it gave him someone to blame all of these…

this time choose to travel to Canterbury. Canterbury is the site of Canterbury Cathedral where the relics of Saint Thomas Becket are stored. Pilgrims journey there to thank the martyr for helping them in their time of need. Chaucer tells us that as he prepared to go on such a pilgrimage. He is renting a room in the Tabard Inn tavern in the city of Southwark. During Chaucer’s stay, he encounters a great company of twenty-nine other travelers also on their way to Canterbury. Chaucer…

Chaucer often incorporates actions in the Canterbury Tales that are considered risqué or indecent, especially during the time period in which he wrote the stories. By doing this, Chaucer adds a comical aspect to his writing, which is prevalent when analyzing the plots of the tales. In the Shipman's Tale, there are many characteristics of "uncivilized free and wild thinking". This creativity sparks attention in readers and gives extra value to the work as a whole. The basic plot structure…

The Father of English literature, Geoffrey Chaucer, was born around the year 1340 in London, England. He was born into a wealthy family who acquired their money from the wine industry. In his early life, Chaucer attended the St. Paul’s Cathedral School as a student where he became familiarized with writing. His first position was when he was hired a public servant in the year 1357 to Countess Elizabeth of Ulster. During this time of his young childhood, he went off to fight in the Hundred…

narrative, The Canterbury Tales, Geoffrey Chaucer satirizes the thirty pilgrims on their pilgrimage using a story within a story. The thirty pilgrims consist of a cross-section of fourteenth century England, including aristocrats, clergy, middle class, trade class, and the peasants and omitting only royalty and serfs. They congregate at the Tabard Inn, Southwark, directly outside of London, and make their journey to their final destination, Saint Thomas Becket’s shrine in Canterbury. The Host,…

people today and throughout history have expressed cupiditas; selfish love. However, there is an equal amount of people who have expressed caritas; unselfish love. Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales showcases a number of characters who either express caritas or cupiditas, much like the real world does. Chaucer used the Canterbury Tales to both entertain his audience and teach his audience how to live a moral life. The Knight on the pilgrimage was a very unselfish man. He lived a life of “chivalry,…

Around the late 13th century, Geoffrey Chaucer was known as the "Father of English literature." His most famous work, The Canterbury Tales, is a collection of frame stories. A frame story is a set of stories within a story. In "The Prologue," Chaucer describes each of the twenty-nine pilgrims that are traveling to Canterbury. Of all the characters Chaucer speaks of, the Pardoner is the most corrupted of all. Chaucer's description of the Pardoner portrays him as unattractive at best. He…

The Canterbury Tales, written by Geoffrey Chaucer circa 1386, is a collection of stories as told by characters on a pilgrimage. These tales seem to point of a multitude of problems with society present in Chaucer’s time. It appears that Chaucer has used the tales and characters as a means of drawing attention to the corruption in the church, social classes, and gender based issues. His views of the corruption that existed in religious figures is best exemplified in the character of the Pardoner.…

eoffery Chaucer, the greatest English poet of his lifetime, is estimated to have been born in 1343. Throughout his life, Chaucer became a page in a royal house, a soldier, a diplomat, and even a royal clerk. Geoffery was born in to a middle class family, he was the son of a merchant. During the beginning of his life time, Chaucer worked for the wife of Lionel of Antwerp, the daughter-in-law of Edward III, as page. During his time as a soldier for the English Army in France, Chaucer was captured…

‘The Summoner’s tale’ and ‘The Pardoner’s tale’ of the Canterbury Tales: Deception in language The Summoner, Friar and Pardoner use deception in their language to deceive the pilgrims. The Oxford English Dictionary (2014a) defines deception as “deliberately causing someone to believe something that is not true, especially for personal gain.” Both ‘The Summoner’s Tale’ and ‘The Pardoner’s Tale’ of the Canterbury Tales question the truthfulness of language. This essay will argue how the language…