Chaucer's General Prologue
Men, Women, Class, and Language in Chaucer's "General Prologue"
It is impossible to categorize characters generically in Chaucer's "General Prologue." Although he describes men and women from both high and low classes, he does so in a way that shows them all to be wholly unique and individual -- such that there are good men and good women, bad men and bad women, nobility of soul in both high and low classes, and corruption in both as well. By using literal and figurative language, Chaucer effects a depiction of character that is as reflective as a mirror for the depths of personality (or lack thereof) it produces. This paper will comparatively describe Chaucer's men and women, and higher and lower classes, and his usage of literal and figurative language in "The General Prologue" of the Canterbury Tales.
Chaucer clearly shows his admiration for virtue over vice in the characters he depicts. In this sense, the Knight is depicted as one of the most virtuous characters in the Prologue. He epitomizes masculine goodness: he is strong, wise, benevolent, courteous, and virtuous. He contrasts sharply with the Miller, who is self-seeking, willful, licentious, and vulgar, as well as with the fat Monk, who does not respect the rules set forth by his religious office (the Monk hunts even though his rule forbids it and feasts like a lord at his table) and Chaucer sarcastically comments on the Monk's disrespectful attitude: "And I seyde his opinion was good. / What sholde he studie and...
At which point, Palaomon would marry Emelye. This is significant, because it is highlighting how the various outcomes of different events can change quickly. As the knight is drawing upon his own experiences to: illustrate how your personal fortunes can change (based upon your level of preparedness for them). ("The Knight's Tale Part 1 -- 2," 2011) ("The Knight's Tale Part 3 -- 4," 2011) When you step back and
Canterbury Tales are a collection of stories written by Geoffrey Chaucer in the late 1300s. At the end of the contest and pilgrimage, the person who has told the best story will win a free meal at the Tabard Inn in Southwark. Among the most popular tales in the book are "The Knight's Tale," "The Miller's Tale," and "The Wife of Bath's Tale." "The Knight's Tale" is a story that follows
But while it is true that he loved the funny side of life, he was also quite genuine and sincere in his purpose to expose the superficialities of social roles. "If we look at the whole corpus of his work, we see his tragic poems all interrupted, unfinished, or transfigured into celestial comedy" (Garbaty173). Chaucer unlike some tragedy masters of his time was not too concerned with gloom and sadness
They were seen as wives, mothers, daughters and usually "portrayed in relation to a man or group of man" (Klapisch-Zuber285). While they were given little freedom outside this restricted sphere, critics observe that medieval women were granted substantial autonomy within that sphere. Men "imposed a closely circumscribed domain in which women exercised a degree of autonomy... primarily the house, a space both protected and enclosed, and, within the house,
The destination is a holy and venerated site, one that should inspire devotion, a spirit of penance, and peace; and it is fitting that a merry man should be the one to invite the other pilgrims to the game of the telling tales. Unlike Dante's pilgrimage through the afterlife, which tends toward a much more spiritual focus, Chaucer's pilgrimage is earthly in the sense that its main focus is on
The contrast between the pardoner and the content of his tale also shows that from a literary perspective, Chaucer was illustrating a new subtly of character. What a character thought he was like (a holy man) might not be who he or she actually was. This could be revealed through involuntary 'slips of the tongue,' like the pardoner condemning greed, even while he was a greedy person in life.
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