- had a humble beginning, and was slowly able to work his way up in the aristocratic society
- wrote about a husband's late wife, then later was able to master his ability to display his insight to human character
- inspiration for Canterbury Tales might have come from a pilgrimage to Canterbury
- story encompasses medieval literature- romance, comedy, rhyme, prose, crude humor and religious humor
- only 24 of intended 120 stories were finished
- Chaucer was first to "rain the gold dewdrops of speech and eloquence" into English literature
Chaucer's Guided Tour of Medieval Life and Literature
- the rich, poor, old and young are participating in this journey to Canterbury
- 29 pilgrims are going to be on the trip
- Bailey, the host at the inn, proposes they each tell two stories there and two stories on the way back and whoever tells the best story wills a feast from everyone else
- Bailey tags along on the trip to be the judge
- Chaucer describes characters in order of their nobility
- popular genres include
- romances (tales of chivalry)
- fabliaux (short, bawdy, humorous stories, basic human needs)
- stories of saint's lives, sermons and allegories (narratives in which characters represent abstractions such as Pride or Honor
- Chaucer wrote Tales with heroic couplet, a pair of rhyming lines with five stressed syllables each
The Canterbury Tales- The Prolgue
- Canterbury was a popular religious pilgrimage site because an archbishop was murdered there and people went there to pay their respects
- The narrator says he will be taking a pilgrimage to Canterbury
- At the inn, he finds 29 people who also are on their way to take the pilgrimage and he requests to join their group
- Knight tale
- chivalry, trust, honor
- fought in war and many mortal battles
- he was humble, wore cloths as clothes and had son
- Squire tale
- 20 years old
- was in the cavalry, could ride a horse, wanted to win a woman's heart
- was talented, educated, couldn't sleep if something exciting was happening
- Yeoman tale
- servant, forester
- he had lost of weapons, arrows, shield, sword
- had a metal of St. Christopher
- Nun (Prioress) tale
- she sang, spoke French
- good manners, was sad when a mouse died
- Nun (Chaplain) tale
- Three Priests
- Monk tale
- hunter, had greyhounds
- lived lavishly, fancy clothes
- fat and personable priest
- Friar tale
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