  Tells a story (narrator)  Like a short story or novel, contains the following elements: characters, setting, plot, point of view, and themes  Beowulf is an example of a narrative poem.  14 th century poems use more formal language that we use today The Narrative Poem

 Geoffrey Chaucer ( )  Was a civil servant, held several political positions  Observer of life and people (satirist)  Broke tradition by writing in native English  Wrote this enormously popular narrative poem

 The Canterbury Tales

  The Prologue tells the story of 29 pilgrims who, on their way to Canterbury (to the shrine of St. Thomas a Becket), participate in a tale-telling contest to pass the time.  Each tale had to have a moral and be entertaining.  The Tales is a collection of the various pilgrims’ stories.  Originally planned to be 120 tales, Chaucer only completed 24.  William Caxton published the first printed version of The Canterbury Tales in 1476.

 The Prologue Modern English  When April with his showers sweet with fruit The drought of March has pierced unto the root And bathed each vein with liquor that has power To generate therein and sire the flower; When Zephyr also has, with his sweet breath, Quickened again, in every holt and heath, The tender shoots and buds, and the young sun Into the Ram one half his course has run, And many little birds make melody That sleep through all the night with open eye (So Nature pricks them on to ramp and rage)- Then do folk long to go on pilgrimage, And palmers to go seeking out strange strands, To distant shrines well known in sundry lands. And specially from every shire's end Of England they to Canterbury wend, The holy blessed martyr there to seek Who helped them when they lay so ill and weak. Middle English  Whan that Aprill with his shoures soote The droghte of March hath perced to the roote, And bathed every veyne in swich licour Of which vertu engendred is the flour, Whan Zephirus eek with his sweete breeth Inspired hath in every holt and heeth The tendre croppes, and the yonge sonne Hath in the Ram his halve cours yronne, And smale foweles maken melodye, That slepen al the nyght with open ye (so priketh hem Nature in hir corages), Thanne longen folk to goon on pilgrimages, And palmeres for to seken straunge strondes, To ferne halwes, kowthe in sondry londes; And specially from every shires ende Of Engelond to Caunterbury they wende, The hooly blisful martir for to seke, That hem hath holpen whan that they were seeke.

The Wife of Bath and Her Tale “A worthy woman from beside Bath city” Accomplished clothes maker, finely dressed (wore scarlet stockings) Attractive, red-faced, gap- toothed, large hipped, and somewhat deaf Loves to laugh and talk. Enjoys people’s company Traveled a lot (Pilgrimages to Jerusalem 3 times, Rome, etc.) Married 5 times (expert in love; had many “boyfriends” in her youth)

  Classified as a “medieval romance” due to its setting, characters, and code of chivalry.  This tale belongs with the Marriage Group tales of The Canterbury Tales as it deals with philosophies of love and marriage.  Tale of a knight who breaks the rules of chivalry and is punished with a challenge that he has a year and a day to complete. WoB’s Tale