Geoffrey Chaucer and The Canterbury Tales ( )

I. The author: Geoffrey Chaucer ( ) i. His life ii. His literary Career Chaucer’s literary career can be divided into three periods: (i). the period of French influence ( ). (ii). the period of Italian influence ( ), especially of Dante and Boccaccio. (iii). The period of maturity ( ). He had his own plots and characters. The Canterbury Tales was produced in this period.

i. Historical Background of The Canterbury Tales: Merchants and craftsmen became a new force who took the place of old noblemen to push English society to stride into capitalism. II. Background

ii. personal background: In summer of 1387 Chaucer’s wife was ill. iii. Saint Thomas Becket He was the archbishop of the Canterbury Cathedral on Henry II’s reign. He was killed in the Canterbury Cathedral in 1170 for religious belief. iv. Canterbury Cathedral: It was built by Saint Augustine It is the seat of the origins of English Christianity

Twelfth century manuscript depicting the attack on Thomas at the altar of Canterbury Cathedral

Canterbury Cathedral

Augustine’s monastery today ， Canterbury Cathedral

South side, looking west ， Canterbury Cathedral

III. The Canterbury Tales Geoffrey Chaucer wrote The Canterbury Tales, a collection of stories in a frame story, between 1387 and He never finished his enormous project and even the completed tales were not finally revised. Originally, he proposed 124 stories; he actually wrote 24.

IV. Chaucer’s contributions to British literature i. The Canterbury Tales is the first selection of short stories in English. ii. The language: Chaucer chose Middle English in his works. iii. The structure of story is a frame (story within a story) iv. The Canterbury Tales gives a panoramic picture of Chaucer’s time.

(i) It is a cross section of medieval society: feudal, ecclesiastical, urban; (ii) It reflects the rise of the middle class in the 14th century. v. Literature: It’s moving away from the questions of the genre, romance, to a more personal vision, a domestic vision. vi. Subject matter: expansive

Pilgrims on their way to Canterbury

The Prologue: the poet Chaucer on his way to Canterbury

The Pilgrims at The Tabard

The Wife of Bath, the Friar, and the Knight

The Prioress and the Squire

Character Analysis PrioressWife of Bath AppearanceAttractive but with defects DressingDressed elegantlyDressed strikingly MannersStately, delicate but artificial 1.table manners;2.smiling Free and natural 1.laugh; 2. chat Character pretentious, sentimental, reserved 1.table manners 2.French with London accent 3.smiling in a “reserved” way 4.Tender feelings for animals independent, natural, brave, extrovert, optimistic, easy-going, 1.love affairs (art of love) 2.laugh and chat 3.skills in making clothes Religion (fashion) Do church service well 1.beautiful nasal voices 2.swear with St. Loy Do church service well 1.Have many pilgrimages 2.first one to the altar Lovedivine (selfless) or secular (selfish) 1. sentimental about animals 2. Latin motto 3. name Eglantyne divine or secular 1. Pilgrimages 2. five husbands and many lovers 3. large hips

Conclusion feudal elements: Prioress—noble-class (her foibles) urban elements: Wife of Bath—rising burgher class (her foibles) ecclesiastical elements: pilgrimage In this part Geoffrey Chaucer gives a realistic representation of the changing time from feudalism to capitalism. Chaucer’s style: 1. His language is very humorous with gentle satire. 2. He first uses heroic couplet in The Canterbury Tales.

Questions for next lecture 1. Who is Robin Hood? 2. What is a popular ballad? Preview Robin Hood and the Three Squires (pp ) 3. What is Renaissance? (1). What does the word mean? When and where did it begin? When was it introduced to England? (2). What is humanism? (3). What is the historical background for the advent of Renaissance in Britain? (4). What are the differences between the age of Renaissance and the Medieval Age? (The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus pp.87-90)