1. Canterbury Tales Prologue

2. Task You will be assigned two of the pilgrims we meet in Canterbury Tales You will need to create a powerpoint slide for each of the pilgrims assigned Include on your slide: Picture of pilgrim Appearance Job (and put into words we would understand) Personality/actions Answer: Hero or rogue? Answer: What stereotype is this character? What can you infer about what Chaucer is saying about this stereotype? This may mean you need to do a little research on the pilgrims, although not much

3. 29 pilgrims Meet in an inn in a suburb of London

4. The Knight Brave, loves action and adventure Believes in ideals of chivalry which is dying Doing pilgrimage to give thanks Still in dirty clothing Has survived 15 battles

5. The Squire Knight’s son About 20 years old Does well with fighting Knows how to sing, ride, write and recite poetry, joust, dance, draw, etc. Much more interested in his crushes than “manly” activities This section of the prologue uses crude humor Characteristic of Medieval writing

6. The Yeoman Attendant to squire Forester (takes care of King’s lands probably); dressed similarly to Robin Hood Knows woodcraft Takes care of his weaponry

7. The Nun Prioress—high ranking nun in an abbey Greatest oath: “By St. Loy!”—patron saint of goldsmiths and courtiers Pretends to dislike when animals are hurt, yet feeds her dogs flesh Tries hard to be elegant Speaks incorrect French Very large

8. The Monk Fat and personable Enjoys hunting, horses, and his greyhounds (expensive habits) Jingles with coins Clothing fur-lined Ignores the teachings of St. Benedict and St. Maurice that monks should work hard at studying over books

9. The Friar Popular with rich landowners Fixes up marriages because he probably first seduced the women Saves things to give to pretty girls Earns money by hearing confessions Gives easy penance for a fee Doesn’t bother with lepers or beggars Stereotype of the day on friars: Traveled around seducing women Good at soliciting donations Earned more than needed

10. The Merchant Dresses in-fashion/nicely Puts on the appearance that he is well off, but takes out loans and is in debt

11. The Oxford Cleric Student Looks underfed Cares more about books Borrows money from friends for books Prays for friends in thanks Gladly will teach

12. The Sergeant at the Law Lawyer Busy, but not as busy as he seems Owns a good deal of land, but no debt Successful as a lawyer Knows all laws and cases

13. The Franklin Member of nobility (gentry landowner) Enjoys providing hospitality “Model among landed gentry” Auditor Member for Shire (parliamentary representative) Justice in the court

14. The Cook Good at what he does—uses spices, knows ales, etc. Has an open sore on leg that looks like food Later we find out he has an unclean kitchen and has given many food poisoning

15. The Skipper Good at sailing—knows how to read tides and piloting, knows geography of seas Ignores “rules of conscience” Kills enemies Steals wine from tavern keeper

16. The Doctor Very knowledgeable Can diagnose anything Pact made with apothecary (pharmacist). Each made money off from the other. Dresses richly Special love for gold and saves it Doesn’t read Bible much Eats healthily

17. The Wife of Bath Large, dresses expensively Had 5 husbands Well traveled, must be widowed now Great financial success in cloth- making Enjoys talking about and well-versed in “remedies for love’s mischances” Stereotype of lustful people at time that the Wife of Bath meets: Red face and red stockings, large gap between two-front teeth Shows that she can’t control passions

18. The Parson Parish priest Holy Actually preaches to his parishioners and will visit them in any weather Poor—gives to his parishioners Well-learned, knows the gospel He is the shepherd, his parishioners the sheep “That if gold rust, what will iron do?”

19. The Plowman Brother to Parson Humble, follows gospel Honest worker Helps poor and gives tithes

20. The Miller Large, big in brawn Red hair, wart on nose Good at stealing grain Stereotype of lower class at time: All brawn, no brain Stereotype of lustfulness: Red hair

21. The Manciple In charge of buying food and supplies for an inn at court (where lawyers meet or live) Unlearned, but always comes out ahead in accounts Must be forging numbers Lawyers are more learned, but cannot do finances as well

22. The Reeve Manager of someone’s estate/farm Old, thin, sickly looking Could figure yield numbers based on rain No one dared cheat him Steals from his lord’s property then in turn gives loans to his lord Places Reeve in lord’s good graces

23. The Summoner Hired by church to call on those who committed spiritual crimes Often people were excommunicated Pimpled face, appearance scares children Ate smelly foods Gets drunk and yells few Latin words he knows; acts crazy Accepts bribes Doesn’t take excommunications seriously Tricks and seduces girls

24. The Pardoner Sells church pardons Also sells fake relics on the side Cheats people out of money Good at preaching, but only so he can sell his pardons and relics afterward

25. Competition The host gets pilgrims to agree to competition: Tell two tales on way to Canterbury Tell two tales on way back from Canterbury Winner will receive free meal paid by other pilgrims Host will be the judge Based on good morality and general pleasure

26. Analysis on Chaucer’s Commentary 1.Which characters appear to be the “heroes?” What do these characters have in common? 2.What stereotypes does he present with these characters and what does he say about these stereotypes? Explain how you know.