Chaucer Lecture Notes.pdf

Chaucer's General Prologue Lecture Notes Background on The Canterbury Tales The Canterbury Tales is one of the landmarks of English literature, perhaps the greatest work produced in Middle English and certainly among the most ambitious. It is one of the few works of the English Middle Ages that has had a continuous history of publication. It was the last of Geoffrey Chaucer's works, written after Troilus and Creseyde during the final years of Chaucer's life. Chaucer did not complete the entire Canterbury Tales as he designed it. He structured the tales so that each pilgrim would tell four tales, leading to a total of over one hundred tales. However, Chaucer only completed twenty-four tales, not even completing one tale for each pilgrim. The Canterbury Tales includes a number of tales that Chaucer had written before creating the grand work itself. The Second Nun's Tale and the Knight's Tale were included as part of Chaucer's biography in the prologue to The Legend of Good Women, a poem by Chaucer that predated The Canterbury Tales, but since those stories survive only as part of The Canterbury Tales and not as independent works, it is impossible to determine whether Chaucer transferred them entirely to The Canterbury Tales or adapted them from a previous form. The versions of The Canterbury Tales that remain in the present day come from two different Middle English manuscripts known as the Ellesmere and the Hengwrt manuscripts. The Ellesmere is the more famous of the two, containing miniature pictures of each of the pilgrims at the head of each of their respective tales, but compared to the Hengwrt manuscript the Ellesmere is heavily edited for grammatical content. The Hengwrt is thus valued as the best and most accurate manuscript of The Canterbury Tales. There are discrepancies between the two versions concerning the order and inclusion of the tales. The Hengwrt manuscript lacks the Canon's Yeoman's Prologue and tale, part of the Parson's Tale, and several of the tales' prologues. The structure of The Canterbury Tales is indebted to Boccaccio's Decameron, a work by Chaucer's contemporary in which ten nobles from Florence, to escape the plague, stay in a country villa and amuse each other by each telling tales. Boccaccio had a significant influence on Chaucer. The Knight's Tale was an English version of a tale by Boccaccio, while six of Chaucer's tales have possible sources in the Decameron: the Miller's Tale, the Reeve's, the Clerk's, the Merchant's, the Franklin's, and the Shipman's. However, Chaucer's pilgrims to Canterbury form a wider range of society compared to Boccaccio's elite storytellers, allowing for greater differences in tone and substance. No single literary genre dominates The Canterbury Tales. The tales include romantic adventures, fabliaux, saint's biographies, animal fables, religious allegories and even a sermon, and range in tone from pious, moralistic tales to lewd and vulgar sexual farces. The form that Chaucer most often employs for his tale is the fabliau. These tales generally concern lower class characters; the standard form has an older husband whose younger wife has an affair with a man of flexible social status. This can be seen most accurately in the Miller's Tale, which strictly adheres to fabliau conventions. Throughout the tales, two major themes emerge: the first is the idea of the unfaithful wife that is employed not only in fabliau but other literary genres. The other is the idea of the patient and suffering woman, who is exalted for her steadfast behavior. Chaucer exploits this division between the female saint and the whore throughout The Canterbury Tales, with few tales whose plots do not center at least marginally around this distinction.

Background info: Old English: 597-1100 Middle English: 1100-1500 Modern English: 1500-present Secular Clergy vs. Mendicant (Monastic) Clergy Secular Monastic parish priests (Parson) Friar, Monk, beggars supervised only by bishops Pope Independent of the natl Summoner church b/c it's a worldwide organization Pardoner Church had become corrupt, Chaucer part of those seeking Reformation (which didn't happen until 16th century). Chaucer's biographical info: 1343-1400 Greatest poet of Middle English Influenced by Dante (the pilgrim Chaucer, like the pilgrim Dante -- Chaucer's greatest debt to Dante) Chronology: 1357 Royal service to Lionel, King's son 1359 English army invading France 1360 captured and ransomed by King Edward III 1366 married Philippa 1367 life pension from King, diplomatic service to France and Italy 1374 controller of customs 1377 King Edward died 1385 moved to Kent 1386 JP and MP 1387 wife died 1389 RII appts him Clerk in charge of public buildings and parks 1391 resigns commission, became forester in Somerset 1394 RII gives him life pension 1395-96 in service to Bolingbroke, John of Gaunt's son

Canterbury Tales info: Most of CT in heroic couplets (iambic pentameter) even tho in Eng rather than Latin, Chaucer's audience would be educated, sophisticated one. Thus, General Prologue as a look down upon everyday life from a level above. framed narrative (stories within stories) speakers from all social classes systematic treatment of 7 deadly sins, each pilgrim representing the sin condemned in his/her tale. (tho that ultimately breaks down) Outward appearance reflects inward corruption, but Chaucer also uses beauty to reflect corruption Tales ordered not by social status or wealth, but by source of income. Could be approached religiously, economically, socially... Pilgrimage -- road to Canterbury -- to shrine of Thomas a Becket Why? 1. miracles performed at shrines of saints -- physical healing 2. intercessory powers surround graves and relics 3. penance -- difficulty of trip atones for sins -- spiritual healing But... this pilgrimage had become too secular, basically the Carnival Cruise of the 14th century: improved roads and inns made it pleasurable drunkenness opportunity for clergy to prey on those with money enough to travel

General Prologue info: Starts at bar, ends at shrine -- the tension of the dichotomy -- reflects same tension in each character, religious vs secular interests But also logical -- that's where different social classes are likely to meet. Chaucer, as narrator, never makes a comment about characters but gives details so readers can draw their own conclusions.

The Prioress: usually from upper class, younger daughter (= no dowry) enjoyed the travel (but supposed to be cloistered) and Archbishop had mandated not traveling, but she went anyway she has a taste for the high life (choice cuts of meat, jewelry, mannerisms) Selected her own name -- that of a romantic figure of the time period fine clothes and ornaments (worldly vanities) lap dogs (luxury) forehead should have been covered "love conquers all" gold brooch (profane, not sacred) profane = secular, not devoted to God

The Monk: expensive table and stable able to spend $$ The Friar: Restricted his alms-begging to a certain district Alms = something given to the poor Can extract the last dime from a poor widow able to get $$ The Pardoner: offers pardons from the Pope, most sold at high prices speaking to/about the summoner (his competitor), singing love songs to him slimy physical appearance Pardoners of the day: opportunity for dishonesty: sell indulgences sell relics preaching -- good orators In his tale, he boasts about the falsity of his relics described as effeminate, probably gay The Summoner: summon sinners before the church court condoned sin for bribe The Parson: described as good, does not hire out his benefice, does not add to his income subversively