Transcript chaucer_canterbury_intro_pptx

GEOFFREY CHAUCER’S
THE CANTERBURY TALES
Geoffrey Chaucer (c. 1343-1400)
• Considered the father of English
poetry
• Son of a wine merchant in a middle
class household
• He became the page in a royal
house, then a soldier, and eventually
a diplomat and royal clerk
• Married a lady-in-waiting to the
queen
More on Chaucer
•
•
•
•
•
•
Began writing in his twenties
LOVED to travel
He was considered the greatest
English poet during his life
Wrote in the vernacular – common
language of the people (English)
Introduced iambic pentameter
Died October 25, 1400 and was the
first writer to be buried in Westminster
Abbey
What’s Happening in Britain?!
• Feudalism! The dominant social system in medieval Europe.
• 4 Dominant Classes:
• Monarch: Top class, ruled their kingdom, divided the land
and governed their people.
• Lords: Had castles and manors, governed their area and set
laws, and raised army.
• Knights: Fought wars for their lord and king and competed in
many tournaments.
• Peasants: Grew food for the people, lowest class, provided
many services.
What’s Happening in Britain?!
• Famine
• Black Death
• Life expectancy below 30
• Monks and nuns run hospitals –
leeches!
• No dental hygiene = no teeth & smelly
breath!
• The Catholic CHURCH could save you
– more important than the King
Journal
In The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer wrote about the people he had met along
the way. If you were doing the same thing today, think about the variety of
types of people you know and have encountered. Describe them by:
• Their job
• The type and color of their clothing
• Their “accessories” (jewelry, pets, other portables)
• The way they act
• Their income
• Their “secrets”
• Their status in society as a whole
• The way they speak / their slang or accent
• Their mode of transportation
Life Reflects Art
• Each character in The Canterbury Tales
represents a different segment of society in
Chaucer’s time.
• By noting the virtues and faults of each,
Chaucer provides social commentary,
writing that offers insight into society, its
values, and its customs.
• While reading, we will be drawing
conclusions from the characters about
Chaucer’s views on English society.
• During this time period, the top jobs that
you want are to be in the clergy or work as
a knight for the king.
The Journey Begins…Style of Writing
• He wrote in Middle English using the heroic couplet, a pair of
rhyming lines with five stressed syllables (iambic pentameter)
• The Canterbury Tales is actually a story about stories, twentyfour different tales set within the overarching tale of the
pilgrimage.
Definition:
Frame Story – a story within a story
The Outer Frame Story is about the
pilgrims meeting at the Tabard Inn
preparing for a journey to
Canterbury.
The Inner Frame Story would be all
the stories told by the assembled
pilgrims along their journey to and
from Canterbury.
More on His Style of Writing
• In the Prologue, Chaucer introduces each pilgrim,
creating a sense of medieval life. Legend has it that
Chaucer wrote about people he met in his travels!
• The description may literally describe an article of
clothing, but figuratively imply something about that
character.
• He wrote primarily in the style of Satire, a literary
composition, in verse or prose, in which human folly
and vice are held up to scorn, derision, or ridicule.
• Like sarcasm . . . He says one thing, but means
another.
• Our job is to read and comprehend the literal
description of each pilgrim, and then, we must
figuratively interpret what Chaucer is trying to
imply about that pilgrim’s character.
Snapshots of an Era. . .
Two Types of Satire:
• 1. Juvenalian – After the Roman satirist Juvenal:
Formal satire in which the speaker attacks vice and
error with contempt and indignation. Juvenalian
satire in its realism and its harshness is in strong
contrast to Horatian satire.
{Serious – Critical}
• 2. Horatian – After the Roman satirist Horace: Satire
in which the voice is indulgent, tolerant, amused,
and witty. The speaker holds up to gentle ridicule
the absurdities and follies of human beings, aiming
at producing in the reader not the anger of a
Juvenal, but a wry smile.
{Light – Funny}
Snapshots of an Era. . .
Satire (continued . . .):
• Also, so that we might better
understand his satirical
characterization, Chaucer creates
SATIRIC NORMS.
• A SATIRIC NORM is a character that
represents the perfect ideal.
• We can then see how BAD everyone
else is by comparing them to this
Satiric Norm.
Snapshots of an Era. . .
• In the Prologue, Chaucer examines three segments of
Medieval England:
• 1. The Old Feudal order – these are all of the pilgrims
associated with the feudal class system.
• Knight, Squire, Yeoman, Plowman . . .
• 2. The Merchant Class – this was the rising middle class
of the time; towns and cities were emerging and
therefore necessitated the need for skilled services:
• Merchant, Man of Law, Guildsmen, Cook . . .
• 3. The Ecclesiastical (Church) Class – these were all of
the members of the church. Chaucer is most critical of
this segment of his society.
• Prioress, Monk, Friar, Pardoner . . .
A Literary Tour. . .
• Chaucer uses the popular genres of his time
when he creates the inner stories of the various
pilgrims:
• The Wife of Bath’s Tale
• Romances (tales of chivalry)
• The Miller’s Tale
• Fabliaux (short, bawdy, humorous stories)
• The stories of saint’s lives, sermons
• The Parson’s Tale
• Parables (teach lessons)
• Allegories (narratives in which characters
represent abstractions such as Pride or Honor).
• The Pardoner’s Tale
Literary Analysis
• Characterization
1. Direct Characterization presents direct
statements about a character, such as
Chaucer’s statement that the Knight
“followed chivalry, / Truth, honor. . . ”
2. Indirect Characterization uses actions,
thoughts, and dialogue to reveal a
character’s personality. By saying “he was
not gaily dressed,” for instance, Chaucer
suggests that the Knight is not vain and
perhaps takes the pilgrimage seriously
enough to rush to join it straight from battle.
Fun Facts!
• Written by Chaucer in his later years (1386); he never
completed writing it; planned 120 tales but only completed
22
• This is the best picture we have of 14th century life in England
• Chaucer may have been inspired by his own pilgrimage to
Canterbury!
How It All Goes Down
• The Canterbury Tales begins with a Prologue,
• Narrator, presumably Chaucer himself, meets 29 other
pilgrims at the Tabard Inn, located in a suburb of London.
• As the pilgrims prepare for their journey, the host of the Inn,
Harry Bailey, sets a challenge:
• Each pilgrim tell two stories on the way to Canterbury and
two stories on the return trip. The person who tells the best
tale will be treated to a feast hosted by the other pilgrims.
An actual page
from The
Canterbury
Tales
WHY GO TO CANTERBURY?
One Answer: Religion!
• The Canterbury Tales is about PILGRIMS
travelling from London to the tomb of
Thomas à Becket in Canterbury.
• Canterbury has always been an important
pilgrimage site in England. People of all
classes went on pilgrimages to holy sites to
ask for help with medical, financial or other
problems.
• St. Augustine (seen in stained class from the
Canterbury Cathedral) was sent by Pope
Gregory the Great to establish the Catholic
faith in the country.
• Obviously, religion played an important part
in medieval life.
Why was religions important?
• It’s the Middle Ages
• Plague
• Warfare
• High Infant Mortality Rate
• Short Life Expectancy
• …and if you were a peasant, you lived your
whole life in harsh conditions.
• Because life was so terrible, about the best
thing people had to look forward to was
dying and going to Heaven.
• Many sought guidance and paid homage to
one man….St. Thomas à Becket
England was divided among very
strict class/economic lines
Thus, heaven was often described as a white shining castle in the sky.
Thomas à Beckett
• The King Henry II’s best friend & financial
advisor
• - he was VERY powerful
• When the Archbishop of Canterbury
(leader of the church in England) died,
the King persuaded Becket to take over
• Becket took to it like a duck to water
and gave up his luxurious lifestyle – only
bread, water and he slept on the floor!
• But King Henry had an ulterior motive….
Keep Your Friends Close…..
• There were 2 courts in England:
Church & Royal
• The Church court was too soft –
he wanted Becket to toughen it
up…BUT HE REFUSED.
• Becket’s outspoken style
angered the King. One day,
Henry complained, “Will no one
rid me of this turbulent priest?”
The King had such a temper he
shouted that he wanted Becket
dead.
…But Your Enemies Closer!
• 4 knights took him literally and
went to Canterbury Cathedral
where they found Becket and
stabbed him to death, on the
ALTAR!
• The Pope made him a saint and
people visited thinking it would
bring them luck
Becket murdered at the altar.
The death of
Becket angered the
peasants who felt
his Saxon heritage
made him one of
them.
Canterbury
Cathedral
became a site
for pilgrims to
offer prayers
to St. Thomas.
Today, a
modern cross
made from
swords marks
the site of the
martyrdom.
What do all
these photos
have in
common?
Pilgrims….Like Thanksgiving?!
• A Pilgrim is anyone who goes on a pilgrimage, a visit to a
place of some significance; often religious and far away.
• a Muslim visiting Mecca
• a Jew visiting Jerusalem
• In the Middle Ages, pilgrimages were thought to clear
your sins and earn you brownie points, as travel was
dangerous and took ages.
• Canterbury, England
• The Vatican, Vatican City (Italy)
Yes, They Happen Today!
•
•
Modern pilgrimages are to visit
places of personal importance
Elvis Presley fans visiting his home
in Graceland, Memphis,
Tennessee
• Musical Hero
• Ancestors/heritage
• Sporting Event
• Place of Interest
Closing Thoughts
• The fact that Chaucer wrote in English (Middle English), rather than
French or Latin like many of his fellow writers, meant that ordinary
folk could enjoy The Canterbury Tales and their vivid characters.
• The late 14th century world was still very much one of the spoken
word. Books were copied out by hand and were a rare luxury until
the advent of the printing press 70 years later.
• The educated elite could read, but they preferred to hear texts read
out loud for entertainment.
• The Canterbury Tales, with their earthy humor and vivid dialogue,
were a runaway success.
So, let’s travel back to London, to the area
called Southward, and stop at the Tabard Inn.
We’ll meet the characters and hear
their stories.
The story begins. . .