The pilgrims agree to entertain themselves along the journey by telling each other tales; each agrees to tell two tales on both legs of the journey. Unfortunately, Chaucer completed only 24 tales before his untimely death. The 24 Tales with which we are left, however, are exemplary in their discussion of genre, authorship, reader-response, and concern with dissemination of written material.
Within each of the tales, Chaucer explores a variety of issues and constructs the tales in ways that are influenced by various Continental authors, specifically Dante, Boccacio, and French romantic poets. Written in Middle English, the story follows a group of pilgrims who are travelling the long journey from London to Canterbury Cathedral. Setting off from a London inn, the innkeeper suggests that during the journey each pilgrim should tell two tales to help pass the time.
The best storyteller, he says, will be rewarded with a free supper on his return. Chaucer introduces us to a vivid cast of characters, including a carpenter, a cook, a knight, a monk, a prioress, a haberdasher, a dyer, a clerk, a merchant and a very bawdy miller. These characters come from all corners of 14th century society, and give Chaucer the chance to speak in many different voices.
Some of the characters' tales are humorous, rude and naughty, while others are moral and reflective. His work is incredibly diverse, too, which means that, whatever you like, you can find it in Chaucer. If you want a romance, you can find that; if you want to read a very rude, bawdy tale, you can find that too. Yet he was not read by huge numbers of people in his own lifetime.
So this guy, who had been quite an edgy poet in many ways, became established as a kind of patriarchal figure. Other brilliant poems, such as Sir Gawain and the Green Knight , were not printed until the 19th century — because it was in a north- ern dialect, and the north was left out of canonical English literature very early on.
But, in truth, he was always a prolific writer — one of those frustrating people who manage to hold down day job and come home to write a book in the evening.
So the fact he devoted himself ore exclusively to the Tales was probably because he had found what really suited him.
The very concept allowed Chaucer to write in different genres, styles and forms. Indeed, the key point of The Canterbury Tales is the idea of listening to stories from lots of different perspectives, which was new at the time. Sign in. Back to Main menu Virtual events Masterclasses. How would you introduce Geoffrey Chaucer to people who might only have heard of The Canterbury Tales? Listen on the podcast:.
Did this outward-facing nature reflect the wider society of England at the time? The rhyme scheme of a poem is the pattern of how the last word in the lines rhymes with others. The Canterbury Tales uses rhyming couplets, with every two lines rhyming with each other.
These are introduced in the order of their rank in accordance with the three medieval social estates clergy, nobility, and commoners and peasantry. The prologue to The Canterbury Tales is most important because it established the class structure of society in Medieval England. Chaucer uses the genre of estates satire. He introduces the nobility first, followed by the clergy, the merchants, tradesmen, and finally the peasants.
He is planning to travel as well. He joins the group traveling.
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