The Middle Ages and The Canterbury Tales

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The Middle Agesand The Canterbury Tales
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Table of Contents

• Estates in medieval society
• Feudalism
• Chivalry/women
• Languages
• The Crusades
• Thomas a Becket
• Magna Carta
• Hundred Years War
• Black Death
• OE/ME
• Romance
• Chaucer
• CT structure
• CT contents

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• Medieval society made up of 3 estates1.
  nobilityrulers (hereditary)2. churchspiritual
  welfare of society3. everyone elsemass of
  commoners who did work to provide for physical
  needs

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Feudalism
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• This code was central to medieval social
  values.
• Women were always subservient to men her value
  depended on the value of the land she brought to
  a marriage.

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• 3 languages spoken at this time
• French (nobility)
• Latin (church, businesses, scholars/schools)
• English (common people)

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The Crusades

• 1095-1270 The Catholic church sponsored a
  series of military expeditions to the Middle East
  to win Jerusalem and the Holy Land from Muslims.
  Ultimately failed, but contributed to
  weakening feudalism.

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Thomas á Becket

• Under feudalism, the king appointed bishops and
  gave them land some held high positions in the
  government. People began to complain about
  government control of the church and church
  control in nonreligious matters.

• King Henry II appointed Thomas à Becket (priest)
  as Archbishop of Canterbury (head of RC Church in
  England).
• Becket opposed to kings attempts to establish
  royal rights over the church (especially the
  right of the kings courts to punish church
  officials who committed crimes).
• Henry once angrily exclaimed, Will no one rid me
  of this turbulent priest?
• Four knights took him literally and murdered
  Becket in Canterbury Cathedral, where he was
  praying.
• Murder shocked Christians of Europe, Becket was
  made a saint.
• Shrine dedicated to Becket is the destination in
  The Canterbury Tales.

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Magna Carta

• Barons were taxed excessively to pay for
  military campaigns/wars (like the Crusades).
• Barons finally fed up, in 1215 revolted against
  taxes and forced the king to sign the Magna Carta
  (placed king under the law to protect citizens).

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The Hundred Years War

• 1337-1453 Series of wars between England and
  France England lost all of its remaining
  territory in continental Europe After this,
  less French influence on English culture. English
  became the language of the nobility, courts,
  parliament, etc

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The Black Death

• During Hundred Years War first hit England in
  1348
• Epidemic of bubonic plague spread by the bite
  of infected fleas carried by rats
• Painful swellings, high fever, body aches
  death within five days of contraction.
• Called Black Death because of the way victims
  looked in final stages as respiratory systems
  failed, bodies turned dark purple and developed
  soft black swellings.
• Killed about 1/3 of Englands people
• The plague still exists! Small outbreaks have
  occurred as recently as 1994 scientists have
  developed vaccines and antibiotics to stop future
  outbreaks
• Caused a labor shortage, so workers could
  demand more money and peasants could demand lower
  rent on their land. Landlords lost money this
  meant more and larger cities, more people moved
  there feudalism broke down even more
• Recently, scientists have found
  inconsistencies that they say prove the Black
  Death was NOT the bubonic plague instead, it may
  have been an early ancestor of ebola.

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Old English/Middle English

• By 1300s, Middle English spoken
• Old English literature spoke for the nobility
  spoke with one dignified voice
• Middle English literature spoke for everybody
  spoke with many voices, wide variety of topics
• By late 14th century, large and prosperous middle
  class was emerging (Chaucer born into this middle
  class).

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Romance

• Romance became the most popular type/genre of
  literature
• Describes the adventures of a legendary knight
  celebrates chivalry and emphasizes courtly love
• Courtly love a mans love for one idealized
  (nearly perfect) woman makes him a better person
  ideally nonsexual wore her colors in battle,
  inspired by her, but shes always out of reach
• Heroes are admirable men who share weaknesses and
  feelings of ordinary humans (OE heroes seemed
  like superheroes impossibly perfect)
• Many romances were about King Arthur and the
  knights of the Round Table

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Geoffrey Chaucer

• the greatest English writer of the Middle
  Ages well-known government official
  (like a presidential adviser) son of
  prosperous wine merchant in early teens, was
  placed as a page in an aristocratic household
  held many administrative postswas a hardworking
  civil servant his wife, Philippa, was daughter
  of a knight (she was of a higher rank than her
  husband) probably wrote most of his poetry in
  French (language of art and literature), but he
  also spoke Italian and could read Latin born
  into upper middle class, but attained rank of
  esquire (gentleman) because he associated with
  aristocracy and served them he came into contact
  with both commoners and aristocracy but was not
  securely anchored in either world

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CT Structure

• Canterbury Tales written in late 1300s
• Collection of stories told by people making a
  religious pilgrimage (journey) to shrine of St.
  Thomas a Becket in Canterbury
• Chaucer introduced iambic pentameter (each line
  10 syllables, one stressed, one unstressed)
  most widely used meter in English poetry
• frame storyprovides a means for telling other
  stories within the story frame pilgrimage

Originally intended to include 122 stories (2 for
each pilgrim on the way, 2 each on the way back).
Only 22 stories completed. Pilgrims never get to
Canterbury.
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CT Characters
29 diverse pilgrims meet at an inn, decide to
tell stories to pass the time. Pilgrims represent
medieval life and society (Chaucer commenting on
societal conditions)

• Feudal systemknight, squire, yeoman,
  franklin, plowman, miller, reeve
• Religious life nun, monk, friar,
  cleric, parson, summoner, pardoner
• Trades/professionsmerchant, sergeant at the
  law, five tradesmen, cook, skipper, doctor, Wife
  of Bath, manciple, host