Geoffrey Chaucer

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Geoffrey Chaucer

• The Canterbury Tales

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Geoffrey Chaucer

• Born around 1340 in London
• Fought in wars between England and France where
  he was taken prisoner
• After he returned to England he became a diplomat
  traveling to France and Italy for the King
• 1374 he became Controller of Customs in London

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Geoffrey Chaucer Continued...

• Became a member of Parliament in his forties
• Given the post of Clerk of the Kings Work
• Died in 1400 and is buried in Westminster Abbey

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Chaucers Influences

• Italian writers Dante, Petrarch, and Boccaccio
• Chaucer used some of these stories in the
  Canterbury Tales

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The Canterbury Tales

• Is Chaucers most famous work
• Begins in the springtime when a group of 30
  travelers meet to embark on a pilgrimage to
  Canterbury

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Pilgrimages

• Pilgrimages were very popular during Chaucers
  time. People would journey together to some
  sacred place which was important to their
  religious faith
• Canterbury was the most popular center for
  pilgrims in England
• It was the cathedral in which Thomas Becket,
  Henry IIs Archbishop, had been assassinated two
  centuries earlier
• People visited Beckets tomb believing that the
  martyr could cure sickness

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Canterbury Tales Continued...

• Chaucer made himself one of the 30 travelers
• Canterbury Tales was written in Middle English
• These stories remain popular due to the fact that
  they are still capable of making us laugh, to
  give us food for thought and even to make our
  flesh creep!

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Writing Activity

• What do you think makes a book or story classic
  literature?
• Name 5 characteristics of a classic story
• In your opinion what books have you read that you
  think are classic pieces of literature or should
  be?