by Geoffrey Chaucer

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by Geoffrey Chaucer
2
Historical Context and Background
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Geoffrey Chaucer (1343-1400)Life and
Accomplishments

• Son of a vintner (wine merchant)
• page
• soldier
• diplomat
• royal clerk.
• Began writing Canterbury Tales in 1386
• Known as The Father of English Poetry
• Wrote in vernacular English

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Canterbury Cathedral

• Founded in 597
• First permanent religious institution built in
  England
• Englands largest church
• Center of Catholicism in the medieval England

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The Martyrdom of Sir Thomas Becket

• Chancellor under Henry II
• Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury in 1162
• Will no one rid me of this turbulent priest?
• 1170 - Murdered by knights of King Henry II in
  Canterbury Cathedral.

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Why go on a pilgrimage?

• Most common reasons for embarking on pilgrimages
• to improve chances of salvation
• gain healing touch supposedly found in saints
  relics
• atone for sins
• Other reasons
• avoid shame of confessing sins at home
• desire to travel
• meet new people
• escape drudgery of daily lives
• Often, people were attacked or swindled en route
  traveling in a group was much safer

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The Canterbury Tales

• 30 Pilgrims on the pilgrimage to the cathedral at
  Canterbury
• Frame story - stories within a story
• Chaucer intended to write 120 tales
• Each traveler is to tell 4 stories (two going, 2
  returning)
• Only 24 tales were completed
• The Canterbury Tales provides the best
  contemporary picture we have of 14th century
  England.

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Classes in Society

• Pilgrims generally fall into 3 major divisions of
  medieval society
• Feudal order (Knight and his Squire)
• The Church / clergy (Monk and Nun)
• Merchant or professional class (Miller and
  Guildsmen)

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The Travelers to Canterbury
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The Travelers to Canterbury
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The Travelers to Canterbury
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General Complexity of The Canterbury Tales

• Different genres have different views of the
  world, different vocabularies, and different
  images for truth

• Romance- deals with human emotions and
  relationships
• Fabliau- deals with the basic human needs of
  food, sex, or money
• Saints Life- deals with the operations of God
• Sermons and Ethical Treatises- deals with
  spiritual matters

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Manuscripts Written in Middle English

• Ellesmere Manuscript
• 240 pages of parchment leaves
• The most famous manuscript in the English
  language
• 1481 first printed edition by William Caxton

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Literary Terms
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satire

• A literary mode based on criticism of people and
  society through ridicule. The satirist aims to
  reduce the practices attacked by laughing
  scornfully at them--and being witty enough to
  allow the reader to laugh, also.  Ridicule,
  irony, exaggeration, and several other techniques
  are almost always present.

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characterization

• The method used by a writer to develop a
  character. The method includes (1) showing the
  character's appearance, (2) displaying the
  character's actions, (3) revealing the
  character's thoughts, (4) letting the character
  speak, and (5) getting the reactions of others.

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frame narrative

• The result of inserting one or more small stories
  within the body of a larger story that
  encompasses the smaller ones. Often this term is
  used interchangeably with both the literary
  technique and the larger story itself that
  contains the smaller ones, which are called
  "framed narratives" or "embedded narratives."

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prologue

• An introductory section of a literary work. It
  often contains information establishing the
  situation of the characters or presents
  information about the setting, time period, or
  action.
• In the "General Prologue" of The Canterbury
  Tales, Geoffrey Chaucer describes the main
  characters and establishes the setting and
  purpose of the work.

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hyperbole

• Exaggeration or overstatement.
• Example I'm so hungry I could eat a
  horse. He's as big as a house.

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stereotype

• 1. A conventional, formulaic, and oversimplified
  conception, opinion, or image.
• 2. One that is regarded as embodying or
  conforming to a set image or type.

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Perspectives

• from which to view The Canterbury Tales

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The Seven Deadly Sins

1. Pride is an excessive belief in one's own
   abilities.
2. Envy is wanting what others have, be it status,
   abilities, or possessions.
3. Gluttony is the desire to eat or consume more
   than you require.
4. Lust is a powerful craving for such as sex, power
   and money. 
5. Anger is the loss of rational self-control and
   the desire to harm others.
6. Greed is the desire for material wealth or gain.
7. Sloth is laziness and the avoidance of work.

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Theory of the Four Humors

• Balance among the four elemental fluids
• blood,
• yellow bile
• Phlegm
• black bile.
• The four basic human temperaments
• phlegmatic
• sanguine,
• Melancholic
• choleric

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Phlegmatic

• The temperament of the calm and tough phlegmatics
  was influenced by excess phlegm.
• Associated with water, cold and moisture.
• Characteristics dull, pale, cowardly. 

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Sanguine

• Sanguines, whose cheerful and lively temperament
  resulted from the dominance of the blood.
• Associated with the air, heat and moisture.
• Characteristics amorous, happy, generous.

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Melancholic

• The worry and gloominess of the melancholies were
  due to a surfeit of melancholy.
• Associated with earth, cold and dryness.
• Characteristics gluttonous, lazy, sentimental

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Choleric

• The energetic cholerics had too much choler (an
  irritable petulant feeling) in his or her system.
  
• Associated with fire, heat and dryness.
• Characteristics violent, vengeful.