1. The Canterbury Tales Pilgrims in the Walk of Life

2. Historical Setting  1337-1435—100 Years War  1381—Peasant’s Revolt  Growth of London  Rise of middle classes  1348-1349—Black Death  Fall of John of Gaunt  Richard II’s deposition

3. Geoffrey Chaucer  Born 1343  Page at 14, squire at 16, captured in France  Married in 1366 to Phillipa  John of Gaunt’s patronage  More battles, squiring, travels in Italy (Petrarch/Dante?)  1374—controller of customs  1385—JP in Kent  1389—Richard II appoints Clerk of Kings Works/Deputy Forester  1400—dies pretty poor

4. Works  1369—Book of the Duchess—John of Gaunt’s wife dies  1380—Parliament of Fowls  1383—Boece  1383-1386—Troilus and Criseyde/Legend of Good Women  1387-1392—General Prologue and some Tales  1393-1400—Later Tales

5. Literary Influences  Dante  Petrarch  Boccaccio—Decameron/Teseida/Filostrato  Jean de Meung—Roman de la Rose  William Langland—Piers Plowman

6. Structure  Framework Tale  Southwark—Tabard Inn—Harry Bailey’s prize  Twenty-nine pilgrims (all but 2 in Prologue)  Twenty-two tell tales, plus Chaucer’s two, and Canon’s Yeoman for total of 25  Seven don’t—Plowman, Yeoman, and 5 guildsmen

7. Binding Elements  Stages  Places  Times  Progress  Interaction in and out of tales  These links—interesting, late, dominated by Harry Bailey

8. The Six Groups  Upper to lower society  Knight/Squire/Yeoman—upper secular  Prioress/Monk/Friar—upper ecclesiastical  Professionals and Moneyed class—from the Merchant to the Wife of Bath  Clerk, Sergeant of Law, Franklin, Shipman, Doctor, Five guildsmen and Cook  Humble Christians—Parson and Plowman  The Rogues—Miller, Manciple, Reeve, Summoner, Pardoner, Chaucer

9. Groups  Good  Worldly striving  Depraved  Horses and instruments

10. Three Levels  Historical window  Entertaining short stories  Interplay of characters leads to overall themes

11. Themes  Love and marriage  Ten of twenty-four stories  Six more figure prominently  Religion and Philosophy  Science, Medicine, and Pseudo-Science

12. Group One  Knight’s Tale —Teseida  Amazons/Theseus in Legend of Good Women  Three Temples  Courtly love—pity vs dedication to honor and virtue  Venus vs Mars

13. Group One  Miller and Reeve  Comic sex told against each other  Cuckoldry  Cook—nasty lowest character, boil, tale cut short  Man of Law —saint’s tale, correction of previous tales  Heroine’s absolute refusal of help to save herself—God must do all (comment on Augustinianism and Lollards )

14. Group Two  Shipman’s through Nun’s Priests Tales  Best dialogue between the pilgrims  Lollardism (John of Gaunt)  Fabliaux—comic short stories  Bawdy  Middle class  Cynical  Monk’s Tale--randy outrider—no theology— wheel of fortune  Debt to wife, failure to pay, husband to blame

15. Group Two  Prioress Tale  Miracle story  Anti-semitism  Reflection of her character  Amor vincit omnia—Eros vs Agape  One priest not three as in Prologue  Story from Hugh of Lincoln—pogroms  Usury

16. Group Two  Tale of Sir Thopas  Satire on metrical romance  Heavy rhyme scheme  Ridiculous elements—Flemish knight/goshawk/oaths/oafish knight  Tale of Melibee —French story, confiding and trusting wife  Daughter Sophia receives five wounds

17. Group Two  Nun’s Priest Tale  Beast fable  Boethius’ philosophy  Widow story  Rooster—symbol of sensual indulgence  Free will vs predestination

18. Group Three  Physician’s Tale —Roman de la Rose  Pardoner’s Tale  Perfect short story  At the pub?  Exemplum in homily  Questionable sexual practices of Pardoner  Moral self-exposure in tale

19. Group Four  Wife of Bath to Franklin’s Tale  Marriage Group  Wife of Bath’s Tale  Theology of Wife’s Prologue  Psychology of sex  Jankyn and anti-feminism  Arthurian story of loathly hag  Wooing vs taking

20. Group Four  Friar and Summoner tell stories contra one another  Clerk’s Tale —Petrarch  Postscript opposite of tale  Merchant’s Tale —best of four fabliaux— January/May/Damian  Squire’s Tale —Cambuscan, Canace— true love and faithfulness

21. Group Four  Franklin’s Tale  Wealth of Franklin  Breton Lay  Marriage of absolute trust and equality  Catastrophic consequences  Who was most righteous?

22. Group Five  Second Nun’s Tale  Cecilia and Valerian, saint’s tale  Canon’s Yeoman —interesting autobiographical possibilities  Disillusion with alchemy  Manciple’s Tale —tell-tale bird from Ovid and Roman de la Rose  Parson’s Sermon —summation of tale, real themes

23. General Themes  Use of classical literary references  Use of classical gods  Virgil  Ovid  Venus

24. Courtly Matters  Fight bravely and often  Win woman’s love through obedience  OK for nobles, not for church or middle class  Chivalric code  Swore to avoid false judgment  Commit no treason  Honor and help all women  Attend Mass and fast on Fridays

25. Chivalry  Chastity  Humility  Loyalty  Courtesy  Prowess  Largess  God—Lord, Man—vassal  Liege—Lord, Man--vassal  Woman—Lord, Man—vassal

26. Breakdown of the System  Extramarital affairs  Woman grants two kinds of grace  Permission to serve  Sexual favors  Mercy and pity lead to desire  Songs of complaint to Serenade to Aubade  Very allegorical—flowers and furry animals

27. Religion  Church=Society—Law—Arts—Integrated Whole  Boethius—Problem of unjust suffering  Boethius—Nature of Free Will and God’s Sovereignty  Occam—Razor—No Universals— Nominalism  Wycliffe—Pro-Occam—Importance of Personal Behavior

28. Science and Pseudo-Science  Astronomy and Astrology  Astronomy—Observational and Judicial  Gods—Planets—Hours  Zodiac—Governs parts of the body  Intersection of psychology, medicine, and astronomy

29. Pseudo-Science  Alchemy—Transmutation—Philosopher’s stone—hints of transubstantiation  Numerology—Pythagoras to Plato  Physiognomy tells psychology  Optics  Lapidary lore  Five categories of dreams

30. Medicine  Four Properties—Hot/Cold vs Dry/Moist  Fire—Hot and Dry—Choleric—bile—bad tempered--quarrelsome  Earth—Cold and Dry—Melancholy—black bile--gloomy  Air—Hot and Moist—Sanguine—blood— sensual--happy  Water—Cold and Moist—Phlegmatic— phlegm—lethargic--dull

31. Conclusion  Dante’s balance  The use of the grotesque and immoral  Cyril of Jerusalem: “The dragon sits by the side of the road, watching those who pass. Beware lest he devour you. We go to the Father of Souls, but it is necessary to pass by the dragon.”