The Canterbury Tales Key Concepts

Author Info Author: Geoffrey Chaucer –Born sometime between –His family was well off, though not nobility –One of the first to write in English (French was the spoken language of the time) –Considered to be the greatest English writer before Shakespeare. –Most famous book: The Canterbury Tales

The time period At least once in their lifetime, people made a pilgrimage (religious journey) to the shrine of St. Thomas á Becket in the city of Canterbury –Becket had been the archbishop of Canterbury –He was murdered in his own cathedral Chaucer uses this idea of a pilgrimage to help form his frame story.

The Canterbury Tales Chaucer’s most famous book –He himself is a character in the book as a short, plump, slightly foolish pilgrim who commands no great respect This book was still unfinished when he died Type: Fiction Format: Collection of stories within a frame story

The Frame Story Group of travelers Gather at Tabard Inn (outside of London, approx. 70 miles from Canterbury) Harry Bailey, the innkeeper/host suggests a storytelling competition (to pass the time while traveling) –Each person will tell 2 stories each way ¼ completed before Chaucer died 30 people x 4 stories per person 120 stories

Characterization Involves all the methods a writer uses to reveal the values and personalities of his or her characters. A writer may make explicit statements about a character or may reveal a character indirectly through well-chosen words, thoughts, and actions.

Paraphrase Paraphrasing involves putting a text you have read into your own words to check your understanding of its content. A paraphrase differs from a summary in that a summary is always shorter than the original, while a paraphrase may be approximately the same length as the original.

The Pardoner’s Tale In the Middle Ages, pardoners were licensed by the pope to grant indulgences, gifts of divine mercy to repentant sinners. By Chaucer’s time, corrupt pardoners were selling indulgences for personal gain rather than granting them to penitents in return for voluntary donations to the church. Exemplum – A brief story used to teach a lesson.

The Pardoner’s Tale Irony – Contrast or discrepancy between expectation and reality. Situational Irony – Exists when an occurrence is the opposite of a character’s expectations. Dramatic Irony – Occurs when readers or audiences have information unknown to the characters. Verbal Irony – Occurs when a character says one thing while meaning another. Tone – How an author expresses his or her attitude toward a subject.

The Wife of Bath’s Tale The Wife’s tale is set in the shadowy margin between the pagan and Christian worlds.

The Wife of Bath’s Tale The quality of literary work that makes characters and their situations seem funny or amusing is called humor. Types of humor range widely, from puns and word play to broad satire, sarcasm, parody, and subtle wit.

The Wife of Bath’s Tale “The Wife of Bath’s Tale,” like many other tales from Chaucer’s era, is told in the form of a narrative poem. Narrative poetry is verse that is specifically meant to tell a story. To analyze a work of narrative poetry, you can look at the ways in which an author combines structure, word choice, and literary elements (such as character, narrator, and conflict) to express a theme or idea.

The Wife of Bath’s Tale Analyzing Structure “The Wife of Bath’s Tale” consists of the Wife’s introduction, followed by a tale in which events are told in chronological order.