1. Geoffrey Chaucer and The Canterbury Tales

2. Geoffrey Chaucer
1343?-1400
Was close to the aristocrats, but not a nobleman
While serving in the English Army in France, he was captured and held prisoner
King Edward paid the ransom
Married a lady-in-waiting (to the queen)
Considered to be the Greatest English Poet

3. The Canterbury Tales Shows readers the true Medieval World
14th century England
Chaucer participated in the pilgrimage to Canterbury
Pilgrimage – a long journey to a holy site or shrine taken by those who are devout
This pilgrimage is a trip to a cathedral in Canterbury upon the death of the beloved Thomas a Becket (Archbishop of Canterbury) in the 1100s

4. The Tales The poem is a story about stories
Each person on the pilgrimage tells a story
Insight into romances, comedies, etc of the time
Crude humor, comedies, religious mysteries
Social commentary
Only 24 of the projected 120 were completed

5. The Prologue
Narrator meets 29 others at the Tabard Inn, located in a suburb of London
Challenge by Harry Bailey, Innkeeper – Each pilgrim must tell two stories on the way to Canterbury and two on the return trip
Best Tale » entitled to a feast
The stories suit the teller – The Knight tells a romance, the wife tells about marriages, etc.