Geoffrey Chaucer is the first great poet in English literature. As a writer, Chaucer understands human motivation. He is a fine psychologist. The choice he makes of his characters is meant to cover the all Medieval society. His pilgrims belong to all walks of live in the Middle Ages.
The pilgrims are characterised both directly (in the General Prologue) and indirectly (in the stories they choose to tell). Chaucer draws his characters in detail. For instance
The Knight rides a fine horse, but his tunic has been stained and smudged on the battle-field, as proof of the facts he take good care of the animal his life depends on and that he really was in the war. The Miller has a beard like a spade, has a disgraceful wart with red bristles and is constantly compared
to a sow because he looks like and behaves like one.
The pilgrim's character is revealed in the story he tells. There is a significant correspondence between the Knight's character and his story about the noble Arcite and Palamon, a story whose ending is so generous and chilvalrous. On the other hand, when the Nun's Priest tells the story about a foolish and vain male who wants to be admired by all of his seven wives we can find proof of Chaucer's irony regarding the priest: we would not expect a priest to choose this topic from among all the others at his disposal, and thus we understand that his profession and his interests are two different things.The pilgrims' stories have a moral ending but they also want to please the readers.
As a literary device, Chaucer chooses the frame-story technique. In this way the story gains variety. His attitude is never a moralizing one. He presents things as they are and never condemns his characters' openly. His intention is to be realistic and objective. Yet, Chaucer does not always manage to remain objective, as we can see in the portrait of the Knight, who is entirely good and noble.
The work is a panorama of the English Middle Ages.This is one of the aspects for which it has remained so popular. In this aspect it can be compared with Shakepeare. More than this, he is considered to be the founder of literary English.
Geoffrey Chaucer-Canterbury-Tales written by Herminne Tonita for FamousWhy.com
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by Herminne Tonita -