GEOFFREY CHAUSER. BACKGROUND AND LITERACY FEATURES OF THE AGE PDF

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TEMA 2: GEOFFREY CHAUSER. BACKGROUND AND LITERACY FEATURES OF THE AGE GEN GENERA ERA ERALL APP APPRO RO ROACH ACH TTO OC CHA HA HAUCE UCE UCER R AND HI HISS W WOR OR ORK KS Geoffrey Chaucer was born in London (1340 - 1400). He was a diplomat and a courtier. As he was a diplomat he travelled a lot by Europe (Flandes, France, Spain, Italy...) so he had the chance to meet a lot of people such as Dante, Boccaccio or Petrarch and he became a very cultured person. Chaucer was influenced by Italian literature (The Canterbury Tales are written following Boccaccio’s style). He became a member of the Parliament. Besides that book, he also wrote: • The book of the Duchess, about a dream vision of the goodness of the duchess. • The house of the Fame, about a dream vision of the good and bad things of fame. • Parliament of Foules, different birds talk about politics. • The Legend of Good Women, about a dream vision of women who are models of different things such as Cleopatra or Dido. Troilus and Criseyde, the story of two lovers in the Trojan War.

The siege of Troy THE CA CANTE NTE NTERB RB RBURY URY TA TALE LE LES. S. FE FEATU ATU ATURES RES AN AND D THE PRO PROLLOGU OGUE E They were written in the 14th century in English and they are mostly written in verse. They are the result of a contest which consists on find out who is the best. It takes place in “The Tabard Inn”. The stories are told by pilgrims. Canterbury was an important centre of pilgrimage because of Thomas Becket’s tomb was there (he was killed in the cathedral in the 12th century, he became a saint and made Canterbury become a very important place). The pilgrims decide to create a game to spend time. The original idea was that each pilgrim would tell two stories, one at the beginning of the journey and the other when returning. But the book has not two stories of each pilgrim so we think the book is not completed. Characters in the book were tied by one same aim – to arrive at Canterbury. Chaucer presents himself as one of the pilgrims and tells two stories – The tale of Sir Tipas and The Tale of Melibeus. Each of these tales has its own set of sources, but some sources are shared by several tales. One of the main sources is Boccaccio, because they both have the same concept of life. Others are Ovid’s poetry, the Bible, Petrarch, Dante, John Gower’s works (he was a moral poet). There is also influence of religious encyclopedias and Boethius – while he was in prison waiting for his execution he wrote Consolation Philosophical. The general prologue introduces the characters. They are important because they decide not only the tales but also the themes and the tones they are going to use. They fix the type of tale. Chaucer is the writer of a great psychology work. It has a lot of humour as well. There is an open, free exchange of stories and also ideas. There is a variety of styles because of the differences between the characters. Each character speaks according to his social status, his age, etc. There were three types: those who pray-the clergy, those who fight-the nobility, and those who work-the labourers. The vocabulary also differs according to the character – the skill in rhetorical forms, eg. (One visible example is that in some tales the character refers to a woman as “lady” and other user “wenche”). Chaucer shows a great skill in this. He anticipates realism because of the deeply knowledge of the mentality of all kinds of citizens. The audience who Chaucer was directed to was quite varied and general. The stories written in verse are decasyllable.

The historical context by the time the book was written was turbulent. The hundred-year war was taking place and religion had a very marked presence. Chaucer carries out a very harsh criticize through this satire, against the abuses of some members of the clergy which do not behave as it is expected. Christian culture is combined with the classical view of world. The story of the Miller is the opposite to the Knight’s , is to annoy him and has a complete different vision of the world based on cunning and lies, using bawdy expressions. Everything is earthly and has to do with deceit and tricks. It’s not a causality that the story of The Miller comes just after the Knight’s. THE KKNIG NIG NIGHT´ HT´ HT´SS TALE In Chaucer’s time, chivalry was on decline but the knight is a kind of survivor of those times of glory. He is a representation of the virtues and values. His style is elegant, very accomplished. He tells the story of two knights, Ancite and Palamon, who were like brothers and were taken prisoners of Theseus (Greek culture influence). Theseus was married to Ypolita whose sister Emelye was very beautiful. The two men fell in love with her, despite they had not even spoken to her. As they both wanted to get Emelye’s affection and love, they became rivals. Theseus organises a tournament, but he does not want any of them to die. The one who wins marries Emelye. Ancite prays to Mars, the god of war, who helps him. Palamon does the same but he asks for help to Venus, the goddess of love. Both deities respond well. Emelye, who does not want to marry any of them, prays Diana, the goddess of virginity. Both got what they wanted. Ancite wins the tournament but he is hit by his horse which kills him. Palamon marries Emelye with the help of Venus. Besiege: asediar Beseech: suplicar Bawdy: obsceno Courtier: cortesano Pageants: cabalgata

Ox/Oxen: bueyes Slay/Slain: matar Cunning: astucia Vessel: vasija Output: produccion

Plow: arado Banner: bandera,pancarta Host: anfitrion Brittle: quebradizo Denouement: desenlace...