Chaucer - the Canterbury tales.ppt

GEOFFREY CHAUCER (1343-1400) The Canterbury Tales Historical Background At this time England (and Wales) was still being ruled by the descendents of William the Conqueror, who had invaded England in 1066. While Parliament had some powers, in reality the King, if he was supported by the important nobles could do what he wanted. The Church was the only organisation who could hope to oppose the King successfully. Most of the country spoke English, but the King and his courtiers mainly spoke in French. This was partly because they were descended from William the Conqueror, partly because at this time the kings of England ruled much of modern day France, and partly because Philippa the wife of King Edward III and grandmother of King Richard II spoke French. Chaucer’s life Chaucer was probably born in 1343 into a wealthy merchant family, with connections to the nobility. In his youth he fought with Edward III in France, and later worked in the court of the King, holding various important jobs. He is presumed to have written in his spare time. He wrote various different works, all in verse, many with strong links to French and Italian authors. However, his most famous work, the Canterbury Tales, is very much English in theme. The Canterbury tales The Canterbury Tales are a collection of various stories supposedly told by a group of travelers on a pilgrimage to the shrine of St Thomas a Beckett in Canterbury. There are 30 travelers though we only have stories from 24 of them. They cover a wide cross-section of society ranging from near the top (the knight) to near the bottom (the ploughman). Some would say they are the most ambitious, most wide ranging work in English before the complete works of Shakespeare. In the General Prologue Chaucer introduces the 30 people on the road. Opening lines In the first 16 lines of the work Chaucer describes the time of the year in terms of the natural world. Why do you think he does this? Perhaps: To give the poe