Canterbury Tales Character Analysis
In The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer, many characters go on a religious pilgrimage to Canterbury to visit the shrine of Saint Thomas Becket. On the way to Canterbury, each person on the journey tells a tale. Whoever tells the best story, gets rewarded a lavish free meal. The pilgrimage includes people from the nobility, clergy, and commoner class. For each class, Chaucer develops many different character types that were representative of the society of the time. With a broad spectrum of people and action, The Canterbury tales consists of many different ideas such as social satire, courtly love/ chivalry,morality, and corruption and deceit. One of the most important ideas of the story is that Chaucer puts forward a criteria that
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Instead she is to be modest, and focused on her religious duties in the church. The nun cares way too much about her appearance to be a church figure, and Chaucer discreetly makes fun of her because of it. Lastly, the Squire is meant to be a knight in training who follows the rules of chivalry and honour. The squire is kind of describe as being very pretty. “ He was embroidered like a meadow bright and full of the freshest flowers, red and white (5, 91-92) .” Chaucer is funnily indicating how obsessed the squire is with looking good. The Squire is indeed very vain, in which knights are supposed to have a mysterious kind grace. Not only does chaucer call out the Squires’ vainness, but he also points out the Squires need for love. The prologue says “ He loved so hotly that till dawn grew pale he slept as little as a nightingale (5, 99- 100) .” A knight is ordered by the rules of courtly love and chivalry to love women from a very far distance. The woman being adored is to be pure and unobtainable. The squire ignores the rules of courtly love, and instead chooses to love women up close and personal. In general, Chaucer is essentially jokingly hinting that the Squire is a good knight only for love and glorification. The squire is motivated to be a knight for love and not because he truly wants to be a good knight. For that reason the Squire is extremely selfish. Nonetheless, Chaucer approves of people who are not selfish and or
Instead she is to be modest, and focused on her religious duties in the church. The nun cares way too much about her appearance to be a church figure, and Chaucer discreetly makes fun of her because of it. Lastly, the Squire is meant to be a knight in training who follows the rules of chivalry and honour. The squire is kind of describe as being very pretty. “ He was embroidered like a meadow bright and full of the freshest flowers, red and white (5, 91-92) .” Chaucer is funnily indicating how obsessed the squire is with looking good. The Squire is indeed very vain, in which knights are supposed to have a mysterious kind grace. Not only does chaucer call out the Squires’ vainness, but he also points out the Squires need for love. The prologue says “ He loved so hotly that till dawn grew pale he slept as little as a nightingale (5, 99- 100) .” A knight is ordered by the rules of courtly love and chivalry to love women from a very far distance. The woman being adored is to be pure and unobtainable. The squire ignores the rules of courtly love, and instead chooses to love women up close and personal. In general, Chaucer is essentially jokingly hinting that the Squire is a good knight only for love and glorification. The squire is motivated to be a knight for love and not because he truly wants to be a good knight. For that reason the Squire is extremely selfish. Nonetheless, Chaucer approves of people who are not selfish and or