The Canterbury Tales

Mia Gennarelli
September 28, 2010
3rd Block
The Canterbury Tales Geoffrey Chaucer was famous for his Canterbury Tales. I am selecting actors and actresses in which I believe would best fit four of Chaucer’s pilgrims’ personalities. Elizabeth Taylor, Gordon Ramsey, Carol Christine Hilaria Pounder, and Atticus Shaffer will be playing the roles of the Wife of Bath, the Cook, the Nun, and the Oxford Cleric Elizabeth Taylor will be playing the role of the wife of bath. She, like the wife of bath, has had many husbands, but she, unlike the wife of bath, is only widowed by one. Two of her husbands told the press after their divorce that Elizabeth Taylor was controlling, which in “The Wife of Bath’s Tale” we find out she likes to be in control. Since the Wife of Bath has been on many pilgrimages, Elizabeth Taylor is a perfect actress to play her character because she has played in several movies, television shows, and documentaries. ”A worthy woman from Bath city was with us, somewhat deaf, which was a pity” (The Canterbury Tale’s Prologue pg.116). With age, Elizabeth Taylor’s hearing has become impaired, which many fans find upsetting. The Wife of Bath is imagined to have a bold face that is handsome and red in hue. Many of Elizabeth Taylor’s admirers say she is not only known for her talents, but also for her beauty. “They had a Cook with them who stood alone for boiling chicken with a marrow-bone”. The Cook’s role will be played by Gordon Ramsey. Gordon Ramsey is an admirable and magnificent chef! He has won several awards in many different cooking competitions. In the Prologue Chaucer states that the Cook has an ulcer on his knee. Knowing that Gordon Ramsey is a blunt man, some may say having an ulcer may make him so the way he is. “He could distinguish London ale by flavor” (The Canterbury Tale’s Prologue pg.115), describes both the cook and Gordon Ramsey; Gordon Ramsey can taste any dish someone makes and tell you almost every ingredient that is in the recipe. My choice to play the Nun is Carol Christine Hilaria Pounder . Pounder plays Sister Abigail in the movie Orphan. The Nun runs the convent where the nuns live, and Pounder’s character runs an orphanage in the movie. “Pleasant and friendly in her ways, and straining to counterfeit a courtly kind of grace.” (The Canterbury Tale’s Prologue pg.108). In the movie, Sister Abigail tries her hardest to find the children a home and hold meetings for parents to meet them all. However, the Nun in The Canterbury Tales is a little different because she wears gaudy jewelry whereas the nun that Pounder plays follows the rules of nunnery. She also shares with the needy unlike the Nun in Chaucer’s pilgrimage. “By his bed he preferred having twenty books.” (The Canterbury Tale’s Prologue pg.112) Playing the role of the Oxford Cleric is Atticus Shaffer. Shaffer plays a young boy, who is also a student, on the television show “The Middle”. This young boy will spend all the money his parents give him on books from the library. He would rather buy a book than buy his lunch at school. While all the other children played on the playground at recess, he would spend that time in the library reading his favorite book. In Chaucer’s prologue, the Oxford Cleric’s only care was studying and learning, which is also the way Atticus Shaffer’s character is in this show. These actors and actresses are the people I would chose to best display the personalities of Geoffrey Chaucer’s character’s on his pilgrimage. I believe Elizabeth Taylor, Gordon Ramsey, Carol Christine Hilaria Pounder, and Atticus Shaffer would express the details and characteristics of the characters the best.