What in your opinion‚ is Chaucer’s view of the “religious” characters in The General Prologue to the Canterbury Tales? Chaucer began to write The General Prologue to the Canterbury Tales in 1387 when England was a Catholic state. Chaucer‚ a strong believer of his faith became aware that the Catholic church was becoming corrupt. He saw that over time‚ it was becoming ironically more greedy‚ among other sins‚ which are of course strongly prohibited by the religion. Thus‚ The General Prologue to
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Chaucer describes the Parson (who unlike the Friar is not a member of a religious order) as a pious and dedicated clergyman: “He was a poor country parson / But rich he was in holy thought and work. / He was a learned man also‚ 2 a clerk‚ / Who Christ’s own gospel truly sought to preach; / Devoutly his parishioners would he teach. / Gracious he was and wondrously diligent‚ / Patient in adversity and well content” (Chaucer v. 480-486). This description of the Parson seems to coincide with
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the voices of the characters he creates. In The Canterbury Tale‚ Chaucer uses many characters to voice his opinion about the church society. He uses many church subjects to voice his opinion about the church‚ such as‚ the Friar‚ the Pardoner‚ the Summoner‚ the Monk‚ and the Parson. All of these church subjects each have an aspect of either good or bad. Honestly I think that Chaucer’s opinion of the church is really sarcastic. His attitude can be seen in how he described all of the bad church subjects
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shrine of the martyr Saint Thomas Becket in Canterbury. The narrator gives a descriptive account of twenty-seven of these pilgrims‚ including a Knight‚ Squire‚ Yeoman‚ Prioress‚ Monk‚ Friar‚ Merchant‚ Clerk‚ Man of Law‚ Franklin‚ Haberdasher‚ Carpenter‚ Weaver‚ Dyer‚ Tapestry-Weaver‚ Cook‚ Shipman‚ Physician‚ Wife‚ Parson‚ Plowman‚ Miller‚ Manciple‚ Reeve‚ Summoner‚ Pardoner‚ and Host. (He does not describe the Second Nun or the Nun’s Priest‚ although both characters appear later in the book.) The Host
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Canterbury Tales to reveal corruption in the Church that was prevalent in society. Many members of the clergy used their positions for personal gain. This can be seen in his cast of characters. Of all the pilgrims associated with the Church‚ the Parson is the only one who is honorable. One of the corrupt pilgrims is the Monk. The Monk disregards the rules that govern monasteries. The narrator is referencing this book of rules when he states: "But this same text he held not worth an oyster;/And
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Chaucer’s depiction of the hierarchy within the church highlights the inverse relationship between religious “purity” and corruption. Chaucer’s scandalous nun and monk abuse their power and influence to reappropriate funds in order to fuel their gold-dipped dreams of nobility. The monk and nun are quite prone to ostentatious displays of wealth‚ this is shown by the fragments ”[the Nun had] a golden brooch of brightest sheen”(164)‚ “[the monk] spared no expense… the finest in the land”(198-99)‚
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THE CANTERBURY TALES STUDY GUIDE QUESTIONS Prologue 1. In lines 1-18 (which are all one sentence)‚ identify the time and the author’s main point. April; the main point is that according to the poet‚ people long to go on a pilgrimage in the Spring. 2. Why does the urge to go on pilgrimage hit people in the spring? Winter is over; it’s time for renewal. 3. Who is at the inn? Who arrives at the inn? What is the central idea? (Look in ll. 19-28). The narrator is at the inn; twenty-nine pilgrims
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The Monk is next‚ an extremely fine and handsome man who loves to hunt‚ and who follows modern customs rather than old traditions. This is no bookish monk‚ studying in a cloister‚ but a man who keeps greyhounds to hunt the hare. The Monk is well-fed‚ fat‚ and his eyes are bright‚ gleaming like a furnace in his head. The Monk A man who tends the property of the monastery. He is fat and happy‚ loves good food and wine‚ and finds the taverns more to his liking than the cold‚ severe monastery. The
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structure of classes. The simplest division of society was into three estates: those who fight‚ those who pray‚ and those who labour‚ typified by the Knight‚ the Parson and the Plowman. Women were often treated as an estate to themselves. The basic tripartite division of society‚ for instance‚ is reflected in Chaucer’s making his Knight‚ Parson and Plowman the three ideal characters on the pilgrimage- along with the Clerk to stand for those who learn and teach. However‚ I have to admit that this division
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The Pilgrims The Narrator - The narrator makes it quite clear that he is also a character in his book. Although he is called Chaucer‚ we should be wary of accepting his words and opinions as Chaucer’s own. In the General Prologue‚ the narrator presents himself as a gregarious and naïve character. Later on‚ the Host accuses him of being silent and sullen. Because the narrator writes down his impressions of the pilgrims from memory‚ whom he does and does not like‚ and what he chooses and chooses
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