Banishment In The Knight's Tale

For my report, I chose to summarize how Brian Helgeland’s movie “A Knight’s Tale” (2001) draws its medieval themes and story from Geoffrey Chaucer’s “The Canterbury Tales: The Knight’s Tale”. Besides the nearly identical titles of these works and the moderately similar storyline, it can be further proven that “A Knight’s Tale” is an adaption of “The Knight’s Tale” because Geoffrey Chaucer appears as a character himself—and a vital one at that—in the movie. Furthermore, just to make certain that there is no mistake among the viewers about who they are dealing with, Geoffrey Chaucer (Paul Bettany) even refers to himself as a writer in the movie and points out his very first own work “The Book of the Duchess” in disbelief when some peasants don’t

The Knight and the Nun are two significant pilgrims in Geoffrey Chaucer’s famous poem The Canterbury Tales. The Knight is respected by many and his main job was to defeat enemies successfully. The Nun had a lower social position than the Knight and her overall job was to praise the Lord and serve others. While the Knight appears to be a more respected pilgrim in comparison to the Nun, Chaucer uses both of the characters to contribute to the overall theme of humankind’s tendency to strive to be accepted and respected by their peers.

"The Knight's Tale" is one of many tales from the Canterbury Tales. This story sets in the city of Athens. Which opens into the theme of violence, foolishness, impetuousness, and impulsiveness; initially exceedingly emotional responses. One example is when two of our main characters, Palmon and Arcite, both fall in love with Theseus's sister-in-law (Emelye). These two blood brothers, leave each other after seeing Emelye out of the window of the tower. Which, I believe is a very impulsive decision, for they have not got time to know who she is and her personality. Also, they act like mortal enemies after just seeing her, so this thought process was completely impulsive and based on her looks. And later, Arcite tries to get to know her better after he was released from his imprisonment sentence by disguising himself, so he can take a job as a page in Emelye's chamber. I believe this shows that he wants to know her, but also it shows he is not being honest with her, which shows he was being impulsive and deceiving. He only learned about the little things that she liked, not her personality. Emelye learned a little bit about Arcite after the little conversing they shared, so they learned a little of each other's personality. This shows that the friendship was growing and not an intimate relationship, like Arcite wanted. So the story goes on and both Palmon and Arcite have been released from prison. And they happen to both decide to wander in the woods. Then they confront each other, each claiming the right to Emelye. The next day, they were brutally hacking away at each other. Honestly, I believe they are being impulsive and violent, they still barely knew Emelye (especially Palmon), and they decide to go kill each other. Then here shows up Theseus, which a loving and wise duke, but he can also be a little impulse when it comes to violence (which is fairly normal for a duke in the 1390s). Theseus tries to be loving when he sees the two men fighting, but he changes his mind when he found out it was Palmon and Arcite fighting. And that they were fighting because they "love" Emelye. Then Theseus was about to respond by killing them, but his loving wife and Emelye intervened, pleading for their lives. They pleaded

Once returned with armor for Palamon, the fighting ensues amidst the feuding cousins. Before their dispute concludes in death, the wise knight, Theseus, along with his wife and Emily, the cause of the knights’ quarrel, happen upon them in the grove. Although both former prisoners, and one forever exiled from the land of Athens, Arcita and Palamon truthfully reveal their identity and the motivation behind their duel as “chivalry [requires] knights…to swear loyalty to their superiors” (Thierry). Arcita and Palamon, with all loyalty to the Duke, unveil their true identities, a brave act of chivalry that nearly results in the execution of the devoted knights. Theseus, moved with compassion at the plea of the two women, pardons both Arcita and Palamon, knowing that only those in love “can be called a fool” (Chaucer 46). Theseus’ amnesty emulates the “ideal chivalric knight,” one who “[is…] compassionate [and] just…to those in distress” (Thierry). In

The author Geoffrey Chaucer wrote the book “The Canterbury Tale” and also added several stories. I chose to write about. “The Knight’s Tale” and “The Miller’s Tale”, because both of them are so equally different, but have some similarities for example, in “The Knight’s Tale” talks about the knight’s and how they are so respected and honorable man’s. “The Miller’s Tale” is about a love triangle that involves one woman and three men and how the miller is not a respected man and doesn’t keep his promises.

In Chaucer's Canterbury Tales a storytelling competition is proposed by the Host. In his mind, it was only proper for the Knight to tell his story first. The sneaky Host rigged the drawing of straws and the Knight won the honor of going first. He told a Roman Epic of loyalty and love, set in classical antiquity that portrayed his gallant manner and elevated social class. The Miller's Tale, a parody of the Knight's Tale, came next. The Miller's Tale was more contemporary and left out many of the ideals that were displayed by the characters in the Knight's Tale. This fabliau told by the Miller seemed to debase the Knight's Tale and also to debase the Knight himself.

In class, we were provided with the book Canterbury Tales, which was a very compelling story full of characters that seemed to give off their own individual charm. This made them especially memorable. Most of the tales found in this unique novel were either vulgar such as the Miller's Tale, wretched akin to the Wife of Bath's Tale, or downright disgusting as in the Cook's Tales. Reading further into this carefully woven collection of tales, two tales in particular that managed to stand out. One tale is a sweeping epic, simply known as the Knight's Tale while the other was akin to an Arthurian romance called the Clerk's Tale. I began to realize that both of those tales had some similarities between them. One similarity was that a certain man of higher social class who fell in love for an elegant and beautiful lady who either shares the same social class as the lover or is in the lowest social class. Analyzing the tales further, it can be noticed that there were many differences that clashed between the tales. For example, in the Knight's Tale, there were

Two knights were found alive but barely and was sentenced by Theseus by either imprisonment or death, but they were sentenced in imprisonment, then the two knights saw Emily in her garden and both fell in love with her, and then Arcite is released because of his and Palamon’s friend, but he must never go back to Athens ever again. Because of this, He became depressed and he became unrecognizable so he travelled back to Athens and he became in a high and respected position in the court. Then Palamon escapes and hides in the grove, while Arcite is thinking himself alone, and he talks about his history, then the two knights duel for the hand of Emily, and they pray to the gods, with different gods, they won in their own way they prayed to their gods. And each had their victory, since Arcite prayed to Mars, he won the duel, Palamon prayed to Venus, so he won Emily’s heart, and Emily prayed to Athena. The elements in the story are: wise and just leader as Duke Theseus, trustworthy knights as Arcite and

In the Knight’s Tale, Duke Theseus of Athens is returning home from his occupation of Scythia, where he has won a wife, Hippolyta, and a sister-in-law, Emily. Along the way, he runs into a group of old women dressed in black, weeping. The women wearily explain to Theseus that their husbands, who had been kings and dukes, had been slain by King Creon of Thebes, and are now being refused proper burial. They beg Theseus to take vengeance on him. Theseus takes pity on the women and defeats Creon. After taking the city, Theseus claims two Theban hostages, cousins Palamon and Arcite. He throws them into a cell, where he intends to leave them until they die. Years pass, and one morning in May, Emily is picking flowers in the garden. Palamon and Arcite

By this time, Arcite and Palamon have been in prison for a while, and have lost any hope of leaving. Nevertheless, Arcite’s mutual friend, Duke Pirithous, who “held Arcite in high esteem” (344), talks with Theseus and has him released from prison, but Arcite must never go to a place that is in Theseus’ kingdom under pain of death. The time that Arcite spends brooding over the fact that he cannot see his beloved Emily, also gives him a chance to come up with a plan to somehow marry Emily. Seven years pass and he looks vastly different from before, and decides to return to Thebes disguised as a poor man, named Philostrato. He gets a job working for Theseus and eventually works his way up to being Theseus’ second in command.

The Canterbury Tales begin with The Knight’s Tale; which chronicles the tragic love triangle of Palamon, Arcite and Emilye. The following tale, which is told by the Miller, is also a love triangle, and is in many ways similar to the Knight’s tale. However, the Miller’s tale sharply contrasts the Knight’s, almost parodying it. The Knight’s tale is a tragic of nobility, heritage and focuses heavily on mythology and astrology, whereas The Miller’s tale is a comedy, focusing on the common-man and his less civilized, and bawdy lifestyle. The two stories mirror one another in many ways, but are presented from completely different sides of the spectrum. When the two tales are looked at closely, it doesn’t seem to be a coincidence that they occur

Women throughout Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales seek acceptance and a voice but unfortunately the men think otherwise. Dominus, (domination), a concept often correlating to chivalry, appears consistently in every tale but is indisputable in The Knight’s Tale. Whether it’s the observing of Theseus brutally conquering the Amazons, a tribe of women barbaric warriors, or two once chivalrous knights competing over a woman with the sole intent of lustful desires, the dominus is evident.

Although Arcita and Palamon do not fit the description of the Knight in “The General Prologue,” Theseus’ character resembles the description of the Knight. When Theseus returns from conquering Scythia and sees the group of women grieving he shows empathy and wants to use his power as king to help these women and avenge the wrongful deaths of their husbands. “He felt his heart about to break indeed . . . Their hearts with comfort and with kind good will, And swore on oath that as he was a true knight” (Chaucer, 29). Not only does Theseus feel horrible about the deaths of their he also believes it is his duty to offer support. Although the grieving women told Theseus that their husbands bodies could not be found, Theseus found their bones and

Both characters suffer from these circumstances. Arcite is left free to wander where he wants as long as he is not found on the land of the Duke Theseus. Palamon on the other hand who I believe suffers more is locked in a cell with no hope. He is chained up till his dying breath while Arcite is free and has opportunities to find another girl. There is also an opportunity that Emily leaves the area that Arcite is exiled from and Arcite and Emily meet. For Palamon he gets to see Emily but will never have an opportunity to be with her because he is locked away for life.

Geoffrey Chaucer implants himself into The Canterbury Tales. Chaucer fabricates a romantic and whimsical narrative which centers around Sir Thopas, a knight whose desire is the love of an elf queen. However, the Host interrupts the tale and Chaucer does not complete his story. The tale begins through the use of a prologue. In the Prologue, astonishment and solemnity becomes apparent on each face of the pilgrims after their experience while listening to the Prioress’ Tale. The Narrator states the emotions: “When all this miracle was told, every man/Was so sober that it was wonderful to see”(l. 691-92). The emotions of the pilgrims quickly subsides when the Host begins to joke. The Host takes interest in Chaucer and asks “What sort of man are you?” (l. 695). The Host then requests that Chaucer expeditiously tell a tale. Chaucer responds by stating that he only knows one tale, which is a rhyming romance. Chaucer explains to the caravan that his knowledge of the tale dates back years ago.