Religion In The Canterbury Tales

The end of the Middle Ages in Europe marked a great shift in the mindset of the people regarding the Church. The Church had always been a prominent aspect of the people's everyday life, but the Church lost some of its credit as new ideas and beliefs arose. Because of various catastrophic events, people also went to extremes to justify their behavior and find forgiveness for their sins. Literary works such as Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales and Boccaccio's The Decameron show this shift in attitude through tales and stories. The many events that took place between the late 1300s and early 1400s explain resulting shift in attitude toward the Church.

It is clear that Geoffrey Chaucer was acutely aware of the strict classist system in which he lived; indeed the very subject matter of his Canterbury Tales (CT) is a commentary on this system: its shortcomings and its benefits regarding English society. In fact, Chaucer is particularly adept at portraying each of his pilgrims as an example of various strata within 14th century English society. And upon first reading the CT, one might mistake Chaucer's acute social awareness and insightful characterizations as accurate portrayals of British society in the late 1300s and early 1400s. Further, one might mistake his analysis, criticism, and his sardonic condemnation of many elements of British culture for genuine attempts to alter the

Let’s start with Chaucer’s attack against the hierarchy. The hierarchy is the church and its maltreatment was trying to get the people to give the people running the church more money with false advertising. What would happen is that the people from the church would go out and tell people that they have sinned and needed to be blessed. The people would go to the church, give the church’s people money, and then be “blessed.” It was obvious which churches were pulling this stunt. Chaucer made two (three technically, but two only need to be pointed out.) characters that are from churches. There is the pardoner, that basically confess to pulling this stunt, and the monk, which was actually giving up the

The powerful grow more powerful through the actions of the people. Geoffrey Chaucer opposes the all-powerful 14th-century Catholic church in The Canterbury Tales. His displeasure resulted in the actions and practices of church officials. In The Canterbury Tales, individuals representing clergy members extort money, and sin for the gain of wealth within the church. Chaucer uses characterizations and language in The Canterbury Tales to express his displeasure and opposition with the 14th-century Catholic church’s practices.

The Canterbury Tales, the author portrays a negative attitude towards religion due to the church’s hypocrisy. The gloomy reality of the corruption of this institution is embodied through the characters redefinition of their roles, materialistic nature, and unlawful acts. During the middle ages, the church

Thus, because of the power held by the Catholic Church, Chaucer would have likely had many encounters with the Church in its people and leaders. “An apt symbol for the Catholic culture of fourteenth-century London might be found in the fact that there were ninety-nine churches, and ninety-five inns, within the walls” (Ackroyd 8). Common street talk included such passing phrases like, “God save you,” “God give you grace,” and “God 's speed” (Ackroyd 7). The Church’s reach stretched into the day-to-day life of all around Europe, regardless of class. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that Chaucer’s poetry would focus so much on religion and the practices of religion. And, because Chaucer participated devoutly in the religious practices, it makes sense that he would have felt an urgent desire to effect change in the faulty and corrupt practices of Church officials. Thus, Chaucer 's The Canterbury Tales serve as a first-hand analysis of the

In The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer begins his satiric story by bashing on church hypocrisy. Church hypocrisy basically deals with the idea of using the church to make profit. People within the church at this time are essentially not allowed to have tons of money, sleep with people, or get married. Chaucer attacks the church for this social problem going around, by creating characters who disobey the church

For starters, of the twenty-nine pilgrims detailed in Chaucer’s iconic enterprise, eight hold an occupation that directly links them with the church. Out of these eight, more than half are corrupt. This shocking statistic alone indicates that Chaucer plans to address the unsavory side of

By analyzing “The Canterbury Tales”, one can conclude that Chaucer did see the merits of the church, but by no means regarded it in a wholly positive light. Whereas some of the clergy are viewed as devout and God-fearing, others are viewed as con- men and charlatans. One can even venture to say that Chaucer was using this story as somewhat of a criticism of the church, showing the flaws of its leaders and the greed that permeated it at the time.

       The characters introduced in the General Prologue of The Canterbury Tales each represent a stereotype of a kind of person that Chaucer would have been familiar with in 14th Century England. Each character is unique, yet embodies many physical and behavioral traits that would have been common for someone in their profession. In preparing the reader for the tales, Chaucer first sets the mood by providing an overall idea of the type of character who is telling the tale, then allows that character to introduce themselves through a personal prologue and finally, the pilgrim tells their tale. Through providing the reader with insight about the physical and personal traits of

Chaucer lived in a time dictated by religion and religious ideas in which he uses The Canterbury Tales to show some of his views. Religion played a significant role in fourteenth-century England and also in Chaucer’s writing. His ideas of the Church are first seen in “The Prologue,” and he uses seven religious persons to show the influence of the religion in his writing. Although many of his characters appear to portray part of the corruption in the Church, he does give a small example in which one can conclude that he is speaking in praise.

In the days of Chaucer, one was not permitted to express their views of the church as much or as directly as people have the option to do today. As a result, Chaucer had to be creative as to how he wrote his opinions about the church. Chaucer wrote The Canterbury Tales for this purpose. In the prologue of The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer utilizes imagery and verbal irony to convey his viewpoint that the clergy is corrupt.

One of England's most famous writers, Geoffrey Chaucer, was known for writing social commentary and for his ironic descriptions. His most famous work The Canterbury Tales is no exception. Beginning with the "General Prologue" Chaucer reveals his negative attitude towards the clergy's corruption and greed. Three characters in particular represent the problems Chaucer solved for the church.

The Canterbury Tales provides a unique take on medieval culture that is unmatched by any other literary work. Geoffrey Chaucer creates a world filled with astounding characters which range from the vilest creatures to the most respectful individuals in the land. His unique stories keep the reader intrigued to find out exactly what will happen next. These exhilarating tales convey messages and examples were often made out of the characters that Chaucer deemed evil or disgraceful to mankind. In The Canterbury Tales, it is apparent that Geoffrey Chaucer is appalled by many people in the merchant and religious class, admires the Knight, Oxford Cleric, Wife of Bath, and Parson, and has a negative outlook on mankind as a whole.

      In the General Prologue to the Canterbury Tales, Chaucer describes the men and women of the Church in extreme forms; most of these holy pilgrims, such as the Monk, the Friar, and Pardoner, are caricatures of objectionable parts of Catholic society.  At a time when the power-hungry Catholic Church used the misery of peasants in order to obtain wealth, it is no wonder that one of the greatest writers of the Middle Ages used his works to comment on the religious politics of the day.