General Prologue Essay

discussion on Chaucer’s Wife of Bath, one must first recognize that, as critic Elaine Treharne writes, “Critical response to the Wife of Bath has been as diverse as it has been emotive” (2). Some critics love the Wife of Bath and her controversial prologue, proclaiming that she is a woman of strength and powerful words; others hate her and cover the eyes of younger girls, determined that Wife of Bath is instead a role model of what women should not be; and the rest remain a bit confused, simply excusing

Chaucer used his general prologue to introduce his use of Satire. This is a way to undermine a character and their appearances. Chaucer uses this to teach us to accept the pilgrims at face value . Face Value ” is the believe that what a person is saying is true and rather than looking for the hidden meaning not understanding the bigger picture or motive behind what the person is saying” (www.english.stackexchange.com). Chaucer uses this to make our own moral judgement. I find this to be an extremely

fine with taking money from a mother with a starving family, even though she would put it to better use. Chaucer’s satire quickly caught the attention he wanted from the church. Chaucer began his works with descriptions of the pilgrims in “The General Prologue”, and he used satire in these to reach the common man of the time. The common man would not relate to a knight, to a pastor, or to a man of the law, but they would relate to a carpenter, a weaver, or a cook much more easily. Men of the church

the end of the fourteenth century, The Canterbury Tales and more specifically it’s prologue, shed a great deal of light on the rising middle class in (fourteenth century) England. Despite the fact that some readers may not know a lot about the time period today, Chaucer’s writing in the prologue elaborates on topics such as occupations, wealth, education, and political power. Scholar Barbara Nolan writes of the prologue, “it is more complex than most…It raises expectations in just the areas the handbooks

Masculinity in The Wife of Bath's Prologue and Tale      The Wife of Bath, with the energy of her vernacular and the voraciousness of her sexual appetite, is one of the most vividly developed characters of 'The Canterbury Tales'. At 856 lines her prologue, or 'preambulacioun' as the Summoner calls it, is the longest of any of the pilgrims, and matches the General Prologue but for a few lines. Evidently Chaucer is infatuated with Alisoun, as he plays satirically with both gender and class

Richard II (1377-1399 AD) was much popularized with his unmanly reputation in the later middle ages. He has been mocked and looked down upon because of his delight in various courtly cultures and his temperament of staying away from fights and maintaining peace, thus becoming some major factors of distancing himself from chivalry and “masculinity”. Christopher Fletcher, in the essay, “Manhood and Politics in the reign of Richard II”, has discussed the various criticisms that the king

Let me preach and beg from Kirk to Kirk/ and never do an honest job of work,” (Pardoner’s Prologue, Pg. 127, lines 61-62).This, as mentioned before, shocked many readers, and arose many doubts within the community. By doing this, Chaucer exposed how corrupt the church was during that time. However he revealed many other things along the way. Lastly, in The Wife of Bath’s Tale/Prologue, the gender issues are addressed through satire. The Wife of Bath is an experienced and very independent

Following Chaucer’s description of the Miller in the General Prologue, The Miller’s Tale reveals a man who is more complex than his appearance initially suggests. The Miller’s Tale is a fabliau that consists of events of “cuckoldry,” “foolishness,” and “secrets” (1720, 1718, and 1719). Given the bawdy humor of his story, the Miller would seem to be crude and superficial. As the tale unfolds, it depicts how the norms of society trap John’s wife, Alison, in her marriage. Despite his fondness for vulgarity

that the author has created to analyze the characters within. The character of the Pardoner is very interesting and by using frames we can add depth to the story that he tells. There are five frames in the tale: the general prologue or the pilgrim’s point of view, Pardoner’s prologue, introduction of the tale, the actual tale itself and lastly the old man’s tale. The various frames present in The Pardoner’s Tale each help explain the narratives contained inside. The main role of framing is to help

life. This story is unusual in the collection, since its prologue is longer than the actual tale. For the other tales, the prologue is a kind of introduction, but The Wife of Bath's Tale is more like a sequel to its prologue. The prologue is the autobiography of The Wife(Alyson), in which she tells us much about herself. She speaks directly from her experience of marrige, while her tale is an illustration of her theories. In the General Prologue we can learn about The Wife's physical appearance, her