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Middle english canterbury tales prolouge
Poetic devices in the Canterbury tales the general prologue the friar
The Canterbury tales analysis
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In “The Prologue” to The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer uses satire to make a statement about the nature of humanity. “The Prologue” shows the importance of a historical meaning as it describes the social classes of the 1300’s. However, most modern readers can relate to the hypocrisy being displayed by the first three major characters.
Chaucer begins his examination early with three religious characters-first being the monk. Monks were supposed to live their lives in poverty, chastity, and obedience-something that this particular monk failed to do. He took pleasure in owning many horses and dressing nicely which defiled his purpose of poverty. If he wasn’t living by this characteristic, then of course, he wasn’t being very obedient.
Immediately following the monk, the nun is described as a very counterfeit person. She loved to put on a show in front of others and act cheerful, mannerly, and religious; this was not her true self. She knew very little about her religion, which made her a very hypocritical person. If she wanted to have the role of a nun, she was supposed to represent it properly, but she did not.
Chaucer concludes his list of consecutive hypocritical characters with the friar. In the 1300’s, friars were supposed to live by strict codes such as representing a Christ-like image and not taking anything unless given. This friar, however, preferred not to be around the poor and sick which is not representing the life of Christ because those were the people he was usually around. He also desired to dress as richly as the pope, which wasn’t very Christ-like. He also never did a favor for anybody unless he was rewarded for it; this contradicted his humbleness.
The hypocrisy in “The Prologue” is made very clear when Chaucer balances the evil with goodness represented by the parson and plowman.
Being a part of a small noble family, Napoleon found he was able to attend a school in mainland France. He eventually found himself at Brienne, a school where his Corsican background and lack of French nobility caused him great hardship and stress from other students. This would plant the seeds of hatred for nobility inside Napoleon that would eventually lead him to destroying noble privilege based on birth in his empire....
In “The Pardoner’s Tale,” Geoffrey Chaucer masterfully frames an informal homily. Through the use of verbal and situational irony, Chaucer is able to accentuate the moral characteristics of the Pardoner. The essence of the story is exemplified by the blatant discrepancy between the character of the storyteller and the message of his story. By analyzing this contrast, the reader can place himself in the mind of the Pardoner in order to account for his psychology.
Napoleon was born on Corsica an Italian island a year before it was transferred to France, whom he took as his home. His family were minor Italian nobles which gave Napoleon more opportunities to study compared to most people at the time. Napoleon took his schooling very seriously and went into a prestigious military school where he excelled at nearly every topic.
Two domestic achievements of Napoleon were the reforms he made to education and the economy. Napoleon made reforms to the education system that would impact the primary, secondary, and technical schools, as well as colleges making a complete system for each to follow (“NAPOLEON.”). The University of France would also be established and would oversee the curriculum that would be taught as well as the licensing of teachers (“NAPOLEON.”). Napoleon also believed that it was important for France to be a leader when it pertained to the sciences and its application (Kishlansky, Geary, and O'Brien). The new education system would include science as an important aspect focusing on chemistry and physics (Kishlansky, Geary, and O'Brien). The economic reforms made by Napoleon would also be important for France as he was able to stabilize currency, and he would also support industry (Kishlansky, Geary, and O'Brien). Napoleon would also reform the tax system in France, require all government bodies to have a balanced budget, and create a central banking system, The Bank of France in 1800 (“NAPOLEON.”).
Light-hearted yet bitingly satirical, Chaucer’s “General Prologue” to his Canterbury Tales is a commentary on the corruptions of the Church at the time. Chaucer, being of noble estate, retains his witticism in his narrator. The narrator devotes many a line to the vivid portrayals of the Prioress and the Frere. Through the actions of these two members of the clergy, it is seen that the lust for material goods, the need for flaunting one’s estate, and the development of hypocrisy all contribute to the shaking of the Church’s foundations.
Chaucer aptly creates a picture that exposes how materialistic the clergy is. They all should be concerned with spiritual matters, yet they focus their attention on acquiring more mundane goods. The Monk makes no pretense of being poor and without luxuries. "I saw his sleeves were garnished at the hand with fine gray fur, the finest in the land, and on his hood, to fasten it at his chin he had a wrought-gold, cunningly fashioned pin. . ." (197-200, 110). Not only is this monk fat, and thus quite well fed, he has the money to afford details such as fur on his cloak. He is looking for attention by having such fine things. His station as a monk, however, requires him not only to work with the poor, but to be poor himself. Obviously, he is not following this requirement, much like the Prioress. Madam Eglantyne, appears at first glance to be proper for her station in life. However, a closer examination reveals "she wore a coral trinket on her arm, a set of beads, the gaudies tricked in green, whence hung a golden brooch of brightest sheen" (162-64, 109). A golden brooch serves no other purpose than being decorative. The Prioress has no...
Personalities come in all shapes and sizes, however, they often contrast with ones occupation or societal ranking. Geoffrey Chaucer shows readers this through The Canterbury Tales as he describes the lives and his views of each character. The Prioress, the Monk, and the Friar, all get on the narrators bad side as they try to portray themselves as someone they were not destined to be. An important aspect of medieval societal values is being true to ones ranking among others and these characters are the complete opposite of whom they truly are. Through these characters, Chaucer shows how these flaws can damage the way others perceive someone.
“Whoever is greedy for unjust gain troubles his own household, but he who hates bribes will live” (Proverbs 15:27). The Bible condemns the value of greed and Chaucer is able to incorporate this value into his work through the ironic uses of holy men. Chaucer’s “The Shipman’s Tale” and “The Summoner’s Tale” suggests that the monk and the friar have an overactive id which overpowers their superego- evident from the character’s selfish motives and their rejection of their holy vows.
When Napoleon was nine, his father decided he should go to school in France to get an education befitting their birth. But he didn’t have the money to pay for his schooling. He petitioned the king, Louis XIV, for a scholarship for Napoleon. The king had set up a special fund for the sons of French nobles, granting them money to attend military school. Now that Corsica belonged to France, the Bonapartes were French citizens and were eligible for this scholarship.
The friar is the exact opposite. He was the best friar around because no one knew as much dalliance and sweet talk as he did. He knew all the taverns, innkeepers and barmaids more than the lepers and beggars. He believed that being seen with paupers was not good for a man in his position and there was no profit to be made with them, unlike with the rich and the sellers of food which is profitable. He was also the best beggar in the area and no one else moved into his turf. In his tale he was a man that said he would pretend that he was holy. He also gives the best pardons to the people that give him the maximum amount of money. In the poem, Chaucer makes a statement that says he is the only person that practices his profession accurately.
Chaucer first begins his sly jab at the Church’s motives through the description of the Pardoner’s physical appearance and attitude in his “Canterbury Tales.” Chaucer uses the Pardoner as a representation of the Church as a whole, and by describing the Pardoner and his defects, is able to show what he thinks of the Roman Catholic Church. All people present in the “Canterbury Tales” must tell a tale as a part of story-telling contest, and the pilgrim Chaucer, the character in the story Chaucer uses to portray himself, writes down the tales as they are told, as well as the story teller. The description of the Pardoner hints at the relationship and similarity between the Pardoner and the Church as a whole, as well as marks the beginning of the irony to be observed throughout the “Pardoner’s Prologue and Tale.” The narrator describes the Pardoner as an extremely over confident, arrogant, and unattractive man, noting that his hair is “as yellow as wex,” lying thin and fl...
Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales became one of the first ever works that began to approach the standards of modern literature. It was probably one of the first books to offer the readers entertainment, and not just another set of boring morals. However, the morals, cleverly disguised, are present in almost every story. Besides, the book offers the descriptions of the most common aspects of the human nature. The books points out both the good and the bad qualities of the people, however, the most obvious descriptions are those of the sinful flaws of humans, such as greed and lust.
The monk receives some scathing sarcasm in Chaucer’s judgment of his new world ways and the garments he wears “With fur of grey, the finest in the land; Also, to fasten hood beneath his chin, He had of good wrought gold a curious pin: A love-knot in the larger end there was.” (194-197, Chaucer). The Friar is described as being full of gossip and willing to accept money to absolve sins, quite the opposite of what a servant of God should be like. Chaucer further describes the friar as being a frequenter of bars and intimate in his knowledge of bar maids and nobles alike. The friar seems to be the character that Chaucer dislikes the most, he describes him as everything he should not be based on his profession. The Pardoner as well seems to draw special attention from Chaucer who describes him as a man selling falsities in the hopes of turning a profit “But with these relics, when he came upon Some simple parson, then this paragon In that one day more money stood to gain Than the poor dupe in two months could attain.” (703-706, Chaucer). Chaucer’s description of the pardoner paints the image of a somewhat “sleazy” individual “This pardoner had hair as yellow as wax, But lank it hung as does a strike of flax; In wisps hung down such locks as he 'd on head, And with them he his shoulders overspread; But thin they dropped, and stringy, one by one.” (677-681,
In life every great leader has had their own story to tell. Napoleon was born a Corsican, at Ajaccio, in 1769. He had seven brothers and sisters and he was also a descendent from the Florentine nobility. He moved to France and started school at the age of nine. At school he was picked on because of his Italian accent and because of his influent French. When he turned sixteen he joined the French artillery and became a lieutenant in a short period of time. Napoleon spent the next seven years reading the works of philosophers and educating himself in military matters, by studying the campaigns of great military leaders of the past. He then became a general and then in 1795 was appointed to stop an uprising in Paris and seceded in doing so. After stopping the uprising he was then given the position of commander in chief of the interior French army in Italy. In 1799 he was elected as the First Consul of France because the people were sick of the directory. He rose up in power in the military and also politically. He then formed his own empire and won many battles with his brilliance.
The Church is the first institution that Chaucer attacks using satire in The Canterbury Tales. Chaucer wants to attack the church’s hypocrisy. Chaucer decides to create the character of the pardoner to prove his point. Cawthorne conveys, “His Canterbury Tales collects together 24 narratives with a General Prologue and an epilogue or Retraction.” Chaucer describes the character before telling their tale. The Pardoner is a man who steals from the poor. Chaucer says on page 127 line 77, “For though I am a wholly vicious man don’t think I can’t tell moral tales.” The pardoner knows what he does is wrong, but he continues to do it anyway.