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THE MEDIEVAL PERIOD (PG
22)
• 1066-1485•1066-Norman Conquest—William the Conqueror defeats Harold at Hastings, becomes king of England
•Medieval Period—Middle ages
FEUDALISM William introduced feudalism—a political
and economic system in which the hierarchy of power was based on the premise that the king owned all the land in the kingdom.
¼ for King; ¼ for church; ½ to nobles or
barons who supplied the king with warriors called knights
SERFS Conquered Anglo-Saxons that were
bound to the land they could not own Did not speak French, the language of
the nobles Spoke a mixture of French and English
known as Middle English that adapted into the language we speak today
--ECONOMICS--DOMESDAY BOOK 1085—For tax purposes, William ordered
the compilation of a detailed survey of the land and population of England
A modern day Census
Translates to “day of judgment”
--SOCIOLOGY—WOMEN’S RIGHTS A woman’s status was based on her
husband or father’s position in society She held husband’s rank Remained subservient to the husband Men maintained all the property and
wealth Women ran the house, sewed, weaved,
cooked
--ARCHITECTURE—CATHEDRALS
Romanesque—Massive, richly decorated Took decades or centuries to build Built in gratitude to God Built as acts of penitence Built along pilgrimage routes Churches became the most corrupt institution
of the Medieval Period
--HISTORY—THE CRUSADES
1096-1270 The Christian response to the expansion of
Islam into the holy land of Jerusalem 8 major expeditions For the Knights these were part Holy War, part
pilgrimage, and sometimes profitable
--HISTORY—THE CRUSADES
The Children’s Crusades of 1212 Legend has it that a boy was visited by
Jesus and told to convert the Muslims to Christianity
He gained a following of 30,000 children who followed him towards the Holy Land
The waters of the Marseilles would not part and the children were sold into slavery
LITERARY HISTORY Common folk relied on oral tradition to
tell stories Ballads—Brief narrative poems sung to
musical accompaniment Mystery and Miracle Plays—which
dramatized episodes from the Bible and from saint’s lives
Morality Plays—Taught moral lessons
--LAW—PARLIAMENT
Edward I--The king’s Great Council Meeting place or talking place for nobles,
knights and clergy Became a representation for townships akin to
the democratic process we use
KING HENRY II Sent four loyal knights to murder
Thomas a’ Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury
Reformed the judicial system Established a system of juries Initiated English common laws Becket quickly became a saint, his
shrine a popular pilgrimage destination
HOW TO BECOME A SAINT You have to be close to God Help the poor Be good and kind to people when you
are alive Perform two miracles after you have
passed away.
KING HENRY II His wife brought the ideas of chivalry, a
code of honor among knights The code encouraged knights to protect
ladies and go on holy quests (Crusades) His son was Richard I, called “Richard
the Lion-Hearted” Richard fought in the crusades, his
brother John plotted against him (Robin Hood)
DECLINE OF FEUDALISM Growth of towns and population of commoners
Increase in trade due to Crusades
Guilds formed to stabilize prices and set rules for advancement of craftsmen pg 24
PLAGUE Crowding and poor sanitation Rats and fleas imported from cargo ships
Black Death (Bubonic Plague) killed a third of England’s population in 1300’s
“Bring out your dead!”
PLAGUE RAP Ring around the rosie- ring-like sores
that formed on people's skin.
Pockets full of posies- Flowers that were stuffed into pockets to ward off the stench
Ashes, ashes, we all fall down- ashes alludes to the funeral pyres ashes and the falling down was everybody dying
ROMANCES Tales of chivalric knights, many featured King Arthur and his round table
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
Le Morte d’Arthur (The death of Arthur) by Sir Thomas Malory
GEOFFREY CHAUCER PG 106
1340?-1400 The “Father of English Literature”
“Chaucer” is French for shoemaker
1357—Became an attendant for the Prince’s wife
1359—French POW in 100 yr war, ransomed by the court
GEOFFREY CHAUCER
As the King’s messenger, he traveled to Italy (Dante) and France (The Romance of the Rose)
The Parliament of Fowls—commemorated the wedding of Richard II
1386—Became a Knight King Henry IV took over but Chaucer
remained in the court
GEOFFREY CHAUCER 1400—Died; (possibly from the Plague)
Buried in London’s Westminster Abbey (Poet’s Corner—John Dryden, Tennyson, Robert Browning)
Did not complete all the Canterbury Tales
THE CANTERBURY TALES
1387—A collection of verse and prose tales told by pilgrims traveling to Canterbury to see the shrine of Saint Thomas a’ Becket
Unfinished at the time of Chaucer’s death
Chaucer portrayed himself in the tale as a short, plump pilgrim
THE PROLOGUE (INTRODUCTION)
Vocabulary words
accrue, agility, courtliness, defer, diligent, disdain, dispatch, eminent, frugal, malady, mode, personable, repine, sedately, wield
THE PROLOGUE Tone—writer’s attitude toward the
work’s subject or characters (ironic, satiric, humorous…)
Characterization—the means by which a writer develops a character’s personality
(description, speech, thoughts, actions…)
PILGRIMAGE Generally began with a priest’s blessing Wore clothing that identified them as
pilgrims Stayed in roadside hospices Walked or road horses, roads became
very muddy when wet Could buy a small badge of cast pewter
as a souvenir
THE PROLOGUE Social Diversity, a microcosm Chaucer describes the 29 pilgrims,
providing insight into the larger society Narrative poem—more formal than most
poems of the 14th century Poetic verse form—rhymed and iambic
pentameter Opens with an apostrophe or address to
spring
Stop Here
THE PROLOGUE Zephyrus—Greek god of west wind Ram—Astrology—indicates a reference
to 14th century “science” This narrative poem was directed
towards the noble class, not the commoners
Setting—Begins in London (not Canterbury)
Medieval England was experiencing a warming period
THE PROLOGUE Setting—Begins across the Thames
River, where, 200 years later, Shakespeare’s Globe Theater will be erected
Tabard Inn (Drum)—you beat a drum when you want people to join you
Harry Bailey is the Innkeeper 100 miles to Canterbury 4-day journey by horse
THE PROLOGUE Purpose of trip is as much social as
religious—Spring Break Travel in a band for safety (Brigands and
Highwaymen) Harry Bailey decrees that each pilgrim
will provide 4 tales (29 X 4 =116) Winner will get a “free” dinner Generally, the best tales come from the
worst people
THE PROLOGUE Each pilgrim is a stereotype of their
profession (priests are priestly, knights are knightly…)
But some are mixed with irony The Knight—Chivalrous, noble, returned
from the Crusades The Knight’s son—a Squire—a lady’s
man The Yeoman—an attendant to the knight
THE PROLOGUE (NUN) The Nun Prioress Madam Eglantyne Speaks French Eats delicately Weep if she saw a mouse in a trap Lap dogs that dine better than the
population Fine features (a broad forehead)
THE PROLOGUE (PG 134-136)
THE HOST
Host—Harry Bailey, Innkeeper of Tabard Description: Jovial, generous, self-
confidant, wide girth Proposes that each pilgrim share two
tales on way to Canterbury, two on way back
Winner get a supper, paid by all Offers to come along and be judge Drew lots to decide who begins the tales
THE PROLOGUE (NUN) Forehead should have been modestly
covered by a wimple, equivalent of showing legs
Broach “Love conquers all”, should say “religion conquers all”
She is a hypocrite but Chaucer only winks at her sins, Christianity is all inclusive
THE PROLOGUE Tone—detached and ironic
Tone—Harry Bailey understates the greed and hypocrisy, allows readers to draw their own conclusions
Example, The Nun Prioress: Her sexy forehead, feeding her dogs meat and milk, her broach “Amor vincit omnia” (Love conquers all)
THE PARDONER’S PROLOGUE (PG 142-151)
Vocabulary Words
ADVERSARY, AVARICE, CASTIGATE, COVETOUSNESS, PALLOR, PARLEY, SAUNTER, TRANSCEND, VERMIN, WARY
THE PARDONER’S PROLOGUE (PG 142-151)
Very honest about his dishonesty
Theme: Radix malorum est cupiditas (love of money is the root of all evil—Bible translated from Hebrew to Latin)
Avarice and cupidity—Greed (avarice is one of the seven deadly sins)
THE PARDONER’S PROLOGUE Seems contemptuous toward those to
whom he preaches (ie. “They can go blackberrying, for all I care!”)
“And thus I preach against the very vice I make my living out of—avarice.” (Irony)
Verse 55—For though I am a wholly vicious man, don’t think I can’t tell moral tales. I can!” example of _____________
THE PARDONER’S PROLOGUE
Hypocrisy
THE PARDONER’S TALE (PG
144-151)
Three rowdy drunks hear a coffin bell Tell the tavern nave to report back Dead man was a friend of theirs
(plague)
Death as a thief is an example of _______ Verses 79-81, “Be on guard…” is an
example of this literary technique_______
THE PARDONER’S TALE
Personification
Foreshadowing
THE PARDONER’S TALE The rioters make a pact (brotherhood)
that they will kill this traitor Death
Encountered an old man, the three were very disrespectful (verse 114)
Old man responds—I can’t find one who would change his youth to have my age
Verse 130—implores Mother earth to open up for him (personification)
THE PARDONER’S TALE The gambler accuses the old man of
collaborating with death The old man directs the rioters to death,
sitting under an oak tree They found a pile of gold florins (coins)
Verse 178—Fortune means “Fate”
Verse 182—”our lucky day” (Irony and foreshadowing)
THE PARDONER’S TALE One rioter is chosen to go to town for
food The two remaining conspire against the
young man (parley—discussion) Plotted to stab him with daggers Young man bought poison from the
apothecary (pharmacist) Poured poison into two of the three wine
bottles
THE PARDONER’S TALE When the young man returned, his
brothers slew him They celebrated by drinking the
poisoned wine—they perished The Pardoner addresses the pilgrims
(verse 299) He offers to absolve their sins for a price You may fall off your horse and break
your neck—scare tactic
THE WIFE OF BATHPROLOGUE Reread lines 455-486 of Prologue, pg
125, Introduction of Wife of Bath A worthy woman from Bath city (a well-
known health resort, mineral springs) A seamstress, a Gold digger 5 husbands at the church door Well-traveled: Rome, Jerusalem… Gap-tooth, large hips, liked to laugh
THE WIFE OF BATHPROLOGUE This tale belongs to the Marriage Group
Also a Medieval Romance
The battle of the sexes
She cautions us about marriage
THE WIFE OF BATHPROLOGUE—VOCABULARY PG 154
Abominably, bequeath, concede, contemptuous, cosset, crone, dejected
Ecstasy, implore, maim, prowess, rebuke, statute, temporal, tribulation
THE WIFE OF BATH PROLOGUE setting: King Arthur’s days A magical time of elves and fairies Verbal irony—lines 39-56 (religion has
replaced fantasy)
What was the wife of Bath’s attitude toward Friars? (incubus)
THE WIFE OF BATH TALE
A knight who was a lusty liver
Took her maidenhead (raped her)
Punishment was to be loss of head because code of chivalry was broken
THE WIFE OF BATH Queen implored the king for
leniency
Queen gave the knight a chance to live if he could answer the question
“What is the thing that women most desire?” one year and a day
THE WIFE OF BATH TALE Wealth? Honor? Jollity and pleasure? Clothes? Fun in bed? Widowed and
remarried? Cosseted? Flattery?
Guys—what do you think the answer is? Ladies—what do you think the answer
is?
THE WIFE OF BATH TALE
ALLUSION—a reference to a historical or fictional person, place or event
King Midas (fictional), Ovid (historical)
Moral of story—women can’t keep secrets
THE WIFE OF BATH TALE
Knight was dejected because he could not find a consensus among the women
knight saw 24 women dancing
They transformed into an old woman
She promises to tell him the secret
THE WIFE OF BATH TALE Knight swears to do whatever she asks
They both went to see the Queen
“a woman wants the self-same sovereignty over husband as over her lover”
With the Queen’s watching, the old crone asks the knight to marry her
THE WIFE OF BATH TALE
The knight begs her to change her mind
“so foul a misalliance!”
They have a private wedding
Wedding night—she asks him if this is the way knights behave
THE WIFE OF BATH TALE The knight is contemptuous
The code of chivalry demands that knights respect their elders
She explains the meaning of gentility
Nothing wrong with being poor, even Jesus chose to come to the world poor
“You need not fear to be a cuckold”
THE WIFE OF BATH TALE
You have two choices line 395
Old and ugly and loyal? Or… Young and pretty and unfaithful?
The knight left the decision to his wife
THE WIFE OF BATH TALE
The wife has won the mastery
Kiss me, she says…
His ugly wife turned into a beautiful young lady that remained forever faithful
And they lived happily ever after
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