Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

THE PROLOGUE TO THE CANTERBURY TALES

The Serjeant at the LawThe Franklin

The HaberdasherThe Dyer

The CarpenterThe Weaver

The Carpet-makerThe Cook

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Serjeant at the Law

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Serjeant at the Law

• Characterization– Diction

• “There also was, of noted excellenceDiscreet he was, a man to

reverence, Or so he seemed, his sayings were so wise.”

(315-317)– Suggests a false appearance

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Serjeant at the Law

• “His fame and learning and his high position

Had won him many a robe and many a fee.”

(320-321)

– His wisdom resulted in this gain of materials

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Serjeant at the Law

• “Though there was nowhere one so busy as he,

He was less busy than he seemed to be.”

(325-326)

– Again, a suggestion of a false appearance

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Serjeant at the Law• Serjeants-at-the-Laws are the most

prominent members of the legal profession from whose ranks the king would select judges.

• The lawyer uses his wisdom to make money, gain materialistic things and increase his self-importance

• The repetition of the word “seemed” suggests a false appearance of the lawyer

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Serjeant at the Law

• Our Reaction

– Relatively similar to the modern, stereotypical societal/comedic view of a lawyer

• Greedy

• Phony

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Franklin

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Franklin

• Characterization

– Diction

• “white as a daisy-petal was his beard” (336)

– Old man

– Wise?

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Franklin

• “He loved a morning sop of cake in wine.He lived for pleasure and had always

done,For he was Epicurus’ very son,In whose opinion sensual delightWas the one true felicity in sight.”

(338-342)– Epicurus

• Greek philosopher who taught that happiness is the goal of life

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Franklin• “His bread, his ale were finest of the fine

And no one had a better stock of wine.His house was never short of bake-meat

pies,Of fish and flesh, and these in such suppliesIt positively snowed with meat and drinkAnd all the dainties that a man could think.”

(345-350)

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Franklin

• Many of Chaucer’s characters are guilty of one or more of the seven deadly sins

• The Franklin’s sin is gluttony.

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Franklin

• Purpose of the Diction

– Demonstrate the sin the Franklin is guilty of

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Franklin

• Our Reaction to the Franklin

– No dramatic opinion

– Significance of gluttony from a social perspective

• Not always looked down on

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Guild Members

• The Haberdasher

• The Dyer

• The Carpenter

• The Weaver

• The Carpet-maker

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Guild Members• Characterization

– Diction• “…were

Among our ranks, all in the liveryOf one impressive guild-

fraternity. They were so trim and fresh their gear would pass

For new. Their knives were not tricked out with brass But wrought with purest silver, which avouches A like display on girdles and pouches.”

(366-372)

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Guild Members

• Guilds are professional organizations for craftsmen

• The characters are proud of their wealth and display it with ornate objects

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Guild Members• “Their wisdom would have justified a

planTo make each one of them an

alderman”(375-376)

– Alderman• In England and Ireland, a senior member of a

county or borough council• The chief officer in a shire

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Guild Members

• “They had the capital and revenue,Besides their wives declared it was their due.And if they did not think so, then they ought;To be called “Madam” is a glorious thought,And so is going to church and being seenHaving your mantle carried like a queen.”

(377-382)– The wives enjoyed the status of the

husbands– Gave the women social recognition

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Guild Members

• Purpose of the Diction– Demonstrate the prosperity of the guild

members– Demonstrate the pride associated with being

a guild member

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Guild Members

• Our Reaction to the Guild Members– not a dramatic reaction – we recognize that these are successful

people

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Cook

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Cook

• Characterization– Diction

• “And he could roast and seethe and broil and fry,

Make good thick soup and bake a tasty pie.”

(387-388)– Talented cook

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Cook

• “But what a pity—so it seemed to me,That he should have an ulcer on his

knee.”(389-390)

– Ulcer• An open sore on the skin or some mucous

membrane, as the lining of the stomach, characterized by the disintegration of the tissue and, often, the discharge of pus

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Cook

• Purpose of the Diction– Adds a humorous aspect to the tales– Reflects the gullibility of the Guild Members

• “They had a Cook with them…”(383)

Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales

The Cook

• Our Reaction to the Cook– we laugh at him– a little “grossed-out”– no strong reaction about his personality