Knights In The Canterbury Tales

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(Question #1) Knights are one of the most mistaken group of individuals of the medieval era due to fairytales and over exaggerated fiction novels. The truth is that they were only human and, like all humans, were flawed. Knights did not always live up to the standards of society, and they had many faults. However, in The Canterbury Tales, the knight is a character that would be considered, today, the stereotype “a knight in shining armor”, a perfect example in how he acts. In the prologue, Chaucer mentions that the knight follows the five basic ideals that a good knight should possess: “chivalry, truth, honour, generousness, and courtesy” (Chaucer 4). In “the Knight’s Tale”, the two cousins, Palamon and Arcite, exemplify the ideals of a good …show more content…

They exemplify the moral code of a knight which demands mercy as well as justice, and a sense of honor which extends to the humane treatment of enemies as well his chivalrous treatment of women. They uphold their oaths and remain true to their promises despite the fickleness of fortune. Sir Gawain is always true and humble, and his honor is by far his best quality. From the beginning, he shows great loyalty to the king by taking the Green Knight’s challenge in the name of King Arthur. Although, on his journey, he doesn’t live up to the integrity and honesty of being a good knight, he did prove himself honorable by not giving into the seduction of Lady Bertilak. Arcite lives, fights, dies, and sacrifices like a noble knight, a man generous to a friend. Averagus is quite different from the other three knights because after returning home, he says his wife must keep her promise to Aurelius. However he shows a great deal of slothiness because instead of fighting for his wife he just let's her go. If he was truly honorable and just, he would fight for his wife the way Palamon and Arcite fight for Emily. The ideal knight is also supposed to fall in love with a beautiful damsel, in whose service he becomes more noble, brave, courteous and worthy. By not fighting for her, he is losing her, which is clearly the opposite of falling in love with his beautiful

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