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Chaucer's canterbury tales
Chaucer's canterbury tales
The Canterbury tales middle English
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In Medieval Times knights are the protectors. The knights fight for, and obey the king. And for that reason Knight’s are in high rankings in the class system, compared to the peasants and merchants. The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer, people are going on the pilgrimage to Canterbury for Salvation. The knight is Chaucer’s ideal of a night should be. The knight is a highly principled killer who travels the world and fights for what he believes in with unequivocal bravery and valor. Unlike any other character that Chaucer has spoken of the knight is the only one that seems to actually be living up to his role in society. This question me on how truth full, every description is of each and every character. A knight code of conduct is to be polite to others, even those who are lower in ranking than he is. The knight is suppose to serve the king, fight for what he believes in, and be honorable. …show more content…
The Knight, according to Chaucer’s description, “From the beginning of his career loved chivalry, loyalty, honorable dealing, generosity and good breeding.” This knight is suitable with what a knight’s character was during the Middle Ages.
A knight's’ duty is to be loyal to the king, and follow the social code, chivalry. The knight has also fought bravely in the king’s services. He fought for the king and for the christian Land. Knights were usually sent out by the king and the church to go and enforce Christianity in a new land. He was honored in bravery for all the battles he has participated in, Such as, Alexandria when it fell, in “Prussia where he was awarded the seat of honor above all knights.” . And every battle he has fought in he always “killed his foe” This was not frowned upon to the
church.
Life during the Middle Ages was full of social change, division, and classism. This feudal society of Britain was divided into three estates. (social classes) Within the second estate was the the knight who was a soldier for the king who fought in many battles. Even though the knight is expected to have the strength and the skills to fight in battle, all knights during the Medieval period additionally had a chivalrous aspect to them. Chivalry was the honor code of a knight which included bravery, courtesy, honor, and gallantry toward women. Within the stories of the “Wife of Bath’s Tale” and “Le Morte d’Arthur”, the code of chivalry was broken by knights which show the corruption of England’s feudal society.
In the movie A Knight’s Tale the two main knights were William Thatcher and Count Adhemar. They both showed chivalry and courtly love, but not correctly. More of chivalry was followed more and the right way. The movie is very loosely based on Geoffrey Chaucer’s book Canterbury Tales. His father always wanted him the change his stars so he would not live in poor life forever. Even though both knights were good, William was better because he followed chivalry, courtly love, and prowess in battle.
Knights were an integral part of medieval society. They originally began with primitive warriors such as the Mongols who fought on horseback for added speed and power, but quickly advanced to chivalrous gentleman such as the Normans. Much has been written about medieval knights with the most famous being a series of legends about King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. Arthur and his knights were the ultimate example of what a perfect knight should have been. They were brave and skilful in battle, but merciful to their enemies once vanquished. They were courteous to ladies, and never ate or drank to excess.
The Knight’s leadership is one quality that Chaucer values. The Knight is a wise, noble, modest, and brave man. Chaucer recognizes this when he writes, “To ride abroad had followed chivalry, / Truth, honor, generousness and courtesy. / He has done nobly in his sovereign’s war / And ridden into battle, no man more, / As well in Christian as in heathen places, / And ever honored for his noble graces” (ll. 45-50). Chaucer speaks highly of the Knight because he was well liked and the everyone looked up to him.
So, what we have is a case of an dishonorable knight, who proved his worth in dishonorable battles, and tells stories so packed with chivalrous pomp and circumstance that it actually parodies itself. All I can say is that if Chaucer's Knight truly was an "every knight," as Laura Hodges says, and not a parody of the ideals of the time, I am very glad I live in the 20th century, not the 14th century, and that my life doesn't depend on Knights to keep me safe and happy.
In the Medieval Period, knights dedicated their lives to following the code of chivalry. In Sir Thomas Malory’s Le Morte d’Arthur, a number of characters performed chivalrous acts to achieve the status of an ideal knight. Their characteristics of respect for women and courtesy for all, helpfulness to the weak, honor, and skill in battle made the characters King Arthur, King Pellinore, and Sir Gryfflette examples of a what knights strove to be like in Medieval society. Because of the examples ofchivalry, Le Morte d’Arthur showed what a knight desired to be, so he could improve theworld in which he lived.
In his story titled "The Canterbury Tales" Chaucer seems to truly admire some of the pilgrims while displaying disdain and sarcasm towards the others. The pilgrims that he most seems to admire are the Knight, the Oxford Clerk and the Parson. The knight he seems to admire based on his notation of all the campaigns in which the knight has participated in service to just causes. Chaucer makes mention of the knight 's worthiness, wisdom and humility "Though so illustrious, he was very wise And bore himself as meekly as a maid." (67,68 Chaucer). It seems as though Chaucer admires the knights great ability both in warfare and practicing what he preaches. This can be seen in his description of all those he seems to admire in the tale. The Oxford Clerk
Closely associated to the romance tradition are two idealized standards of behavior, especially for knights: courage and chivalry. The protagonist within many medieval romances proved their worth by going on quests, as many a knights went in those times, thus returning with great tales of their travels and deeds. Many modern people think of chivalry as referring to a man's gallant treatment of women, and although that sense is derived from the medieval chivalric ideal, chivalry could be seen as more than that. Knights were expected to be brave, loyal, and honorable-sent to protect the weak, be noble to...
Though the Knight and the Squire are from the same feudal class and vocation, they differ in the fact that the Knight represents how society should have been; and the Squire depicts an accurate portrayal of how it actually was.Chivalry, heroism, and modesty delineate the Knight, whose upright standards and principles illustrate a true gentleman; these characteristics are not evident in the Squire. Even though the Knight has won many wars, he is careful not to brag about his ctories. The most recurrent point in the description of the Knight is the abundance and importance of his conquests; however, the Squire's battles are barely mentioned. While the entirety of the Squire's battles are summed up in two lines ("he had se some service with the cavalry / In Flanders and Artois and Picardy"), the list of the Knight's battles dominates his description (Chaucer 120). The Squire's battles are not fought in the interest of his chivalry. On the...
... Therefore, the traditional feudal system fell apart, and the middle class began to grow. The middle class tend to question the beliefs of moral standards and religion in their lives. Chaucer has members of the middle class as being a third of the total amount of pilgrims. The rise of the middle class and the decline of the nobility were illustrated by the numbers in the pilgrimage. Although in Chaucer’s society, the middle class was not a third of the population, he felt it was important to make them a large part of his story, due to their rising importance. The Knight is symbolic of those who belong in the highest social class, or the nobility. His peacemaking, gentle behavior is meant to contrast the lower social class, or the Miller and Reeve characters. The Knight is one of the only characters who has a noble position, and he keeps to the old ideals of chivalry.
In today’s society the differences in morals between the rich and the poorer classes are virtually non-existent, but during Medieval times “morals and, above all, the virtues at its center, played an important role not only for distinguishing between good and bad, but, more importantly, even for the structuring of society” (Virtus 1). The aristocracy class and the immoral poor class had morals but how they demonstrated them varied; the aristocratic class used chivalry as the basis of their morals, while the immoral poor class did not. Chivalry was not only a code of conduct for those who followed it; chivalry was a way of life. ‘Chivalry first arose in Europe during the Crusades. Chivalry dealt with loyalty honor, and service to women on and off the battle field’ (“The Medieval Period: 1066-1485” 76). The Knight in The Canterbury Tales is the perfect example of someone who follows the code of chivalry. Chaucer describes him with much admiration as “a most distinguishable man, who from the day on which he first began to ride abroad had followed chivalry, truth, honor generousness and courtesy” (Chaucer, "The Prologue." 117). While Chaucer praises the knight for ...
In everybody's life, there is something that makes him or her strive for success. That something can be money, a significant other, fame or many other incentives. To the medieval knights, victory renown and glory are the ambitions they strive for. Breaking a law in this code would be considered a disgrace, and would bring a dishonor worse than death itself. However, by applying the Code of Chivalry, the knights in medieval time displayed certain character traits that would secure success and honor in both battle and morality. In the book Ivanhoe, by Sir Walter Scott, a knight named Wilfred of Ivanhoe illustrates this by devoting his attention to keeping the rules of the Code of Chivalry, which consisted of love of adventure, integrity and loyalty to the king, to name just a few. These character traits of Ivanhoe coupled with strong characters and a realistic setting allow the reader to understand the importance of a strong set of moral guidelines to all individuals of all times in spite of Sir Scott's excessive detail and confusing subplot.
At the time of Chaucer’s writing, English knights had fallen out of favor as new forms of warfare began to take over. Still, chivalry remained an important aspect of authority, a model for behavior at the time. Chaucer brings in elements of chivalry to tell “The Knight’s Tale.” Palamon and Arcite fight an idealized, courtly battle for the love of a woman. Critique of authority in “The Knight’s Tale” is rather subtle, and appears through the use of fortune, which plays a large role. Though the knights are in a high station in their world, neither are immune to misfortune. By portraying fortune as the ultimate power in the world, Chaucer undermines constructed power of the knights and the court. Chaucer leaves these contradictions open for interpretation, allowing power to be questioned without outright dismissing
Many tales of courtly love are also tales of chivalry. Chivalry began to develop in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, and since then, chivalric literature has existed as one of the main sites of human rights and social criticism (Wollock 266). In chivalric theory, an honorable knight gives respect to others in all matters of action and of speech (267). Chaucer describes the knight in The Canterbury Tales by saying, “He nevere yet no vileynye ne sayde / in al his lyf unto no maner wight. / He was verray, parfit gentil knyght” (Chaucer 70-72). While Chaucer’s knight is not a true example of courtly love, for Chaucer assigns the Squire that trait, he does possess the qualities of chivalry, which allow him to present a story of courtly love in his tale.
One of Geoffrey's less believable main characters is the Knight, for reasons of chivalry. The knight displays many traits which make him seem almost too good to be true, and a true gentleman that rarely exists in reality. The narrator sums up the knights character by stating that "Though he were worthy, he was wys,/And of his port as meeke as is a mayde." (pg. 5, The Canterbury Tales) The knight holds four main admirable traits, making him the most liked traveler in "The Canterbury Tales," and also amplying the doubt of his realism. The reader is prepared to learn of each of his noble accomplishments and importance when the narrator remarks that" A knight ther was, and that a worthy man,/That fro the tyme that he first bigan/To ryden out, he loved chivalrye,/Trouthe and honour, fredom and curteisye." (pg. 4, The Canterbury Tales) From the characters impressive introduction, it is clear that this man is the most valued and honorable traveler among the group. This perfect gentleman holds a love of ideals that are often not displayed by people. First and foremost, he believes in the ideals of chivalry, and always stays true to its principles. He also feels that one should be honest, truthful and faithful, which many people are not all of these ideals. The knight thinks one should only do what is right, and what will gain him honor and reputation. This character also believes in freedom and generosity towards all, and displays this ideal repeatedly throughout the novel. And lastly, the knight also strongly feels that any proper person should display courtesy and elegance at all times. Another aspect of this character's life which makes him seem too prestigious to be truthful is his impressive military career. He fought in the holy war, known as the Crusades and was involved in 15 "mortal battles." In the prologue, the narrator informs the reader that "Ful worthy was he in his lordes werre,/And therto hadde he riden, no man ferre,/As wel in Cristendom as hethenesse,/And ever honoured for his worthinesse.