Scarica Geoffrey Chaucer - Appunti letteratura inglese e più Appunti in PDF di Inglese solo su Docsity! Georey Chaucer the father of English literature Geoffrey Chaucer lived in the Middle Ages century) : he was born in London in about 1342.(14𝑡ℎ He was son a rich wine merchant so he was part of the urban middle class In this period Edward III was king. → when Chaucer was 17 he followed Edward III’s son to the Hundred years war in France ↳ where he was taken prisoner and than ransomed by the king himself ↓ from that moment he had the possibility to grow up in close contact with the royal family and received an excellent education his skills helped him to achieve a high social status: he had some important offices 1) he was appointed to office of controller of the customs of wool and hides in the port of London 2) he became also a member of Parliament for Kent 3) he took part in important diplomatic mission that gave him the possibility to travelling a lot between England, France and Italy In Italy he became interested in Dante, Petrarch and Boccaccio who influenced his literature, in fact his masterpiece “The Canterbury tales”, which is one of the post important works in english literature, was inspired by “Decameron” by Boccaccio: both poems are about a group of people who narrates each one a tale, so they are collections of stories, this stories give a portrait of society. In addiction of this poem, Chaucer wrote a lot of works which are divided into 3 period: 1) The french period → it includes poem inspired by french romance style and subjects 2) The italian period → show a greater maturity and skill in manipulation of the metres learned form italian poets 3) The english period→ is marker by a greater realism→ he wrote realistically Chaucer was the first English poet to be known by name and the first poet to be buried in the poets corner in Westminster Abbey, in London. He’s so important because his language, the dialect of his native London, gradually became the basis of Modern English and because he inspired many writers including Sheakspare. The Canterbury tales The Canterbury tales tells the story of thirty people, including Chaucer as narrator, who are going on PILGRIMAGE Is a religious journey to visit holy places like Rome or Jerusalem, In Chaucer’s day people used to went on a pilgrimage to ask for forgiveness of sins but also to socialise. The pilgrimage is also a metaphor of human existence: we are all like pilgrim on the way to Heaven → this reflect the mediaeval ideas They are travelling from London to Canterbury Cathedral to visit the shrine of Thomas Becket who was England's first martyr. Every pilgrim should tell 2 stories while going to Canterbury and 2 coming back: there is a prize for the best story and and a penalty for anyone who gives up. Unfortunately the works remained unfinished: the pilgrim don’t reach Canterbury, so there are fewer stories than the original idea. Structure and style The Canterbury Tales is a long narrative poem that consists of a General Prologue (an introduction of all the pilgrims) and 24 tales: Each tale is usually preceded by a prologue that introduces the theme, and sometimes followed by an epilogue. Every tale has realistic elements, a strong ideal and moralising base. The work is told in verse: Chaucer used rhyming couplets made up of iambic pentameters, that is ten syllable lines alternating unstressed and stressed syllables. Characters The pilgrims are members of feudal society, clergy and middle class both male and female, there aren’t noblemen (they didn’t travel with common people) or peasants (they didn’t have enough money to go on a trip). The names given to the pilgrims usually refer to their professions. Individualisation: There are stereotypical characters but they are also individuals: each character has his own personality, lifestyle, experiences. Their description emphasises their personal qualities. Most women in the middle ages had two options: to marry or become a noun: these two roles had reflected two of the most important characters of the Canterbury Tales: The prioress and the wife of bath