1343-1400

Geoffrey Chaucer

Chaucer was captured and held for ransom while fighting for England in the Hundred Years’ War

He held various jobs including royal messenger, justice of the peace, and forester

He portrayed himself as a foolish character in a number of works.

Interesting Facts

Chaucer was one of the first prominent authors to first write in English.

Many authors of the time wrote sophisticated literature in either Latin or French.

Why might this be? (remember the Anglo Saxon period)

Additionally, Chaucer is famous for being able to master irony and humor by the way he characterizes many of the pilgrims.

His claim to fame

Around the time that Chaucer was born social class lines were becoming blurry

The growing middle class was beginning to play a large role in church and state

How do you think this influenced his writing?

Social Climate

Chaucer’s father was a prosperous wine merchant and was able to send Chaucer to work as a page in the Countess of Ulster’s household.

Countess Ulster was married to Prince Lionel, the second son of Edward III

That is most likely where Chaucer acquired manners and skill of the upper class.

Because of his interaction with the upper class Chaucer become fluent in French and Latin

Education and work

Although Chaucer interacted with the bourgeois and aristocratic worlds he was not born into them.

He was born a commoner but he did not live like one.

He had to remain conscience of the fact that he did not really belong to that society of which birth alone could make one a true member of.

Since Chaucer was able to move between the two classes he was able to view both with sympathy and humor.

How social status influenced his writing

The Canterbury Tales is Chaucer’s most famous work.

It is a collection of tales told by fictional characters. It begins with a general prologue and then each

character has his or her own prologue and tale. However, a few characters do not have a prologue.

The pilgrim’s facial features, the clothes they wear, the work they do, the stories they tell are all ways for the reader to understand their moral and spiritual standings.

On a larger scale, we are able to understand what middle age society might have been like.

The Canterbury Tales