Chaucer’s art of characterization in The General Prologue to the Canterbury Tales

Answer

Chaucer depicts people as they are found in real life- Discuss. [2021]  

Or, Discuss Chaucer’s art of characterization with reference to “The Prologue to the Canterbury Tales.” [2018, 2016]

Or, Explain Chaucer’s art of characterization in “The General Prologue to the Canterbury Tales”. [2020] ✪✪✪ 

The art of characterization means the skill of creating and presenting characters in a story or poem. Geoffrey Chaucer (1340-1400) is called the “Father of English Poetry.” In “The General Prologue to The Canterbury Tales,” he shows people as they really are. His pilgrims start their journey from The Tabard Inn at Southwark to Canterbury. Chaucer paints each one with truth, humour, and love. His characters live, talk, and behave like real people of fourteenth-century England.

The Military Class: Three men represent the military class. The Knight and his son, the Young Squire and Yeoman. The Knight has fought 15 mortal battles. He fought in Alexandria, Prussia, Grenada, and Turkey. Chaucer says,

“At mortal batailles hadde he been fiftene.”

(He had been at fifteen mortal battles.)

He fought for faith and fame. He is noble in character and simple in dress. He has recently returned from war and goes to Canterbury to give thanks to God. With him rides his Squire, the Knight’s son. He is only 20 years old. He is brave, handsome, and romantic. He sings, dances, writes songs, and paints. He is compared to the freshness of May,

“He was as fressh as is the month of May.”

(He was as fresh as is the month of May.)

The Yeoman is the Knight’s only servant. He wears a green coat and a hood. He carries a bow, a sword, and a dagger. He is strong, brown-faced, and skilled in woodcraft.

The Clergy/Ecclesiastical/Religious Class: In The Canterbury Tales, the clergy members are the Prioress, Second Nun, Nun’s Priest, Monk, Friar, Parson, Pardoner, Summoner, and Clerk. These characters chose to dedicate their lives to the Church. However,