In this newspaper I would like to examine, Pilgrimage as one of the major theme of Canterbury Tales. How Chaucer reveals the theme of pilgrimage and exactly how this very idea has been critiqued in this content material. Chaucer published Canterbury Stories some where between 1387-1400. The Stories describes the journey of twenty-nine people who travel as pilgrims, and the shape narrator weaves the tales of their trip. In the beginning, it was decided that every pilgrim would inform two tales on their way to Canterbury and two on their way back. However, Chaucer could not finish this substantial project.
Chaucer primarily reveals a social summary of pilgrimage through his tales. Fourteenth century England cannot be segregated from a Christian worldview. Though, it is interesting to note, how Chaucer reveals a text which is totally out of a Religious order. My debate in this article targets the question: Is Chaucer's Canterbury Stories a word on Pilgrimage or not?
The setting up of Canterbury Stories is almost like a "carnivalesque" setting. There is clear subversion of public order in the Stories. Through the Tales, we reach see a blurred view on the thought of pilgrimage. We find a subverted order, celebrations, mirth and play. It is merely the Parson's Tale which gives a treatise on "seven lethal" sins and "penance", instead of "merry" stories. The Stories ends with Parson's Story were he proposes to speak something "virtuous" and not "fables". For fables where seen as wretched lies; as St. Paul has brought up in letter to Timothy. Alternatively what Chaucer gives us is a descriptive bank account of any worldly journey. We never get to know, if the pilgrims ever reach Canterbury or not. Even within the Tales there is merely a minimal reference to prayers or penance. The Stories just end with Chaucer's Retraction. In his retraction Chaucer asks pardon for those works, which project worldly vanities. Instead he thank you God for his sophistication bestowed on him to make him complete his moral works and translations. He confesses for his worldly works and looks for for true penance.
To commence with my argument, I'd like to offer Bloomfield's essay on 'Chaucerian Realism'. In this article he refers Canterbury Stories to a "religious genre" which catered to "human curiosity about other lands and peculiar places". My point is then: is pilgrimage is thus to get "other" weird places, and not to get repentance? A mention of Chinua Achebe's Things BREAK APART will apparently be a lucid example. The White Man's "Burden" is perhaps, a Eurocentric idea of pilgrimage! The point that I shall like to stress is the concept of "burden" with regards to pilgrimage in Canterbury Tales. Chaucer's representation of Knight's promotions to Alexandria, Lithuania and Russiaetc is seen in the light of early on imperialism. " He previously raided in Lithuania and Russia" (General Prologue, lines 50-55), the idea behind the first campaigns in the Medieval Great britain was to deal with for the "Christian" beliefs. Christ in his teachings described sufferings and miseries as a worldly "burden" that each Christian has to carry to be able to type in kingdom of heaven. He said to carry one's own mix as symbolic of a genuine burden in a way to get salvation. However, what has been displayed through out the age range is mere a sham representation of Christian principles. Chaucer in his every attempt will try to deconstruct the very notions of the incorrect representations. He constantly questions and criticizes the chapel order.
Chaucer highlights the burden of the sins, transported over by the pilgrims. As he often exaggerates the propensity of their vices to a comic level. Ironically, the pilgrims even fail to understand the purpose of their voyage.
There is no doubt that Chaucer acquired a religious sizing in his mind when he select pilgrimage as the shape narrative for his stories. Indeed the complete medieval century, provided pilgrimage as a significant theme of their works. For example, William Langland's 'Piers Plowman' presents the theme of a religious journey in order to seek fact. However, Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, though it is set in a spiritual Background of a pilgrimage, but it only remains in the background. The frame narrative is not the actual mover of the tales. Kittredge things that the pilgrims do not are present with regard to the testimonies but vice versa. But stories can have existed even if there weren't any "pilgrims" to narrate the Tales. There is absolutely no religious perspective in Chaucer's Canterbury Stories. Regardless of whether we remove the outer body work of pilgrimage out of Canterbury Tales, still the stories will have relevance. My emphasis is the fact Chaucer never attempts to give moral notion of pilgrimage. Even within the stories he parodies the traditional belief of browsing the relics of saints. Ironically, Chaucer's narrator is also a fellow pilgrim.
In the pardoner's Tale, the pardoner asks the number to kiss the Pardoner's relics first, to the the web host refuses and replies that the pardoner could even keep his "old breeches" as relics.
Moreover, the stories are not about pilgrimage and prayers. We never get to see Monks preaching or nun's praying. Interestingly, in the overall Prologue Chaucer meticulously satirizes the spiritual hierarchy. Jill Mann identifies General Prologue to the "property satires". The Canterbury Tales begins with the introduction of every of the piligrims. They add a knight, his child a squire, the knight's yeoman, a prioress along with a second nun and the nun's priest, a monk, a friar, a merchant, a clerk, a sergeant of legislations, a franklin, a haberdasher, a carpenter, a weaver, a dyer, a tapestry weaver, a make meals, a shipman, a health care provider of physic, a partner of Bath, a parson, his brother a plowman, a miller, a manciple, a reeve, a summoner, a pardoner, the number, and a family portrait of Chaucer himself. The pilgrims are launched in a public order, explaining the nobility in front, the craftsmen in the middle, and the peasants at the end. A cannon and his yeoman later become a member of the pilgrimage and tell one of the stories.
Although the main notion of this word is that of the pilgrimage, and this is why all the people get together: the pilgrimage to Canterbury, nevertheless the narrator seems to underline some other aspects. Just how he identifies certain details, and the story that every pilgrim tales have a tendency to point something greater than a journey.
In my opinion, Chaucer will try to show you more about the contemporary society and the way it is organized using this entire idea of pilgrimage. His characters, which can be carefully chosen, point out a different level of socialization. The framework narrator supplies the visitors with a "sincere" representation of the pilgrims in their way to Canterbury; he commences with explaining the mannerism and appearances and extends to a more substantial commentary of the fourteenth century. Leicester, perhaps reads the overall Prologue not merely as a "traditionally conceived gallery of neutrally seen 'portraits'", but as the "psychological self revelation" of narrator/author. Chaucer creates three dimensional figures; he reveals the colour, texture and the reality to the setting. There is a clear "cross-section" of the fourteenth century human being arena. Yet, the pilgrims have the ability to showcase a communal feeling. The pilgrimage is viewed much like carnival. Just like fun and frolic is the part of carnival. Chaucer's pilgrimage also posesses parallel feeling.
The continuing image in Stories is imagery of carnivalesque. The pilgrims enjoy worldly pleasures of eating, drinking alcohol and enjoying themselves talking about sex and bodily processes. The pilgrimage is seen as a "diversion" rather than a religious voyage.
A pilgrimage by definition is spiritual in personality, however what is provided by Chaucer is a genuine special event of life. The "piercing" of Apr showers into the "drought" of March, in a way can be an imagery of delivery and new life. The eschatological facet of Canterbury Tales is transcended. There is a larger meaning of life, where people are true to their dreams and emotions. The banquet imagery is a popular imagery in a carnivalesque books. Similarly, in Canterbury Tales, the banquet at the tabard inn subverts the ostensible goal of the pilgrimage.
It is thus to say, there's a transfer from the spiritual goal of attaining salvation, to the physical bodily desire. There's a change from the spiritual aspect to the materialistic desire. The emphasis is laid on achieving the pleasures of life. The imagery of supper as the reward at the end of the tales is juxtaposed to the Christ's last supper. Jesus Christ's previous supper along with his disciples, is a symbolic gesture of his soul's quest to heaven. In the same way, Chaucer too makes an attempt to provide a symbolic interpretation with their worldly quest to the shrine of Canterbury with the award of supper at the Tabard inn. However, the difference is Christ's quest is complete, but Chaucer's voyage is incomplete. However, we never get to know who won your competition at the end.
However, what accounts in the interpretation by the critics, is that there surely is deviation from the "religious" idea of pilgrimage to a "literary" idea of pilgrimage. The entire idea of pilgrimage is shifted to the theme of story-telling. The juxtaposition of tales to the dramatic platform of the pilgrimage is the larger counter of Chaucer's style. The five day pilgrimage to Canterbury is seen in the light of five - work structured play in a dilemma.
The levels of the quest represents, deepening dramatic effect as observed in a dilemma.
The first day starts with a strong representation of chivalric ideal in love and war.
The Knight's tale is packed with noble characters placed in a traditional setting, with an increased theme. The tale is set in the mythological Greece. Chaucer's main source because of this Story was Boccacio's Teseida. Chaucer transforms Boccacio's classical epic and love report into a chivalric picture of medieval knighthood. Then it is accompanied by Miller's and Reeve's Story.
Chaucer in both the tales manages to fuse in grotesque elements. He strikes a balance between bawdiness and vulgarity. Both the tales are well received by audience.
The cook's story is an imperfect tale. The next day sometimes appears more literary in sense; THE PERSON of Law increases several critical questions. He presents a Christian theme of trust. The moral is the fact the good Christian should always be true to his trust. In the tale Constance suffers poverty, sorrow, defeat and also prosperity, happiness and win, but through each one of these stages, her faith remains constant. She epitomizes all the Christian virtues of beliefs, anticipation and charity, and the audience is impressed with her humility. The partner of Bath's tale is an account about the theme of matrimony. However as stated by Prof. Kittredge it was Partner of Bath's tale that initiated a debate between your fellow pilgrims. She starts several new function in the drama. The better half of Bath is seen somewhat a parody of the faithful 'Constance' in the Man of Law's tale.
The Friar and the Summoner's tale is a simple commentary made by Chaucer on the Catholic Chapel order. The Clerk's story is juxtaposed to the Partner of Bath's tale. The Clerk concludes his tale, declaring all women should be chaste like Griselda, that has approved all the checks laid down by her husband. The Merchant's tale too, reiterates the theme of marriage. The Squire's Tale is interrupted by Franklin. Oddly enough, Franklin's Tale is one particular tale which ends with happy take note of. The Physician's story end with a sad take note of, with the death of Virginia. Chaucer has taken this tale from Titus Livius, a Roman historian, but it has been greatly embellished by Chaucer in his Story. The Physician certainly dramatizes the problem by getting the father cut off his daughter's mind for the sake of the honor of his family. The coordinator was upset by the Physician's tale, in particular the treacherous habit of the judge. He becomes to the Pardoner requesting that he should inform a more agreeable story. The Pardoner, before commencing his story, gives information to the Pilgrims concerning the methods he uses in preaching. He uses as his word "Radix malorum est cupidatis" which is "love of money is the main of most evil". He carries with him a variety of relics which are available for sale. He promotes the Pilgrims to be unselfish. However, he then confesses that he himself is a worldly man and loves money, abundant food and fine living.
The Pardoner's tale is a moral report. The moral of his tale was that root of all evil is money. Chaucer intentionally gave this tale to the Pardoner. Here again Chaucer calls for the opportunity to identify the hypocrisy of the Medieval Church, through his portrayal of the Pardoner. It's the old story of the Pardoner not doing what he preaches. The Pardoner provides Pardons and Indulgences to sinners by the specialist of the Pope, and it is no coincidence that Chaucer depicts him as the utmost wicked of the Pilgrims. Again in the Shipman's story he launches another episode on the Ecclesiastical community, at the same time there is dual theme of gender politics.
Later in your day, Chaucer's narrator reveals a parody of Sir Thopas. This is accompanied by Monk's tragedy and Nun's priest's mock heroic tale.
The third day posesses religious word on the martyrdom of St. Cecilia. However the ambiance is soon interrupted by an unexpected story by the Canon and his Yeoman. The very next day is accompanied by the cook's and the Manciple's prologue and tale. He narrates on the theme of marriage. The theme of marriage is recurred later even though the pilgrims go through Sittingbourne. And, last but not least then we have the concluding story by the Parson. The Parson advises that it's God's desire that men should happen to be the celestial city and not perish in the fires of hell. There are plenty of ways in which to travel to paradise. One way is through penitence and lamenting for one's own sins. Then gives in a larger details on the seven deadly sins, these sins man should avoid, such as envy, sloth, gluttony, and lechery. Oddly enough, which have made an appearance in the stories advised by the Pilgrims.
He urges that those present should confess their sins and acquire satisfaction and God's sophistication. The five work structure of the dramatic pilgrimage is concluded by Chaucer the writer. The framework narrator is bought out by Chaucer himself. In his Retraction he concludes his work. However, critics question the consistency of this retraction. Nonetheless, the retraction befits the theme of storytelling more than his theme of achieving the shrine. As David Knapp evidently points out there exists "indeed a deep thematic irony in the composition of the Tales". Despite the fact that Chaucer ends his pilgrimage to Canterbury with the religious note, yet the pilgrimage sometimes appears as a sociable excursion.
The metaphor of the journey is an integral area of the tales. The fictional trip in the 'Canterbury Stories' is juxtaposed to the literary quest. The pilgrimage thus is seen as the literary voyage of Chaucer as the poet.
Works Sited
Morton W. Bloomfield, Chaucerian Realism, The Cambridge Chaucer Partner. Ed. Piero Boitani and Jill Mann (1986).
Jill Mann, Chaucer and Medieval Estate Satire, The Books of Public Classes and the General Prologue to the 'Canterbury Tales' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1973)
H. Marshall Leicester, Jr Framework as Deconstruction: 'Chaucer and Estate Satire' in the General Prologue. Or Reading Chaucer as a Prologue to the History of Disenchantment.
Muriel Bowden The effect of Chaucer's EVERYDAY ACTIVITIES.
Charles Muscatine, The Canterbury Tales: design of the person and the style of the work.
Charles A. Owen, The program of the Canterbury Pilgrimage
Muriel Bowden, Effect of Chaucer's Chivalric world
George Lymann Kittredge: Matrimony Group
David Knapp: The Relyk of your seint
John. M. Hill, Idea and Truth: Canterbury Tales: To learn feelingly, Chaucerian Relief
The poetics of Reverence and Delight
Linda K Davidson, David Martin Gitlitz Pilgrimage: from Ganges to Graceland: an encyclopedia, VOL 1.
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