Chivalry in Chaucers Canterbury Tales Essay -- essays papers

Chivalry in Chaucers Canterbury Tales In his Canterbury Tales, Chaucer fully explicates the cultural standard known as curteisye through satire. In the fourteenth century curteisye embodied sophistication and an education in French international culture. The legends of chilvalric knights, conversing in the language of complaisant love, matured during this recentlyr medieval period. Chaucer himself matured in the Kings Court, and he reveled in his cultural status, but he also retained an anecdotal humor about curteisye. One must only peruse his Tales to discern these sentiments. In the General Prologue, he meticulously describes the Prioress, satirically examining her impeccable table manners. In the Millers Tale Chaucer juxtaposes courtly love with animalistic lust, and in various other instances he mentions curteisye, or at least alludes to it, with characteristic Chaucerian irony. These numerous references provide the reader with a remarkably rich image of the culture and class structure of late fourteenth century England.Wel coude she carye a morsel, and wel keepe / That no drope ne fille upon hir brest. / In curteisye was set ful muchel hir lest.(General Prologue, 130-2) Here, in the description of the Prioress, Chaucer mocks her etiquette by so specifically describing it, and in doing so he also mocks her conception of sophistication. For Chaucer, sophistication represented more than table manners and Frenssh of Stratford at the Bowe.(General Prologue, 124,5) Curteisye required an intimate, first hand knowledge and experience with French culture. This Prioress had learned her French in an English convent school, hardly the equivalent to Chaucers travels in France. Chaucer creates the feeling that the narr... ...tion of courtly flirtation. Usually when a character speaks in courtly language, the author biases his word choice to French, since French was the formal language of the Court and people associated with the Court spoke French-derived English on a daily basis. Chaucer avoids that lend oneself here and selects words based in Germanic-derived English, or Anglo-Saxon. Words like ich, wille, and spille and others persisted from Old English, and Chaucers use of them through Nicholas gives the passage a decidedly rough tone, synonymous to Nicholas sensual actions. Nicholas language might have been courtly, but his intentions were definitely not as delicate as French.Chaucer utilized satire throughout the Canterbury Tales, and he illustrated as much about his culture, and especially curteisye, with his satire as he did with the stories and characters themselves.