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Passage II (Q. 196–200):
The Canterbury Tales is a collection of 24 stories that runs to over 17,000 lines, written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer. In 1386, Chaucer became Controller of Customs and Justice of Peace and, three years later, Clerk of the King's work in 1389. It was during these years that Chaucer began working on his most famous text, The Canterbury Tales. The tales (mostly written in verse, although some are in prose) are presented as part of a story-telling contest by a group of pilgrims as they travel together on a journey from London to Canterbury to visit the shrine of Saint Thomas Becket at Canterbury Cathedral. The prize for this contest is a free meal at the Tabard Inn at Southwark on their return.
While Chaucer clearly states the addressees of many of his poems, the intended audience of The Canterbury Tales is more difficult to determine. Chaucer was a courtier, leading some to believe that he was mainly a court poet who wrote exclusively for nobility.
The Canterbury Tales is generally thought to have been incomplete at the end of Chaucer's life. In the General Prologue, some thirty pilgrims are introduced. According to the Prologue, Chaucer's intention was to write two stories each from the perspective of each pilgrim on the way to and from their ultimate destination, St. Thomas Becket's shrine Although perhaps incomplete, The Canterbury Tales is revered as one of the most important works in English literature. Not only do readers find it entertaining, but it is also open to a wide range of interpretations.
The Canterbury Tales is a collection of 24 stories that runs to over 17,000 lines, written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer. In 1386, Chaucer became Controller of Customs and Justice of Peace and, three years later, Clerk of the King's work in 1389. It was during these years that Chaucer began working on his most famous text, The Canterbury Tales. The tales (mostly written in verse, although some are in prose) are presented as part of a story-telling contest by a group of pilgrims as they travel together on a journey from London to Canterbury to visit the shrine of Saint Thomas Becket at Canterbury Cathedral. The prize for this contest is a free meal at the Tabard Inn at Southwark on their return.
While Chaucer clearly states the addressees of many of his poems, the intended audience of The Canterbury Tales is more difficult to determine. Chaucer was a courtier, leading some to believe that he was mainly a court poet who wrote exclusively for nobility.
The Canterbury Tales is generally thought to have been incomplete at the end of Chaucer's life. In the General Prologue, some thirty pilgrims are introduced. According to the Prologue, Chaucer's intention was to write two stories each from the perspective of each pilgrim on the way to and from their ultimate destination, St. Thomas Becket's shrine Although perhaps incomplete, The Canterbury Tales is revered as one of the most important works in English literature. Not only do readers find it entertaining, but it is also open to a wide range of interpretations.
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