the prologue to the canterbury tales
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THE PROLOGUE TO THE CANTERBURY TALES. The Serjeant at the Law The Franklin The Haberdasher The Dyer The Carpenter The Weaver The Carpet-maker The Cook. The Serjeant at the Law. The Serjeant at the Law. Characterization Diction - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
THE PROLOGUE TO THE CANTERBURY TALES
The Serjeant at the LawThe Franklin
The HaberdasherThe Dyer
The CarpenterThe Weaver
The Carpet-makerThe Cook
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Serjeant at the Law
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Serjeant at the Law
• Characterization– Diction
• “There also was, of noted excellenceDiscreet he was, a man to
reverence, Or so he seemed, his sayings were so wise.”
(315-317)– Suggests a false appearance
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Serjeant at the Law
• “His fame and learning and his high position
Had won him many a robe and many a fee.”
(320-321)
– His wisdom resulted in this gain of materials
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Serjeant at the Law
• “Though there was nowhere one so busy as he,
He was less busy than he seemed to be.”
(325-326)
– Again, a suggestion of a false appearance
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Serjeant at the Law• Serjeants-at-the-Laws are the most
prominent members of the legal profession from whose ranks the king would select judges.
• The lawyer uses his wisdom to make money, gain materialistic things and increase his self-importance
• The repetition of the word “seemed” suggests a false appearance of the lawyer
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Serjeant at the Law
• Our Reaction
– Relatively similar to the modern, stereotypical societal/comedic view of a lawyer
• Greedy
• Phony
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Franklin
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Franklin
• Characterization
– Diction
• “white as a daisy-petal was his beard” (336)
– Old man
– Wise?
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Franklin
• “He loved a morning sop of cake in wine.He lived for pleasure and had always
done,For he was Epicurus’ very son,In whose opinion sensual delightWas the one true felicity in sight.”
(338-342)– Epicurus
• Greek philosopher who taught that happiness is the goal of life
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Franklin• “His bread, his ale were finest of the fine
And no one had a better stock of wine.His house was never short of bake-meat
pies,Of fish and flesh, and these in such suppliesIt positively snowed with meat and drinkAnd all the dainties that a man could think.”
(345-350)
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Franklin
• Many of Chaucer’s characters are guilty of one or more of the seven deadly sins
• The Franklin’s sin is gluttony.
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Franklin
• Purpose of the Diction
– Demonstrate the sin the Franklin is guilty of
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Franklin
• Our Reaction to the Franklin
– No dramatic opinion
– Significance of gluttony from a social perspective
• Not always looked down on
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Guild Members
• The Haberdasher
• The Dyer
• The Carpenter
• The Weaver
• The Carpet-maker
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Guild Members• Characterization
– Diction• “…were
Among our ranks, all in the liveryOf one impressive guild-
fraternity. They were so trim and fresh their gear would pass
For new. Their knives were not tricked out with brass But wrought with purest silver, which avouches A like display on girdles and pouches.”
(366-372)
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Guild Members
• Guilds are professional organizations for craftsmen
• The characters are proud of their wealth and display it with ornate objects
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Guild Members• “Their wisdom would have justified a
planTo make each one of them an
alderman”(375-376)
– Alderman• In England and Ireland, a senior member of a
county or borough council• The chief officer in a shire
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Guild Members
• “They had the capital and revenue,Besides their wives declared it was their due.And if they did not think so, then they ought;To be called “Madam” is a glorious thought,And so is going to church and being seenHaving your mantle carried like a queen.”
(377-382)– The wives enjoyed the status of the
husbands– Gave the women social recognition
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Guild Members
• Purpose of the Diction– Demonstrate the prosperity of the guild
members– Demonstrate the pride associated with being
a guild member
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Guild Members
• Our Reaction to the Guild Members– not a dramatic reaction – we recognize that these are successful
people
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Cook
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Cook
• Characterization– Diction
• “And he could roast and seethe and broil and fry,
Make good thick soup and bake a tasty pie.”
(387-388)– Talented cook
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Cook
• “But what a pity—so it seemed to me,That he should have an ulcer on his
knee.”(389-390)
– Ulcer• An open sore on the skin or some mucous
membrane, as the lining of the stomach, characterized by the disintegration of the tissue and, often, the discharge of pus
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Cook
• Purpose of the Diction– Adds a humorous aspect to the tales– Reflects the gullibility of the Guild Members
• “They had a Cook with them…”(383)
Geschke/British Literature The Canterbury Tales
The Cook
• Our Reaction to the Cook– we laugh at him– a little “grossed-out”– no strong reaction about his personality