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Carter, Ronald & Mcrare, John - The Routledge History of Literature in English PDF

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Carter, Ronald & Mcrare, John - The Routledge History of Literature in English PDF

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GabrielaNiculescu
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The Routledge History of Literature in English Britain and Ireland Ronald Carter and John McRae with a foreword by Malcolm Bradbury R London and New York The Routledge History of Literature in English ‘Widesanying, very ates .. highly atenie to eultral and socal change and, above al vo the changing history of the langage. An txpunsive, generous and vated textbook of Brith Itty hisory ‘Mrs eal tothe Bris and he foreign rend” ‘Matcotse BRaDwDn, elt ade "The wong i cd and eminently scene whl il allowing for subtantal degre of spittin... The book wea learing Ugh, Convey wealth of bormaon without seer Hans Beaens, Unni of Ura This nde w the min evens inthe ty of Boh ad sh terre won cas some of the pal feces of erry haga evhpmen al hgh ky ngge ep. ley structured ad rene # sar oer tod er of ery Ry fn ao the fret dy Replace te gow erry wig tes conver ‘led hag caster ol atlas Mere fem he mg, th genre nd era “Anup tod deo te major ped of erste in Eg in Ba an "anguge pore pein 0 ooo he sat 2 Eee ques ca poy pred det { Atielne of import a el ed el {A orwond by mvc se Makin Brady Rowan Carrie Petr of Mader Eg Language in she Depart IW Fnglah Suter ave ateity of Nownghams He edo of ie ge ars nea ey ee Jone Mi Rae = Spec Per a tage iter Sais a he ‘Una of None nde bt ing Port ec aeoe ‘han ety ots trea RS tank BC Senna abide he USA ad Cand tea 1 Wet he, New ek NY 0 Repeated 9 © ty Raa Carers Mee ieee el ans Ssh Pine and band in Ga Brit ‘Dinmmnaonl a Pasom Cored specks cpoduced tena frm (ty clecrowe mecutea ooh sean ae senor hoeaer mene ng phoorig ‘econ ination geo ‘Selo pero wg ‘ome paihon i ry Catia Dt ‘Sete tard ribo aise om the en of get Pa Dat ‘atta lend / Roden ics sony Ms Boy. Gretta inal 4 Engh gangs ee, inane in frog—deo seuss ISBN earrseee9 Bh ISbNeairves ea Dedicated to Alex: and Jean McRae and Litkan and Kenneth Carter, ‘What he wanted was nor his accumlaton of noes but an absence of notes: what he wanted wat anipaency. He was avare that seole- ship the aegiston of kaowledge brought with ca eebe arse How much was enough? How much more was ther? Was there any cud to If one didnot possess enoigh knowledge how could one be ue of postetsing mote? Andi one elle halt o the process how ‘ould one not de of shame? Thus with his love fr bis books went a ceria obseate dese wo have dae with them, or exher not to have ‘been a fis mite ro smal thoughts about great masterpieces Acita Brookes, Lis Prey (1988) Contents Lit of isso Fermoy Malcolm Bradbury ‘Contents and condiions Personal and religous vices Lament The abs ite engage Lang poems French influence and English afiemaion Language and dseet Langage note Th xpoig kon ~ Chana ad Mile Eoyb rom anonymity to indium Women's vices Fantasy ‘Tere! Geoftey Chavcer Langland, Gower and Lydgate “The Scoish Chaucerians Mediaeval drama Malory and Steton “angen Pr and ee srt Cooter ad conditions “Lens mite Expanding writ xpi lesion Renaissance poctry 8 " 2 9 ° @ Comets Daa before Shakespeare From the set toa baiting — the Bzabethan thease Leu ate Th fer ponding ion Renaissance prose “Tatlaions ofthe Bible Lau noe: The gas oft Bike Shakespeare Theplays The sommes Lena mate Chong pars fh ad oe! The Metaphysical poets ‘The Cae poets Jacobean drama to dhe closure ofthe thentes, gt Bea Jonson Masques (Other dramatists of the ey seventeenth century Gig comedy “The end of the Renaissance thease Contexts and condos Early Mitoa Restoraon dam Rochester Dryden Pope Journalism Scottish Enlightenment, darts and Gibbon ‘The aove, ics Leer Tegner Eg Sterne, Sle ad Scots voces Drama afer 1797 Poesy afer Pope “Lena ste Mera patent Melancholy, maness and nature ny ny 6 uy 16 uy 3 19 197 159 166 186 96 196 “The Gothic and the sublime Language nt Pa of ie Contexts ad conditions Langue nate Wilia Cabe, grammar and plier Bae, Wordsworth and Coleridge guy note Thee? laa of mor Keats Shelly Byron Clare Romance prose “The novel inthe Romantic period Jane Austen ‘Lampe te Jane Ace's El Scot From Gothie wo Fanbents ‘The Scosh segonal evel Contents ae eondiions Dickens ‘Victorian thought and Viewsian 2oves “The Bronts and Ee Othe ly novels Lite Viewsian novels ike and Aesthescism Hardy and James engage nt Dit and barca Hany ‘Viesrian potty “Langa nt The decoping es of desi rate ‘Vitoran dram (Context ad conditions ‘Modern poetry 0 1945, 2 a a6 9 39 an 39 a6; 26 79 194 196 7 mu x9 Po 3s Contr Later Handy Lang mt: Te ragmnting lesion Georgian and Imager pocty Fine World War poet Tish wring WB. Yeats TS. Blot Langa ade Madr pte te Popular poet “Tries poets Seotsh and Wek poetry ‘Modesn dram 0 545 Ish dear DH. Lawrence Popular and poetic drama “Langage Liat aba nga, ‘The novel to 1945 Subjects the popula eatin “The Kashar Schoo Proviaeil novels Social concerns Ligh aovels Genre feson “Moderasm and the noel Forster, Conrad sod Ford engage note Mtplr end mio DE Lawrence ‘Wolf and Joyce Langage: ib Eg, mataiy od rata [Novels of the Fist Wold Wat Aldous Huey ‘Women writer Ireland Early Greene and Waugh “Thin novel a a 539) 363 364 sm M7 379 386 se 392 596 393 396 a7 598 - - “9 “9 an as a6 Be ‘Contents and conditions Drama since 1945 ‘Langage Drama end tere lena Poetry of the Second Woeld War Poewy since 945 Martans and gorgons “Towards the sents century “The nove since 1945 Lamu ste Disco it nd gio Liter Greene Dialogue novels “The mid-century nove Amis fither and Lengua ate City sag Golding Fowles and Fram Novel sequences ‘The campos novel relent women ‘Muriel Spark and others ‘Margaret Drabble Lessing Hilland Weldon Its Murdock Internationa “Insider from “outside “Langa Eh St ond Send “The contemporary Seotish aovel ‘The contemporary Ish novel Endings and beginnings TIMELINES (Old and Mie Bags “The Renisance Conte “ an a a 4 we 5 8s 9 199 " m5 9 ss Mo se a 8 sas +9 wi | Comes Restoition ro Romantic “The Romantic period “The nineteen cenaty “The went century 1990-45, he rene century 945 the present rien ih win of the Nob Brig for Litratre Ackaonleeonae Seat big Ide 55 sss 536 559 16 65 566 70 79 Figs Figs Foes Fes Illustrations Linguisc boundaries nd external inducnees English possessions in France ‘An Elizabethan plahouse. De Wits drawing of ‘he Swan, 61596 Mustrton from Tram Shandy * is | Foreword Maleolm Bradbury nour own time the writing of teary history has famously become a dicat activity. ln 4 lobal age, we have moved away from the rinceend-ccatury notion that neta ehity the product of 2 ‘ation, pce and people: We have ao began vo challenge those ‘rest, tual” n terre that assum that the history oF wring led ‘foresly onward fom one grit genie to another: Chaucer handed the torch 0 Shakespete, Shakespeare #© Nikos, Milton wo Words ‘woth, and so omega eo the Olympe stadium of the present da. At the sartof the rventeth century, the interatonal “Modern Move tment, with ts ne for and is confident spint of innovason, hook the foundations of the erry heritage: Now more rece post: smodera’ literary theory and coll analysis have agua questioned ‘many of the eadonal, monamestal sodons of author, genre. Liters ture has neeasingy been scen 4 at ina context: prodoc noe just ‘of genius bat of elt, society and tit elaive medium, language “The fit tenns the bteray histories sll ned to be writen, The pastofirrature what ured be eal ‘the tadton'~is aot simply "random afi. And though international perspectives on err, fn even challenge to its dependence on the writen word, ae vet ‘more important ina mich more accesible, ope, interned lbally ‘communicating wor, dere really ae native uations or hentages of lerature. Ther sory need o be propery told. Whether we ourselves ae native spethers of English or foreign readers, 0 understand 2 lteraute— whether the lnestare of our owe ime o the past—we sil ‘eed informed, appreciative textbooks tat present the nature ofthat Ihistoy and deal show tin ts context The Rou Hitory of Litre in Ess designed o ect tat need Ie isan up-to-date coterie, graphically and lay presented Foreword with good visual support, tling the story pains and sethost the \weght of cet jagoa that surrounds So much modern academic the dialect where the text were writen, but woald have had a wide range of curl reference ~ Latin, French and European. The adie cence was, however, nied wo educated court and aristocratic eles slkhough the production of Inerstre was growing, mass Iecracy dt ‘aoc happen wnt more than five hundred years ater A this ie there ‘wae sulin widespread tracy among ay people fr there tobe a ‘wide relation of Books lent and botrowed, the beginnings of = onuescia teadersip more than 3 centry before Catton prised he frst books in Engh. ‘King Hers, ang from about 1335, i he earest suing verse romance in Fags Ii le of lve, bea, and adventure, show ing how English has asinlated the charactensacs of French courdy "Mores, and adapted them toa loc eeting, The range of poss snow expanding rp: religous, secur, moral ad polial themes ae becoming the sebjet foe writing and eading "The Alltertive Revival inthe sccond half of the foursenth cen cyan 2 growing beat readerhip, expands ths range, and many ore manuscript copies of reas are found, showing tha weg and reading were spreading, nd were not lmied either the eapal iy, London, orto highly educated ends Story teling is fundamental pare of Middle Engh terse Bible stones had been retold inthe Anglo Saxon period (sesons of| mai a Eda in parla). Now, for example, Pate (om the Ine foureemthcentery) retell the Ilia! story of Jonah and the ‘whale, aking it both comic ad instructive eiforcing the vrae of| ppasence). Mans smalls in relation eo God is stressed, with Jonah ‘compared to srt of dst at amnsterdoor/ so big the whl’ ws were “The word ‘munstr' is inceesng: interpreted as “minsteor “eth ce es cea inked to "monastery and ~ 3 only i sound — 10 “monte But the intron humorous swell mora and this is20| important step inthe handling of regis subject mate. reseence, alongside dewoton, wl become more and more frequent aba featue (of wring abou elgion From atonity indvidulioe Prairies an rial stor, in 2 form which was to become fone of the most fequent in medaeval terme, the dream iion, ‘Autos ike Chaucer aod Langland use ths frm, ia which the mare tor derribes another world ~ ually heaenly paradise ~ which i ‘compared withthe erhly human wool. In Par the narrator ses his daughter who died a intane,"the ground of allay bss She now has a hind of perfect korledge, which hee father can never comprehend, ‘The whole poem undetines the divide benscen human comprehen sion and prfeeson; these lines show he gap benseen posible pete: $on and fallen humanity which, dhemaiallyanipate many leery examinations of man’s fill, the most wel known being Mins tate Renaissance epic, Pie Las ‘Tangs persone iced ec Sehoentln Ina sense, Pisa foreeunser or oaly of wpa writing about a perfect word, bu its also an examination of haman limitations and Inoue: theme which wl rca in the Rensisance—in Marlowe's acer Fans, Mion's Pardie Ls and host of other texts eis ‘more humanly dzet and petsoal tan ese lice works, giving the sender sense of iavolvemient in the nuator's os and incompretc- son. The reader, in a sens, identities with the personal feelings ‘exprsted and can share the emotions described. "The moat signcantanonyenou ext of the peiod i Sr Gana and ‘the Gren Ku, desenbed 38 2a’ by the minstrel who tell you wil ist thi ay just ide wie al ele strnighe anya Tad inthe cow, As wit che opening line of Beoni/—"Lo! we have listened «0 many 2 lay'~ dere a mp listening aience and an explicit, personal voice ofthe bcd. The ly derives from Britany, and wae & ind of French romance of the rselfh century intended wo be sung. There ‘were seven imitations of Frendh las in Englih. The lay was wed 0 (Old and Mie Engh ors recount imaginative or legendary ales, fiction, rather chan historical tales based on fc. Si On, for example, transposes the clascal Greck legend of Orpheus and Burydice nto dis form a a English sexing WOMEN'S VOICES Marie de France, who wat Engi, wrote inthe at welt centry vee Lai 4 see of short romances bated on unwriven Breton songs Marc's was not by any means the only female voice of her ime “eoteiths, a tenth centry abbess fom Sasoay is generally seen 25 ‘he fest woman weer in Europe: Aree Wine, ko known as Anoene Fe book of advice on how wo lve, ected fst at nuns but easly tea ta wider readership of women, became one of the main texts of ‘he thirteenth cenary— i dates from about 125 In the following century, Chssine de Psan ia Fance was the fist woman to be fll-ine, profesional writer—and one ofthe ist 10 ‘question the authority of men's writing Inher Bak of te Ci of Lads ‘he comments ona work by Matheos the sgh ofthis book, eventhough i was oF wo authori, made me ‘womderhow it happened tat o many diferent mena conearin tne conclon thatthe behasour of women icine to and fll of every vice A text by Christine de Pisan,eanlated by Anthony Woodeile, her Moral Pros of Crs, was the fst writen by a woman to be Patd in Enghnd by Caxton in 1478 Tes here thatthe word ‘author ffi appears in English Tong before Caxton, however, chee wat growing readership for asics La, fr books of instruction and devotion, and for ‘sisonay’ wring Jian of Norech experienced such visions atthe age of Soon Iie deathbed, but made miraculous covery, became 4 nun and et down her visions in a probing, anaes dscussion of such dice ‘themes a uth, sia and the motherhood of God. This isthe concn ‘on of her challenging weisng, given herein the ginal Midae English “Ths wie [led that love was Oue Lor mening, And 1 aw fall, sel in thrall that exe God made she lov us which Wome’ ries Jove was sever skid no eve hal, Ad inthis lve he fa do all Tir werk, and in dt love be ath made all hings prota tow ‘Sodio this love out be eves, Inout making we bad bei ting, Bot the love shesn he made, wari him fo witout Tregyoning in which love we have our bering, Ad this shal be seen in Gen without end which Jerr mot grant us. Amen Ua: aug hi stele: Bore; diminished, me oven: vesting making eto hte. that endless eon of (Gods mut: nay Margery Kempf quite a diferent kind of visionary writer but ust as corigal in het way a8 Cristie de Pran, though les assured than Julian She dirted her work Ph Bok of Magy Kempe (1090 me) 36 she could neither rad gor wie, but her woman's woice speaks lou Sand clear down the centre i her revelations of her psychological Sate of mind though the dramas of chibi and iatease sexel estes, towards her maturiy snd fe of contemplation. She speaks of ere in the third person a his cea alough she gives the book her owa name. Moll Fander in Daniel Defoe’ novel which bears er name is perhaps dhe acatest ate selFcastgating heroine of ‘her own moral tal agin given inthe origina): ‘Over mera lod Cis Jess, seg thi crestargs preumpcjen, sent, ai erete Before, dhe ere of gee tempracyon, OF the ‘thech on ofthe hades purpose way for exampy of em ha ‘om fy that het ach noe oy on here oy Sle Rav no jopin emslf sti centre had. Fore no rede, oye gost eam ‘pet nos, ut he fl bel ergy our ompiexions and owyse Agspoysonys and where tht be Evade ws most fel ther be ‘Gaye Lorde suflerem he leh ys seat, whech may no man slape be ys ow powers “hal so he lel befor tis cca the snare of ltchery, whan ‘che wen ht al esc st iad lhl ben gene in ie Aad Solng sche wat tempi wth the sy of letchory, for ow that che ‘Soe dor and yet see wa oy seheeya, sche werd the hye and ede get dsl pnw and wep enna bye tees and prey fo ‘fy to Oye Lov that he sch preserve ie ad kepe hie that She scald ns lly ins remptaon. For sche thowr sche had lever ben de than consent ther. And in al his me ache had 4 (Old and Mia Engh gy ‘0 ht 1 crmown wire hbo, bri 0 ‘horrybyl unto bite. = es towing OF hr one of thd of wh pepo ope ten © wit dow hw emp er me ire on th hsb trees: ce Sabo toy oa ial ens he Dey Bove inlay pi wa ine; pe npr Inn: en hci te oe ae ep ra hgh I come aah mphig co ‘nn contr an sos vp wre a ‘her ed dead omen: have intescourse, py ping FANTASY ‘The fry or fanatic woe replaces dhe casa Hades (or Hel) in Sir Of, aa Sir Gann ate Gren aight aes ths fantasy leet 10 ‘ew heights Sr Gronin sone of the Knight of the Round Table, the followers of King Arthur, who is so mach of a presence in Engh history, myth and berate. Artha iabvays seen ap in Ba the seatest of the English ings, all of whom are linear devendants of ‘he Roman hero Brus. The poem concentrates on ane episode rather ‘han on the whole sory, and opens up an ambiguous treatment of the hile code of uth and honout This code ie part ofthe courtly love ideal, with a chevalier being the del high whose behaviours ‘mode eo al But the chvalicwadition iS Gained the Gn gt ‘subverted and made impossible bythe Green Knight’ offering that his head be stuck of as long ashe can ste a rerun Blow one peat late. he traf dtm of bi ibltions ~ ‘What chanced atthe ehapel she good cheer of the bight, “The lady’ lovemaking an led. the pile He spayed the sea of the sick om hit neck ‘Where the bold mas ow had hit his bd tho Procains He groaned this digce, Unfolding lfm Aad blood sued hi face ‘When he showed hs mas of shame Lf ~L: “The ay eased here wo question the vale of eros and the valve of historical mths, I hangs human weaknes 0 dhe fore, but atthe fod ionially reinforces beef in human capacities Gawain, who rows tha deep dow he has trait of cowardice and weason and was only protected by a magic bel, the symbol of his contsion, which edeins him and makes him 4 human her, eeruens in sumph 0 Camcoe “The tor stanzas of Sr Gain ad he Gree Keg lend wit this four-anca-alf ine conelasion, i shorter ines, ging aththmic and arate variant the reglarfour-suess lin of many eater works, Tn these later Mile Eesh ets from te fourteenth century, ere is geneilya sense of optima and high pts which conten twith the Iter questioning and doubr ear will be found in much Titra of the Renainsnee TRAVEL (One of de fst books of tarel ving European readers some insight into the unfamine world of the Orient, war published in #396-67 in ‘Anglo-Norman French, Called simply Tiel, twas sid o be by Sir John Mandeville, bat a French historian, Jean 'Outremease, may well Trae writen the book, It is «highly entertaining guide fr pilgrims the Holy Land, but goes beyond, taking the reader as far a8 Tartar, esa India and Fey, seeountig more fantany than fet, bur coe taining geographical dels wo give the work eedence. ‘Mandevle’s took wetted the Wertera European seade's appetite {forthe rave book a a oural of marvel: dy scenic deal was not ‘what these recrs wanted Rather vas imagination pls infrmason. “Thus, myths ofthe founaia of yout’ and of golds Wing around “Ue ancl’ caught dhe Western magia, and, when the voragers ‘of the lt ifeenth and ssteenth centres found "new workin the “Americas, these myths were enliged and expanded, a8 Eldorado joined the Golden Road to Samarkand inthe imaginason of readers ‘Soncerning distant lands ‘Madevile begins along aon of wtngs aboot faraway places which created the iden now caled“Orienasn. He walks of rivers sch tthe Ganges, the Nl he Tigi ad Euphrates, which ae, of (0 ad Middle Engh rots course, ll ral. He suggests that Paradise maybe somewhere beyond, ba (OF Praie ne can ot speak propel for Iva ot there. eis fr Ieyoad Parade senloed al about witha way ard men wit ot whereof i, forthe walls be covered al ovr with mows, i scemeth Audit semeth ae tht the walle tone of mate noe of no oer thing thatthe wall in And that wall recht from the South othe north andi ath not but one ety thats closed wath fre burning 0 that no man tht is mortal ae date not ext [Not being able o describe Pane, Mandel in aempng ive ‘is wings cri, conchades (of tha pice Ica ay you no more And therefore I sl old te ell and etn to that hae seen Such wings emphasize curl strangeness and diferenc, and for many centuries they have conditioned Western perceptions of the socieses they purpor to deste GEOFFREY CHAUCER |_Yf no lve is, O God, what fle Tso? Cid Crd AAs we have measoned, Geofey Chaveer ed a wide ringe of cl ‘url references from throughost Europe in his wig, but he wrote almost exchsvely in English This high significant, not only in ving him his pace asthe frst of the major English woters but in plcing hin 2s 2 pvotl figure who encompasses many of the exer ‘eadiions, genes and subjects of iterate, applying them in the coe text ofa new, highly csv and developing scl. Chaucer was 2 professional course, kind of ci servant. His ‘wring was a sideline eather than 2 vocason: the fulltime English writer was sil x couple of centres in the fate. Chaacee was oun inva famuly of wine eaders; he was thus fom the cas of the new ‘wealthy city gendeman. His work took him to Kent (hich he repre seared in Paiament from 1386), t0 France, ad twice to Tal where Gefey Caer the made the acquintnce of the works of writes such as Dante, Pesach, and Boccaccio, ‘Chaucer’ ist work, Th Bak ft Dasha drear-pocm onthe death in 1568 of Blache, Duchess of Lancaster, the wie of John of Gaunt (dud on of King Edward II}. Iei poem of consolation, modelled on French examples: Seis dead Nay? es by ms toch “tht your loss? "By God, that south! [be ity] “The simplicity and dicemess of the emosion, and the handing of loge, show Chaucer’ capacity to bring language, situation, and moon ager efectivey The Hot of Foe (c1374-88) is soother dkeam-poem, this time inuenced bythe Kaban of Dame. 1is the Sst time that Dante’ epic fof a journey to Passe, Purgatory, and Hell ~ Tie Dine Cindy (Grsto-20)~ i echoed in English Here Chauces becomes 2 paroci- ant in is own wing He the ingenuows poet who wists the Latin poet Oris ‘house of fame’ to learn about love. He brings together spect of love which wl become the frequent subject mater of poes| throughout the ages. Cupid and Ven, passion and des, innocence and knowledge, ate all invoked, sing the sew verse form of the ‘lyme royal staan (The name derives fom its later use by Seti ‘King James Uin bis Kapur, 1424) “The subject of love i tiken up again in Chaucer's evo greatest, poems before Te Cer alr: Tah ond Cry and The Lynd of (Gan Wome The Sst takes the Kealan writer Boccaccio as its souee Tt ‘ings together the csc Trojan war story, dhe Haan poetic version ‘of that story and the sinh cennry philosophical work of Boethins, The Canioltion af Pie, Like Lamon, Chauececonscisi uses other writen’ books, and deliberately gives incl the role of inter diary, eating, evsting and refining old stones TU Chance had never gone oto wte Te Cantey Tals, Tis and Chine woul remain 0 one of the oustanding poems in Euro- ‘ean tnerature of the mediaeval period Te has even been called the frst modem novel. Although this isan exaggeration, it serves 10 remind us of Chivcer’s considerable dexripuve apacy both in term of character and scene. Chaucer uses as pat of his authori (Ol ad Mie Eloi rechnigue tbe rade’ ait wo raga and ida ah what is being described. Thee are the words of Troilus oo the joys and pains of lowe; the fst line in 2 direct te of itertexi reference quoting Petuch 1 no lowe i, © God, wha fe 1302 ‘And if love, what hing and whche he? IF Loe be ood, frm wthennes come my wo? It be whe, a wonder thinks me, {When every torment and adverse “Tha comet of hn, may 2 me sary tink; Foray hurt the mote hat I dike. ‘And if haat myn owen ist reas, ‘Fro whenner cometh my waling aod mpegs? ‘This seme ofthe js and pain of love becomes more and more Important dhzough Chaucer wring In The Lad of Gad Wim, for example, he eke up an awareness that Cre, who the symbol of ‘constancy, has followed dhe wishes of men, and ates to redress {he balance in women's favour Ie interesting that the views of {male audience ze considered, although the sores of women who hed for love are not necessary standard romantic fre! Tncdestaly, this isthe fst English poem to wie heroic couples, asi describes some of the famous csi! women who sacrificed themselves for love: And Ceopue, with ll hy pasioun, Hie ye your uoute of love and your rou, And hoa, Tbe, tha hast fo one wich pn: My ldy com thar al his my tine. ‘Tee bee!” she cried and clapped the window to (Ce ie Tay AL Chaucer's eae weting can be seen 4 lead to his mastrpccs, ‘he Catrary Tal He probably began wring it around ty and he ‘work was uncompleted at is death in 1400, The ea of using 2 eres of linked stories appears in Thy Lod of Gud Wim, tthe greatest Innovation is wo use the “here and now the London sta and glk Gaff Chener society of the time, Orginal, r20 tes were plnsed, with each of ‘hit plese form Soutwask to Canterbury teling two tales on the ‘way thre and 20 onthe wy back Rather les than quzter of the project ws reed, ur dhe whole range of gases, ls, and subjects ‘hich history and eadtion, England and Europe ofered Chascer were exploited i these es, ‘Why Canterbury? Why Soudhwask? Why, indeed, Api in whe fa 0 pening ines ofthe prologue? When tat Api with showers ote [ots seed “The dmaght of March hath pied 0 the rook Canterbury and Southwark ring together the religous and the secu. {Canterbury Cathedeal waste site of the marsidom of Saine Thomas A Becket in v1 using the reign of Henry TAs such, became 2 Shri, de object of plgimage in a Beish sense, refccting the duty fof plgimage to Jertalem which was the inspiron forthe Crusades in theewelfth and thieenth centuries, Some coe see a eal “lig Of, or decadence, inthis jolly aun. Compared to the high bu con ‘eioalidcals of the Crudes an the noble inteasons ofthe heroes fof eal Iteratre, there is certainly 2 dsdie’ wo more day-to-day ‘concerns This all part of a unde reflection on religion ad the individu inthe modera world elected ia mang text from Wir and Water to Pats ad beyond. "The stating point of the journey the Tabard a at Southwark represents the ci the new foal insution i soci The inns role as tmecting pace and hosiery affirms the importance of dinking'and convivayin his soci Tes nor new the seops sang of the deeds of Beowulf a fess in cate hal and cov celeration is important fin ht socesy too, But ehere 2 new soil oder here, with people of| Aleve of modern society apart fom the aristocracy andthe lowest essans—the ery highest nd che very lowest in he land ~ sharing an Undertaking which combines duty and pleasure. 1 Sous, a The Tabard as Tay Ready go om plage nd ar Fr Canterbury most devour a heart Ach there came zo tht hosteley (OL and Mie Engl ory Some nite and weeny in company (sana fotk happening then fall In fllowsbi and they wee pgs all ‘That coward Casebury ment wo de. (i Grn Poti tre Engh) Pleasure had been noiceably lacking i terry expression unt this time, Dur, war, reconeiaon, consolation, lve (and the pains of love), honou, suing, ivory religous doubt al of these and more Ina been familiar subjees. Bus, jast as auhoes became more ind: ‘ulti, 0 cid the members of this ocr ‘The night, he miler, the wife of Bath, the prioress, the lei, ane others are all ented by thee oceapaton of mara stats, but the sarrato’descipions of them as individuals ~and he les and the teling of them ~not only bring out india diferences and chatac- terse, ba invite the reader 9 recognise and denis the pilgrims a8 terorypicl characters ‘Chaucer himself (or his sarenosial persons) prefs aot 10 tke sides and does not overtly judge the characters he presents, but he allows dhe reader « new degree of interpretative feedom, based on le recogaidon of an ionic gap between how she character see fhemectver and how others see them, This i new to Englsh rsa ‘Why Api? we ated Apri isthe spring mooth when the showers Ing new Fry eo de earth, when there ia rewakening rebirth, and the gous of winter ae overome. Tis i, together sith the CChrinian pilgrimage, an almost pagan clmcat of ital spstal senewa, which Sad echoes throughout itera fram the Datk Ages ta fc a the wasteland” of twentieth century writing A land a king dom, awaits rebirth, and hen gives hanks fr that rebirth, for the ‘const of fe ha ners So theres rea deal goigon inthe semingy simple famesorle of Toe Cannery Tas. 1 absorbs era, histone, regions, sia, 1nd moral concerns and tanscends chem all. egies wide ranging ‘ew of the ate foreenth century world and its people. The specie people and places descaised become emblems of thee period and the text becomes an image of is ime. CCeides are sll divided over to what extent Chaser teats is characters seriouly oF ironically. One recent wend suggested that Chaucer’ irony perts the reader t ace the knight, 2 very pesect seme knight, aot a8 the true model of cour perfeeson (as these fronds sugges bat as mercenary sldie who wil ight for anjone ‘eho pays him, Ths reading has the ight aways on the losing side, tniking him an out-of-date hero figure, a eae is the modern wold However, the keght i more radtonaly viewed a a genuine ‘gene nigh, Whatever the eat, his le san old-fashioned philosophies tony of rivalry love, set in cassie Greece "A sina gente ony may soround the nu, a prioress, Madame [Eantyne. She is 4 sensal woman, one who eajoys the pleasures of ‘the senses Hanging fom the bree around her writ, hee i not 2 ‘ros (asthe reader night expect) but a“booeh’ with the modo in Latin, ‘Love conquers all, Again rts have shown that this is ambiguous 10 say the leat. Love of Christ and sensual love are Troughtrogethern one very vacious female character. Her tale isa ‘ily waioonal, uncriteal sory of marder and religion, which i ut psingy open in ie conelsions. Th Mier Tae isan ok fthioned fable, a story of deception in Joven almost complet contrat to The Kg Ta, and fl of earthy Inumous. A the aver Abaalon Kisses Aliso on quite the oppoie end of her anatomy to where e expected, the whole idea of iii love i rddenly made coms: Disk was he night spac a black coal, And atthe window oot be put her oe, An Absalon, 20 free fame the fre, Porup hie mouth and ised ee naked ae Most savoury before he knew of th “The wife of Bath gives a staunch defence of Raving had five hos bunds and her tle, set atthe time of King Arthus, opens up the question of what women realy most dese” — again a challenge to cour values. Some sid tt women wanted wea and weasure, “Honour? sid some, some Jlity ad plese” Some ongous leer and others Fan in bed? “Tbe of widowed and remared id (Ot ad Mile Engi 01485 (Other asin and some tht what moet mated ‘Was that we thoud be comet and tered, “The fiir is described no as abaly Sure, buts wanton and mecy. He tlle teasing tale about an extoronate religous Gg, ast mone, who i carried of to Hel by the dew Ponder my words reflect upon my sory. “Thelions awayon the wath for prey To lhe fnocent if 0 e may "The summoner then answers this with « comic stony of a gresdy ‘ia, again using low humour mock elgious steals: Facas a whale and wadding 2s, ‘They ink of wine like bots in a ba, How reverent tet raplations ar! ‘When they say prayers for sole hei pul of David Isjusta Burp Car mm rit” “This gente mocking of hero curly values reveals that Chaucer's Itetion is more than just © describe the world in which he Eve ‘Ahough himself conservative, he examines, and want the reader to se the changes hat cei undergoing Thee sense of shifting femphasis 36 older values are quessoned and new wales affirmed “Throughout the Tals thet is soa jsf sense of humour, of enoy ment of sensual pleasures, and of popular, cathy fan. Sesious and ‘omic intensons go hand in hand, and give a new vison of a fe

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