ESSAY CEMETERY

The 2001 film A Knight's Tale , written and directed by Brian Helgeland, is set in medieval Europe. The film contains era-appropriate themes such as courtly love, nobility, and chivalry. However, the depiction of events and actions frequently deviates from the ideals and conventions held in medieval times. These deviations can be seen to appeal to different kinds of audiences, to create interest and comedic effect on different levels. Three kinds of audiences can be identified, each possessive of a different degree of familiarity with the film's subject matter. First is the lay modern audience that is unfamiliar with the medieval era. For this audience, the deviations from medieval conventions serve to make the movie more accessible. The film incorporates physical love scenes and contemporary comedy for this type of audience, whose interest would not have easily been maintained by chaste, moralistic courtly love. Second is the audience that has a general knowledge of the co...

THEMES/MOTIFS/STYLE Bath's Prologue Outspoken woman Quoting from the bible, to support her view which is certainly not mainstream - a parody on church people who quote from the bible to support true holy causes, showing that the bible can be used to support any argument thus diminishing from the value of the bible as a tool of truth. Polygamy for women- it is men who usually have multiple husbands and not vice versa, so the Wife of Bath breaks that convention. Explicit sexuality - "Al were it good for no woman for to touch (He mente as In his bed or in his couche)" Experience is a key word Inaccurate bible quoting Criticism of the Church! Bath's Tale Criticism of the church Satire/ contradictory behavior to courtly decorum Fairy tale with a moral and psychological relevance Geoffrey Chaucer

The Prologue to the Wife of Bath The wife of bath is the speaker. She has much experience in marriage, she says, as she has had five husbands. She justifies this fact with rhetoric, quoting from the bible as a reference. She took both her husbands' money and masculinity. She is open to a sixth husband! The wife of Bath is very liberal. She evokes St. Paul who said marriage is a positive thing. She brings up polygamous biblical men; she says God never expressly forbade multiple marriages. Virginity, she admits, is valuable but so is procreation according to the bible and to achieve the latter one must give up the former. She concludes by saying that she uses her husband as debtor and slave- that she owns him. She possesses him using the instrument that god gave her (presumably her sexuality). At this point the Pardoner interrupts the Wife, saying that he had meant to marry himself, but didn't- why should he risk his wife controlling him as the Wife of Bath does her hus...

THEMES/MOTIFS/REMARKS Taxonomy and classification - very important in the Middle Ages, the way people defined the world was according to their standing in society, which was determined by birth, association with nobility and ranking in the Church. Descriptions of nature open the Prologue. There is also talk of crops. "April with his showres soote… bathed every veine in sweich licuor" "The tender croppes" Hierarchy and order (classification/taxonomy) The introduction to the list of people: "Me thinketh it accordant to resoun To telle you al the condicioun Of eech of hem, so as it seemed me And whiche they were, and of what degree [MS1]   And eek in what array that they were inne Characters described in terms of riding skills and horses Characters described in terms of manners Characters described in terms of clothing Criticism of the operation of Christian institutions Astrology The humors (components of the...

It is now April, springtime, and this makes people want to go on pilgrimages, especially to Canterbury, to seek the remains of the saint that helped them. Before embarking on the pilgrimage the narrator (who speaks in the first person and is a character in the story) goes to the Tabard, an inn, to sleep. At night 29 men come into the Tabard, and they happen to be going to Canterbury as well. The narrator joins them. Before the tale continues however the narrator wants to introduce to us his fellow travelers: 1.       A Knight- described in terms of the values he honors- "trouthe and honour, freedom and curteisye". He traveled far and wide, was valiant in many wars and battles and is honored for all of this. He is "as meeke as is a maide", and is described according to the vision of the ideal courtier. The knight wears a tunic under his mail coat and his horse is fine 2.       A squire- the knight's son. A bachelor and...

Summarized from the historical background in the Norton Anthology, 4ed Personal History Even though medieval scholars did not recognize the existence of any classes other than aristocracy and commoners, a middle class came into being and it was to this Chaucer belonged. He grew up amongst commoners but was sent as a teenager to serve as a page in the court of Lionel of Antwerp, son of Edward III, reigning monarch and brother to John of Gaunt. Chaucer thus spent the rest of his life amongst nobles. He married a woman of high birth and his children and grandchildren went on to be eminent people and married amongst nobility; Chaucer managed to jump the gap between the common and aristocratic classes. Aside from poetry, Chaucer was involved in many other trades- he served as soldier, tradesman for the nobility, diplomat, forester and more. He was favored by the nobility, receiving rent-free housing, and grants. During the entirety of his life he came into constant contact wit...