Book Review: Canterbury Tales By Geoffery Chaucer

Ever since I finished my last book, I’ve always been eager to start another one. This morning, I picked up a book by Geoffery Chaucer. Books are amazing. They possess the power to transform you into another realm where all you can think about is tranquility. Just like music, books are magical. It is always exciting to start a story, especially when you are in the reading mood. Although the weather over here is not too friendly for book lovers, I didn't let that stop me from reading The Canterbury Tales by Geoffery Chaucer. I started my week off by reading this book. One of the best feelings ever is to start a brand new week by reading an exciting and interesting book. In this post, I'll explore the Canterbury Tales by Geoffery Chaucer. Since this book contains a lot of tales- 27 tales if I'm on the right track. To make things easier, I'd be reviewing the prologue and the tale I find most interesting; The Wife Of Bath’s Tale.

Geoffrey Chaucer was an English poet and author who lived during the Middle English period- a period after the Old English. Writing was formally introduced during his time, thanks to the invention of the printing press by Johannes Gutenberg. Geoffrey Chaucer is widely regarded as the father of English Literature and also the father of secular writing. His works explore contemporary issues during the medieval period. He is best known for his work “The Canterbury Tales.” Geoffrey Chaucer is my favorite writer from the medieval period. Well, this is also because he is the only writer I've ever read from this period. The Canterbury Tales by Geoffery Chaucer opens with a general prologue

SUMMARY OF THE PROLOGUE

The general prologue opens with a brief description of the month of April. During this period, people loved to travel around the world. People loved trying new things. Also, people loved to travel to the Canterbury Cathedral to pray to St Thomas á Becket- a martyr who died while defending the church. We should note that Geoffrey Chaucer himself is also a character in this book. Chaucer, who is also preparing to go to the Canterbury Cathedral is seen at an inn- the inn Tabard. Later, 29 other pilgrims join him. After discussing and drinking together, they concluded that it was best for them to travel to the Canterbury Cathedral together. To make their journey interesting, they decided that each of the pilgrims would tell a tale.

Geoffrey Chaucer, who is also the narrator, introduces all the pilgrims. Knight, Squire, Yeoman, Prioress/Nun, Monk, Friar, Merchant, Clerk, Sergeant of Law, Franklin, Shipman, Doctor, Wife of Bath, Parson, Plowman, Miller, Manciple, and Reeve.

THE WIFE OF BATH’S PROLOGUE

As mentioned above, the Wife of Bath is one of the pilgrims who joins Chaucer on the Journey to Canterbury. Of all the pilgrims, her character and tale are the most interesting. I know lots of people have contrasting opinions, but that's alright, this is literature, not mathematics. The Wife of Bath’s Tale opens with a prologue. The Wife of Bath has been married 5 times and in her prologue, she recounts her past experiences with each of her husbands.

One thing you should note about the Wife of Bath is that she likes sovereignty. She does not believe in equality between husband and wife. According to her, a wife should always dominate her husband. She also believes a woman can marry as many husbands as she likes. To defend her case, she supports her argument with biblical allusions- the story of Solomon who married 300 wives and still found favor with God.

The Wife of Bath’s first three husbands were old men whom she would always bully to provide material things. She also denied them sexual favors. However, her last two husbands were young and difficult to handle. Janklin, her last husband was the most difficult. He opposes her mentality. He believes that wives should always be submissive to their husbands. He would always read books about submissive wives and every time he reads these books, he laughed devilishly. The wife of Bath got tired of him and out of anger, she tore a page out of one of his books- his favorite one. Janklin struck her causing her to be deaf in ear. He felt sorry and apologized and they lived happily.

SUMMARY OF THE WIFE OF BATH’S TALE

The Wife of Bath’s Tale tells the story of a knight who rapes a fair maiden. Usually, the punishment for this crime is death. Luckily for this Knight, the Queen was “in a good mood” and decides to pardon him on one condition; on the condition that he tells her what women want most. What do women want most? She gives the knight 1 year to search for the right answer.

The Knight went from one place to another, searching for the right answer. Some said that women wanted wealth, treasure, honor, and pleasure. Some said women wanted gorgeous clothes and others said women wanted to be flattered. The Knight sought for the answer for months but couldn't get the right one. The Knight became tired and perceived that he wouldn't be able to give the Queen the right answer.

While on his horse, he meets an old woman who promises to give him the right answer if he vows to give her whatever she wants. The Knight accepts the deal. The next day, the knight is summoned by the Queen. He tells her that what women want the most is to have sovereignty over their husbands. The queen, ladies, and widows present at the court agree to the answer. The old woman comes forward and demands that the knight get married to her as repayment for giving him the right answer. The Knight is forced to get married to an old, poor, and ugly-looking woman.

The Knight became unhappy. His days were filled with sorrow. Why the couple were in bed, the old woman asks the knight why he is unhappy. He tells her that he is unhappy because he is married to a poor, old, and ugly lady. The old woman tells him that beauty is on the inside not outside. The old woman gives the knight a choice; to live with her as an ugly and faithful woman or a pretty and unfaithful wife. The Knight gives her the sovereignty to choose whichever soothes her. By giving her the sovereignty to choose, the old woman changes her form to a beautiful and faithful young woman and they both live happily ever after.

MY RATING

Geoffrey Cahucer’s Canterbury Tales is a masterpiece. It is the most famous work of the Middle English period. One thing I love about this book (epic poem) is the prologue. The main aim of the prologue is to introduce the pilgrims. Without the proper introduction, readers will find it hard to draw connections between the Pilgrims and their tales. This book is fascinating because it gives us a glimpse of the medieval society. Each of the tales touches on different contemporary issues.

On a scale of 1 to 10, I give the Wife Of Bath’s Tale a solid 7. I recommend this book to all book lovers. You’ll definitely enjoy reading it.

Thanks for reading.