The Canterbury Tales

Duringhislife,GeoffreyChaucer(bornc.1340)wascourtier,diplomat,revenuecollector,administrator,negotiator,overseerofbuildingprojects,landownerandknightoftheshire.Hewasservant,retainer,husband,friendandfather,butisnowmainlyknownasapoetand`thefatherofEnglishliterature',apostiontowhichhewasraisedbyotherwritersinthegenerationafterhisdeath.ItwasBoccaccio'sDecameronwhichinspiredChaucer,inthe1390s,tobeginworkonTheCanterburyTales,whichwasstillunfinishedathisdeathinOctober1400.Ittellsthestoryofagroupof30pilgrimswhomeetattheTabardInninSouthwark,onthesouthbankoftheThamesoppositethecityofLondon,andtraveltogethertovisitthethenfamousshrineofStThomasBecketinCanterburycathedral.Thetavernhost,whoaccompaniesthem,suggeststhattheyamuseoneanotheralongthewaybytellingstories,withthebeststorytellerawardedamealinthetavern(paidforbyalltheothers)ontheirreturn.Thestoriestoldbythepilgrimsrangefrombawdycomediesthroughsaints'livesandmoraltractstocourtlyromances,alwaysdeliveredwithageneroushelpingofChaucer'sownslywitandironichumour.Althoughbasinghischaractersonthestereotypesof`estatessatire',Chaucersucceedsinhisaimofproducinganoverviewofhistimesandtheirculture,forposterity,inthemannerofItalian,proto-Renaissance,writers.ThistranscriptionandeditionistakenfromBritishLibraryMSHarley7334,producedwithintenyearsofChaucer'sdeath.Theon-pagenotesandglossesaimtoenablereaderswithlittleornopreviousexperienceofmedieva