Canterbury Tales

General Prologue

The General Prologue establishes the frame narrative of the Canterbury Tales. It is narrated in the first person by “Chaucer,” who finds himself in a Southwark inn among a random collection of pilgrims preparing to travel to Canterbury, to venerate St. Thomas Becket. The innkeeper, or Host, proposes that the pilgrims travel together and pass the time by each telling four stories, two on the way to and two returning from Canterbury. The pilgrim who tells the best tales will win a meal. If Chaucer had rigidly adhered to this plan, the Canterbury Tales would include over one hundred tales instead of the extant twenty-four. The genre of the General Prologue is estates satire, traditionally a satirical catalogue of the various “estates” or positions within medieval society (knight, friar, etc.). Accordingly, Chaucer describes each of his fellow pilgrims, identifying them by profession, clothing, and physical appearance, among other traits. Unlike in traditional estates satire, the narrator Chaucer does not overtly castigate his fellow pilgrims, and the degree of satire within each portrait and across the collection is a point of debate.

Knight's Tale

The Knight, whose significant experience in various conflicts both inside and outside Europe is mentioned in the General Prologue, tells an adaptation of Boccaccio's Teseida, which tells of Theseus's conquest of the Amazons, Thebes, and then the contest between two of his Theban prisoners (cousins Arcite and Palamon) for Emelye (Emilia in Boccaccio), the sister of his new Amazonian wife, Hippolyta. The Knight's Tale radically abbreviates the discussion of the conquest of the Amazons to focus mostly on Arcite and Palamon falling in love with Emelye from afar, getting out of Theseus's prison (Arcite by pardon, Palamon by escape), and their conflict in a tournament overseen by Theseus, the winner of which will receive Emelye. Arcite prays to Mars for victory, Palamon prays to Venus for Emelye, and Emelye prays to Diana to remain a virgin. Only Emelye's prayer is directly denied, and Saturn resolves the conflict by causing Arcite to fall from his horse after his victory. He dies from his wounds, and Palamon and Emelye eventually marry.