👨‍🏫Chaucer Unit 14 – Chaucer and the Politics of 14th–Century England

Historical Context

• 14th century England marked by significant social, political, and economic changes
• Period of transition from the High Middle Ages to the Late Middle Ages
• Witnessed the Hundred Years' War between England and France (1337-1453)
• Black Death (bubonic plague) ravaged Europe (1347-1351) causing widespread death and labor shortages
• Peasants' Revolt (1381) reflected social and economic tensions
• Growth of towns and cities led to the rise of the merchant class and a shift in power dynamics
• Increasing use of the English language in literature and official documents
• The Avignon Papacy (1309-1377) and the Western Schism (1378-1417) weakened the authority of the Catholic Church

Chaucer's Life and Career

• Geoffrey Chaucer born c. 1340s in London to a prosperous wine merchant family
• Served as a page in the household of Elizabeth de Burgh, Countess of Ulster
• Fought in the Hundred Years' War and was captured in France (1359) ransomed by King Edward III
• Held various positions in the royal court including diplomat, customs controller, and clerk of the king's works
• Married Philippa de Roet, a lady-in-waiting to Queen Philippa of Hainault
  • Philippa's sister, Katherine Swynford, later became the mistress and then wife of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster
• Traveled extensively throughout Europe on diplomatic missions
• Began writing poetry in the 1360s influenced by French and Italian literary traditions (Guillaume de Machaut, Dante Alighieri, Giovanni Boccaccio)
• Best known for his masterpiece, The Canterbury Tales, a collection of stories told by pilgrims on a journey to the shrine of Thomas Becket

Key Political Events

• The Hundred Years' War (1337-1453) a series of conflicts between England and France over territorial claims and the French crown
  • English victories at the battles of Crécy (1346) and Poitiers (1356) under Edward III and the Black Prince
  • Treaty of Brétigny (1360) brought temporary peace but war resumed in 1369
• The Good Parliament (1376) attempted to reform corruption and mismanagement in the royal court
  • Criticized the influence of John of Gaunt and his associates
  • Impeached several of the king's ministers
• Richard II's reign (1377-1399) marked by political instability and power struggles
  • Peasants' Revolt (1381) a major uprising of peasants and laborers demanding social and economic reforms
  • Lords Appellant (1386-1388) a group of powerful nobles who challenged the king's authority and purged the court of his favorites
  • Richard II's absolutist tendencies and the banishment of Henry Bolingbroke led to his deposition in 1399
• Usurpation of the throne by Henry Bolingbroke as Henry IV (1399) establishing the Lancastrian dynasty

Social Structure in 14th-Century England

• Feudal system still in place but undergoing changes
  • Landholding nobility at the top (kings, dukes, earls, barons)
  • Knights and gentry below them
  • Peasants, serfs, and laborers at the bottom
• The Black Death disrupted the traditional social order
  • Massive labor shortages led to increased wages and bargaining power for the lower classes
  • Some peasants were able to buy their freedom or move to cities for better opportunities
• The rise of the merchant class in towns and cities challenged the power of the landed aristocracy
• The Church played a significant role in society
  • Provided education, healthcare, and social services
  • Owned large tracts of land and held political influence
• Women's roles were primarily domestic but some notable exceptions (Christine de Pizan, Julian of Norwich)
  • Women could inherit property and engage in trade but had limited legal rights
• The Sumptuary Laws (1363) regulated clothing and consumption based on social class

Chaucer's Major Works

• The Book of the Duchess (c. 1368-1372) an elegy for Blanche of Lancaster, the first wife of John of Gaunt
• The House of Fame (c. 1378-1380) a dream vision exploring the nature of fame and reputation
• The Parliament of Fowls (c. 1380-1382) an allegorical debate about love set on Valentine's Day
• Troilus and Criseyde (c. 1382-1386) a tragic romance adapted from Boccaccio's Il Filostrato
  • Set during the Trojan War and explores themes of love, betrayal, and fortune
• The Legend of Good Women (c. 1386-1394) a collection of stories about virtuous women from classical and medieval literature
• The Canterbury Tales (c. 1387-1400) his most famous work, a collection of 24 stories told by a group of pilgrims
  • Includes a wide range of genres (romance, fabliau, saint's life, sermon, beast fable) and characters from different social classes
  • Unfinished at the time of Chaucer's death

Literary Themes and Political Commentary

• Chaucer's works often reflect on contemporary social and political issues
• The Canterbury Tales critiques corruption in the Church through characters like the Pardoner and the Summoner
  • The Pardoner's Tale warns against greed and hypocrisy
  • The Summoner's Tale satirizes the abuse of ecclesiastical power
• The Wife of Bath's Tale challenges traditional gender roles and asserts women's agency in marriage
• The Clerk's Tale and the Franklin's Tale offer contrasting views on the nature of love and marriage
• The Knight's Tale explores the themes of chivalry, courtly love, and the role of fortune in human affairs
  • Reflects the values and ideals of the aristocracy
• The Miller's Tale and the Reeve's Tale use bawdy humor to subvert social hierarchies and expose human foibles
• Political commentary is often subtle and indirect to avoid censorship or persecution
  • The Nun's Priest's Tale can be read as an allegory for the political instability of Richard II's reign
  • The Monk's Tale reflects on the fall of powerful figures and the transience of worldly glory

Language and Style

• Chaucer wrote in Middle English, the vernacular language of his time
  • Incorporated French and Latin loanwords reflecting the influence of those languages on English
  • Used a range of dialects and registers to represent different social classes and regional backgrounds
• Pioneered the use of iambic pentameter, a poetic meter that became the standard for English poetry
• Employed a variety of rhetorical devices (metaphor, irony, satire) to convey meaning and engage readers
• Adapted and innovated upon existing literary genres (romance, fabliau, dream vision)
• Developed a distinctive narrative voice that is both erudite and colloquial
  • The narrator of The Canterbury Tales is a complex persona that interacts with the pilgrims and comments on their stories
• Used frame narratives and multiple perspectives to create a polyvocal and dialogic text
  • The Canterbury Tales presents a diverse range of viewpoints and encourages readers to draw their own conclusions

Legacy and Influence

• Chaucer is considered the "Father of English Literature" for his role in establishing the literary use of the English language
• The Canterbury Tales became a model for subsequent story collections and frame narratives (Boccaccio's Decameron, Marguerite de Navarre's Heptaméron)
• Influenced the development of English poetry and prose in the 15th and 16th centuries
  • John Lydgate, Thomas Hoccleve, and John Skelton imitated his style and themes
  • William Caxton's printing press helped disseminate his works to a wider audience
• Inspired later authors such as William Shakespeare, John Milton, and John Dryden
• The Chaucerian stanza (rhyme royal) and the Chaucerian couplet became popular poetic forms
• The study of Chaucer's works has been central to the development of English literature as an academic discipline
• Chaucer's portraits of medieval society continue to shape popular perceptions of the Middle Ages
• His works remain widely read and adapted in modern times (film, television, theater)
  • Pasolini's The Canterbury Tales (1972), A Knight's Tale (2001)