The Canterbury Tales: General Prologue

Whan that Aprille with his shoures soote,
The droghte of March hath perced to the roote,
And bathed every veyne in swich licóur
Of which vertú engendred is the flour;
And smale foweles maken melodye,
That slepen al the nyght with open ye,
So priketh hem Natúre in hir corages,
Thanne longen folk to goon on pilgrimages 

Join the LitSalon on a literary pilgrimage with The Canterbury Tales. Imagine it is spring, the rain and mud behind us, nature bursts with new life. It is the season of love and pilgrimage. We are gathered around rustic wooden tables at the Tabard Inn, near London. Tomorrow we begin our walk (or ride if we can afford it) to St. Thomas Becket’s shrine at Canterbury Cathedral. Our host suggests that each of us tell a story on the road.

What an astonishing variety of characters Chaucer gives us!  We see the full range of medieval society, from the noble Knight to the bawdy Miller, the vitality of the Wife of Bath to the hypocrisy of the Prioress. The Canterbury Tales offers a masterful sense of irony throughout. For example, Chaucer presents himself as a character in the poem and the master poet tells a tale that is pure doggerel.  Finally, the Host can bear it no longer: “Namoore of this, for Goddes dignitee.” Poor Chaucer protests to no avail.

To truly appreciate Chaucer’s poetry, one needs to delve into the Middle English. We will do that by first reading the General Prologue in the original. Following this initial five meeting study we will offer two further studies reading some of the most compelling tales in modern English (although those wishing to continue in Middle English are encouraged to do so) as set out below (to be listed on this website at a later date).

Part I: Knight’s Tale, Miller’s Tale, Pardoner’s Tale, Franklin’s Tale (16, 23 February & 2, 9 March)
Part II: Wife of Bath’s Tale, Shipman’s Tale, Nun’s Priest’s Tale (16, 23, 30 March)

If you have studied Joyce, Dante or Shakespeare with the LitSalon, why not challenge yourself with Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, one of the greatest works in English literature?

JOINING DETAILS:

• Five meeting study of the Prologue led by Sean Forester
• Sundays, 4.00 – 6.00 pm (UK) 
• 12, 19, 26 January & 2, 9 February 2025
• Recommended text: Penguin Middle English edition, ISBN: 9780140422344 (Everyman and Riverside Chaucer are fine too). You may also find the interlinear translation of The Canterbury Tales on the Harvard University Chaucer website useful.
• £150 for five meetings, including notes and resources.