Home
Creators
Search Recent Random
Posts
Search DMs Popular Hash Lookup Tags Random
Importer
Import FAQ
Register Favorites Keys Review DMs Logout
Community
Telegram ThePornDude
Home Creators Posts Import Register Favorites Logout

The Canterbury Tales: General Prologue & Knight's Tale (Chaucer Lecture) (Patreon)

Published:
2025-04-27 20:43:00
Imported:
2026-06
Tags:
haven't archived this post yet. have a subscription? use the importer!

Downloads

  • HLBC Chaucer CT KT .mp3

Missing 1 full-res photo, 1 file, as this post has not yet been imported.

Content

'You lovers ask I now this question: Who hath the worse, Arcite or Palamon?'

Today we spending some time at the Tabard Inn and meeting our fellow pilgrims. Then we will set off on our journey to Canterbury Cathedral and tell some great stories along with way.

We're focusing on the General Prologue and the Knight's Tale today, which involves a discussion about romance, epics, chivalry, estates satire, Chaucerian irony, medieval war games, Fortune's Wheel, how high art is born out of tragedy, why the best journeys never end, and much more.

Please do feel free to enjoy the discussion even if you haven't read these parts of the Canterbury Tales yet. You can enjoy our talk before, during, or after your reading of the beginning of this masterpiece in the way that best suits you.

Timestamps:

0:00 welcome to the Tabard Inn

2:00 meeting Geoffrey Chaucer

4:00 the value of imagined journeys

6:00 how great journeys never end

8:00 one of the most iconic openings

10:00 understanding estates satire

12:00 appreciating Chaucer’s irony

14:00 expectation/ideal vs reality

16:00 the need for historical context

18:00 medieval social mobility

20:00 Ovid, Chaucer, Shakespeare

21:00 meeting our fellow pilgrims

22:00 the crusades of the Knight

25:00 knightly code of chivalry

28:00 the Squire & the Yeoman

31:00 Prioress/Madame Eglantine

33:00 meeting the Monk & Friar

37:00 Merchant & Clerk of Oxenford

40:00 about William the Conqueror

41:00 Anglo-Saxon vs Old French

42:00 Franklin, Cook & Physician

45:00 meeting the Wife of Bath

47:00 the irony of Chaucer’s Parson

49:00 the irreverence of the Miller

51:00 Manciple, Reeve & the humours

52:00 the Summoner & church courts

53:00 meeting the Pardoner character

55:00 Harry Bailey & dream visions

56:00 a medieval trigger warning

57:00 the storytelling contest begins

1:00:00 appreciating the Knight’s Tale

1:02:00 Boccaccio & the Italian tradition

1:04:00 ‘whilom, as olde stories tellen us’

1:06:00 Chaucer’s compression & subtext

1:08:00 the protagonist of Duke Theseus

1:10:00 understanding the romance genre

1:12:00 Chaucer’s question d’amour

1:14:00 cliches of courtly chivalric tales

1:16:00 Palamoun, Arcite & Emilye

1:18:00 states of mind & world as prison

1:20:00 subject matter vs inner meaning

1:21:00 Boethius’ Consolation of Philosophy

1:23:00 the paradigm of Fortune’s Wheel

1:25:00 can you control your inner virtue?

1:27:00 deeds of love & arms in romance

1:29:00 tournaments/medieval war-games

1:32:00 Palamon & Arcite duel for Emily

1:33:00 Ovidian/Homeric fighting of the gods

1:35:00 the glory of the Knight’s war music

1:37:00 phenomenal battle scene set-piece

1:39:00 the climax of the Knight’s tale

1:40:00 Theseus’ profound closing speech

1:41:00 constant transmutation of the world

1:43:00 endure gloriously in the face of death

1:45:00 Thomas Aquinas & the First Mover

1:47:00 Chaucer’s thoughts on religion

1:48:00 happy endings contingent upon pain

1:49:00 momento mori therefore carpe diem

1:50:00 the importance of the Knight’s Tale

1:51:00 preparing for our next discussion

1:52:00 meeting the Miller & Wife of Bath

1:53:00 what are you making of this work?

Resources to Explore:

  • Documentary: Here is a wonderful documentary on the rise and murder of Thomas Beckett, Archbishop of Canterbury, that will make our pilgrimage all the more profound: The Life and Martyrdom of Saint Thomas Becket. The BBC also has this documentary that takes us into Canterbury Cathedral. For fun, check out this 'interview' with Henry II on the murder from Horrible Histories. And, if you're interested in medieval war-games, then check out this video from History Hit: We Experienced a Real Medieval Jousting Tournament.

  • Historical Deep-Dive: Helen Castor, the great historian and author of She-Wolves, recently released a phenomenal chronicle of the lives and reigns of Richard II and Henry IV, both monarchs under whom Chaucer served. If you're interested in the socio-political climate around the time of the Canterbury Tales, this book is well worth checking out: The Eagle and the Hart: The Tragedy of Richard II and Henry IV.

  • Philosophy: Chaucer drew primarily from Boccaccio, Boethius, and Aquinas for the Knight's Tale (though indeed scholars have found well over a hundred influences in the work). If you're interested in the philosophy of how to live under the reign of Fortune and her wheel, check out Boethius' The Consolation of Philosophy. If you're interested in the idea of the First Mover, and how Aristotle's classical ideas were expounded upon in medieval Christian theology, then check out some selected writings from Thomas Aquinas' Summa Theologica.

  • Source Appreciation: As detailed in the lecture, Chaucer drew significantly from Boccaccio's Teseida for the Knight's Tale. But, if you're interested in reading the writers that shaped the father of English Literature, I would suggest checking out Boccaccio's Decameron at some point and comparing its frame narrative and its stories with that of the Canterbury Tales.

  • Romance: We recommended Sir Gawain and the Green Knight previously (Brian Stone, Simon Armitage, and J.R.R. Tolkien all have splendid modern translations), but if, you'd like to dig deeper into the chivalric courtly romance tradition of medieval England, you may also find Thomas Malory's Le Morte D'Arthur a rewarding work to dip into. There's also a really wonderful compilation by A. R. Moncrieff called Romance & Legend of Chivalry.

  • Film Appreciation: You might like to treat yourself to a viewing of the 1964 film Beckett, starring Richard Burton, Peter O'Toole, and John Gielgud, which dramatises the tumultuous relationship between Thomas Becket and Henry II. For something more light-hearted, why not enjoy the hilarious parody of Arthurian Romance that is Monty Python and the Holy Grail?

  • Compare: It would be rewarding to hold Chaucer up against your reading of three other titans of literature that we have read together: Ovid, Dante, and Shakespeare. Can you see the Ovidian influence upon Chaucer and his reading of the Metamorphoses? Can you see where he was inspired by Dante? And can you see Chaucer's influence upon Shakespeare? In the next few days, we will have a special discussion on The Two Noble Kinsmen, which is inspired by the Knight's Tale. So it will be powerful exercise to contrast and compare these two writers.

  • Audiobooks: For the Wife of Bath's Prologue and Tale, I personally adore Dame Peggy Ashcroft's reading. For the Miller's Tale, there is a really excellent narration in Modern English, in an edition narrated by Philip Madoc, Anton Lesser, and Clive Swift, that is wonderful to listen to whilst reading.

Reading Assignment:

Our next discussion will have a special focus on the Miller's Prologue and Tale and also the Wife of Bath's Prologue and Tale. We're going to have a lot of fun with these parts and meet some iconic protagonists, so I'm excited to hear what you make of them.

Our alternating weekend release rhythm continues, so we will be back to Faulkner again this weekend coming, which means our next Chaucer will be the weekend after. Continue journeying through the work with great energy, listening to readings, relishing the poetry, and appreciating the superbly comic comments upon the human condition.

Questions for You:

1) What did you personally make of the Knight's Tale?

2) What makes a great story? What do you value the most in your narratives?

3) How does one best live when bound to Fortune's Wheel?

4) Who was your favourite pilgrim from the general prologue?

5) What have been the greatest challenges and rewards of reading so far?

If this is your first experience with The Canterbury Tales, I would love to know how the work is meeting your expectations. If this is a reread for you, what is it like engaging with this story compendium again? And please do share with us your favourite passages, characters, and ideas from the pilgrimage so far.

Happy reading, everybody!

Files

Previews only

Comments

Elizabeth

Dang it, Ben, I followed your recommendation and picked up a copy of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and read it this week. Now I want to read ALL the translations and learn more about Middle English. Down the rabbit hole I go! Also, I do recommend the movie with Dev Patel.

Terri Matter

Benjamin, your advice about mixing the modern retelling with the original Middle English was perfection. I was transfixed listening to this reading of the Knight's Tale. https://youtu.be/Xn4RDpNyBsE I was surprised at how quickly I was able to pick up the meaning.

Lisa

I think the Knight’s Tale answers in a large part to your next question of what makes a great a great story. It does have all the classic elements. Great love, great war and heroic characters in a foreign land. On the other hand I wasn’t so fond of this story in the end. The payoff was not there for me. I think the story took a long time to send the moral message of life can change on a dime. ……….I think one lives their best when bound by Fortune’s Wheel by living your best life and try to have some preparedness for some unknown future event or circumstance. In other words what I do now………..I am interested in hearing the tale from the Prioress. Her description is intriguing.

Bianca

Has anyone found Middle English audio for the Wife of Bath's Tale? I have only been able to find modern English versions, or small excerpts. (For the Miller's Tale I found Ancient Literature Dude on You Tube which I enjoyed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ooEOn7oeuEE). For Sir Gawain I found this in Middle English https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rLiB1RflIbQ. Edit: I found this Middle English reading by Charles W. Dunn on You Tube. The Tale but not the Prologue: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81Oip1wHuMs

Danny

All the talk of fortune reminds me of Plato's myth of Er. We don't remember what happened between our previous and current life because we drank from the river Lethe before entering our current life. What happened is that we picked our current lot: All possible lives were laid before us and we chose the one we have. But many only looked at the book cover, and didn't read the fine print before choosing. And having forgotten our choice, we believe we are fated to various things; and we are indeed fated—but we are the ones who chose our fate. The threads bound us the moment we picked a life without first examining it. An unexamined life is not worth living. I thought of Milton, too, because I'm reading his book with my wife. In the Knight's tale, Arcite said, "Worse than my prison is the endless earth / Now I am doomed eternally to dwell / Not in heaven, but in hell." I of course thought of Satan who, in his mind, made a hell of heaven, thereby getting thrown into the real hell, before tyring to make a heaven of that hell—I think he immediately failed at that last part. The mind is at the same time immensely wondrous and terrible. I think Theseus is wrong about Jupiter being Aristotle's first mover, because Jupiter is not unmoved; that is, he himself—according to Greek or Roman mythology—was put into motion by another being. The Knight's Tale was not too enjoyable for me. The Miller's Tale is right up my alley, but I'll save my thoughts on that one for later.

Serena J Cavanaugh

I got the Ackroyd version and it's awesome! I'm reading the entire book and loving it. I wish I had known about this years ago.

Alex

I'm reading the Ackroyd from cover to cover, then the tales Ben picks I'm reading in Middle English too. Loved how different the Miller and Reeve's tales were to the Knight, and enjoyed the Man of Law's too. In the Wife of Bath's tale, she mentions it was set hundreds of years ago, in the time of King Arthur - then one of the characters quotes Dante who was writing in the same century as Chaucer. Was this an oversight, or intentional?

JNL

To complement your reading of the Wife of Bath, I highly recommend Zadie Smith's play, The Wife of Willesden. Willesden is in northwest London, where Smith grew up. The play was performed in 2020 at the Kiln Theatre, also in northwest London, and at BAM in NYC. Smith comments in the introduction that she's "proud to call the Wife of Bath and the Wife of Willesden (Alvita) half sisters." I would add that like Falstaff, Alvita is a "free artist of herself." Falstaff asserts that he is witty and the cause of wit in others. Alvita is sexuality and the cause of sexuality in others. You can watch a recording of the play on NT live. Here's the trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4wbCSq7RHM

Diane
>>173607772

I agree! It's a great companion to the original! It's very entertaining on audio as well!

Thomas Davidson
>>173165145

I use the Riverside Chaucer or the Everyman edition. I think those were also recommended by Ben.

Thomas Davidson

I’m a little late to the discussion, having just returned to Canada from Scotland! I hadn’t read Chaucer for years and it is so delightful to re-read, particularly after enjoying Ben’s wonderful lecture. As a young man I first read Coghill’s verse translation, then the middle English of a number of tales with Coghill in hand. I very much enjoyed returning to Chaucer’s middle English for our reading this month, this time with Ackroyd’s retelling by my side. I believe Chaucer knows that the story of Arcite and Palamon in the Knight’s Tale is ridiculous. The General Prologue establishes the important theme that things are not what they seem. He contrasts social role expectations of the characters with many behavioural and physical details that undermine and satirize them. The living reality contrasts with, and trumps, all self-serving mythologizing and idealized narratives. I think this continues with the Knight’s Tale. Keeping in mind how lived reality undermines idealized expressions, it seems to me that he is satirizing the romance form—how can you not laugh at the reaction of the two kinsmen to the sight of Emily, their gushing expressions of exalted love, given the themes established in the General Prologue? Certainly, our modern perspective in any case regards all these romantic tropes as unrealistic, even unappealing foolishness. I think Chaucer essentially agrees. However, Chaucer accomplishes so much more in this tale. For one, he makes the Knight’s Tale an opportunity to dismantle idealized romance by bringing us to realize the transience of all human ambitions, the impermanence of all our intense experiences and accomplishments. We, and all we love, and all our personal lived realities, will ultimately be erased. This is captured in Theseus’ remarkable concluding speech, with a hint to how we can accept this. Re-reading the tale with Theseus’ speech in mind places all the events of the tale in proper context. There is so much to comment on about this tale. Perhaps I’ll be able to say more, but I’ve gone on long enough for now with just this one thought!

Samuel Trevers

I had read the Canterbury Tales when I was younger, still in school, studying middle English, I believe we looked at The Wife of Baths tale in detail and I remember loving the experience. Picking it up again now as an adult has been thoroughly enjoyable. The knights tale was a great starting point, laying a lot of the grownd work with a tale that reminded me in some ways of Oedipus Rex and the classical ideas around fait and the folly of trying to avoid it. I was really surprised at how quickly I was able to start just reading and understanding the original middle English. There were still stumbling blocks but over all it was actually quite an easy and very enjoyable experience. The tale itself was simple enough, and as you've mentioned, lacks the depth and complexity, character-wise, of later works, but even still, I was surprised when Emily went to pray herself for her own will, which felt unexpected, as I had imagined we would here absolutely nothing out of her throughout. I have definitely been able to hear the irony in the prologue, however in tale itself I struggled to hear it. Perhaps that is part of his character. The senserity. I enjoyed the colour Ben added. I wouldn't have know it was impossible for the knight to have fought in all of those battles or that one was just a merciless and distinctly unchivalrous slaughter, which adds so many more layers to Chausers irony. In the prologue I think I most latched on to the Pardoner, the Summoner and the Miller, particularly excited for their tales. Anyone who can break a door down with their head has to have a good one to tell. Ultimately I think the things I most value in story telling, the growth and change of characters, their development though overcoming obstacles, will be something lacking in Chaucer (though I may be proved wrong) but what I am loving is the poetry, the history of the work, the history of our beautiful language, finding new, or rather, old words that I've never heard of before. Seeing etymology in the flesh as it where, and experiencing one of the most important English language pieces ever written. Its fantastic. I feel thoroughly back in time. As for the Boethius of it all, and the idea of fate, I think it is a nice idea on paper, for those who do believe in a god/gods or more specifically a god/gods that partake in the running if the universe, and while I subscribe to a prime mover, I don't hold with the idea that anything is prefated. There are things that are out of your control, but the future is unwritten. The past is unchangeable, and you cannot step into the same river twice, but for me that doesn't mean fate is predetermined.