How does his presentation compare to what is known of merchants in Chaucer's day and how do you respond to him as a reader?
"What do we learn of Chaucer's merchant from the information provided in the General Prologue and the prologue to the tale itself? How does his presentation compare to what is known of merchants in Chaucer's day and how do you respond to him as a reader?" Chaucer describes the Merchant in a subtle but detailed way. The Merchant is presented as favourable and yet several indistinct statements challenge this initial portrayal. Chaucer's typical use of irony excels here for the reader to interpret the Merchant openly. Taken literally, the Merchant could be seen as a conservative member of the developing middle class and yet the more popular interpretation, taking into account that the ambiguous statements are ironic, implies that the Merchant is enigmatic and somewhat dubious. The General Prologue gives us a clear physical description of the Merchant. He is well-dressed and considered contemporarily stylish with his "Flaunderissh bever hat", his "bootes clasped faire and fetisly" (line 274-75) and his "forked berd" (line 272). This makes him appear as a successful merchant who can afford to dress in the fashionable way. He is also described as "His reasons he spak ful solempnely", which again describes him as a respectable member of society, "solempnely" meaning "with dignity". However, the next few lines undermine this image of him being a dignified citizen as they describe
Chaucer creates humour by satirising values in religious and courtly love. To what extent do you agree with this statement?
Chaucer creates humour by satirising values in religious and courtly love. To what extent do you agree with this statement? "The Merchant's Tale is only rarely seen as humorous; most often it is noted for its darkness, its "unrelieved acidity"; it is said to offer a "perversion" of the courtly code."1 I disagree with this statement made by J. S. P. Tatlock. Chaucer was successful at creating humour within his narratives, which is partly why his works were, and still are, so popular. Humour can be achieved through a variety of elements including plot, characterisation, language, timing and circumstance. Chaucer used of all these, but largely drew upon the satirical portrayals of both the courtly love genre and religion within The Merchant's Tale. The tale opens with The Merchant who is envious and astringent of all people that are of a higher class than he; therefore, in his narrative, he targets and satirizes the traditions of the knightly class, including the romantic conventions of courtly love often attributed to the upper classes. Another of Chaucer's tales is The Knight's Tale which is about two knights and close friends, Arcite and Palamon, who are imprisoned by Theseus, duke of Athens. Whilst in prison they fall in love with the beautiful sister of Hippolyta, Emily (Emelye). The sense of competition brought about by this love causes them to hate each other. They
Compare the presentation of love within the three sonnets studied.
Kayleigh White 11R January 2004 Compare the presentation of love within the three sonnets studied. The three sonnets that I studied were, "How do I love thee?" by Elizabeth Barret-Browning, "Let me not to the marriage of true minds" by William Shakespeare and "Since there's no help let us kiss and part" by Michael Drayton. Of these three there are numerous differences and similarities. It is known that at the time of writing her sonnet, Elizabeth Barret-Browning was happily married to Robert Browning, but without the consent of her father. They moved to Italy where she began to use the Petrachan form of sonnet. At the time when William Shakespeare wrote he was known to have already established himself as an actor and playwright and was working for the leading company, the Lord's Chamberlain's Men. In Drayton's sonnet we see that he was a contemporary of Shakespeare, this poem comes from a long sequence of sonnets called 'Idea's Mirror'. These sonnets were all inspired by his unrequited love for Anne Goodere, although he himself never married. As with Shakespeare his use of personification is extremely effective. Although their styles differ all three poets are speaking of their love for another person. Elizabeth Barret-Browning writes to her husband and as a women writing, it is written in a tender and soft tone. Her language and style used is incredibly dramatic.
Compare ‘Shall Icompare thee to a summer’s day?’ by W. Shakespeare, ‘How do I love thee? Let me count the ways’ by E. Barrett Browning, and ‘Sonnet’ by Drayton - Which of the three sonnets made the strongest impression o
Compare 'Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?' by W. Shakespeare, 'How do I love thee? Let me count the ways' by E. Barrett Browning, and 'Sonnet' by Drayton. Which of the three sonnets made the strongest impression on you? Explain your preference. All three of the sonnets are love poems. They are all dramatic monologues in which a poet apparently addresses a person he/she loves. Both Drayton and Shakespeare wrote Shakespearian sonnets whereas E Barrett Browning chose to write a Petrarchan sonnet. Drayton and Shakespeare also include a reversal of meaning in their sonnets but E Barrett Browning has no reversal. Shakespeare and E Barrett Browning also consider that love relates to time and think about the immortality of love. E Barrett Browning's Petrarchan sonnet is unconventional as it is written by a lady to a man. It's also unconventional because it is sincere and has no Volta which emphasizes the authenticity of her love to her husband. On the other hand Drayton and Shakespeare's sonnets are conventional and conform to the structure of a typical sonnet. They both start with one meaning and then cleverly change to another. Another similarity between Shakespeare and Drayton's sonnets is that they use a great deal of elaborate imagery. Yet E Barrett Browning uses direct and tender language and very little imagery. She also sets a romantic and sincere mood. While
Explore aspects of the sonnet tradition through reference to a range of material you have studied?
Explore aspects of the sonnet tradition through reference to a range of material you have studied? A sonnet is a 14-line poem with each line having 10 syllables. It originated in the 13th century and was introduced into England in the 16th century by Sir Thomas Wyatt. The Petrarchan (or Italian) sonnet characteristically consists of an eight-line octave, rhyming abbaabba, that states a problem, asks a question, or expresses an emotional tension, followed by a six-line sestet, of varying rhyme schemes, that resolves the problem, answers the question, or resolves the tension. The rhyme scheme for the sestet is cdecde. For instance, Wilfred Owen uses the first eight-lines to describe how deaths at war are laid to rest and the sestet to describe how the same thing is done back home (Anthem for Doomed Youth). The rhyme scheme for the sestet is cdecde. This is how the famous poet Francesco Petrarca, thus why it is named the "Petrarchan Sonnet" chose to write his sonnets. However William Shakespeare, a famous English poet, used another sonnet-rhyming scheme his is as follows: The first twelve lines are made up of three quatrains (blocks of four lines linked by rhyme). The last two lines form a rhyming couplet, e.g. a rhyming pair: abab, cdcd, efef, gg William Shakespeare is often considered the greatest writer of English literature that ever lived. By 1594 he was a
The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock opens Selected Poems. Remind yourself of the passage from the beginning of the poem as far as and should I then presume/and how should I begin? How effective do you find this passage as an
'The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock' opens Selected Poems. Remind yourself of the passage from the beginning of the poem as far as 'and should I then presume/and how should I begin?' How effective do you find this passage as an introduction to Eliot's methods and concerns? 'The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock' is in many ways a comical poem, a mockery of a man lacking confidence and the ability to progress. It seems that Eliot is portraying the desperation felt by this character and how it seems to hinder so many aspects of his life. An element of self-portrayal can be detected throughout the poem. For example, the name 'J. Alfred Prufrock' follows the early form of Eliot's signature 'T. Stearns Eliot'. This is simply a small suggestion that Eliot sees a part of himself in Prufrock. Although the signs are subtle, it is possible that having experienced the issues raised in the poem Eliot is putting forth many of his own fears and worries. The name 'Prufrock' in itself is rather comical. It can be related to a touchstone (proof rock). This was normally used to assess the purity of precious metals. Therefore it can be assumed that Eliot is implying that the character of Prufrock is always assessing others, who perhaps he sees as better than himself, or of more value. This lack of self-confidence again emphasises weakness and desperation. The 'restless nights' spent in 'one
According to what principles, and for what purposes, do Twentieth Century women-writers revise and rewrite fairy tales? You should illustrate your answer from at least three stories.
According to what principles, and for what purposes, do Twentieth Century women-writers revise and rewrite fairy tales? You should illustrate your answer from at least three stories. Fairy tales of the Sixteenth to Eighteenth Century were created as traditional narratives advocating gender roles and employed as a means of preserving the established patriarchal order. Traditionally, termed as 'old wives' tales' the stories became female, oral narratives. However, the male rewrites of Perrault and the brothers Grimm led to a prevalent masculine orientated message. Such campaigning for the male agenda begged a feminist response in the Twentieth Century. Through her collection of fairy tales, The Bloody Chamber, Angela Carter, Recovered a female tradition of story telling obscured by the popularity of such male adaptations as Charles Perrault, the brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Andersen.'1 Carter embraces the subversive potential of the fairy tale and undermines the fixing of gender roles and natural laws through focusing upon the intermediate grey areas between the masculine and the feminine, childhood and adulthood, animal and human. The impact of the feminist perspective has served to revolutionise a genre that only appears to be impartial and uncomplicated through its categorising as a mode of story telling aimed at children. The feminist perspective has
Discuss how the concept of courtly love is represented in the Franklin's tale.
Discuss how the concept of courtly love is represented in the Franklin's tale. Courtly love is a common theme within the Franklin's Tale, and different characters seem to have different attitudes and approaches towards the concept. For example, Aurelius seems to see it as a somewhat more lustful pursuit than Averagus; he presumably went through the process of courtly love to marry Dorigen, but his vows suggest that he has genuine love for Dorigen. Throughout the Tale, Chaucer seems to poke fun at the idea of courtly love via the Franklin's comments. This could either be Chaucer representing the idea of courtly love as interpreted by Aurelius as foolish, or the traditional ideas behind it. Traditionally, courtly love was like a game, in which a noble young man, often a knight or squire, would attempt to woo a lady. Usually, it would be a lady of higher status, and it was not uncommon for her to be married as well. The lady would always be in control, and the young man would perform many foolhardy and dangerous deeds to get her attention. It was, in theory, a chaste pursuit, and not for sexual purposes; Aurelius clearly sees it differently. The brave and foolhardy deeds to the whim of the lady then continue until she shows some form of concern or pity toward the young man; then, there is supposed to be a secret, painful passion between the two, and they get married unless she
Epic convention - Rape of the Lock
How does Pope use epic conventions in Canto I? 'The Rape of the Lock' is a mock-epic, which essentially means Pope makes fun of the typical epic genre by parodying typical epic conventions. Such parody is used continuously throughout Canto I by Pope such as the ominous warning, supernatural creatures and guardians. Through these, Pope pokes fun at the characters, such as Belinda, in the hope of pointing out the triviality of the argument between the two feuding families the play is concerned with. The first epic convention Pope parodies is the invocation of the muse in the form of "Caryll" - John Caryll (a friend who had asked Pope to write the poem in the hope of uniting the two families through humour). In Greek mythology - which is the cornerstone of many epic myths and tales - the muse were mythical and magical beings who inspired. Therefore, Pope's calling upon a muse seems to give the poem an almost holy theme, which when compared with the realistic events (arguments due to a lock of hair) it is clearly a parody and nothing more. Also, Pope's supernatural beings extends to Sylphs, who Ariel - Belinda's guardian Sylph - eventually reveal to being the outcome of "coquettes" (frivolous, flirtatious women). They are first thought to be holy and noble, for they are "inhabitants of Air!", are viewed to be similar to angels and guard Belinda, but are then revealed to be
Geoffrey Chaucer provides humor in many of the tales from Canterbury Tales.
Canterbury Tales tells many stories from medieval literature and provides a great variety of comic tales. Geoffrey Chaucer injects many tales of humor into the novel. Chaucer provides the reader with many light-hearted tales as a form of comic relief between many serious tales. The author interpolates humor into many tales, provides comic relief, and shows the reader a different type of humorous genre. Geoffrey Chaucer provides humor in many of the tales from Canterbury Tales. The Miller's Tale is one such tale. In the Miller's Tale, a carpenter marries an eighteen-year-old girl named Alison. The carpenter also houses a cleric named Nicholas. The clever Nicholas tries to take advantage of the carpenter's young wife while he goes away. Alison begins to like Nicholas and tells him that if he can trick her husband, then she will make love to him. Another man, Absalom attempts to capture Alison's love, but "Alison loved clever Nicholas so much that Absalom could go blow his horn elsewhere."(Canterbury Tales 65). Nicholas comes up with a plan to trick the carpenter. He tells the husband that he knows another great flood will come and that he, the carpenter, and Alison will be safe if the carpenter builds three separate barrels and hangs them from the ceiling where they can climb to safety. On that night, all three climb into the barrels and the carpenter immediately
