Prologue To The Canterbury Tales As Picture Gallery

Of 14th Century
The Prologue as the Picture Gallery Of 14
th
Century
Coghill in his book on Chaucer says; He has painted the real
picture of England of the 14
th
century . Another critic Campton
Rickett says; Like Shakespeare, Chaucer makes it his business
to paint life as he sees it and paves others to say the morals.
Another famous critic Legouis says; Chaucers pilgrims
belongs to his own age. They are as they were in reality. They
are true to life and form the very background of that history
which is the history of 14
th
century. From the opinions of
famous critics it becomes clear that the prologue is an important
social document, a great social chronicle in which Chaucer
presents with great fidelity the body and the soul of the society
of his own times. It is the full-blooded and full-flooded view of
the variegated panorama of the 14
th
century. In other words he
holds a mirror to his age. It has been rightly said that Prologue
evinces the true color and aroma of the 14
th
century England. In
fact, the twenty nine pilgrims encompass the whole range of the
English society of Chaucers time excluding of course the
highest and the lowest. In the words of Dryden; There is Gods
plenty. Chaucers view is humanistic view. He was writing
from a worldly and secular angle which includes in its range
both the good and the bad because he knows that the warp and
woof of life is made up of both the angels and the devils. That is
why there is an unprejudiced acceptance of everything. This is
what makes him the impartial and objective in his presentation
of the life of his age. If we have the noble person like the Poor
Parson of the town on the one hand we have also the rogues like
the Pardoner and the Friar on the other hand.
Chaucers world was the Medieval world. It was the age of
chivalry and ecclesiastics. The knight is the symbol of Medieval
world of chivalry in the traditional sews. With him his son The
Squire who represents the new trends which were making in
road in the old system. The knight of Chaucer belongs to that
order in which the sword was combined with the cross that is
why all the wars in which knight participated were the religious
wars or The Crusades fought against the infidels. The prologue
began with the knight and the stories also began with the story
of the knight. This is the indication that the knight was the most
respectable person of the social hierarchy of the Medieval
Times.
The second aspect of the 14
th
century thats reflected in the
Prologue is that Chaucers world was basically the religious
world. That is why the ecclesiastical group has such a large
representation. Now the ecclesiast in general reflect the wide
spread decadence that has come in the religious ranks. Although
the majority is irreligious and corrupt and there is all-pervading
profligacy yet all wars not lost. There were some noble and
really devoted ecclesiast like poor Parson of the town who acted
upon the Christian principles in latter and spirit. Chaucer has
portrayed the religious characters like the Monk and the Prioress
as strongly leaning toward the worldliness. That is why they
evince the glamour and glory of this world. Inspite of living a
religious piety and purity they are indulging in this worlds
grandeur and aristocratic showiness by showing courtly
manners.
The Prologue also reflects the 14
th
century in another way. The
very framework of the poem is symptomatic of Chaucers age
and pilgrims were familiar figures. Thus Chaucer says that he
met 29 persons in the Tabard Inn who were going to the shrine
of the Saint Thomas A. Backet and Pilgrims were they all. In
fact people from all walks of life would assemble as we have the
modern Haj companionships. Only Chaucers caravans were
much larger and more kaleidoscopic and thus more socially
representatives. The pilgrims were in there holiday moods were
relaxed and self-revealing. The journey was undertaken on
horses and the pilgrims forgetting all social formalities,
distinction, prohibitions and prejudices of daily life.

Thus Chaucer was provided with simple opportunity to peep
onto their souls and bring out their true personalities. On the
external side Chaucer described their dresses, their manner, their
weapons, their jokes and their pleasantries and thus gave a vivid
picture of these merry persons. From the knight to the
ploughman we have the highest and the lowest position
respectively of the Medieval social hierarchy. In this way we
have evince the color and temperament of this grand social
pageant internally, we have their real thinking and attitudes. For
example, the knight is noble and serious, the squire is fresh and
youthful, the wife of bath is formally religious but informally
lascivious, the friar, the pardoner and the summoner are real
rogues under the veneer (disguise) of religion, the Monk and the
Prioress are worldly minded and away from religion though the
members of the ecclesiast system. In the poor Parson and his
brother Ploughman Chaucer has presented the pristine portraits
of true Christianity. Thus the pictures are perfect and complete
externally as well as externally. It is the all-ranging variegated
vista of the 14
th
century. And Drydens observation is very opt
when he says that Here is Gods plenty.
There is another dimension (aspect) from which Chaucer parse
the social chronicle of the 14
th
century. He presents his
characters as types i.e. the type of people as they were found in
his century. But he has shown them individuals also. Moreover,
he has also pointed out disperse between the ideal and the real
because a decadence and disintegration was appearing. Chaucer
was realistic and he presented what he saw and observed around
him. He was no reformer or preacher. He was a painter, an artist
and a social historian. So he could not close his eyes to the great
difference between the real and the ideal, the corrupt and the
pure. Thus when he presented the profligacy (corruption) of the
ecclesiast in the persons of the Monk, the Friar, the Summoner
and the Pardoner, along with them he also presents the noble
spirituality of the poor Parson of the town who practiced what
he preached. He satirizes the corrupt and idealizes the pure. But
this satire is not bitter or scathing. It is rather gentle, tolerate,
sympathetic and genial. It springs from his love of humanity. It
reflects his broad humanitarianism in which angels and devils go
together.
Chaucer is also representative poet of his century. His age was
Medieval and Modern. Although 14
th
century was basically age
of transition. The old order was changing giving place to new.
The age of chivalry and religion was waning and almost
vanishing and the new off shoots of modernity (later on known
as Renaissance) were appearing. Thus as an individuals their
humanistic or modern sides are emphasized. Chaucer
emphasizes this transitional aspect of his century. In fact the
tinge (taint) of the Medieval religiosity is disintegrating and
secular outlook is gaining ground. This is epitomized by their
worldliness of the Prioress and the Monk who are indulging in
every worldly activity which they were not suppo0sed to do
religiously. In the words of Campton Rickett; There was the
leaven of the Renaissance, beneath Medievalism. That is why
Chaucer has been righty called as The Morning Star of
Renaissance and The Evening Star of the Medievalism. Thus
we find a fine juxtaposition of the old and the new, the
Renaissance and the medievalism. Regarding Chokers position
as the representative poet of 14
th
century. The final judgment
comes Chaucer symbolizes as no other poet does the Middle
Ages"