Cantebury Tales essays

Cantebury Tales essays Geoffrey Chaucer depicts different aspects of medieval English society through his use of various characters in his work, The Canterbury Tales. The characters he uses are all unique in their occupations, attitudes, and social status. Each characters tale reflects various aspects of Chaucerian society. Many of these problems are still evident in todays society. The Wife of Baths tale opens with a Knight raping a young woman. Sexual assault is still a substantial problem facing the world today. In using the Knight, Chaucer shows that no one is above such a horrific act of violation. It still is a prominent issue in the twentieth century that many people must face and learn to overcome. All to often, people are judged by appearance or status in life rather than what is really important. Chaucer displays this issue through the Knight not wanting to fulfill his responsibilities to the old woman. It is only after she turns into a beautiful young woman that the knight looks forward to fulfilling his obligation to her. In American society people tend to focus on looks or material possessions as opposed to inner qualities. The Pardoner bases his tale on the consequences of greed and deception. Due to the fact that society often judges people on their status, they strive to become wealthy . Their overall concern with gaining wealth leads to greed. People put morals and values aside to achieve a position of power. They will do what it takes to attain their ambitions even if it means deceiving a friend to do so. This has been an detriment to society through the centuries. Issues that Chaucerian society faces have lasted through the ages. The social, moral, political, and religious issues that Chaucer depicts in The Canterbury Tales, are still prominent in the Twentieth Century. ...