eral Prologue to The Canterbury Tales”. [2015]
Geoffrey Chaucer (1340–1400) is the first great realist and humorist in English literature. Satire means laughing at human faults to teach truth. Humour means making people smile with love, not hate. Irony means the opposite of what is said. In “The General Prologue to The Canterbury Tales,” Chaucer uses these three. He paints the pilgrims at The Tabard Inn in Southwark with laughter and gentle truth.
The Pilgrimage: Chaucer sets his story at the Tabard Inn in Southwark. Chaucer says,
“Wel nyne and twenty in a compaignye.”
They gather to go to Canterbury. This journey becomes a picture of English society. There are nobles like the Knight, churchmen like the Monk and Friar, and commoners like the Miller and Cook. Chaucer’s humour shines when he mixes them together in one inn. It is funny to see a holy nun, a fat monk, and a noisy miller sharing one meal. But behind the laughter, there is gentle satire. Chaucer shows that all classes, high or low, have weaknesses. His humour makes the truth soft and delightful.
Religious Corruption: Chaucer laughs at the church people with loving wit, not anger. The Prioress is a nun. She represents the religious life of women in the 14th century. She is kind-hearted but sentimental. She cries even when she sees a mouse caught in a trap. Chaucer says,
“She wolde wepe, if that she saugh a mouse
Kaught in a trappe.”
But she loves her little dogs more than the poor. Then comes the Monk, who loves hunting more than prayer. Next comes Friar Huberd. He knows,
“The tavernes wel in every toun.”
He avoids the poor. Chaucer mocks him softly through humour. The Pardoner sells false relics and pardons for money. The Summoner calls people to the church court but takes bribes to let them go free. This is how Chaucer comically satirizes the religious characters.
The World of Merchant and Common Life: Chaucer also turns his eye toward the new merchant class of London. At The Tabard Inn, business and laughter meet. The Merchant looks rich but hides his debts. Chaucer says about him,
“Wel koude he in eschaunge sheeldes selle.”
The line sounds simple but hides quiet irony. He knows how to trade, but not how to pay.
The Cook is a master of food. But he had a bad wound or infection on his leg. The sore on his leg becomes a comic but realistic detail. Chaucer’s humour lies in small truths, his satire in observation. He shows that greed and weakness live even among honest workers. This balance of laughter and lesson makes his art timeless.
The Spirit of Womanhood: Chaucer’s humour becomes delicate when he writes of women. The Wife of Bath, named Alisoun, is bold, talkative, and full of joy. She has travelled to Jerusalem, Rome, and Cologne and has had five husbands. Chaucer writes with a twinkle in his eye,
“Of remedies of love she knew per chaunce.”
This line makes us smile. It is humorous yet satirical. She is proud, loud, and full of life. Through her, Chaucer celebrates freedom and mocks vanity at once. The Prioress and Second Nun show the two faces of medieval womanhood, one worldly, one pure. Through these women, Chaucer’s humour glows with human sympathy, never bitterness.
In “The General Prologue to The Canterbury Tales,” Chaucer blends humour and satire like sun and shadow. He smiles at every fault but hates none. At The Tabard Inn, his pilgrims laugh, talk, and reveal all sides of human life, pride, greed, love, and faith. Through laughter, he teaches. Through irony, he heals. That is why Chaucer remains the gentlest satirist and truest humorist in English literature.
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