Prothalamion

Prothalamion, the commonly used name of Prothalamion; or, A Spousall Verse in Honour
of the Double Marriage of Ladie Elizabeth and Ladie Katherine Somerset,[1] is a poem
by Edmund Spenser (15521599), one of the important poets of the Tudor Period in England.
Published in 1596[1] (see 1596 in poetry), it is a nuptial song that he composed that year on the
occasion of the twin marriage of the daughters of the Earl of Worcester; Elizabeth Somerset
and Katherine Somerset.
Prothalamion is written in the conventional form of a marriage song. The poem begins with a
description of the River Thames where Spenser finds two beautiful maidens. The poet
proceeds to praise them and wishing them all the blessings for their marriages. The poem
begins with a fine description of the day when on which he is writing the poem. "Calm was
the day and through the trembling air/The sweet breathing Zephyrus did softly play." The
poet is standing near the Thames River and finds a group of nymphs with baskets collecting
flowers for the new brides. The poet tells us that they are happily making the bridal crowns
for Elizabeth and Katherine. He goes on his poem describing two swans at the Thames,
relating it to the myth of Jove and Leda. According to the myth, Jove falls in love with Leda
and comes to court her in the guise of a beautiful swan. The poet feels that the Thames has
done justice to his nuptial song by "flowing softly" according to his request: "Sweet Thames
run softly till I end my song." The poem is often grouped with Spenser's poem about his own
marriage, the Epithalamion.
Edmund Spenser's Epithalamion is an ode written to his bride, Elizabeth Boyle, on their
wedding day in 1594. It was first published in 1595 in London by William Ponsonby as part
of a volume entitled Amoretti and Epithalamion. Written not long since by Edmunde Spenser.
The volume included the sequence of 89 sonnets (Amoretti), along with a series of short
poems called Anacreontics and the Epithalamion, a public poetic celebration of marriage.[1]
Only six complete copies of this first edition remain today, including one at the Folger
Shakespeare Library and one at the Bodleian Library. The ode begins with an invocation to
the Muses to help the groom, and moves through the couple's wedding day, from Spenser's
impatient hours before dawn while waiting for his bride to wake up, to the late hours of night
after Spenser and Boyle have consummated their marriage (wherein Spenser's thoughts drift
towards the wish for his bride to have a fertile womb, so that they may have many children).

Importance of time[edit]
Spenser meticulously records the hours of the day from before dawn to late into the wedding
night. The Epithalamion is also 365 long lines, corresponding to the days in a year. The ode's
content progresses from the enthusiasm of youth to the concerns of middle age by beginning
with high hopes for a joyful day and ending with an eye toward the speaker's legacy to future
generations

The use of symbols is a remarkable aspect of Shellys poetry. The symbol Shelley uses in his
poems has become the universal symbols. His symbols are very conspicuous and rich in
metaphorical implication.
In Ode to West Wind the west wind is symbolized as destroyer as well as a preserver. It is
seen as a great power of nature that destroys in order to create, that kills the unhealthy and the
decaying to make way for the new and the fresh. Shelley believes that without destruction,
life can not continue. This symbolization of the wind as both "preserver" and "destroyer"
furthers this hypothesis
He envisions the West Wind as a devastating force that has the strength to destroy the evils of
the existing society and preserves the good thing of it. He sees it as a symbol of destruction
and preservation, decay and regeneration death and resurrection. He invokes the West Wind
to free his dead thoughts in order to prophecy a Renaissance among humanity to quicken a
new birth.
In the beginning of the poem we find the destructive loon of the West wind.
In the first stanza of the poem the poet addresses the west wind as "Wild" and the "Breath of
Autumn's Being." It is a powerful force which drives the dead leaves which are yellow, black,
pale and hectic red, to distant places like ghosts from an enchanter. The west wind carries
winged seeds to their dark wintry beds underground.
Thou, from whose unseen presence the leaves dead
Are driven, like ghosts from an enchanter fleeing,
As a preserver west wind scatters the seeds and covers them with dust. Along with the dead
leaves the West Wind scatters the seeds and covers them with dust. When the spring comes,
the scattered seeds beget new plants. The new plants with their luxuriant foliage and flowers
of bring colors and odors fill the landscape. Thus the nature gets a new life and a new look.
So, symbolically the west wind is a destroyer of old modes of life and old customs and
preserver of new ways of thoughts and new patterns of life.
He uses four kinds of colors namely yellow, black, pale, and hectic red in order to
characterize the leaves dead. The colors are the colors of diseases. The leaves dead also
symbolize all the aged practices, customs, traditions, institutions, rites and rituals.
The West wind also expresses the very spirit of Shelly. He envisions that the invisible West
Wind scatters the clouds in the sky. These clouds are the signals of the coming rain. Rain
carries away all the evils from the nature and brings a new look change. Shelley hopes that
his rain of thoughts would cause regeneration among mankind sweeping away all the
unjust. Thus, Shelleys great passion for the regeneration of mankind and rebirth of a new
world finds a fitting expression in the symbolization of the West Wind.
Shelly also symbolize the closing night as the dome of a vast tomb, in which the closing year
will be buried. The accumulated water vapors also make the roof over the dying year and the
atmosphere seems to be solid because of thick layers of dense clouds. The point is that Wind
operates with the same and single point agenda: it destroys the dead and preserves the living.

Shelley also symbolize the Mediterranean as a person who is sleeping and dreaming of
destruction of the palaces. During summer the Mediterranean and the Roman palaces and, the
towers which remain submerged, are all quiet as if they seem to be sleeping because no
storms appear to ruffle the surface of the sea in that season. But the wind agitates the sea and
the palaces seem to quiver on account of the tremendous motion of the waves.
Thy voice, and suddenly grow gray with fear,
And tremble and despoil themselves: oh, hear!
Shelly expresses the hope that his dead thoughts will quicken a new birth and bring about a
new condition of human life. Thus the poem ends with a note of hope and optimism: O Wind,
If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?
This winter symbolizes all the corruption, tyranny, superstition, social customs and social
institutions of Shelleys time. On the other hand spring stands for new life, free from all
obstacles. Winter signifies death while spring brings us consciousness of regeneration of new
life. Shelley believes that suffering will come to an end and joy and happiness will prevail as
winter is followed by spring.

Doctor Faustus (Marlowe) Summary | GradeSaver

Doctor Faustus, a talented German scholar at Wittenburg, rails against the limits of human
knowledge. He has learned everything he can learn, or so he thinks, from the conventional academic
disciplines. All of these things have left him unsatisfied, so now he turns to magic. A Good Angle
and an Evil Angel arrive, representing Faustus' choice between Christian conscience and the path to
damnation. The former advises him to leave off this pursuit of magic, and the latter tempts him.
From two fellow scholars, Valdes and Cornelius, Faustus learns the fundamentals of the black arts.
He thrills at the power he will have, and the great feats he'll perform. He summons the devil
Mephostophilis. They flesh out the terms of their agreement, with Mephostophilis representing
Lucifer. Faustus will sell his soul, in exchange for twenty-four years of power, with Mephostophilis
as servant to his every whim.
In a comic relief scene, we learn that Faustus' servant Wagner has gleaned some magic learning. He
uses it to convince Robin the Clown to be his servant.
Before the time comes to sign the contract, Faustus has misgivings, but he puts them aside.
Mephostophilis returns, and Faustus signs away his soul, writing with his own blood. The words
"Homo fuge" ("Fly, man) appear on his arm, and Faustus is seized by fear. Mephostophilis distracts
him with a dance of devils. Faustus requests a wife, a demand Mephostophilis denies, but he does
give Faustus books full of knowledge.
Some time has passed. Faustus curses Mephostophilis for depriving him of heaven, although he has
seen many wonders. He manages to torment Mephostophilis, he can't stomach mention of God, and
the devil flees. The Good Angel and Evil Angel arrive again. The Good Angel tells him to repent,
and the Evil Angel tells him to stick to his wicked ways. Lucifer, Belzebub, and Mephostophilis
return, to intimidate Faustus. He is cowed by them, and agrees to speak and think no more of God.
They delight him with a pageant of the Seven Deadly Sins, and then Lucifer promises to show
Faustus hell. Meanwhile, Robin the Clown has gotten one of Faustus' magic books.
Faustus has explored the heavens and the earth from a chariot drawn by dragons, and is now flying
to Rome, where the feast honoring St. Peter is about to be celebrated. Mephostophilis and Faustus
wait for the Pope, depicted as an arrogant, decidedly unholy man. They play a series of tricks, by
using magic to disguise themselves and make themselves invisible, before leaving.
The Chorus returns to tell us that Faustus returns home, where his vast knowledge of astronomy and
his abilities earn him wide renown. Meanwhile, Robin the Clown has also learned magic, and uses
it to impress his friend Rafe and summon Mephostophilis, who doesn't seem too happy to be called.
At the court of Charles V, Faustus performs illusions that delight the Emperor. He also humiliates a
knight named Benvolio. When Benvolio and his friends try to avenge the humiliation, Faustus has
his devils hurt them and cruelly transform them, so that horns grow on their heads.
Faustus swindles a Horse-courser, and when the Horse-courser returns, Faustus plays a frightening
trick on him. Faustus then goes off to serve the Duke of Vanholt. Robin the Clown, his friend Dick,
the Horse-courser, and a Carter all meet. They all have been swindled or hurt by Faustus' magic.
They go off to the court of the Duke to settle scores with Faustus.
Faustus entertains the Duke and Duchess with petty illusions, before Robin the Clown and his band

of ruffians arrives. Faustus toys with them, besting them with magic, to the delight of the Duke and
Duchess.
Faustus' twenty-four years are running out. Wagner tells the audience that he thinks Faustus
prepares for death. He has made his will, leaving all to Wagner. But even as death approaches,
Faustus spends his days feasting and drinking with the other students. For the delight of his fellow
scholars, Faustus summons a spirit to take the shape of Helen of Troy. Later, an Old Man enters,
warning Faustus to repent. Faustus opts for pleasure instead, and asks Mephostophilis to bring
Helen of Troy to him, to be his love and comfort during these last days. Mephostophilis readily
agrees.
Later, Faustus tells his scholar friends that he is damned, and that his power came at the price of his
soul. Concerned, the Scholars exit, leaving Faustus to meet his fate.
As the hour approaches, Mephostophilis taunts Faustus. Faustus blames Mephostophilis for his
damnation, and the devil proudly takes credit for it. The Good and Evil Angel arrive, and the Good
Angel abandons Faustus. The gates of Hell open. The Evil Angel taunts Faustus, naming the
horrible tortures seen there.
The Clock strikes eleven. Faustus gives a final, frenzied monologue, regretting his choices. At
midnight the devils enter. As Faustus begs God and the devil for mercy, the devils drag him away.
Later, the Scholar friends find Faustus' body, torn to pieces.
Epilogue. The Chorus emphasizes that Faustus is gone, his once-great potential wasted. The Chorus
warns the audience to remember his fall, and the lessons it offers.

Robinson Crusoe
Robinson Crusoe is a youth of about eighteen years old who resides in Hull, England.
Although his father wishes him to become a lawyer, Crusoe dreams of going on sea voyages.
He disregards the fact that his two older brothers are gone because of their need for
adventure. His father cautions that a middle-class existence is the most stable. Robinson
ignores him. When his parents refuse to let him take at least one journey, he runs away with a
friend and secures free passage to London. Misfortune begins immediately, in the form of
rough weather. The ship is forced to land at Yarmouth. When Crusoe's friend learns the
circumstances under which he left his family, he becomes angry and tells him that he should
have never come to the sea. They part, and Crusoe makes his way to London via land. He
thinks briefly about going home, but cannot stand to be humiliated. He manages to find
another voyage headed to Guiana. Once there, he wants to become a trader. On the way, the
ship is attacked by Turkish pirates, who bring the crew and passengers into the Moorish port
of Sallee. Robinson is made a slave. For two years he plans an escape. An opportunity is
presented when he is sent out with two Moorish youths to go fishing. Crusoe throws one
overboard, and tells the other one, called Xury, that he may stay if he is faithful. They anchor
on what appears to be uninhabited land. Soon they see that black people live there. These
natives are very friendly to Crusoe and Xury. At one point, the two see a Portuguese ship in
the distance. They manage to paddle after it and get the attention of those on board. The
captain is kind and says he will take them aboard for free and bring them to Brazil.

Robinson goes to Brazil and leaves Xury with the captain. The captain and a widow in
England are Crusoe's financial guardians. In the new country, Robinson observes that much
wealth comes from plantations. He resolves to buy one for himself. After a few years, he has
some partners, and they are all doing very well financially. Crusoe is presented with a new
proposition: to begin a trading business. These men want to trade slaves, and they want
Robinson to be the master of the tradepost. Although he knows he has enough money, Crusoe
decides to make the voyage. A terrible shipwreck occurs and Robinson is the only survivor.
He manages to make it to the shore of an island.
Robinson remains on the island for twenty-seven years. He is able to take many provisions
from the ship. In that time, he recreates his English life, building homes, necessities, learning
how to cook, raise goats and crops. He is at first very miserable, but embraces religion as a
balm for his unhappiness. He is able to convince himself that he lives a much better life here
than he did in Europe--much more simple, much less wicked. He comes to appreciate his
sovereignty over the entire island. One time he tries to use a boat to explore the rest of the
island, but he is almost swept away, and does not make the attempt again. He has pets whom
he treats as subjects. There is no appearance of man until about 15 years into his stay. He sees
a footprint, and later observes cannibalistic savages eating prisoners. They don't live on the
island; they come in canoes from a mainland not too far away. Robinson is filled with
outrage, and resolves to save the prisoners the next time these savages appear. Some years
later they return. Using his guns, Crusoe scares them away and saves a young savage whom
he names Friday.
Friday is extremely grateful and becomes Robinson's devoted servant. He learns some
English and takes on the Christian religion. For some years the two live happily. Then,
another ship of savages arrives with three prisoners. Together Crusoe and Friday are able to
save two of them. One is a Spaniard; the other is Friday's father. Their reunion is very joyous.
Both have come from the mainland close by. After a few months, they leave to bring back the
rest of the Spaniard's men. Crusoe is happy that his island is being peopled. Before the
Spaniard and Friday's father can return, a boat of European men comes ashore. There are
three prisoners. While most of the men are exploring the island, Crusoe learns from one that
he is the captain of a ship whose crew mutinied. Robinson says he will help them as long as
they leave the authority of the island in his hands, and as long as they promise to take Friday
and himself to England for free. The agreement is made. Together this little army manages to
capture the rest of the crew and retake the captain's ship. Friday and Robinson are taken to
England. Even though Crusoe has been gone thirty-five years, he finds that his plantations
have done well and he is very wealthy. He gives money to the Portuguese captain and the
widow who were so kind to him. He returns to the English countryside and settles there,
marrying and having three children. When his wife dies, he once more goes to the sea.

Robinson Crusoe
Robinson Crusoe is an Englishman from the town of York in the seventeenth century, the
youngest son of a merchant of German origin. Encouraged by his father to study law, Crusoe
expresses his wish to go to sea instead. His family is against Crusoe going out to sea, and his
father explains that it is better to seek a modest, secure life for oneself. Initially, Robinson is
committed to obeying his father, but he eventually succumbs to temptation and embarks on a
ship bound for London with a friend. When a storm causes the near deaths of Crusoe and his
friend, the friend is dissuaded from sea travel, but Crusoe still goes on to set himself up as
merchant on a ship leaving London. This trip is financially successful, and Crusoe plans

another, leaving his early profits in the care of a friendly widow. The second voyage does not
prove as fortunate: the ship is seized by Moorish pirates, and Crusoe is enslaved to a
potentate in the North African town of Sallee. While on a fishing expedition, he and a slave
boy break free and sail down the African coast. A kindly Portuguese captain picks them up,
buys the slave boy from Crusoe, and takes Crusoe to Brazil. In Brazil, Crusoe establishes
himself as a plantation owner and soon becomes successful. Eager for slave labor and its
economic advantages, he embarks on a slave-gathering expedition to West Africa but ends up
shipwrecked off of the coast of Trinidad.
Crusoe soon learns he is the sole survivor of the expedition and seeks shelter and food for
himself. He returns to the wrecks remains twelve times to salvage guns, powder, food, and
other items. Onshore, he finds goats he can graze for meat and builds himself a shelter. He
erects a cross that he inscribes with the date of his arrival, September 1, 1659, and makes a
notch every day in order never to lose track of time. He also keeps a journal of his household
activities, noting his attempts to make candles, his lucky discovery of sprouting grain, and his
construction of a cellar, among other events. In June 1660, he falls ill and hallucinates that an
angel visits, warning him to repent. Drinking tobacco-steeped rum, Crusoe experiences a
religious illumination and realizes that God has delivered him from his earlier sins. After
recovering, Crusoe makes a survey of the area and discovers he is on an island. He finds a
pleasant valley abounding in grapes, where he builds a shady retreat. Crusoe begins to feel
more optimistic about being on the island, describing himself as its king. He trains a pet
parrot, takes a goat as a pet, and develops skills in basket weaving, bread making, and
pottery. He cuts down an enormous cedar tree and builds a huge canoe from its trunk, but he
discovers that he cannot move it to the sea. After building a smaller boat, he rows around the
island but nearly perishes when swept away by a powerful current. Reaching shore, he hears
his parrot calling his name and is thankful for being saved once again. He spends several
years in peace.
One day Crusoe is shocked to discover a mans footprint on the beach. He first assumes the
footprint is the devils, then decides it must belong to one of the cannibals said to live in the
region. Terrified, he arms himself and remains on the lookout for cannibals. He also builds an
underground cellar in which to herd his goats at night and devises a way to cook
underground. One evening he hears gunshots, and the next day he is able to see a ship
wrecked on his coast. It is empty when he arrives on the scene to investigate. Crusoe once
again thanks Providence for having been saved. Soon afterward, Crusoe discovers that the
shore has been strewn with human carnage, apparently the remains of a cannibal feast. He is
alarmed and continues to be vigilant. Later Crusoe catches sight of thirty cannibals heading
for shore with their victims. One of the victims is killed. Another one, waiting to be
slaughtered, suddenly breaks free and runs toward Crusoes dwelling. Crusoe protects him,
killing one of the pursuers and injuring the other, whom the victim finally kills. Well-armed,
Crusoe defeats most of the cannibals onshore. The victim vows total submission to Crusoe in
gratitude for his liberation. Crusoe names him Friday, to commemorate the day on which his
life was saved, and takes him as his servant.
Finding Friday cheerful and intelligent, Crusoe teaches him some English words and some
elementary Christian concepts. Friday, in turn, explains that the cannibals are divided into
distinct nations and that they only eat their enemies. Friday also informs Crusoe that the
cannibals saved the men from the shipwreck Crusoe witnessed earlier, and that those men,
Spaniards, are living nearby. Friday expresses a longing to return to his people, and Crusoe is
upset at the prospect of losing Friday. Crusoe then entertains the idea of making contact with
the Spaniards, and Friday admits that he would rather die than lose Crusoe. The two build a
boat to visit the cannibals land together. Before they have a chance to leave, they are

surprised by the arrival of twenty-one cannibals in canoes. The cannibals are holding three
victims, one of whom is in European dress. Friday and Crusoe kill most of the cannibals and
release the European, a Spaniard. Friday is overjoyed to discover that another of the rescued
victims is his father. The four men return to Crusoes dwelling for food and rest. Crusoe
prepares to welcome them into his community permanently. He sends Fridays father and the
Spaniard out in a canoe to explore the nearby land.
Eight days later, the sight of an approaching English ship alarms Friday. Crusoe is suspicious.
Friday and Crusoe watch as eleven men take three captives onshore in a boat. Nine of the
men explore the land, leaving two to guard the captives. Friday and Crusoe overpower these
men and release the captives, one of whom is the captain of the ship, which has been taken in
a mutiny. Shouting to the remaining mutineers from different points, Friday and Crusoe
confuse and tire the men by making them run from place to place. Eventually they confront
the mutineers, telling them that all may escape with their lives except the ringleader. The men
surrender. Crusoe and the captain pretend that the island is an imperial territory and that the
governor has spared their lives in order to send them all to England to face justice. Keeping
five men as hostages, Crusoe sends the other men out to seize the ship. When the ship is
brought in, Crusoe nearly faints.
On December 19, 1686, Crusoe boards the ship to return to England. There, he finds his
family is deceased except for two sisters. His widow friend has kept Crusoes money safe,
and after traveling to Lisbon, Crusoe learns from the Portuguese captain that his plantations
in Brazil have been highly profitable. He arranges to sell his Brazilian lands. Wary of sea
travel, Crusoe attempts to return to England by land but is threatened by bad weather and
wild animals in northern Spain. Finally arriving back in England, Crusoe receives word that
the sale of his plantations has been completed and that he has made a considerable fortune.
After donating a portion to the widow and his sisters, Crusoe is restless and considers
returning to Brazil, but he is dissuaded by the thought that he would have to become Catholic.
He marries, and his wife dies. Crusoe finally departs for the East Indies as a trader in 1694.
He revisits his island, finding that the Spaniards are governing it well and that it has become a
prosperous colony.

The Prolouge To The Cantebury Tales

"When April comes with his sweet, fragrant showers, which pierce the dry ground of March,
and bathe every root of every plant in sweet liquid, then people desire to go on pilgrimages."
Thus begins the famous opening to The Canterbury Tales. The narrator (a constructed version
of Chaucer himself) is first discovered staying at the Tabard Inn in Southwark (in London),
when a company of twenty-nine people descend on the inn, preparing to go on a pilgrimage
to Canterbury. After talking to them, he agrees to join them on their pilgrimage.
Yet before the narrator goes any further in the tale, he describes the circumstances and the
social rank of each pilgrim. He describes each one in turn, starting with the highest status
individuals.
The Knight is described first, as befits a 'worthy man' of high status. The Knight has fought in
the Crusades in numerous countries, and always been honored for his worthiness and
courtesy. Everywhere he went, the narrator tells us, he had a 'sovereyn prys' (which could
mean either an 'outstanding reputation', or a price on his head for the fighting he has done).
The Knight is dressed in a 'fustian' tunic, made of coarse cloth, which is stained by the rust
from his coat of chainmail.
The Knight brings with him his son, The Squire, a lover and a lusty bachelor, only twenty
years old. The Squire cuts a rather effeminate figure, his clothes embroidered with red and
white flowers, and he is constantly singing or playing the flute. He is the only pilgrim (other
than, of course, Chaucer himself) who explicitly has literary ambitions: he 'koude songes
make and wel endite' (line 95).
The Yeoman (a freeborn servant) also travels along with the Knight's entourage, and is clad
in coat and hood of green. The Yeoman is excellent at caring for arrows, and travels armed
with a huge amount of weaponry: arrows, a bracer (arm guard), a sword, a buckler, and a
dagger as sharp as a spear. He wears an image of St. Christopher on his breast.
Having now introduced the Knight (the highest ranking pilgrim socially), the narrator now
moves on to the clergy, beginning with The Prioress, called 'Madame Eglantine' (or, in
modern parlance, Mrs. Sweetbriar). She could sweetly sing religious services, speaks fluent
French and has excellent table manners. She is so charitable and piteous, that she would weep
if she saw a mouse caught in a trap, and she has two small dogs with her. She wears a brooch
with the inscription 'Amor vincit omnia' ('Love conquers all'). The Prioress brings with her
her 'chapeleyne' (secretary), the Second Nun.
The Monk is next, an extremely fine and handsome man who loves to hunt, and who follows
modern customs rather than old traditions. This is no bookish monk, studying in a cloister,
but a man who keeps greyhounds to hunt the hare. The Monk is well-fed, fat, and his eyes are
bright, gleaming like a furnace in his head.
The Friar who follows him is also wanton and merry, and he is a 'lymytour' by trade (a friar
licensed to beg in certain districts). He is extremely well beloved of franklins (landowners)
and worthy woman all over the town. He hears confession and gives absolution, and is an
excellent beggar, able to earn himself a farthing wherever he went. His name is Huberd.

The Merchant wears a forked beard, motley clothes and sat high upon his horse. He gives his
opinion very solemnly, and does excellent business as a merchant, never being in any debt.
But, the narrator ominously remarks, 'I noot how men hym calle' (I don't know how men call
him, or think of him).
The Clerk follows the Merchant. A student of Oxford university, he would rather have twenty
books by Aristotle than rich clothes or musical instruments, and thus is dressed in a
threadbare short coat. He only has a little gold, which he tends to spend on books and
learning, and takes huge care and attention of his studies. He never speaks a word more than
is needed, and that is short, quick and full of sentence (the Middle-English word for
'meaningfulness' is a close relation of 'sententiousness').
The Man of Law (referred to here as 'A Sergeant of the Lawe') is a judicious and dignified
man, or, at least, he seems so because of his wise words. He is a judge in the court of assizes,
by letter of appointment from the king, and because of his high standing receives many
grants. He can draw up a legal document, the narrator tells us, and no-one can find a flaw in
his legal writings. Yet, despite all this money and social worth, the Man of Law rides only in
a homely, multi-coloured coat.
A Franklin travels with the Man of Law. He has a beard as white as a daisy, and of the
sanguine humour (dominated by his blood). The Franklin is a big eater, loving a piece of
bread dipped in wine, and is described (though not literally!) as Epicurus' son: the Franklin
lives for culinary delight. His house is always full of meat pie, fish and meat, so much so that
it 'snewed in his hous of mete and drynke'. He changes his meats and drinks according to
what foods are in season.
A Haberdasher and a Carpenter, a Weaver, a Dyer and a Tapycer (weaver of tapestries) are
next described, all of them clothed in the same distinctive guildsman's dress. Note that none
of these pilgrims, in the end, actually tell a tale.
A Cook had been brought along to boil the chicken up with marrow bones and spices, but this
particular Cook knows a draught of ale very well indeed, according to the narrator. The Cook
could roast and simmer and boil and fry, make stews and hashes and bake a pie well, but it
was a great pity that, on his shin, he has an ulcer.
A Shipman from Dartmouth is next - tanned brown from the hot summer sun, riding upon a
carthorse, and wearing a gown of coarse woolen cloth which reaches to his knees. The
Shipman had, many times, drawn a secret draught of wine on board ship, while the merchant
was asleep. The Shipman has weathered many storms, and knows his trade: he knows the
locations of all the harbors from Gotland to Cape Finistere. His shape is called 'the
Maudelayne'.
A Doctor of Medicine is the next pilgrim described, clad in red and blue, and no-one in the
world can match him in speaking about medicine and surgery. He knows the cause of every
illness, what humor engenders them, and how to cure them. He is a perfect practitioner of
medicine, and he has apothecaries ready to send him drugs and mixtures. He is well-read in
the standard medical authorities, from the Greeks right through to Chaucer's contemporary
Gilbertus Anglicus. The Doctor, however, has not studied the Bible.

The Wife of Bath was 'somdel deef' (a little deaf, as her tale will later expand upon) and that
was a shame. The Wife of Bath is so adept at making cloth that she surpasses even the clothmaking capitals of Chaucer's world, Ypres and Ghent, and she wears coverchiefs (linen
coverings for the head) which must (the narrator assumes) have 'weyeden ten pound'. She had
had five husbands through the church door, and had been at Jerusalem, Rome and Boulogne
on pilgrimage. She is also described as 'Gat-tothed' (traditionally denoting lasciviousness),
and as keeping good company, she knows all the answers about love: 'for she koude of that
art the olde daunce' (she knew the whole dance as far as love is concerned!).
A good religious man, A Parson of a Town, is next described, who, although poor in goods, is
rich in holy thought and work. He's a learned man, who truly preaches Christ's gospel, and
devoutly teaches his parishioners. He travels across his big parish to visit all of his
parishioners, on his feet, carrying a staff in his hand. He is a noble example to his
parishioners ('his sheep', as they are described) because he acts first, and preaches second (or,
in Chaucer's phrase, 'first he wroghte, and afterward he taughte'). The narrator believes that
there is no better priest to be found anywhere.
With the Parson travels a Plowman (who does not tell a tale), who has hauled many cartloads
of dung in his time. He is a good, hard-working man, who lives in peace and charity, and
treats his neighbor as he would be treated. He rides on a mare, and wears a tabard (a
workman's loose garment).
A Miller comes next, in this final group of pilgrims (now at the bottom of the class scale!).
He is big-boned and has big muscles, and always wins the prize in wrestling matches. There's
not a door that he couldn't lift off its hinges, or break it by running at it head-first. He has
black, wide nostrils, carries a sword and a buckler (shield) by his side, and has a mouth like a
great furnace. He's good at stealing corn and taking payment for it three times. But then,
Chaucer implies, there are no honest millers.
A noble Manciple (a business agent, purchaser of religious provisions) is the next pilgrim to
be described, and a savvy financial operator. Though a common man, the Manciple can run
rings round even a 'heep of lerned men'. The Manciple, his description ominously ends, 'sette
hir aller cappe': deceived them all.
The Reeve, a slender, choleric man, long-legged and lean ("ylyk a staf"). He knows exactly
how much grain he has, and is excellent at keeping his granary and his grain bin. There is no
bailiff, herdsman or servant about whom the Reeve does not know something secret or
treacherous; as a result, they are afraid of him 'as of the deeth'.
The Summoner is next, his face fire-red and pimpled, with narrow eyes. He has a skin disease
across his black brows, and his beard (which has hair falling out of it) and he is extremely
lecherous. There is, the narrator tells us, no ointment or cure, or help him to remove his
pimples. He loves drinking wine which is as 'reed as blood', and eating leeks, onions and
garlic. He knows how to trick someone.
Travelling with the Summoner is a noble Pardoner, his friend and his companion (in what
sense Chaucer intends the word 'compeer', meaning companion, nobody knows) and the last
pilgrim-teller to be described. He sings loudly 'Come hither, love to me', and has hair as
yellow as wax, which hangs like flaxen from his head. He carries a wallet full of pardons in
his lap, brimful of pardons come from Rome. The Pardoner is sexually ambiguous - he has a

thin, boyish voice, and the narrator wonders whether he is a 'geldyng or a mare' (a eunuch or
a homosexual).
The narrator writes that he has told us now of the estate (the class), the array (the clothing),
and the number of pilgrims assembled in this company. He then makes an important
statement of intent for what is to come: he who repeats a tale told by another man, the
narrator says, must repeat it as closely as he possibly can to the original teller - and thus, if
the tellers use obscene language, it is not our narrator's fault.
The Host is the last member of the company described, a large man with bright, large eyes and an extremely fair man. The Host welcomes everyone to the inn, and announces the
pilgrimage to Canterbury, and decides that, on the way there, the company shall 'talen and
pleye' (to tell stories and amuse themselves). Everyone consents to the Host's plan for the
game, and he then goes on to set it out.
What the Host describes is a tale-telling game, in which each pilgrim shall tell two tales on
the way to Canterbury, and two more on the way home; whoever tells the tale 'of best
sentence and moost solas' shall have supper at the cost of all of the other pilgrims, back at the
Inn, once the pilgrimage returns from Canterbury. The pilgrims agree to the Host's
suggestion, and agree to accord to the Host's judgment as master of the tale-telling game.
Everyone then goes to bed.
The next morning, the Host awakes, raises everyone up, and 'in a flok' the pilgrimage rides
towards 'the Wateryng of Seint Thomas', a brook about two miles from London. The Host
asks the pilgrims to draw lots to see who shall tell the first tale, the Knight being asked to
'draw cut' first and, whether by 'aventure, or sort, or cas', the Knight draws the straw to tell
the first tale. The pilgrims ride forward, and the Knight begins to tell his tale.
Analysis
The General Prologue was probably written early in the composition of the Canterbury Tales,
and offers an interesting comparison point to many of the individual tales itself. Of course, it
does not match up to the tales as we have them in a number of ways: the Nun's Priest and the
Second Nun are not described, and, most significantly, the work as we have it does not reflect
the Host's plan. For starters, the pilgrimage only seems to go as far as Canterbury (for the
Parson's Tale) and only the narrator tells two tales on the way there, with all the other
pilgrims telling only a single tale (and some who are described in the General Prologue not
telling a tale at all).
We must, therefore, view the General Prologue with some hesitation as a comparison point to
the tales themselves: it offers useful or enlightening suggestions, but they are no means a
complete, reliable guide to the tales and what they mean. What the General Prologue offers is
a brief, often very visual description of each pilgrim, focusing on details of their background,
as well as key details of their clothing, their food likes and dislikes, and their physical
features. These descriptions fall within a common medieval tradition of portraits in words
(which can be considered under the technical term ekphrasis), Chaucer's influence in this case
most likely coming from The Romaunt de la Rose.
Immediately, our narrator insists that his pilgrims are to be described by 'degree'. By the fact
that the Knight, the highest-ranking of the pilgrims, is selected as the first teller, we see the

obvious social considerations of the tale. Still, all human life is here: characters of both sexes,
and from walks of life from lordly knight, or godly parson down to oft-divorced wife or
grimy cook.
Each pilgrim portrait within the prologue might be considered as an archetypal description.
Many of the 'types' of characters featured would have been familiar stock characters to a
medieval audience: the hypocritical friar, the rotund, food-loving monk, the rapacious miller
are all familiar types from medieval estates satire (see Jill Mann's excellent book for more
information). Larry D. Benson has pointed out the way in which the characters are paragons
of their respective crafts or types - noting the number of times the words 'wel koude' and
'verray parfit' occur in describing characters.
Yet what is key about the information provided in the General Prologue about these
characters, many of whom do appear to be archetypes, is that it is among the few pieces of
objective information - that is, information spoken by our narrator that we are given
throughout the Tales. The tales themselves (except for large passages of the prologues and
epilogues) are largely told in the words of the tellers: as our narrator himself insists in the
passage. The words stand for themselves: and we interpret them as if they come from the
pilgrims' mouths. What this does - and this is a key thought for interpreting the tales as a
whole - is to apparently strip them of writerly license, blurring the line between Chaucer and
his characters.
Thus all of the information might be seen to operate on various levels. When, for example,
we find out that the Prioress has excellent table manners, never allowing a morsel to fall on
her breast, how are we to read it? Is this Geoffrey Chaucer 'the author of The Canterbury
Tales' making a conscious literary comparison to The Romaunt de la Rose, which features a
similar character description (as it happens, of a courtesan)? Is this 'Chaucer' our narrator, a
character within the Tales providing observation entirely without subtext or writerly
intention? Or are these observations - supposedly innocent within the Prologue - to be noted
down so as to be compared later to the Prioress' Tale?
Chaucer's voice, in re-telling the tales as accurately as he can, entirely disappears into that of
his characters, and thus the Tales operates almost like a drama. Where do Chaucer's writerly
and narratorial voices end, and his characters' voices begin? This self-vanishing quality is key
to the Tales, and perhaps explains why there is one pilgrim who is not described at all so far,
but who is certainly on the pilgrimage - and he is the most fascinating, and the most
important by far: a poet and statesman by the name of Geoffrey Chaucer.

Robinson Crusoe, as a young and impulsive wanderer, defied his parents and went to sea. He
was involved in a series of violent storms at sea and was warned by the captain that he should
not be a seafaring man. Ashamed to go home, Crusoe boarded another ship and returned from
a successful trip to Africa. Taking off again, Crusoe met with bad luck and was taken
prisoner in Sallee. His captors sent Crusoe out to fish, and he used this to his advantage and
escaped, along with a slave.
He was rescued by a Portuguese ship and started a new adventure. He landed in Brazil, and,
after some time, he became the owner of a sugar plantation. Hoping to increase his wealth by
buying slaves, he aligned himself with other planters and undertook a trip to Africa in order
to bring back a shipload of slaves. After surviving a storm, Crusoe and the others were
shipwrecked. He was thrown upon shore only to discover that he was the sole survivor of the
wreck.
Crusoe made immediate plans for food, and then shelter, to protect himself from wild
animals. He brought as many things as possible from the wrecked ship, things that would be
useful later to him. In addition, he began to develop talents that he had never used in order to
provide himself with necessities. Cut off from the company of men, he began to communicate
with God, thus beginning the first part of his religious conversion. To keep his sanity and to
entertain himself, he began a journal. In the journal, he recorded every task that he performed
each day since he had been marooned.
As time passed, Crusoe became a skilled craftsman, able to construct many useful things, and
thus furnished himself with diverse comforts. He also learned about farming, as a result of
some seeds which he brought with him. An illness prompted some prophetic dreams, and
Crusoe began to reappraise his duty to God. Crusoe explored his island and discovered
another part of the island much richer and more fertile, and he built a summer home there.
One of the first tasks he undertook was to build himself a canoe in case an escape became
possible, but the canoe was too heavy to get to the water. He then constructed a small boat
and journeyed around the island. Crusoe reflected on his earlier, wicked life, disobeying his
parents, and wondered if it might be related to his isolation on this island.
After spending about fifteen years on the island, Crusoe found a man's naked footprint, and
he was sorely beset by apprehensions, which kept him awake many nights. He considered
many possibilities to account for the footprint and he began to take extra precautions against
a possible intruder. Sometime later, Crusoe was horrified to find human bones scattered about
the shore, evidently the remains of a savage feast. He was plagued again with new fears. He
explored the nature of cannibalism and debated his right to interfere with the customs of
another race.
Crusoe was cautious for several years, but encountered nothing more to alarm him. He found
a cave, which he used as a storage room, and in December of the same year, he spied
cannibals sitting around a campfire. He did not see them again for quite some time.
Later, Crusoe saw a ship in distress, but everyone was already drowned on the ship and
Crusoe remained companionless. However, he was able to take many provisions from this
newly wrecked ship. Sometime later, cannibals landed on the island and a victim escaped.
Crusoe saved his life, named him Friday, and taught him English. Friday soon became

Crusoe's humble and devoted slave.

Crusoe and Friday made plans to leave the island and, accordingly, they built another boat.
Crusoe also undertook Friday's religious education, converting the savage into a Protestant.
Their voyage was postponed due to the return of the savages. This time it was necessary to
attack the cannibals in order to save two prisoners since one was a white man. The white man
was a Spaniard and the other was Friday's father. Later the four of them planned a voyage to
the mainland to rescue sixteen compatriots of the Spaniard. First, however, they built up their
food supply to assure enough food for the extra people. Crusoe and Friday agreed to wait on
the island while the Spaniard and Friday's father brought back the other men.
A week later, they spied a ship but they quickly learned that there had been a mutiny on
board. By devious means, Crusoe and Friday rescued the captain and two other men, and
after much scheming, regained control of the ship. The grateful captain gave Crusoe many
gifts and took him and Friday back to England. Some of the rebel crewmen were left
marooned on the island.
Crusoe returned to England and found that in his absence he had become a wealthy man.
After going to Lisbon to handle some of his affairs, Crusoe began an overland journey back
to England. Crusoe and his company encountered many hardships in crossing the mountains,
but they finally arrived safely in England. Crusoe sold his plantation in Brazil for a good
price, married, and had three children. Finally, however, he was persuaded to go on yet
another voyage, and he visited his old island, where there were promises of new adventures
to be found in a later account.