Literature 1° Year

English
Literature
1 Year – CIERG
st

By: Fernando Bentancor

1st Period: (March to June)

 Old English Literature

2nd Period: (August to November)

 Medieval Period and Literature – page 31
 Middle English Literature – page 45
 The Crusades and Black Death – page 50
 Geoffrey Chaucer and the Canterbury Tales –
page 52

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1st Period
What’s Literature?

Activity 1:
Brainstorm your ideas on a spider web to make your own definition of literature.
Write your own definition in the box bellow. Is your definition the same as your
partners’?

FIRST DEFINITION

Literature is… _______________________________________________

___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________

Activity 2:
Watch the following video and write down as many words as you can, as you seen
them in the video. Write them on a separate sheet of paper.
Those words may help you to improve your definition of “Literature”.
Discuss the words with the whole class.

Activity 3:
Choose some of the words you got from the video and see if you can give a more
complete definition of LITERATURE. Write your improved definition of
Literature in the box bellow, taking into account your brainstormed ideas and
the words from the video, you have just discussed with the class.

IMPROVED DEFINITION:

Literature is… _______________________________________________

___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________

Activity 4
Your teacher is going to provide a definition of Literature. Compare it with your
own definition, then write it down on your folder.

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Activity 5
Read the following extract from “the Hobbit” by J.R.R. Tolkien, and imagine the
place described. Then Draw it.

Activity
Now, watch the following video and compare what you imagined and what’s
shown.

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 Literature 1° Year

GENRES OF LITERATURE

FICTIONAL NON - FICTIONAL

…………………………………………….………………….. …………………………………………….…………………..

…………………………………………….………………….. …………………………………………….…………………..

…………………………………………….………………….. …………………………………………….…………………..

 Traditional Literature:  …………………………………………..

…………………………………………….………………….. The story of a real person’s life that´s

written ……………………..…………………..
…………………………………………….…………………..
……………………………………………………..…..

 …………………………………………..
 Biography
A story including elements that are
impossible such as …………………………………….. …………………………………………….…………………..

…………………………………………….………………….. …………………………………………….…………………..

 Mystery:  Informational:

…………………………………………….………………….. Texts that provide …………………………………..

…………………………………………….………………….. …………………………………………….…………………..

…………………………………………….…………………..
 …………………………………………….

A fictonal story that takes place in a ……………

…………………………………………….…………………..

Often the setting is real but ……………………

…………………………………………….…………………..
 Poetry:
…………………………………………..
Poetry is verse written ……………………………
 Science Fiction
………………………………………………………………..
…………………………………………….…………………..
from the reader. …………………………………….
…………………………………………….…………………..
………………………… and
………………………………
 Realistic Fiction

…………………………………………….…………………..

…………………………………………….………………….. 4
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Poems and their characteristics

A poem is a piece of writing that uses imaginative words to share ideas,
emotions or a story with the reader.

Most poems for rhyme or they have rhythm (just like music) or repetition.

But a poem doesn’t have to rhyme!

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ACTIVITY:
Watch the following video about the difference between SIMILE and
METAPHOR, then, complete the text:

Simile Metaphor
______________ two different things. _______________two different things.

It says that something is _________ It says that something _______

or _____ something else. something else.

For example: For example:

____________________________________ ____________________________________

____________________________________ ____________________________________

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ACTIVITY: Choose the correct rhyme: a, b or c

ACTIVITY:
Complete the poem with the missing rhyme: You can use the rhyme finder at the
following website: www.rhymedesk.com/kids

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ACTIVITY:

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Revision: Great Britain and The English language

Since we are studying ENGLISH literature, we need to take a look at England and
the island where it is located, Great Britain.

1- ENGLAND is a COUNTRY located in an ISLAND called GREAT BRITAIN.

2- In GREAT BRITAIN there are 3 countries:

1. ENGLAND

2. WALES

3. SCOTLAND

Because these three countries have the SAME KING or QUEEN, the UNION of
these three countries is called “The UNITED Kingdom”.

So, to make it clearer:

 ENGLAND is 1 COUNTRY
 GREAT BRITAIN is an ISLAND, where the country called “England” is
located.
 The UNITED KINGDOM is a political organization of the 3 countries
located inside the island.
 Sometimes, you will hear that people use the names GREAT BRITAIN
and THE UNITED KINGDOM are used as synonyms; in spite of that,
remember which is which! ;-)

In the map that comes bellow this text, you will see the three countries inside the
island of Britain. You will notice that there is another country (a fourth country)
in a separate island, that is part of the United Kingdom; that country is Northern
Ireland. Northern Ireland is outside the island of Great Britain.

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As you can see bellow, each country has their own flag. However, they have a flag
which represents the four countries at the same time, it is the flag of the United
Kingdom. The flag of the United Kingdom receives the name of “Union Jack”.

Flag of England

Flag of Scotland

Flag of Wales

Flag of the United Kingdom (also

Flag of Northern Ireland called: “The Union Jack”)

However, for this part of the historical period, we will focus on the countries that
are inside the island of Great Britain, and not so much in Northern Ireland. This is

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because 1.600 years ago, (during the historical period we’re interested in) things
were different in the map of the island…

• The United Kingdom didn’t exist!

• Scotland, Wales and England…

…did NOT exist!!!

The only thing that existed was the name BRITAIN. Because the ROMANS called
the island: “BRITANNIA”.

ACTIVITY: Find 8 words related to Great Britain, and the Viking tribes which
conquered the Island and a language spoken in the island.

E A S H G T Y U I O P L K J H G F D S A
N S D F G H J K L Ñ Z X C V B N M Y R T
G F D R T Y U I E Q W E R T A N G L E S
L R D S F G H J N K L Ñ I U Y T R E W S
I S C V B N H G G E R T G F D S C V B N
S N N N Y G F R L S G V E R T Y W Q A S
H D C F R E W S A A X C S A X O N S D F
D V F G T Y H J N B N M G K Y H J K M B
C V B G H J K Y D E D P O I K I L H J J
B G N H J K L Ñ P O Ñ D F G H S B V C C
R T F R T Y U I O J H G F D M L C V B Y
G R E A T B R I T A I N D S F A Y T R Q
Q W E R T Y U I O P Ñ L K J H N F D S S
M N B V G H J K K L Ñ P O I U D D F G H
D F G H J K L O I U M N B V C X S D F E
A S D F G H J K M N B V C X W A L E S X
D F G Y U J N B A W Q E P Ñ M Z A Q E D
R F D G T Y U I H G F D S A C V B N M G
E E R T Y F V B G F R T Y K S D C E R T
U N I T E D K I N G D O M D C F T G B N

Anglo-Saxon Britain
Let’s get started with a brief history of Britain…

Prehistory & Antiquity

England was settled by humans for at least 500,000 years. The first modern
humans (homo sapiens) arrived during the Ice Age (about 35,000 to 10,000 years
ago).

Between 1,500 and 500 BC, Celtic tribes migrated from Central Europe and France
to Britain and mixed with the indigenous inhabitants, creating a new culture
slightly distinct from the Continental Celtic one. This was the Bronze Age.

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The Romans conquerred the island of Great BRITAIN in the year 43 AD. They
called gave the name BRITANNIA to the island, because of the BRITONS. The
Britons were one tribe of Celts that lived in the island, when the Romans arrived.

The Romans controlled most of present-day England and Wales, and founded a
large number of cities that still exist today.

ACTIVITY: With the information from the text called “Anglo-Saxon

Britain” (above) complete the timeline with the name of the civilizations
which lives in the island of Great Britain.

The Anglo-Saxons
The Romans progressively abandoned Britannia in the 5th century as their Empire
was falling apart and legions were needed to protect Rome.

With the Romans gone, the Celtic tribes had the island for themselves. However,
many Celt leaders wanted to rule the island, so, they started fighting with each
other again. One of the local Celt chiefs had the not so brilliant idea of requesting
help from Vikings. These Viking tribes were the Angles, Saxons and Jutes, who
arrived in the 5th and 6th centuries.

However, things did not happen as the Celts had expected. The Angles, Saxons and
Jutes did not go back home after the fight; on the contrary! They felt strong
enough to take most of the island for themselves. The Celts, lost the control of
the island, and the Angles, Saxons and Jutes were now in control. Since the most
powerful of the three tribes were the Angles and the Saxons, they were called
Anglo-Saxons, as if they were only one tribe. This historical period is called
“Anglo-Saxon Britain” and it goes from approximately the year 410 AD, until 1066
AD.

Where did the Angles, Saxons and Jutes come from?

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In the map, you will be able to see that they came from what today is called
Denmark and the north of Germany. Then, if you follow the arrows, you will see
that they went to different parts of the island of Great Britain.

In those places they set their kingdoms.

ACTIVITY: The Anglo-Saxon Kingdoms.

1. Paint each circle (below the map) with a different color, then pay attention
to the teacher’s explanation and paint the different kingdoms in the map
with the corresponding color.
2. Write the name of each kingdom in the corresponding box

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Where does the name “England” come from?

The ANGLES were the most powerful of the three tribes
At first, the LAND of the three ANGLE kingdoms was called:
ANGLE – LAND
(The land of the Angles)
With time, the pronunciation changed from:
ANGLE LAND to ENGLE LAND…
And it continued changing, until the name we know today:
ENGL-LAND
or ENGLAND
If the country is called ENGLAND, then the language is called ENGLISH (the
language of the ANGLES)

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So, remember that whenever you say the word “England” your are saying “The
Land of the Angles”. And when you say the word “English” you may be referring
to the Angles who used to live in Angle Land; or to the language that the Angles
spoke.
As you may have realized, we’re learning about the Anglo-Saxons because they are
considered as The FATHERS and MOTHERS of the English Language! The Anglo-
Saxons (especially the Angles) are considered the creators of the ENGLISH
language, that’s why we study their civilization in ENGLISH Literature.

ACTIVITY: Crosswords

Clues:

1. Country in the north of Great Britain.

2. Country in Great Britain which in the past was called “Angle Land”.
3. The United ________________.
4. Country in the West part of the island of Great Britain.
5. One of the three Angles’ kingdom.
6. The third Viking tribe that settled in Britain, together with the Angles and
the Saxons.
7. One of the countries from which the Anglo-Saxons came from.
8. The name of the Saxon kingdom in Britain.
9. The civilization which called the island, “Britannia”.
10. One of the countries where the Anglo-Saxons came from.
11. The generic name of the civilization to which the Angles, Saxons and Jutes
belonged to.

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The Anglo-Saxon language: English

Although English was the language that the Anglo-Saxons spoke is very different
from the language we know today. Take a look at the following examples: To the
left there are some words and sentences in OLD ENGLISH (The English that the
Anglo-Saxons spoke), and to the right you will see the meaning, of what’s in the
left column, in present English, the English we speak today.

Old English Today’s English

HWÆT: WE GAR-DENA So. The Spear-Danes in days gone by

IN GEARDAGU

Þeodcyninga þrym gefrunon. And the kings who ruled them had
courage and greatness.

Very different, hu? Thankfully, we will learn and read in today’s English, so, don’t
worry! XD

Another curiosity about English and the Anglo-Saxons, is that English was not a
written language. Yes, you read well! For the Anglo-Saxons, letters, the alphabet,
words, sentences… nothing of all that existed. And, of course, the Anglo-Saxons
didn’t know how to read or write. Reading and writing are very important, because
in that way we can put our memories, stories, instructions, laws, things to study in
books or in a web page. So, how did their stories, legends, traditions, etc, existed
for so much time, if they didn’t know how to read or write? Well, the Anglo-
Saxons had to MEMORIZE things all that! However, they discovered the rhyme
and rhythm of poetry and used, because rhyme, rhythm, alliteration, comparisons,
etc helped them to remember easily!

ACTIVITY: Read all the sentences first, then, as you listen, answer T
(true) or F (false)

1. The Anglo-Saxons weren’t Pagans. ___

2. One kind of entertainment was story telling at feasts. ___

3. The lived in harsh conditions. ___

4. Their living conditions didn’t influence their mythology. ___

5. Stories were transmitted orally from generation to generation. ___

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6. Alliteration is the repetition of the same letter/sound at the end of each

word. ___

7. Kings and soldiers were in charge of telling stories at feasts. ___

ACTIVITY: Complete the following sentences with only one word:

1. Remember, Old English was NOT a ______________________language.

Memory was the key!

2. King Alfred the Great, 849AD – 899AD, invited foreign

____________________ (intelligent people from the Catholic church) to
WRITE down some Anglo-Saxon stories.

3. The «Anglo-Saxon Chronicle» was the __________________ work of

prose in English (Old English).

4. Some other important written works are the Junius Manuscript, the
Vercelli Book, the Exeter Book and ______________________.

5. Christianity influenced these originally pagan Anglo-Saxon stories. Scholars

changed pagan elements by _____________________ ones.

6. These written works were kept at _____________________, in Britain.

7. The stories we read nowadays are not exactly the same stories
_______________ used to tell before they were written down.

8. King _________________ also made books written in Latin to be

translated into English!

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Epic Literature
An EPIC is a long poem about a hero containing the following elements: “in media
res”, battles, romance, supernatural intervention, journeys (quests), lists, a
descent to the underworld, and epic similes. Of course, as in most stories, a hero
will be the main character (protagonist) of the story.

1. In MEDIA RES

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IN MEDIA RES means that the

story begins in the middle of the
action. Starting a story like this
is more interesting and
entertaining.

An epic often begins in the middle

of the story, when problems are
going to appear very soon.

This is an example of NOT starting a story in media res:

Our hero grew up in a small village, he went to school where played with his
friends. His mother's name was Susan, and his father’s name was Robert. His uncle
was a carpenter and his father a blacksmith. Our hero went to primary school only
because in those times there weren’t any secondary schools. He would play
football with his friends every day after four o’clock…

Imagine if a story started like this and continued like this for 200 pages, without
any action. Isn`t it a little long and boring?

Well, take a look at this other example, in which the story starts in media res:

Fire came out of nowhere, then, that an enormous shadow with big wings appeared.
“The dragon came back!” a guard shouted; villagers started to run away. Shouts
and screams, soldiers shooting arrows into the air, trying to hit the dragon. The
bell sound in the city, like an alarm. Then, the fire again, and the furious groaning
of the angry dragon came after. The city was on fire. Who could save all these
people?

A story beginning in the middle of the problem becomes more exciting than telling
the whole background story of the hero, then the princess’, and later their story
in the middle of the problem.

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2. Battles

Because an epic is about the life of a hero, this

hero must fight in a battle against something (a
monster, a dragon, an army, a witch, etc). .

Sometimes, the battle is fought inside the hero.

In many stories, heroes are afraid and they need
to fight against that fear. Fighting with his own
fears is a battle that is fought inside the hero, in
his mind and heart.

We, mortal humans, usually fight our own battles.

Perhaps, we have to fight a battle against
laziness, when we have to do homework but we
don’t want to.

In the case of the hero of an epic, fighting a battle against laziness could be a
possibility. However, the hero or heroine are going to fight against a monster at
some point in the story. ;-)

3. Romance

Romance is always present in the Epic. It must

be! In the epic, battles, monsters, death and
blood, are quite common. In the middle of so
many negative aspects, a romantic story is a
RELIEF.

The hero fights against the evil villain, rescues

the princess from the tower and they live
happily ever after. Although this is generally true, in the epic, rescuing the
girl/boy is not so easy, but, what reward could be better than rescuing the love of
his/her life and getting married to him/her?

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4. Supernatural
intervention

In many epic stories, the hero receives help from a

god or another supernatural force. In most Greek
mythology, such as Hercules, the hero receives help
from Zeus(a god).

Sometimes, this supernatural characters (gods,

goddesses, demi-gods, angels, magicians, witches,
fairies, etc), give the hero a power, or a magic
weapon as a gift, which becomes very useful in a
difficult moment.

5. Journeys

Is when the hero or heroine must go to a distant place on mission. The journey
could have the objective of rescuing someone, bringing an elixir (or medicine) to
save someone, finding a treasure, etc. The journey is the hero’s opportunity to
prove his heroism and win honor. In his/her journey, the hero or heroine can
return to his home and save everybody; OR never return (because he/she dies)
but saves everybody in the end.

6. A descend to the underworld

A descend to the underworld is a

METAPHOR, used to say that
the hero has to face a difficult
situation. In most stories, the
hero has to fight against an evil,
powerful villain (normally more
powerful than him).

A descend to the underworld

may also mean that the hero will
have to go to a scary, dark and
dangerous place to fight against
his greatest fears.

If the hero is successful, he will become a greater hero, more powerful, wiser,
stronger and will get a reward (the princess, money, medicine, etc).

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7. The epic hero/Heroine

The Epic Hero, or Epic heroine,

is the central character of an
epic. This character is a very,
VERY important figure.
Typically, the hero comes from
a noble or semi-divine birth. He
is full of courage, skillful, and
has many virtues to fight
against opposing evil forces.

The hero, in epic literature, is not just a warrior who defeats every enemy that
comes across his way. A hero must have some heroic characteristics; otherwise,
he would be a mad man who is always looking for adventures with no particular
purpose, or simply a murderer who kills for fun! The true hero will not rescue the
princess from the top of the tower
because he wants to be famous; he will
rescue the princess because of several
reasons: that is, either because he
loves her and wants to protect her. He
may want to save his king because he’s
loyal to him, or to save villagers because
he’s generous and brave. So let’s see
which, the characteristics that an epic
hero, should have are:

 Brave – our hero leads his men in battle and is not afraid to take on the
supernatural and battle to the death.

 Strong – the hero has become the leader because he has demonstrated his
prowess in battle.

 Loyal – he/she surrounds himself with a band of retainers for whom he is

prepared to die and who are obligated to fight for their lord to the death.

 Generous – he/she provides food, shelter, and safety, and he rewards his
followers with the spoils of battle.

 Protective – he/she protects his followers or loved ones by fighting to

death for them if necessary.

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ACTIVITY
Read the notes about Epic Literature and do the following activities.
1. What is an Epic?
2. Enumerate the elements of an epic.
3. What is the meaning of “in media res”?
4. Why is it better for an Epic to start “in media res”?
5. What is the meaning of the word “relief”? (Use an on line dictionary to find
out).
6. Why is Romance important in an Epic?
7. What is the meaning of “supernatural”?
8. Explain what is “a descend to the underworld”.
9. Think of an example, from a movie or book you have read, where the hero
descends to the underworld. Write down your example.
10. Enumerate the characteristics of the “epic hero”.

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Beowulf
One of the most fascinating Epics or Hero Myths in Old English Literature
is Beowulf.

Beowulf has an anonymous author. Besides, this epic has been passed from
scop to scop. Sometimes, scops added something new to the story, which
made it more interesting, and so the epic story of Beowulf started to
become longer and longer and more interesting. As you can see the story
was invented as it was told at feast, by the different scops. So, the story
has no one author, but many. Besides, nobody knows exactly who was the
first scop who invented the story. That’s why, it’s author is anonymous.

The story is set in the time just when the Danish and Germanic (Vikings)
occupations of Celtic Britannia (Britain) were beginning to take place.

Beowulf originally was not exactly a book, it was a long poem about a hero
(an Epic), which was told at cellebrations, as a sort of entertainment (like
most of the stories told by the Anglo-Saxons in those times). Since in
those times the Anglo-Saxon language was a NON WRITTEN language,
stories were passed from generation to generation orally! So, if you were a
scop, you’d better have a good memory!!! Most stories were very long, and

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the “Scops” (the Anglo-Saxon storytellers) were human beings and could
forget some parts, because of this, poetry came to be a solution to this
memory problem. Poems have rhyme and rhythm, just like a song – and songs
are easy to remember after a while, once you have learned them, you never
forget them.

Let’s go to the STORIES BANK and start reading BEOWULF! 

The Plot
The “plot” is the series of events that make up a story. It normally consists
on the following parts, as seen in the picture bellow.

The plot is divided into five parts:

1. Exposition
2. Rising action

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3. Climax
4. Falling action
5. Resolution

Exposition or Introduction
This part of the plot is responsible for introducing and establishing the
MAIN CHARACTERS and the SETTING of the story. This is essential for
the reader’s understanding of the story.
The exposition, or introduction, is also the part of the story where the
primary CONFLICT or problem of the story is introduced. A conflict that
the hero or heroine will have to solve.

For example:
Once upon a time, there was a little girl who lived in a village near the
forest. The little girl wore a red riding cloak, so everyone in the village
called her Little Red Riding Hood.

One morning, Little Red Riding Hood asked her mother if she could go to
visit her grandmother as it had been awhile since they'd seen each other.

"That's a good idea," her mother said. "Remember, go straight to

Grandma's house," her mother cautioned. "Don't get distracted along the
way and please don't talk to strangers! The woods are dangerous."

In this example of EXPOSITION, we learn that:

 The setting is in village near a forest and the forest,
 The main character is a girl with a red cloak.
 The problem is that she has to go to visit her granny through a
dangerous forest. And the girl must follow her mother’s advice:
“Don’t talk to strangers”.

Rising Action
If the primary conflict or problem is not introduced in the exposition, it is
introduced here, in the rising action. But, if the conflict has already been
introduced in the exposition, then, the conflict or problem becomes bigger

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(the conflict is constructed, it is explained in more detail) to create tension

in the story.

It is important that the author explains clearly what the risks of this
conflict are. This means that the reader will have a full understanding of
what the consequences are in case the hero or heroine succeed.

For example:
But when Little Red Riding Hood noticed some lovely flowers in the woods
and forgot what her mother told her.
Suddenly, the wolf appeared beside her.
"What are you doing out here, little girl?" the wolf asked in a voice as
friendly as he could muster.
"I'm on my way to see my Grandma who lives through the forest, near the
brook," Little Red Riding Hood replied.
Then she realized how late she was and quickly excused herself, rushing
down the path to her Grandma's house.
The wolf, in the meantime, took a shortcut so as to eat her Grandma and
later eat her.

In this part, we find out that the conflict or problem is becomes bigger,
the girl got distracted and talked to a stranger. Now, the wolf is going to
Granma’s house, and is planning to eat Grandma and her. The problem
became bigger because she didn’t follow her mother’s advice: “Don’t talk to
strangers”.

Climax
The climax is the part of the plot where all the conflict problem explodes.
The climax is the moment of highest tension, because in this moment two
things can happen: the hero or heroine succeeds or fails. After this
moment, everything will be different.

For example:
When Little Red Riding Hood arrived to Grandma’s house, she realized that
it was not her, so, she exclaimed:

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"But Grandmother! What big ears you have,"

"The better to hear you with, my dear," replied the wolf.
"But Grandmother! What big eyes you have," said Little Red Riding Hood.
"The better to see you with, my dear," replied the wolf.
"But Grandmother! What big teeth you have," said Little Red Riding Hood
her voice quivering slightly.
"The better to eat you with, my dear," roared the wolf and he leapt out of
the bed and began to chase the little girl.
Almost too late, Little Red Riding Hood realized that the person in the bed
was not her Grandmother, but a hungry wolf.
She ran across the room and through the door, shouting, "Help! Wolf!" as
loudly as she could.
A woodsman who was chopping logs nearby heard her cry and ran towards
the cottage as fast as he could.
He grabbed the wolf and made him spit out the poor Grandmother who was
a bit scared by the experience, but still alive.

In this part, we can see that the heroine meets with the wolf, but she
doesn’t recognize it. Will the wolf eat the heroine, like he did with her
Grandma? Will the heroine die? Will the heroine succeed or fail?
At this point, the story can end sadly or happily.
Luckily, the heroine starts shouting and a woodsman comes in and saves her
and her grand-mother. Now, we know that the heroine succeeded, even
when the girl didn’t do what her mother told her: “don’t talk to strangers”.

Falling Action
The falling action is the part of the plot that follows the climax. At this
point in the story, after the main problem has been solved, the tension
decreases.
The reader knows the results and consequences of the climax, the
questions in the story have been answered.

The falling action is also the point in the story when the author ties up any
loose ends that remain surrounding the main plot and the various subplots.

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For example:
"Oh Grandma, I was so scared!" Said Little Red Riding Hood, crying.

"There, there, child. Thank goodness you shouted loud enough for this kind
woodsman to hear you!"

The woodsman knocked out the wolf and carried him deep into the forest
where he wouldn't attack people again.

In this part Grandma and the girl meet again and the wolf is taken away,
this are the results of the climax.
We also notice that tension decreases because there is no more danger.
Tension already finished and the problem is finally solved.

Resolution
The resolution is the final stage in the plot. This is the part where
everything in the story is cleared up and everything returns to normal. At
this point in the story, the primary conflict has been fully resolved, smaller
problems have been also solved, and any doubt has been clarified. The
reader is given closure about the narrative.
The resolution does not have to be a long section in the narrative. In fact,
it can just be a short paragraph

For example:

Little Red Riding Hood, the Woodsman and Granma had tea all together.
The girl said, “I learned an important lesson today. I'll never speak to
strangers or get distracted in the forest again."
They spend a wonderful afternoon and they lived happily ever after.

In this part, we can see that everything returns to normal, because the girl
and her grandmother are together, as they were supposed to be at the
beginning of the story.
There is a conclusion, or moral in the story, the writer tells us that the girl
has learned the lesson: “don’t to talk to strangers”. The story comes to a

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closure, to an end, because at the end, it says: “and everybody lived happily
ever after”.

ACTIVITY: Identify the different parts of the plot in Beowulf, using the
summary of all chapters made in class.

Exposition

Rising Action

Climax

Falling Action

Resolution

Beowulf (the film)

Before watching the film, answer the following
questions:

1. In your opinion, why is this film called

“Beowulf”?
2. In which moment in history do you expect the
movie to be set? Country and landscape.
3. What kind of housing, weapons, clothing, means of transport do you
expect to see?
4. Where do you expect, this movie to be set? What weather
conditions?
5. What else do you expect to see?

While watching the film:

Pay attentions to the following:

 Anglo-Saxon behaviour at celebrations

 Scop, singing and/or telling stories.

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 Characters (human and non-human)

 Weather conditions and geography.
 Characteristics of the Epic Hero (Does Beowulf have these
characteristics?)
 Characteristics of an Epic (Does the story respect this
characteristics?)

After watching the film:

 Why is Grendel’s mother golden?

 Why are Grendel’s mother’s sons all monsters? (Do they have
something in common with their fathers?)
 Is there any change in Beowulf’s behaviour throughout the movie?

ᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦ ᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦ

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2nd Period

The Middle Ages – Medieval Period

Let’s go back to history…

Earlier in this booklet we learned about the Celts, then the Romans and
later on the Anglo-Saxons. However, the Anglo-Saxons didn’t remain as the
owners of Britain until our days.

More Vikings in Britain!

The Anglo-Saxons were Vikings.
They came from Denmark and
North of Germany. But they were
not the only Vikings in continental
Europe. If you take a look at the
map to the right you’ll see that in
Europe, there were more Viking
tribes, like the Frisians and
Franks.
To the South of what today is
France, near the Franks kingdom,
there was another kingdom called
Normandy. In Normandy lived a
tribe of Vikings called “The
Normans”.
Between the Normans (in Europe)
and the Anglo-Saxons (in Britain) existed a relationship, because they were
relatives.

The Norman invasion to Britain

In England, Edward the Confessor (1004-1066) became king. He said that William
after his death, William of Normandy would become king of England.
But Harold (Edward’s son) crowned himself as king of England after Edward’s
death. William of Normandy got very angry, because the crown ofEngland was
promised to him. As a result, William invaded England with 12,000 soldiers in 1066
A.D.

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The battle of Hastings

William sailed from Normandy to
the south coast of England and
landed there (see number 1 in the
map on the left). After that,
William moved his troops to a place
called Hastings and waited for
Harold to come and attack him.
William knew that HarOld was
fighting against the Viking lord
called HarAld Hardrada in the
north, of England.
So, William’s strategy was to wait
for Harold to come all the way down
to Hastings and fight there, against
the tired Harold’s army.
So, things happened as William
expected. As soon as Harold knew that William had invaded England, he moved
south with all his men (see number 2 in the map). Harold’s army travelled for four
days, stopping only a few hours to eat and sleep. By the time Harold’s army arrived
to Hastings, they were all tired. William’s army, on the other hand, had been
resting for four days, so, there were ready to fight. William’s rested army
defeated Harold’s tired army at the Battle of Hastings, which took place on
October 14th, 1066 A.D., at a place called Hastings (see number 3 in the map).

King Harold was killed at the battle of Hastings (by an arrow in the eye), and
William the Conqueror conquered England. His descendants have sat on the throne
of England to this day.
The Battle of Hastings in 1066 A.D., is an important event in the history of
Britain, since after that battle, the Anglo-Saxons were no longer the rulers of
England, and the Medieval period begun in England.

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Did you know that the

battle of Hastings was
recorded? The Bayeux
Tapestry: Is
an embroidered cloth
nearly 70 meters long,
which depicts the events
leading up to the Norman
conquest of England
concerning William, Duke
of Normandy, and Harold
King of England, and
culminating in the Battle
of Hastings. Part of the “Bayeux Tapestry”.

The Norman England

The Normans were the new rulers of England.
Three different languages were spoken in England.

 French became the official language of England, and it was spoken by the
rich (King, Lords and Knights).
 English nevertheless remained the language of the poor (the Anglo-Saxons
became the poor).
 Latin was spoken by the Church.

They brought other things, such as a new political and social organization called
Feudal System.

In the middle of all these changes, the Church had the opportunity to become
very powerful in England, and in most of Europe.

ACTIVITY:
Answer the following questions with True (T) or False (F). Justify the false
answers:

1. The Anglo-Saxons were the only tribe of Vikings on all Europe. ___
2. Edward promised Harold the crown of England. ____
3. William got angry when Harold became king of England. ___
4. Harold attacked William to get the crown that Edward promised. ___
5. William waited for Harold in the North of England. ___
6. Harold had to travel with his army for 4 days. ___
7. When William’s army arrived at Hastings, they were all tired. ____
8. Harold won the Battle of Hastings. ____

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ACTIVITY: When you hear the words “Medieval Period” which images and/or
ideas come to your mind? Discuss them with the class.

The Feudal system

When William I (or William the Conqueror) took over the control of
England, not only did he bring his army, but also a new government system,
known as the Feudal System. The Feudal System was very helpful for the
ONE king who ruled over the huge extensions of land of England. Basically,
the feudal system consisted on dividing the land into smaller pieces for
people to live and work on it, in exchange for protection and service.

ACTIVITY: Listen to the teacher’s class and complete the Pyramid with:
a) the name of the different integrants of the social classes,
b) and the things that each of them gave to each other.

The Feudal System organization can be understood as a pyramid. On top is the person with
more power. Power decreases as we go down the pyramid. In the base, we can find the
people with less power.

Service for Land

Under the feudal system, land was granted to people for service. It
started at the top with the king granting his land to the nobles, in exchange
of soldiers. The soldiers were provided to the lords by the knights. The
knights needed people to work the land and provide other services, such as
working in the farms, making food, making weapons, tools, clothes, etc; the

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people who did all that work were the peasants. The peasants were no other
than the Anglo-Saxons.

The Manor
The centre of life in the Middle Ages was the “manor”. The manor was an
enormous piece of land, run by the lord. In most cases, Manors were so big
that they were sub-divided into smaller pieces of land, called “fiefs” and
they were run by the local knight. Lords lived in a large house or castle
where people would gather for celebrations or for protection if they were
attacked. In the case of fiefs, knights usually in mansions. A small village
would form around the castle which would include the local church. Farms
would then spread out from there which would be worked by the peasants.

Medieval Manor. If the manor was sub-divided into fiefs, then fiefs would have the same
appearance, as the one we see in the picture.

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 Literature 1° Year

Hierarchy of Rulers in the Feudal System

1. King - The top leader in the land was the king. The king could not
control all of the land by himself, so he divided it up among the
Nobles. In return, the Nobles
provided protection to the king.
When a king died, his firstborn
son would inherit the throne. If
there were no sons, then the
first born daughter would inherit
the throne. When one family
stayed in power for a long time,
this was called a dynasty.

2. Nobles - They ruled large

areas of land called Manors. They
reported directly to the king and were very powerful. Usually, they
divided up their manors among their knights, into smaller pieces of
land called fiefs. Their job was to maintain an army that was at the
king's service. If they did not have an army, sometimes they would
pay the king a tax instead. This tax was called shield money. Bishops
were very powerful people who worked for The Church. Bishops had
the same importance the Nobles had, and were located at the same
level in the pyramid.

3. Knights- The knights ran the local fiefs. They could also be called
into battle at any moment by their Nobles. The knights owned
everything on their fief, including the peasants, crops, and village.

4. Peasants or Serfs- Most of the people living in the Middle Ages

were peasants. They had a hard rough life. Some peasants were
considered free and could own their own businesses like carpenters,
bakers, and blacksmiths. Others were more like slaves. They owned
nothing and were pledged to their local knight. They worked for many
days, 6 days a week, and often barely had enough food to survive.

 Peasant homes were small (one room) and no windows.

 the animals lived inside the hut (house) with the family.
 To cook, they made fire in the floor, inside the house.

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 They had little furniture.

 Children spent most of their time helping their parents with day-to-
day activities. Rather than going to school.
 Life was short, especially for peasants.
 People could get sick at any moment, especially children.
 People live an average of 45 years. (In many cases, less than that)

Typical medieval peasant’s house

Fun Facts about the Middle Age Feudal System

 Around 90 percent of the people worked the land as peasants.

 Peasants worked hard and died young. Most were dead before they
were 30 years old.
 The kings believed they were given the right to rule by God. This was
called "divine right".
 Knights and Barons swore loyalty to their kings.

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 The Lord held absolute power over the manor and fiefs, including
deciding punishments for crimes.

ACTIVITY:
Solve the crosswords using vocabulary from The Feudal System.

Clues:

1. Small piece of land into which a Manor is divided.

2. Lowest social level in the pyramid of the feudal system.
3. Place where people pray.
4. Something that the king gave to the Nobles, and also the Nobles to
the Knights.
5. Language spoken by the Church.
6. Social group under the king.
7. What the peasants provided in exchange for the house.
8. Geometrical shape in which the Feudal System is represented.
9. Very important people in Church. As important as the Nobles.
10. Social level between the Nobles and the Peasants.
11. What Nobles provided to the king in exchange for land.
12. Big piece of land, given to the Nobles, by the King.

The Church
The Catholic Church played a VERY important role in the medieval period,
because they had the right to designate who the king was going to be, and
also they owned huge extensions of land over the majority of Europe.

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 Literature 1° Year

The Pope, and the Catholic Church had good benefits for saying that Kings
were chosen by God. Kings, in return gave land and money to the Church.
Not only kings gave money to the Church, Nobles, knights and peasants also
paid some money to the Church.
The Church was very useful for the king, because the Church kept people
calmed and ignorant.

Fear to God
The Church kept people calmed because they provided a set of rules that
you should follow, in order to live in peace with the rest of society. Some of
the rules (or “commandments”) were:

 Don’t steal
 Don’t lie
 Don’t kill
 Respect your parents

As you can see, they’re very basic rules. If every person followed them,
nobody would be angry with the other, and peace would be something
normal.
According to the Catholic Church, God gave to Moses (a holly person) 10
commandments in total; the ones mentioned above, plus six more.
The deal was simple:

 If you followed the commandments, you would be considered a good

person and as a result, after you die, God will send you to “Heavens”,
where you would live happily for the eternity.
 But, if you didn’t follow the commandments, then God would consider
you a bad person and would be sent to “Hell”, where you would suffer
and burn for the eternity.

Nobody ever had returned from death to tell if Heavens or Hell really
existed, so the Church took advantage of this uncertainty in people, and
used it to keep people afraid and under control.

According to the Church, God was good and full of love, as long as you didn’t
make him angry. If you made God angry, then he would “punish” you and
make you suffer. This is what The Church taught people in the medieval
period. People believed this and didn’t want to make God angry, so they
were mostly good persons, which bring “some” peace in the social life in the
medieval period.

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How did this fear help to control people?

One way of keeping people under control, was telling them that the King
was chosen by God. In that case, who would contradict God? Remember
that people believed that if they contradicted God, he could get angry and
as a result he would punish them.

During the Black Death, which was a disease caused by flees, which caused
thousands of people to die in a short period of time, the Church said that it
was a punishment from God.

Many rich people believed that they could BUY a place in Heaven. So rich
people PAYED money to the Church to have a nice place in Heavens, after
they die. Did they get a nice place in Heavens? Who knows… XD
Some other people bought “forgiveness”. For example, imagine that you
killed a person, on purpose; well, you could pay to the Church and buy
forgiveness, in that way you wouldn’t go to Hell.
Today it sounds ridiculous, but in those times, people really believed that
the more money you paid to Church, the happier God was with you.

It is clear that FEAR was the key to CONTROL people easily. FEAR of
GOD.

Fearing God was a powerful weapon that Church had; but it worked better
with not educated people; it worked with people who didn’t go to school
and didn’t know how to “think critically”. This is the reason because the
Church wanted to keep people ignorant, not educated. Peasants didn’t have
the chance to go to school.

The Church was an enemy of science, scientific investigation, scientific

discoveries, medicine, art, some literature, and anything else which could
make a person “think”. Thinking was dangerous for Church! For example:
Imagine if a THINKING peasant in the medieval period demanded the
Church to provide scientific proves that Heaven and Hell really existed.
What would happen when the Church couldn’t provide any proves? Do you
think that peasants, knights and nobles would continue fearing God?

The Pyramid of the Feudal System, with some changes

As you can see, the Church was more powerful than the king. Especially
because the king became king, thanks to the Church, because they told
people that GOD had chosen a that man to be the king. Nobody would
contradict God’s decision, because most people were afraid of God; so, if
God had already chosen a king, that was OK for everyone.

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 Literature 1° Year

The Pope- The person who was the head of the Church was called “The
Pope”, and he lived in the Vatican, a country inside the city of Rome, in
Italy.
The Pope was the person who was nearest to God. According to the
Catholics, the pope spoke directly to God, nobody else could hear or talk to
God.
Who would contradict the Pope? Nobody, of course! Because if they did
contradict the Pope or God, they would make God angry, and… you know
what happens when you make God angry, don’t you? (Punishment comes
first, and Hell comes later).

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 Literature 1° Year

The King depended on the Pope, so, the Pope was more powerful than the
king, and so, the Pope is above the King in the pyramid that represents the
feudal system.

The Vatican a very small country, located inside a city called Rome. The Vatican is smaller
than Disney, in Florida, US.

Pope Francis, the actual Pope. Did you know that Pope Francis is one of the most important
and powerful men in the world, today? His real name is Mario Bergoglio, and he is
Argentinian.

Bishop - The Bishop was the representative of the Pope in a particular

region. Bishops had as much power as a Noble. Bishops lived in enormous
religious buildings called Cathedrals.

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 Literature 1° Year

The Bishops worked for the Church and did everything the Pope
commanded them. Bishops were representatives of the Pope and in most
cases influenced the kings or queens on their decisions.

Cathedral.
Compare the size of the cathedral with the size of the surrounding buildings.

Priest – Priests were the persons with a low rank in Church. Priests normally
lived in a building called chapel or church. They followed orders from the
Bishops. If we had to put priests in some part of the pyramid of the Feudal
System, then, they could be located between knights and peasants.

There were more people with different ranks in the Church, of course. In
this booklet, only some of them are mentioned (Pope, Bishop and Priest).

Chapel. Compare the size of a chapel with the size of a cathedral (see picture above)

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ACTIVITY: Quiz
Choose the correct option: a, b or c.

1. During the medieval period, church was very important because:

a. They were friends with God
b. They had the same power as the king
c. They collaborated in choosing the king and kept people calm.
2. The Church obtained benefits, like gold and land, from the king, for:
a. saying that the king was chosen by God.
b. helping the poor
c. teaching people
3. People in the medieval period feared God, because:
a. If they were good persons, after the died, they would go to Hell
b. If they were bad persons, after they died, they would go to Hell.
c. If they were bad persons, after they died, they would go to
Heaven.
4. People didn’t want to make God angry, because:
a. he would cry.
b. he would punish them.
c. He would be sad.
5. If a rich person killed another person, that person should go to Hell
after he died, unless:
a. They started to be good persons.
b. They never died.
c. They paid money to buy forgiveness.
6. The Fear to God worked better with:
a. Not educated people.
b. Educated people.
c. Bad people.
7. The Pope was more powerful than the King, because:
a. He lived a bigger castle than the king.
b. He had supernatural powers.
c. He helped the king to become king.
8. People never contradicted the Pope when he designated a King,
because:
a. They didn’t have weapons.
b. They were afraid of making God angry.
c. They didn’t care.
9. Bishops were:
a. More powerful than priests
b. Less powerful than priests

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c. Both had the same power

10. Priests lived in:
a. Cathedrals
b. The Vatican
c. Chapels

Middle English Literature

The Middle English Literature means English literature that developed
during the period from the year 1100 to 1500. During this unique period,
English got maturity and widespread popularity among people belonging to
every level of society.

Influence of French and Latin in the English language

The English language went through immense changes over the years, but
especially during the medieval period, when the French and Latin languages
improved its grammar and number of words.

Religious Writing
Religious literature was used for spiritual guidance, teaching how to be a
good person and help other. There were also some messages of warning for
those who wanted to contradict the Church.
You may wonder how is it that church had power over literature. Well,
literary works had first to be read by monks in change of reading and then
re writing them by hand (since the printing press hadn’t been invented yet);
these monks were known as “Scribes”. Scribes made necessary changes to
many literary works so as to make sure that it wasn’t dangerous for the
Catholic Church.
Many medieval literary works we read today are not the same as their
original handwritings.

Courtly Love in Middle English Literature

Another theme Middle English literature dealt with was “Courtly love”,
though not far from religion, Courtly love had more to do with behaviour
that defined the relationship between aristocratic lovers.
Courtly love is usually when a young man, who may be a peasant or even a
simple King, falls in love with a lady and tries to make her fall in love with
him by doing brave things or by singing beautiful love songs.

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 Literature 1° Year

Typical example of courtly love: The knight is fighting against the dragon to save the
princess who is a prisoner in the tower. If he wins, the princess will love him.

Chivalry in Middle English Literature

Chivalry is a characteristic of Middle English Literature. In few words,
“chivalry” was the way in which a knight should behave in order to become a
true heroic knight.
There was a set of rules that a Knight should follow in order to become a
true knight. Some of those rules were the following:

 Fight for God and the Church

 Protect your lord
 Defend the weak people
 Do not give up
 Kill those who don’t believe in God
 Do what you promised (keep your promises)
 Follow the 10 commandments
 Help people

If you pay attention, some of those rules are rules that some heroes in
today movies and comics follow. Some things just don’t change.

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Medieval Genres

Romances in Middle English Literature

Romance was a famous Middle English Literature. They were fantastic
stories about adventures, often of a knight who goes on a difficult mission,
to save a friend, a king, a princess, or to bring salvation to a kingdom. It
makes emphasis on chivalry and courtly love.

King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table

Arthur was a legendary king of ancient Britain. The stories are a
combination of history, myth, romance, fairy tale, and religion.
The 12th-century a French writer began the genre of Arthurian romance.
The narrative includes King Arthur and other characters, such as various
Knights of the Round Table.

The Medieval Knights

Becoming a Knight
There were two ways that
a man could become a
knight during the Middle
Ages.
The first was earning the
right on the battlefield.
If a soldier fought
particularly bravely during
a battle or war, he may be awarded knighthood by the king, a lord, or even
another knight.
The second way was to become an apprentice to a knight and earn the title
through hard work and training.

Who could become a knight?

No doubt many young men growing up in the Middle Ages dreamed of
becoming a knight, but only a few could afford to become knights. The first
requirement of a knight was someone who could afford a knight's weapons,
armour, and war horse. These items weren't cheap and only the very rich
could pay for them. Knights were also people from the noble or aristocratic
classes.

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Page
The boy at the beginning of his training as a knight.
He was basically a servant for the knight-teacher, performing tasks such as
serving meals, cleaning his clothes, and carrying messages.
The page also began to train to fight.

Squire
Around the age of fifteen, the page would become a squire.
He would take care of the knight's horses, clean his armour and weapons,
and accompany the knight to the
battlefield.
Squires had to be ready to fight.

Dubbing Ceremony
If a squire had proven his bravery and
skill at battle, he would become a knight
at the age of twenty-one. He gained the
title of knight at a "dubbing" ceremony.
At this ceremony he would kneel before
another knight, lord, king or queen, who
would then tap the squire on the
shoulder with his sword making him a
knight.

Dubbing Ceremony

ACTIVITY: Read the Sword in the stone and answer the questionnaire

Questionaire

The Sword in the Stone

Read the “Sword in the Stone” and answer the
questions.

1. What is the main problem of the story?

2. Make a list of the characters in the story.
3. Why did Merlin take Arthur away?
4. Where did Merlin take Arthur?
5. Who are Sir Kay and Sir Hector? What family
relationship do they have with Arthur?

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6. Who makes the sword in the stone appear in the middle of the market
place? Why?
7. How does Arthur come across the Sword in the Stone?
8. What did he do with the sword?
9. What did Sir Kay tell Sir Hector? Did Sir Hector believe Sir Kay?
10. How does the story end?

Go to the STORIES BANK and read THE SWORD IN THE STONE! 

ᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦ ᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦ

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The Crusades (1095 A.D. – 1291 A.D.)

For many reasons, knights became famous in
history, but there is one reason which made them
even more famous and respected: THE
CRUSADES.

The Crusades was a war in which Christian

knights from Europe fought against the Muslims,
for the control of the holy city of Jerusalem.

The word CRUSade comes from the Latin word

CRUX, meaning “cross.” The Christian soldiers,
called CRUSaders, wore the CROSS as a symbol
of their religion, in their clothes and shield. The Crusades took place
between 1095 and 1291.

The Crusaders went to fight the Muslims because they promised to protect
the Church and fight for God. The Vatican called all knights and soldiers
who wanted to fight in the name of God. And many knights answered the
call.

There were eight Crusades in total, and happened one after the other. To
make the long story short, the Europeans got control of Jerusalem at first,
but in the end, they lost it.

The black Death

The Black Death is the name for a terrible disease that spread throughout
Europe from 1347 to 1350. The black death was the name given to the
“bubonic plague”. There was no cure for the disease and it was highly
contagious.

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The disease was carried by fleas that lived on rats.

Fleas bit rats and carried the virus with them.

Later, fleas bit persons, and so people got the
disease.

People who got the black death started to turn

black, because the flesh started to die and
rotten while the person is still alive. Seeing such
thing was very hard for people, but it was even
harder to see people dying by hundreds or thousands. Sometimes, ALL the
people in a city and town were killed by this disease, in a couple of weeks.

The Church said that it was a punishment from God.

Almost one third of the population of Europe died, in numbers, that is

about 25 million people.

Activity: Questionnaire
The crusades and the black death.

1. When did the crusades start and finish?

2. What was the objective of the war?
3. Where does the name Crusade come from?
4. How many crusades were there in total?
5. When did the black death begin and finish?
6. Where did the disease come from? (Which animal)
7. How did the people get the disease?
8. How many people die in Europe because of the black death?

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ACTIVITY: Crime investigation

There has been a crime but we don’t know who the person is. The only
clues we have are the following:
 Canterbury Cathedral
 Geoffrey Chaucer
 Thomas Becket
 Four knights
 King Henry II

Read through the information below and find out:

1. Who is the person who died?

2. Where did he die?
3. Why did he die?
4. Who killed him?
5. What’s the relationship between the people who appear in the clues?

Geoffrey Chaucer
Geoffrey Chaucer was born
approximately in 1343 and
died on 25th October 1400.
Chaucer was an English writer,
poet, and philosopher.

Chaucer married Philippa de

Roet and they had two
children, Elizabeth and
Thomas Chaucer.

He is most famous for writing “The Canterbury Tales”, a book that

consisted in 24 stories told by persons who were part of a group of
pilgrims. Chaucer’s purpose was to write 120 stories in total, but he died
before finishing the book.

Although the book was not finished, it was published because it was one of
the first books to be written in English. (Actually, it was written in
MIDDLE ENGLISH, that’s to say, the English spoken in the medieval period
in England). Before Chaucer, books were written in Latin or French. “The
Canterbury Tales” (his book) is written in the type of English that most
ordinary people used in Chaucer's day.

Because Chaucer was one of the first writers to write in English, he is

considered as the “Father of English Literature”.

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Before being a writer, Chaucer was a knight and fought in the Hundred
Years War (A long war between England and France). He was a very
important person. Chaucer was taken as a prisoner by the French, and the
king of England paid RANSOM MONEY, so Chaucer was set free.

Chaucer also worked as a diplomat for the king of England.

In his stories in The Canterbury tales, Chaucer criticizes, and makes fun of
the English society and the Church. He was very brave for the time,
especially knowing the risks that he run if he contradicted the Church and
the rich English people.

He was also considered as a person with a good sense of humour. People of

his time, really liked him! Chaucer had the ability to show the English people
how bad and how good they were.

Saint Thomas Becket

Thomas Becket was the son of a rich London merchant. He grew up to be
very powerful. He was archbishop of
Canterbury and chancellor to King
Henry II.

Henry II and Becket became good

friends. When Archbishop Theobald
died in 1162, Henry chose Becket as his
new archbishop of Canterbury. In this
role he became the leader of the Roman
Catholic Church in England.

Henry II asked Becket to help him

remove power from the Catholic
Church, and Becket refused to do so.

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Because of this, Becket and

Henry II became enemies. One
day, Henry II sent four knights
to murder Thomas Becket.
Thomas Becket was murdered
inside the Cathedral of
Canterbury; the place where he
was buried later on.

After his murder, king Henry II

was suspected to be the one who
sent the four knights to kill him.
Henry said that he could have
never done that to a friend, and
confessed that he was very sad for Thomas. To show how sad he was,
Henry II went walking 300 kilometres, from Southampton to Canterbury,
to cry over his good friend’s tomb.
This long walk to a holy place is called “pilgrimage”. And Henry II was the
first “pilgrim” who went to Canterbury Cathedral.

After Henry’s pilgrimage, many people started going to pilgrimages,

especially to ask Thomas Becket for help. It is said that Becket helped the
people after his death, that’s to say, he performed “miracles”. Because of
these miracles, Becket started to be considered a saint. Today, he is known
as SAINT Thomas Becket.

ACTIVITY: Complete Chaucer’s ID card with information taken from his

biography

Geoffrey Chaucer
Place of birth:________________________

Date of birth: About 1340

Date of Death: _____/_____/_____

Professions: ______________, _______________, _________________, ___________________,

__________________.

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He is often called the “______________ of English Literature”.

He was taken as a prisoner in France and the King payed _______________ money to take him back
to England.

His most important literary work is: _______________________________

The Canterbury Tales

The Canterbury Tales is a book of stories written by Geoffrey Chaucer.
It was written in the 14th century.
It was one of the first books to be written in the English language.

The book is about a group

of pilgrims traveling from
London to Canterbury, to
visit the tomb of Saint
Thomas Becket. The
story begins at an “inn” (a
hotel in the medieval
period), called the
“Tabard Inn”. The owner
of the inn proposes a
competition, so as to have
fun on their way to
Canterbury. The winner
would earn a free meal at
the inn, when they are
back. As they travel
along, each pilgrim tells.
It’s a pity that we never
know who is the winner,
because Chaucer died
before he could finish
the book.
Chaucer planned to write
120 stories, with each
pilgrim telling two stories
on the way to Canterbury and two more stories on the way back. Chaucer
died before he could finish the 120 stories, he could write only 24 stories,
before dying.

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The reason for Pilgrims to tell stories on their pilgrimage is because it took
them many days to go from London to Canterbury. Besides, many people, in
the medieval period, went on pilgrimages as an excuse holidays. On the way,
they visited places they have never been before, and met new people.

Chaucer, set the book on a pilgrimage, because in a pilgrimage people from

many social classes got together; and Chaucer’s objective in the book was
to criticize, and make fun of the society of his time (the medieval society).
What could be better than a pilgrimage to have all social classes together,
and criticize them?! XD
Chaucer chose pilgrims with different professions. Each pilgrim, according
to his or her profession, is part of a particular social class.

When telling their stories (when they open their mouth), the pilgrims show
the good and bad sides of the social group they are part of. Their
vocabulary also varies with the social rank.
The book is divided
into the many parts;
the first is the
“prologue” of the
book. The other parts
are the stories (one
part for each story
told).

1. In the “prologue”, Chaucer introduces the pilgrims (characters)

and tells us about the competition proposed by the inn keeper
(owner of the inn).
2. After the prologue come the stories. Each story is like a chapter
in the book. Chapters are called in a very similar way, depending
on who tells the story. For example, fi the pilgrim who tells the
story in that chapter is the “Knight”, then the chapter is called
“The Knight’s Tale”; if the pilgrim who tells the story is the miller,
then the chapter is called “The Miller’s Tale”, etc.

Some of the tales (stories) are serious and others are funny. Some of the
funny stories are vulgar (rude). A lot of the tales talk about the Christian
faith.

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Go to the STORIES BANK to read some of the Canterbury Tales! 

The Canterbury Tales: Activities

The Prologue: Read the prologue and do the activities below.

TOP 3 – Ranking

Choose 5 pilgrims which you consider to be the best, and 5 which you
consider to be the worst.

 Write them in the chart below.

 Be ready to explain why you put them there.

Best Pilgrims Worst Pilgrims

1. 1.

2. 2.

3. 3.

4. 4.

5. 5.

The Canterbury Tales: The Prologue.

Read the Prologue and then answer the questions below.

1. Where does the pilgrimage start?

2. Where are the pilgrims going?

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3. Why are they going there?

4. How many pilgrims are there?
5. Make a list with the pilgrims that Chaucer mentions in the Prologue.

Questions about pilgrims’ stories:

1. Why do pilgrims have to tell stories?

2. How many stories do they have to tell?
3. Is there any prize for the best story?
4. Who has the idea of telling stories all the way to Canterbury?

The Knight’s Tale

ACTIVITY: Questionnaire. Read The Knight’s Tale and answer the

questions below.

1. Who are the two main characters of the story?

2. Who are they in love with?
3. Which two cities are mentioned in the story?
4. Which city were Palamon and Arcite from?
5. Which city was Emily from?
6. What do they have to do to win the love of Emily?
7. Which gods do they ask for help?
8. Who wins the battle?
9. What happens to the winner of the battle?
10. In the end, who marries Emily?

The Pardoner’s Tale

You are going to read the story told by the pardoner during the
pilgrimage to Canterbury.

A. Read the first three paragraphs of the story.

1. What does the Pardoner do? (What’s his profession?)

2. According to his speech, what kind of person is the pardoner?
(Use as many adjectives as you can)

B. Now read all the rest of the story:

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1. What’s the relationship between the three men in the Pardoner’s

tale?
2. Who are they looking for? Why?
3. What does the old man tell them?
4. What do the men find under the tree? What’s their plan, so as to
take care of it?
5. Do their plan work?
6. Do they find whom they were looking for?

ᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦ ᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦᾦ

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STORY BANK
In this section you will find all the stories we’re going to read this
year.

First Period: (from March to June)

 “Beowulf”

Second Period: (from August to November)

 “The Sword in the Stone”
 “The Prologue” (from The Canterbury Tales)
 “The Knight’s Tale” (from The Canterbury Tales)
 “The Pardoner’s tale” (from The Canterbury Tales)

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