Canterbury

Geoffrey Chaucer's most entertaining novel was the Canterbury Tales (in my opinion; mainly because that's all I've read by him- but that's beside the point). Visiting Canterbury today, we were able to go on a pilgrimage from London just like the characters in the novel and hear five of the tales. We went through an interactive tour that told the tales while exploring the sights, sounds, and all the lovely smells of medieval times. 

My favorite of the five stories we heard today was the Wife of Bath and the Knight's Tale. The wife of bath spoke of a man that was going to be killed unless he could answer the queen's question, "What does a woman desire most?" After searching, he came upon an old lady that told him the answer- sovereignty. I really liked that answer and the ending to the tale where the man gave the old lady the power to chose rather than for him to decide her fate. 

In the Knight's tale, there were two cousins who both fell in love with the same woman while in prison. One truly loved her and the other only thought he did. There was a great battle for the woman's honor. The cousin that won was struck down by Saturn and so the other knight was given the fair lady instead. They married and were happy because he truly loved her. That is kind of a really summed up version but you get the point. I also really liked the Knight's Tale because when I went to the Tower of London that is the story they were acting out. It was so funny because the guy playing Chaucer started to tell the story in middle English but all the other actors were like, "We can't understand you" and so he changed to somewhat of today's English. The whole production was really cute and comical. 

 

"Chaucer" and fair maiden Emily from the Knight's Tale at the Tower

 

Between the Tower of London and actually going from London to Canterbury on a "pilgrimage" just like the story, I felt like my knowledge of Chaucer and the Canterbury Tales has expanded and is more relatable/hands-on.