For Wednesday: Chaucer, "The Canon's Yeoman's Tale"

NOTE: The "Shakespeare" group will answer these questions. 

Answer TWO of the following:

Q1: A "yeoman" is basically a servant to someone of a higher class; in this case, he is the servant of a Canon, or a member of the clergy. Given his station in life, why do you think Chaucer gave the tale to him, and not his master? (especially given that neither character is mentioned in the General Prologue). What makes him such a worthwhile character?

Q2: Like the Knight's Tale (which we didn't read) and The Wife of Bath's Tale (which we did), the Yeoman's Tale is more interesting for how he tells the story that what he even says. What makes his manner of storytelling so unique? How does his manner of delivery (and what he chooses to say) shape the very meaning of the story itself? Does he ever let his story--or his anger--run away with him? 

Q3: How are the Canon's methods (or at least, the Yeoman's portrayal of them) similar to those of the Pardoner? What are their tricks of the trade, and how do they deceive honest people with the appearance of truth? Do you think this is Chaucer's attack on the church, or merely on gullible people in general?

Q4: The tale ends with the Yeoman's warning that "Make God your adversary for a whim/And work at what is contrary to Him/And to His will, and you will never thrive" (474). Should we read this tale as Chaucer's Christian attack on the science (alchemy) of his age? Or is he merely satirizing the zeal of the Yeoman who blamed alchemy for all his ills?

For Monday: Chaucer, "The Merchant's Tale"

NOTE: The "Chaucer" group will tackle these questions for Monday. 

Answer TWO of the following...

Q1: Since this is yet another tale about marriage and the nature of women, what side does the Merchant take? How is he consciously responding to the Wife of Bath—whom he actually refers to in his tale—and does he champion her views on female power?

Q2: Does the Merchant present the character of January an idealized portrait, or a satirical one? How do we know? How do other characters respond to him in the tale, and where does the Merchant artfully insert himself into the story?

Q3: What did you make of the inclusion of Pluto and Proserpine in the story? How do they comment on the action of the tale, and perhaps change how we read/understand it? Consider in particular Proserpine’s speech on page 384: “What do I care for your authorities?”

Q4: In many ways, “The Merchant’s Tale” sounds like “The Miller’s Tale” if it had been told by the Knight. How are we supposed to take it: as a comedy about women triumphing over men, or a stern Medieval “warning against marriage” treatise? In other words, does the Merchant want us to applaud May or sympathize with January?

For Friday: The Wife of Bath's Tale

NOTE: The "Anonymous" Group is up again! But remember, if you miss the questions for your group's day, you can always answer later ones to make up (though I prefer you try to answer your group's questions).

Answer TWO of the following:

Q1: Why do you think The Wife of Bath chooses to tell a story of King Arthur's time? She seems like the last person to tell a story of the "good old days," and the audience naturally expects a risque tale like "The Miller's Tale." Why might the tale--or its setting--be ideally suited to her purpose?

Q2: How do we know the Wife's intention, and the question at the heart of her tale ("What is the thing that women most desire?") is satirical? Why might she be trying to satirize by sending a knight on a quest to discover what all women want?

Q3: Related to Q2, the answer to the question is, "A woman wants the self-same sovereignty/Over her husband as over her lover" (286). In a sense, this sounds a lot like the Wife's catty claim that "Lies, tears, and spinning are the things God gives/By nature to a woman" (269). Is this meant to affirm the misogyny of Chaucer's age, or can it be read more charitably/subversively?

Q4: Why does the Old Woman at the end of the Tale sound uncannily like The Wife of Bath herself? How might at least one of her arguments echo what the Wife, herself, said in the Prologue?
 

Excerpts from Two Medieval Texts About Women and Marriage (Context for The Wife of Bath)

[If you lost or missed the handout from Wednesday's class, here it is...might come in handy for a later assignment/exam or just for general knowledge]

TWO MEDIEVAL TEXTS AGAINST WOMEN/MARRIAGE 

* All excerpts from Women Defamed and Women Defended: An Anthology of Medieval Texts, ed. Alcuin Blamries. Clarendon Press: Oxford, 1992.

Anonymous, Against Marrying (c.1222-50)

A married man’s a slave for sure,

His flesh and spirit pain endure—

Like ox from market homeward led

To work the plough until he’s dead.

Who take a wife accepts a yoke:

Not knowing pain, with pain he’ll choke.

Who takes a wife, himself is caught

And to eternal serfdom bought...

A woman will receive all males:

No prick against her lust prevails.

For who could fill his spouse’s spout?

Alone she wears the district out.

Her lustful loins are never stilled:

By just one man she’s unfulfilled.

She’ll spread her legs to all the men

But, ever hungry, won’t say “When.”

Jehan Le Fèvre, The Lamentations of Mathelous (c. 1371-2)

“Many a war is begun by women and many a murder committed throughout the world; castles are burned and ransacked and the poor made destitute. As every man and woman knows, there isn’t one war in a thousand that isn’t started by a woman and her sowing of discord. She is the mother of all calamities; all evil and all madness stem from her. Her sting is more venomous than a snake’s; there isn’t anyone who has anything to do with her that doesn’t live to regret it...

Now you can see how foolhardy it is to take a wife...What is the point of your studying the matter? Don’t get married, have mistresses. If you are weak by nature, it will be safer for you to have a hundred of them rather than devote yourself to one; treat them as if they were no more important than a straw...Woman is a monstrous hermaphrodite, proving to be a chimera with horns and a tail bigger than a peacock or a pheasant’s. Thus she bears the marks of a monster, as this treatise informs you...their sex in no way prepares them to be virtuous or to do good, indeed they are predisposed to do the very opposite.”

For Wednesday: Chaucer, "The Wife of Bath's Prologue"

NOTE: The "Austen" group will answer these questions. Also, feel free to read her Tale as well, though we won't discuss that until Friday. 

Answer TWO of the following...

Q1: The beginning of the Wife of Bath’s Prologue is a defense of multiple marriages using her own interpretation of the Scriptures. What is her basic argument, and why might this have been shocking for its time—particularly considering the many Church figures in the audience?

Q2: At one point, the Pardoner interrupts, claiming he was thinking about marriage, but the Wife of Bath claims, “You wait...you’ll taste another brew before I’m done;/You’ll find it doesn’t taste as good as ale” (263). What are her views about marriage, especially considering she’s done it five times? Is she trying to discourage men and women from tying the knot, or does she simply have a less chivalric view of wedded bliss?  Discuss a moment that seems to illustrate this.

Q3: Toward the end of the Prologue, the Wife of Bath claims, “Lies, tears, and spinning are the things God gives/By nature to a woman, while she lives” (269). She goes on to say that “No one can be so bold—I mean no man--/At lies and swearing as a woman can” (264). How do you respond to her characterization of women in this Prologue? Is she a forward-thinking, bold-as-brass proto-feminist, or is she just another male stereotype of a greedy, nagging wife?  What sways you one way or the other? 

Q4: Somewhat related to Q3, what do you think the Narrator's (or Chaucer's) position is on the Wife of Bath? Is he satirizing her by letting her talk too much (like the Pardoner)? Or is he simply letting his creation run away with the story? In other words, is Chaucer in love with her or appalled by her? What clues might suggest one reading over the other? 

For Monday: Chaucer, "The Pardoner's Tale"

Answer TWO of the following:

Q1: Why do you think the tale begins with such a lengthy Prologue? Why doesn’t he simply get on with his Tale, especially since the Prologue somewhat undercuts the Tale’s effectiveness? Also, how does the Prologue change how we read and understand the moral of his tale (when he finally gets to it)? 

Q2: The Pardoner says the theme of all his sermons is “money is the root of all evil.” Why does he specialize in this theme, and what does his theme suggest about the profession of ‘pardoning’ in general?

Q3: The Pardoner’s Tale is a classic medieval allegory: three ‘brothers’ arming themselves to find and murder Death. Why don’t they recognize him when they find him? What makes it so easy for Death to win, according to the Pardoner (or Chaucer)?

Q4: Why does the Pardoner try to sell his relics and pardons to the entire group after his sermon? Don’t they already know that both are worthless after hearing his Prologue? Why does Chaucer include this humorous sales pitch?

For Friday: Chaucer, "The Miller's Tale"

Note: The "Chaucer" group (fittingly) will answer these questions.

Answer TWO of the following...

Q1: In the Tales, the Knight goes first, since he's the highest in the social order. So why do you think Chaucer lets the Miller (one of the lowest members of the group) go next? What reasons does the Narrator give in the poem, and why might the Miller be a dramatic contrast to the kind of tale the Knight probably told (which was a tale of chivalry--two knights fighting over the love of a single woman)?

Q2: As we see in "The General Prologue," Chaucer enjoys satirizing many members of the company through detailed descriptions of their person. How does he engage in similar satire in "The Miller's Tale"? Examine the description of one of the main characters--Nicholas, Alison, or Absalon. 

Q3: Discuss the role of Alison in “The Miller’s Tale”: is she a typically powerless woman seduced and controlled by men, or is she the actual ‘hero’ of the tale? How does the Miller—or Chaucer—want us to ‘read’ Alison?

Q4: Chaucer makes an elaborate apology for this tale, writing “I’m sorry that I must repeat it here/And therefore, I entreat all decent folk/For God’s sake don’t imagine that I speak/With any evil motive...And so, should anyone not wish to hear,/Turn the page over, choose another tale.” Why do you think Chaucer includes such a bawdy, low-humor tale in his collection since he could have easily cleaned it up? Do you think low comedy and sexual humor has a place in literature? Did they have different standards in the 14th century, or is Chaucer merely part of an old tradition we still take part in today?

For Wednesday: Chaucer, "The General Prologue" from The Canterbury Tales

Note: The "Anonymous" group will answer these questions

Answer TWO of the following: 

Q1: What apologies does the narrator make for his poem? What is his stated goal in writing the work--and why might this represent some of the new, humanistic trends in the 14th century (which we talked about in class on Friday)?

 
Q2: Which pilgrim(s) seem to come in for the most pointed satire? Why is this? What aspect of their character, class, or language does the narrator find most amusing? How can we ‘see’ this through his description in the Prologue?
 

Q3: What qualities of theme or language does Chaucer have in common with the Exeter Riddles we discussed on Friday? How do we know that Chaucer might have admired these poems (if he ever read them), or that he comes from the same tradition as these ancient poems?

Q4: Conversely, what makes Chaucer’s poetry so different than most of the other Anglo-Saxon poems, especially works like “The Battle of Maldon” or “The Wanderer”? What clues tell us that Chaucer was writing in a very different age, with very different ideas and beliefs? You might consider what aspects of the Prologue could never have been written in the Anglo-Saxon period.

Paper #1: Finding ‘Anonymous’

“A poet sings to protect the people” (Maxim I-B)

INTRO: Unfortunately, we don’t know the identity of the many poets and singers who composed the poems in The Word Exchange. There might be a few, or a dozen, or a hundred. We can’t even tell for sure if certain poems were all the work of one hand, since oral poetry is often added onto, expanded, and adapted by each poet/singer. However, a good chunk of Shakespeare’s plays were not even attributed to him during his life, and only later, did people realize that the same hand wrote Romeo and Juliet as well as King Lear. So maybe that’s the case with these poems...maybe a hidden ‘Shakespeare’ is behind the work of several of these Anglo-Saxon masterpieces?

ASSIGNMENT: For this assignment, I want you to make the argument that two specific works are the product of the same poet, expressing a similar world view, similar themes, and some coherence of style. In other words, how can you see the unique artistic thumbprints of the author when you read both works? What makes them consistent and different from many other works of the same time or style? To do this, you need to analyze the two poems you feel most ‘speak’ to each other, and use close reading to pick out lines and even words that reinforce a poet’s specific consciousness.

EXAMPLE: In Maxims I-C, I might examine the final stanza, which reads, “Our world has no haven...That is where you must live, among thieves and killers” (189). To me, this echoes several passages in poems such as The Seafarer, The Wanderer, and Deor, especially, which see the world as cruel and ruled by fate (wyrd). I would examine specific phrases in one of these poems to show that they both echo the same ideas in roughly the same language.

CITATION: When quoting works in your paper, follow this simple formula: Introduction + quote/citation + response. It should basically look like this...In the final stanza of Maxim I-C, the poet writes, “That is where you must live, among thieves and killers” (189). This is significant since it suggests the earthly world is run by a cruel, almost senseless fate, and that someone looking for earthly comforts will always be disappointed.

REQUIREMENTS: At least 3-4 pages, double spaced; quote from both poems enough to make your points; introduce and cite poems; due MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 10th BY 5pm [no class that day]

For Wednesday: Selected Anglo-Saxon Riddles (see below)

Read the following Riddles scattered around the book:

#8 (p.79); #11 (p.83); #14 (p.89); #23 (p.161); #29 (p.263); #43 (p.319); #44 (p.321); #50 and 51 (p.407); #54 (p.411); #74. 75-76 (p.455)

NOTE: the possible solutions are listed on pages 541-545

Answer TWO of the following:

Q1:The word "riddle" comes from the Old English "raedan," which means "to advise, counsel, guide, explain." How do some of these riddles seem to illustrate the riddler's relationship the world? Or, how does it change the way we see/experience the world after riddling it? 

Q2: Based on the answers to some of these riddles, what kinds of items/things were important to the Anglo-Saxon world? Why do you think this is? What themes/items seem to crop up the most? 

Q3: One of the delights of the riddles is how they can throw you off the scent, and think you're reading something entirely different. Discuss how one of the Riddles does this--makes it seem like it's talking about something completely different, though once you know the answer, it's obvious that the meaning never changed.

Q4: Which Riddle do you feel is most like a poem? Why might you not even need to solve it to appreciate its message? (you might even consider why one of the solutions in the book doesn't seem right to you--and somehow robs the poem of its poetry).