The Canterbury Tales by Chaucer - Essay Example

Love in Chaucer? Yes, Please!

Works of literature always produce a specific effect on the audience, whether they are created to entertain or reach out to people with the help of some topical issues. In this respect, Geoffrey Chaucer is a writer who managed to combine both functions of literature in his works. Significantly, Chaucer’s collection The Canterbury Tales is a good example of his talent to create stories full of moral lessons, which are important for people of any generation. In particular, the author considers the theme of love in all of its aspects in numerous tales of his collection. Among them, The Wife of Bath’s Tale and The Clerk’s Tale represent so different kinds of love. However, either can relate to anyone from readers experiencing love in their lives. Chaucer’s collection The Canterbury Tales is strongly recommended to the audience, for it provides readers with moral lessons of love able to change their worldview even in the 21st century.

Chaucer’s collection The Canterbury Tales proves its importance for reading, for it is able to educate young people via consideration of love in many different ways in the different tales. Although someone can argue that Chaucer and his contemporaries’ perception of love differs from the modern people’s idea, the subject of love conveyed by Chaucer’s stories proves its relevance for the 21st century. The whole thing is that love is still crucial for everyone, despite his or her age, race, location or another factor. Love is everywhere, and it is cognized by people in all of its aspects, the same as it was in the 14th century when Chaucer lived. I’m confident that every reader can relate or fit to at least one of those tales included in The Canterbury Tales. For example, one reader can find common features in his love for a woman who used to control his life and actions. In this context, the reader relates to the controlling nature of the wife of Bath, which is skillfully depicted by Chaucer in his tale of the same title. Another reader can relate more to the submissive and obedient nature of Griselda, who is characterized as an extremely patient young woman in the Clerk’s tale. In addition, those different categories of characters in Chaucer’s collection can be identified by readers as their prototypes in this or that aspect of their behavior, which is changed under the influence of love. In any case, the concepts of love and love affairs, as they are introduced by the writer, find their reflection in the audience. This fact, in turn, confirms that The Canterbury Tales should be read by everyone, for everyone’s heart is touched by love at least once during lifetime.

The Canterbury Tales also prove their significance for people because of the moral lessons conveyed by Chaucer’s stories included in the collection. Thus, the power of love to change human life is the main moral lesson. It is clearly felt in The Wife of Bath’s Tale and The Clerk’s Tale. Although love does not assert itself in the character of the wife of Bath, it can be easily recognized in some of her husbands’ actions as well as in the deeds of Griselda from the Clerk’s tale. Notably, The Wife of Bath’s Tale narrates about the woman who was married five times since being twelve years old. The only thing valuable to the wife of Bath in her relationships is her husbands’ ability to meet her demands. For that purpose, the woman controls their bodies and manipulates their actions, which is clearly presented by her words: “I will have command over his body during all his life, not he” (Chaucer 169). In such a manner, the controlling nature of the wife of Bath is displayed by the writer, whereas her husbands’ obedience can be seen as their love for the woman even despite her manner to use them for her own purposes.

Griselda from the Clerk’s tale, in turn, is shown in her unusual patience that can serve as a confirmation of her love for her parents and husband. The author describes Griselda in the following manner: “Through her natural intelligence, Griselda not only knew all details of a housewife’s work, but also, when the situation demanded, she would wisely manage the commonwealth” (Chaucer 227). Moreover, Chaucer adds that Griselda is the most virtuous person in the world: “…if one speaks of the beauty of virtuous acts, then she was among the fairest under the sun…” (Chaucer 222). That way, Chaucer argues that Griselda is a perfect Samaritan woman and wife (Olson 258), for her intelligence together with her patience and love for her husband is able to serve as a ground for a happy marriage. Hence, the two women’s nature is presented as a shaping factor of their involvement in love affairs of different kinds: wife of Bath uses her husbands’ love, whereas Griselda shares her love with her parents and husband. In other words, the female characters represent love in some of its aspects, either of which serves as a moral lesson for the reader.

The moral lessons of love conveyed by The Canterbury Tales easily connect with the 21st century due to the modern people’s falling in love. Although marriage is not so important for the contemporaries, love is still seen by them as a basis for successful relationships. So, even today, people are preoccupied with the idea of love as a meaning of their affairs with someone special. Specifically, the US national survey conducted by the Pew Internet & American Life Project in 2005 demonstrates, “Among all singles, 16% say they are currently looking for a romantic partner” (Madden and Rainie). This information, in turn, speaks about people’s involvement in love affairs of different kinds, which is skillfully represented by Chaucer in the tales. Needless to say, both men and women living in the 21st century can date, cohabit or get married to a person of the wife of Bath’s character type, the one who will use him or her for personal advantages. There is also a probability that people will love the same person as patient and submissive Griselda, who dedicates her life to providing her relatives with comfortable being. In both cases, the moral lessons of The Canterbury Tales are able to give a clue about the kind of love subsequent upon the character of a beloved person. Moreover, the different tales of the collection prove their power to contribute to the feeling of love or, vice versa, prevent sufferings of people fell in love with a selfish and controlling man or a woman, for they are present in the modern world. So, by providing the 21st-century’s people with essential moral lessons of love, The Canterbury Tales confirm their application to today’s life.

Thus, Chaucer’s collection The Canterbury Tales is a source of moral lessons, which prove their significance as a part of school curriculum in literature. Although the collection of tales introduces the literary characters of the 14th century, it is able to produce the greatest effect on the modern young people’s souls searching for love. In fact, the teenagers are the most vulnerable group to become victims of unhappy love (Madden and Rainie). In this respect, Chaucer’s tales show their ability to prevent those sufferings via consideration of the different kinds of love. Here it must be said that my personal experience from reading and talking about The Canterbury Tales in class helped me to understand the nature of my relationship with a person whom I thought I loved. In fact, I realized that I just fell into a trap of illusion of love, whereas I was just used for the satisfaction of the person’s desires. Obviously, it is the character of the wife of Bath that made me open my eyes and realize the whole falsehood of my so-called love affairs. In addition, The Canterbury Tales helped me to gain insight into different kinds of love. Thus, Chaucer asserts his power to educate the school youth and assist its relationships’ understanding.

Moreover, Chaucer should have more popularity outside of school, for he does not only teach moral lessons but also entertains the reader by his crude humor and language use. Even despite Chaucer’s work touches on such serious topics as love and relationships, he manages to represent them with the help of fun, which allows the audience to relax while reading an interesting and useful piece of literature. For example, The Wife of Bath’s Tale introduces the wife’s controlling nature through the prism of her manner to talk to her husbands in the context of her failure to receive all goods she thinks a beloved wife has the right to claim for. Thus, Chaucer uses offensive language to show the character of his female character and the attempts she uses to accomplish her ends: “Is this your doing, you old fool?” (Chaucer 171); “You old lecher, stop your tricks” (Chaucer 171). Even those few examples show that despite the evil nature of the wife of Bath, Chaucer’s depiction involves no negative connotation, but humor. Moreover, the writer adds to his characters’ power to entertain the reader via their involvement in various situations, skillfully described by his specific language use. That way, Chaucer justifies that he should be read by all people, not only students.

All things considered, The Canterbury Tales should be studied both in schools and colleges, for the collection educates the young people via teaching them moral lessons of love, so crucial for them. So, to assist the students’ perception of love in all of its aspects, The Canterbury Tales must be a part of the school curriculum in literature. What is more, Chaucer should have more popularity among people outside of educational establishments, for his specific language use and crude humor are able to provide them with essential information about human relationships and entertain them at the same time.