Geoffrey Chaucer as an Unofficial Historian

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Introduction

History deals with narrative incidents of the past. The person who records the narratives honestly, without taking one's side is known as a historian. He narrates the incidents without any personal prejudice or malice for any nation. Such historians are appointed by the government to fetch the true views and conditions of their territories. But in literature, some litterateurs volunteer as historians for contribution. They are 'unofficially' devoted to the cause, without any special orders from the government. They are five in number:

Alfred, Lord Tennison (1809 - 1892): The poet of Victorian age who is known for the real paintings of the age in which his work flourished.

Alexander Pope (1688 - 1744): The poet of eighteenth-century who is renowned for representing the flawed eighteenth-century society.

Charles Dickens and William Makepeace Thackrey: Both the novelists are contemporary to each other. Charles Dickens portrays the hard-living of the middle class and suffering of lower-class while Thackrey depicts the luxuries and problems of aristocratic class, living in the nineteenth century.

Geoffrey Chaucer (1340 - 1400): The father of English Literature who sketched the 'picture gallery' of fourteenth-century society through his "Canterbury Tales". He dissected all the major people from different departments of life, from Chivalric class to the people controlling different businesses. Yet he omitted royal and down-trodden class. According to critics, the reason behind omission might be as Chaucer's poetry had been read by aristocratic class; due to sharp satire he had been practising, he did not feel right to mention any prince or servant to avoid their anger and anxiety respectively.

Chivalric Class

The chivalric class was the most respected one after the monarchy. A knight was not an ordinary soldier but a special fighter who had his dominance over other soldiers on the basis of his services, military intellect and courage. A knight had to follow a specific code of chivalry which was made of these four core elements; truth, honour, generosity and courtesy. The knight, who had been travelling with Chaucer, was the knight of all knights, owing to his skills, courage and bravery in the battlefield. While his son did not possess the chivalric qualities as his father did. The Squire had been fighting for his beloved, not for his honour. Thus a vivid decline in chivalric class has been highlighted through the distinction between Knight and Squire.

Nobility or Goodness in Nature

The noble characters exist in every society, so in the Medieval Ages as well. Some characters in Canterbury Tales are illustrated fully as goodness used to learn from them. The Gentle Knight, who had been the most fierce warrior in the battlefield, becomes as gentle and courteous as a maiden in his normal days. The Clerk of Oxford had some noble traits of being modest, not too talkative and a true lover of philosophy and education. While others had been spending their wealth lavishly for worldly pursuits, The Clerk utilized it in accumulating more knowledge. The Parson was the third among the noble characters who had devoted his life for the noble cause of religion, humanity and charity. He visited his parishioners even in hard weather.

Skills

The Medieval Age did not provide any suitable environment for the development of any skills, yet in its ending stage, this scene came to its exodos. Many people, good or bad, practised some sort of skill and then mastered it. The son of Knight was not good at fighting and chivalric deeds, yet he could compose poems and add music to it. The Prioress could chant divine songs through her nose. The Wife of Bath was an unmatched seamstress as she had surpassed the weavers of Ypres and Ghent.

Lack of Spiritualism

The fourteenth century society, especially religious ones slowly but gradually was falling a victim to materialism. People had been using religion to extract money and other worldly articles. The 'Noble' Prioress kept a set of dogs with her and fed them costly edibles, which was strictly prohibited in Christianity. The Wife of Bath had been a moral dwarf as she had married five husbands, had unauthorized relations with many young ones in her youth and her costly garments. The Summoner would provoke others for affairs for a quart of wine. The Pardoners would "sell" the signed pardons. Thus that society was gradually shifting its course from spiritualism to materialism.

Professional Class

The professional class was also a servant of worldly pursuits. The Doctor was the most professional in curing his patients through astronomy and in accumulating gold even in the devastating plague. The Sergeant of Law so expert in his profession that no one was able to challenge his legal documents, expensive fee and the lands he purchased.

Business Class

The group of 'ordinary' business was slowly emerging among other classes. They were able to guard themselves against rogues and their intellect was suitable to make them a senator.

Limitations

Geoffrey Chaucer exhibited his society better but every human being is imperfect. Therefore, some limitation is notable in his poetry. There is not even a single reference to Anglo-French War which continued for almost 100 years and he only referred to the devastating plague by only using one word 'pestilence'. Some critics even say that he presented a fable image of Knight, Clerk and Parson as to err is a humanistic quality but he has portrayed them as angels.

Conclusion

Despite the flaws, he presented his society in a way that no person had the ability to present like him. Although he was not included in Renaissance, yet he was the fore-comer of Renaissance as he paved the ways for many starts in constellation of Renaissance to shine bright.