Pronunciation Key
….e = a!!
….es = esc!! [exceptions: before f, h, l, p, v]
..gh.. = kh
..a.. = aa!!
..o.. = oo!!
….ed = edd!!
Beginning
Geoffrey Chaucer begins his Canterbury Tales with the arrival of April, the month favourable for pilgrimage as the harsh weather rooted deep inside the wood is warmed through the sweet breath of Zephyrus (A Warm West Wind). The pilgrims are going to Canterbury to see the holy shrine of Sir Thomas Becket. The poet is staying in Tabard Inn to continue his pilgrimage along with other 30 people. The inn had wide stables for their horses to rest. They decided to go for Canterbury after rising earlier.
Before narrating the tales, Chaucer is to present a description of each pilgrim. The rank and dressing of each one.
The Knight
The first and fierce among all was the knight, a true lover of the code of chivalry, truth, honour, generosity and courtesy. He had won many victories in Christian and non-Christian wars. He was the knight of all knights, he had been in Prussia (Germany), Russia, Granda etc. and he had taken a significant part in 15 fierce wars. Although he was a deadly fighter, yet in normal days, he was as modest as a maiden. His horses were good but his dress was simple. He had worn a thick cotton-coat which was stained by the marks of his breastplates as he had returned from a battle, he had been going to pay thanks for his safer return from a battle.
The Squire
The knight's attendant and son, a lover and "healthy bodied bachelor" (as Hasnain has pointed out). He might be 20 years old and his hairs curled and pressed well and he is mid-heightened. He had took part in the battles to please his beloved. The dress he has worn resembles a cluster of red and white flowers while his coat is short but boasts long and white sleeves. His appearance is as fresh as the month of May. He can compose poems and music for songs, paint, dance and joust (friendly mock-battles). Despite his father being a notable person, he is humble, helping and carves (to chop meat into slices) silently at the table of his master (father). When he is in love, he sleeps no more than a nightingale.
The Prioress
The nun of higher rank and an administrator of the nunnery, full quiet and simple in her smile. She vowed of St. Loy (the patron saint of metal and alloys), which means she either vowed less or nothing (as the saint is known for the refusal of taking an oath). Her name was Madame Eglantine. She chanted the divine songs with great enthusiasm and she used her nasal intonation for melody. She was fluent in French but did not know the dialect of Paris. Her manners of eating were gracious too as she did not let her finger dip in the gravy, no morsel fell from her lips and she did not even let the drops of gravy fell on her clothes. She was in habit of cleaning the plates and cups well after eating the meal. She adopted royal manners to attain respect. She was so kind-hearted that she would weep when she saw a dead bleeding mouse caught in a trap. She also had owned some small dogs which were fed by roasted meat, milk and fine bread. Whenever one of her dogs died or whipped by someone else, she cried bitterly. Her wimple, well-positioned; her nose, slender; her forehead, as wide as hand's breadth; her cloak, neatly fashioned. Along with her, three priests and a nun was travelling.
The Merchant
A merchant with a forked beard; dressed in multi-coloured clothes, a Flemish beaver hat on his head and neatly buckled boots. Everywhere, he addressed of increasing his profits and he made a good profit in exchanging French crowns. The writer did not know his name and his dealings.
The Clerk
Not an office clerk but a clergyman of Oxford. His horse as lean as a rake and so he himself was. He had hollowed cheeks. His cloak, not in a good condition as he had not found any means of his livelihood. He loved reading the philosophy of Aristotle. He had a little gold in his coffer and the little money he received from his friends, he spent on purchasing books and prayed for the souls which helped him in attaining his assimilation. He spoke what was needful and his sentences were short but loaded with 'high matter'. He was ready to teach and learn simultaneously.
The Sergeant of Law
The lawyer of the highest rank, the sergeant was a man of higher intellect. Often seen at St. Paul's portico (a shady place near the church, dedicated for lawyers), he had been performing as a judge in a locality with the permission of the king. He obtained a higher amount of money from his suitors and costly dresses too. He was a unique purchaser of the lands and his (purchased) lands were unentailed to him as soon as he completed the payment process. No one could find faults in the legal documents, prepared by him. He could quote any term from constitution without looking for a book and exaggeratedly, he had studied all the (major) cases from William the Conqueror till the very day. The coat he had worn was of two colours and a silk belt of small crossbars on it.
The Members of a Guild (Club or Crew)
There were 5 members in a group, a Haberdasher (مردانہ لباس بیچنے والا), a Carpenter (ترکھان), a Weaver (درزی), a Dyer (رنگ ساز) and a Tapestry-Maker (پارچہ ساز), all dressed in the same uniform, their swords and knives sharpen well with brass. Their brotherhood was seamless. Each of them was able to maintain a high seat. To such a position, their wives could not craft any objection as their income would be sufficient enough. It would not be blamed to call them 'Madam' and their cloaks to be transported in royal style.
The Doctor
An unmatched doctor of Physic, surgery and medicine, for he was well versed in the science of planets. The patients were cured through his astronomical treatment. He knew the causes behind all the diseases, As soon as he discovered an ailment and its cause, he gave the working remedy. His diet was appropriate. He devoted a little time to study the Bible. His clothes of scarlet and dark blue colour with a silver lining, seemingly expensive but he was not expensive in purchasing other materials. While dealing with fatal diseases, he loved gold both as a heart tonic and a piece to keep in his coffer.
The Wife of Bath
A deaf woman, resident in a country near Bath. She was so excellent in clothmaking that she surpassed the weavers of Ypres and Ghent. She did not let other women chant psalms or else they had to put up with her anger. Her scarfs were of much weight, of ten pounds each, with finest textures. Her shoes new and supple (having sharp needles at the bottom side of a shoe), her hose of fine scarlet, closely tied. Her face was bold and fair. "She had been a respectable woman in her life. " (a grave satire) She had married 5 husbands; not to mention her affairs with other people in her youth. She had ventured into distant lands for pilgrimage, i.e. Rome, Cologne and Galicia. She was gap-toothed (پھدی) too. While riding a horse, she wore a head-dress, a hat as board as the buckler of a shield. She was well aware of the art of smiling and gassing tenderly as she had been an old player of the game of love.
The Parson
A parson was also travelling with Chaucer for pilgrimage. He was not wealthy in worldly pursuits but in holy thoughts. He was a well-learned priest and a true preacher of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He was gentle and showed patience when struck in an adversity. He did not like to curse the people who failed in paying him tithes (جزیہ) (a religious tax on crops), but he financially helped the poor parishioners of his church. The church was wide and his house far away; but he did not let any harsh weather condition prevent him from visiting his parishioners and serving the church by a little help of his staff (چھڑی). Before he preached of some noble deed, he practised it on himself, following the Gospel, "If gold rust what shall the iron do? ". Here, Chaucer gives his own expressions on the division of wrongs and rights in terms of different people of different rank. If the shepherd (the priest) is vicious while his sheep (parishioners) are virtuous then the shepherd can make his flock astray. The priest was not in habit of visiting London but he stayed at home to guard his flock from the threat of wolf (temptation and other vices). Although he was generous and holy, yet his wrath was shown upon the sinners yet he was neither harsh nor arrogant in his speech to them; but his speech was balanced with kind advice. His main purpose was to make his parishioners virtuous by showing his own example towards them. But if a person persistently practised evil deeds, he rebuked the obstinater, regardless of his social status.
The Summoner
The Summoner, having a Cherub like red and pimpled face while eyes narrow; black scabby brows and a scanty beard. Children were usually frightened of his face. No medicine could clean up the mess from his face. Garlic, onions and leeks were his favourite edibles while he liked to drink the wine which was as red as blood. Drunken, he cried as if he were mad but only in Latin. He had learnt two or three tags of decree in Latin, just like the jaybird because he kept hearing the very language all day long. If someone tried to converse with him on other matter, he was unable to talk about it and only said, "What is the law? ". He was gentle and a kind rascal (gentil harlot, ultimately gravest satire) and no person would find a man like him. He could allow a person to live with his beloved without the wedlock for 12 months for a quart of wine. If he found a good fellow committing such crime, he would satisfy the person of not worrying about the Archdeacon's curse, unless the fellow loved his money as his soul. The Summoner would say it would affect one's money, not one's soul. He claimed the purse as Archdeacon's hell, as the offender can get himself free from the curse by paying the heavy amount of money to The Summoner. Chaucer knew well that the summoner was telling lie as no Christian offender could save himself from ex-communication (گناہ کرنے کے جرم میں ملک بدر کر دینا). The Summoner had many young boys and girls under his mercy as he knew their secrets and he would act as their adviser unless they fed him with wine. His head was ensigned as a big ale house but he used a cake as a shield to guard it.
The Pardoner
Along with the Summoner, his gentle friend Pardoner also travelled with him who was coming from Rome who would sing, "Come here, love, to me". The Summoner was also giving him the company by singing so loud that no trumpet could beat in the loudness of his throat. His hair was yellow as wax, hanging loose and spreading out in thin locks over his shoulder. For "freedom hair", he would not wear a hood but kept it in his bag. For him, he was riding in a new fashion. He did not wear anything on his head except a skullcap on which he had fastened a religious talisman. His eyes were as shining as those of a hare. His bag was brimful of pardons, all freshly signed from Rome. He had a small voice as the bleat of a goat. He had no beard and his face as smooth as if shaved recently. He looked like either a eunuch (خواجہ سرا) or a women. But in respect of his profession, there was no such a pardoner from Berwick to Ware. In his bag, he had a pillow-cover which he claimed was Virgin Mary's (God forbids) veil. He also rumoured of possessing a part of Saint Peter's sail when Christ recalled him, while some "precious" possessions like a metal cross with costly stones and some bones of pigs in a glass jar. He could extort more wealth of the poor people in a day than a parson could earn within two months by showcasing these false miraculous articles of religion. Through such knavish tricks, he folled both the parsons and people. Despite these evils, he was a fine figure in the church as he could sing offertory in such tone of sorrow that he would amess a large sum of money. He always showed his talent on these occasions.
Ethics of Narrating a Story
After giving a weighty pen picture of the numbers, rank and equipment of Chaucer's company, all assembled in Tabard Inn in Southwark for a pilgrimage to Canterbury, Chaucer asks the readers for their courtesy of not blaming the writer for the rudeness of speech as the writer intends to express about the facial expressions of every pilgrim who is about to narrate a story. Then Chaucer tells us about the ethics while narrating a story. If a person knows a story, he should try his best to report it in the same form as he previously witnessed the story. Or else, he will be narrating it untruly by adding something which was not a part of the original story. In this regard, he should not spare any person, even his own brother. If a story is indecent, he should reproduce it in decent words. As Christ says in Gospel (Holy Writ) and you know well that it is no vulgarity (also Plato asserts) to those who can read him, that the words must be cousins to the deeds. Then Chaucer asks for our pardon for not representing the characters in their proper social status as his commonsense, as one will get it, is poor.
The Plan of the Host
Then Chaucer indicates towards the host, who had made their journey comfortable and provided with nice food and strong wine. The host was a stout fellow with bright eyes, suitable to serve as a marshal in a banquet hall. He was the most impressive personality in Cheapside (a street in London). He was well acquainted with speech and well-schooled. Moreover, he was a jolly fellow. After supper when Chaucer's company had paid their bills, he began to jest and talk in a humorous manner. Then the host welcomes the company by admiring that he has not seen such a cheerful company in the whole year. Then he recommends the company for a game, a plan about making their journey to the Martyr merry and not boring. But at first, he asks for voting and support of pilgrims. He showcases his plan to cut the long journey short by making every pilgrim tell two stories while going to Canterbury and two stories while returning back home, the pilgrim who tells the most constructive and enjoyable story shall be prized with free (other pilgrims shall pay on his behalf collectively) meal in his Inn, while he will be the judge and provide the travelling expenses on his own for all pilgrims. One thing he makes clear that under his governance, if a person rebels against his decisions, then the person will have to pay for the entire company. Then the host asks the company to either accept his proposal. Everyone accepts the host's proposal without delay. But the company men requests the Host that he should manage, judge and report everyone's tales while providing supper and meal at a certain place in a reasonable price. Then they promise to be ruled by him in small or great matters. Having decided happily, they sleep after taking the wine.
The Pilgrimage Begins
The host of Chaucer's company rises up early in the morning for preparation of pilgrimage and to set forth to Canterbury. He assembled the company and soon, their trip begins in normal pedestrian speed, until they reach the watering-place of St. Thomas where the Host repeats his plan and the punishment through this beautiful line: "If (your) even-song and morning-song are one. " Then cuts are drawn and Sir Knight, Prioress and the Clerk of Oxford are requested to collect the draws at first and then all company men collect their draws.
With a stroke of luck, Sir Knight wins the draw and everyone cheers over his 'victory'. As Sir Knight was chosen by luck to tell his tale, he starts narrating in the name of God and with his usual cheerful expression.
