THE CANTERBURY TALES: Geoffrey Chaucer - FULL AudioBook: Part 1/2

THE CANTERBURY TALES by Geoffrey Chaucer ABOUT THE BOOK: The Canterbury Tales (Middle English: Tales of Caunterbury) is a collection of 24 stories that runs to over 17,000 lines written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer between 1387-1400. In 1386, Chaucer became Controller of Customs and Justice of Peace and, three years later, Clerk of the King's work in 1389. It was during these years that Chaucer began working on his most famous text, The Canterbury Tales. The tales (mostly written in verse, although some are in prose) are presented as part of a story-telling contest by a group of pilgrims as they travel together on a journey from London to Canterbury to visit the shrine of Saint Thomas Becket at Canterbury Cathedral. The prize for this contest is a free meal at the Tabard Inn at Southwark on their return. After a long list of works written earlier in his career, including Troilus and Criseyde, House of Fame, and Parliament of Fowls, The Canterbury Tales is near-unanimously seen as Chaucer's magnum opus. He uses the tales and descriptions of its characters to paint an ironic and critical portrait of English society at the time, and particularly of the Church. Chaucer's use of such a wide range of classes and types of people was without precedent in English. Although the characters are fictional, they still offer a variety of insights into customs and practices of the time. Often, such insight leads to a variety of discussions and disagreements among people in the 14th century. For example, although various social classes are represented in these stories and all of the pilgrims are on a spiritual quest, it is apparent that they are more concerned with worldly things than spiritual. Structurally, the collection resembles The Decameron, which Chaucer may have read during his first diplomatic mission to Italy in 1372. It has been suggested that the greatest contribution of The Canterbury Tales to English literature was the popularization of the English vernacular in mainstream literature, as opposed to French, Italian or Latin. English had, however, been used as a literary language centuries before Chaucer's time, and several of Chaucer's contemporaries - John Gower, William Langland, the Pearl Poet, and Julian of Norwich - also wrote major literary works in English. It is unclear to what extent Chaucer was seminal in this evolution of literary preference. While Chaucer clearly states the addressees of many of his poems, the intended audience of The Canterbury Tales is more difficult to determine. Chaucer was a courtier, leading some to believe that he was mainly a court poet who wrote exclusively for nobility. The Canterbury Tales is generally thought to have been incomplete at the end of Chaucer's life. In the General Prologue, some thirty pilgrims are introduced. According to the Prologue, Chaucer's intention was to write two stories from the perspective of each pilgrim on the way to and from their ultimate destination, St. Thomas Becket's shrine (making for a total of four stories per pilgrim). Although perhaps incomplete, The Canterbury Tales is revered as one of the most important works in English literature. Not only do readers find it entertaining, but it is also open to a wide range of interpretations. ABOUT THIS CHANNEL: Listen to the best free Audiobooks! On this channel, you’ll find audiobooks of great works of fiction, poetry and non-fiction, by such authors as Twain, Tolstoy, Hemingway, Orwell, Vonnegut, Nietzsche, Austen, Shakespeare, Asimov, HG Wells & more. If you're looking for an audiobook, you’ve come to the right place, all FREE of charge for your listening pleasure! We're always adding new audiobooks so stay posted! Subscribe:    / @audiobookbuzz   MORE ABOUT THE BOOK: Audiobook Name: The Canterbury Tales Author: Geoffrey Chaucer Country: United Kingdom Genre: Short Story Publication date: 1387-1400 Part 2 of 2:    • THE CANTERBURY TALES: Geoffrey Chaucer - F...   The Canterbury Tales PLAYLIST (ALL PARTS):    • The Canterbury Tales   More from Geoffrey Chaucer:    • Geoffrey Chaucer   CHAPTERS: 00:00:55 - Preface 00:06:49 - The Life of Geoffrey Chaucer 01:05:17 - The Prologue 01:44:30 - The Knight's Tale (Part 1) 02:50:52 - The Knight's Tale (Part 2) 04:10:16 - The Miller's Tale 05:05:16 - The Reeve's Tale 05:28:51 - The Cook's Tale 05:36:41 - The Man of Law's Tale 06:56:10 - The Wife of Bath's Tale 07:59:52 - The Friar's Tale 08:22:46 - The Sompnour's Tale 09:05:50 - The Clerk's Tale