In “the prologue” to The Canterbury Tales, how does Chaucer use the pilgrimage as a device?
One of the well-known pieces of English literature is The Canterbury Tales. Geoffrey Chaucer penned it in the fourteenth century. It continues to be well-liked today. It is a compilation of 24 tales that pilgrims from London to Canterbury told one another. Chaucer gives an introduction to each storyteller in the prologue to The Tales. Generally speaking, the pilgrimage tale serves as a framing mechanism. It provides readers with a broad overview of the stories.
A book’s prologue serves as its introduction. The setting of the narration is described here, and the characters are introduced. Every story in The Canterbury Tales is told by a different character. Therefore, it is essential to comprehend their history. Each individual is fully described by Chaucer. He details their jobs, social standing, personality quirks, and some significant events in their lives. Their stories are presented after these descriptions. After the prologue’s characters of the pilgrims are revealed, the stories make more sense. The mention of the pilgrims’ objectives and final destination establishes a certain mood. Additionally, it develops the narration’s atmosphere.
The prologue also serves the purpose of describing the setting in which the entire story is set. Readers have a general understanding of the book’s setting from the prologue. The group came together to travel to Canterbury to visit Saint Thomas’s shrine. They make the decision to host a storytelling competition to pass the time during their journey. In the prologue, the word “pilgrimage” has both a symbolic and descriptive meaning. It serves as the narrative’s framework and character introduction.
