The Prologue

The Prologueis the key to The Canterbury Tales that narrates about the gathering of a group of people in an inn that intend to go on a pilgrimage to Canterbury next morning.

In the Prologue,the narrator of The Canterbury Tales,whois one of theintended pilgrims, provides more or less accurate depictions of the members of the group and describes why and how The Canterbury Talesis told.If we trust the General Prologue,Chaucer determined that each pilgrim should tell two tales on the way to Canterbury and two tales on the way back. The host of the inn offers to be and is appointed as judge of the tales as they are told and is supposed to determine the best hence winning tale.As mentioned before,The Canterbury Tales was never finished.

It provides a framework for the tales. It contains a group of vivid sketches of typical medieval figures. All classes of the English feudal society, except the royalty and the poorest peasant, are represented by these thirty pilgrims.

Every figureis drawn with the accuracy of a portrait.Itis no exaggeration to say that The Prologue supplies a miniature of the English society of Chaucer's time.Looking at his word-pictures, we know at once how people live in that era. That is why Chaucer has been called“the founder of English realism.”

 

The Prologue

 

Whan that Aprille with his shoures soote,

The droghte of March hath perced to the roote,

And bathed every veyne in swich licóur

Of which vertú engendred is the flour;

Whan Zephirus eek with his swete breeth

Inspired hath in every holt and heeth

The tendre croppes, and the yonge sonne

Hath in the Ram his halfe cours y-ronne,

And smale foweles maken melodye,

That slepen al the nyght with open ye,

So priketh hem Natúre in hir corages,

Thanne longen folk to goon on pilgrimages,

And palmeres for to seken straunge strondes,

To ferne halwes, kowthe in sondry londes;

And specially, from every shires ende

Of Engelond, to Caunterbury they wende,

The hooly blisful martir for to seke,

That hem hath holpen whan that they were seeke.

Questions

1．Can you enjoy the beautiful scenery written by Chaucer?

2．What is Heroic couplets?

3．What are the characteristics of the description of the prologue?

Analysis of The Prologue

The Prologue is actually a gallery of all walks of people. Chaucer widely selected his materials from English society of that age. Except the top of royal and the lowest salves, we can nearly find the representative of all social classes. Though reading the book, we can have a better understanding and broaden our eyesight of English society in 14thcentury, as well as enjoy the feature of art.

The prologue is rich in content.There is the knight who has participated in no less than fifteen of the great crusades of his era; the wife of Bath who has been married five times and well practiced in the art of love; the pardoner who is associated with shiftiness and gender ambiguity;just name a few. They belong to different parts of the society, living in different background, thus had different life styles, habits and custom. They charted, joked, quarreled, and compromised;they discussed, praised, criticized, and persuaded. They adopted their particular way to present their life experience, providing a vivid series of narratives which differ in content and style.

中文译文

序诗

夏雨给大地带来了喜悦，

送走了土壤干裂的三月，

沐浴着草木的丝丝经络，

顿时百花盛开，生机勃勃。

西风轻吹留下清香缕缕，

田野复苏吐出芳草青青；

碧蓝的天空腾起一轮红日，

青春的太阳洒下万道金辉。

小鸟的歌喉多么清脆优美，

迷人的夏夜怎好安然入睡。

美丽的自然撩拨万物的心弦，

多情的鸟儿歌唱爱情的欣欢。

香客盼望膜拜圣徒的灵台，

僧侣立愿云游陌生的滨海。

信徒来自全国东西南北，

众人结伴奔向坎特伯雷，

去朝谢医病救世的恩主，

以缅怀大恩大德的圣徒。

 

References

 

[1]常耀信．英国文学简史[C]．天津：南开大学出版社，2006.

[2]王守仁．英国文学选读[C]．北京：高等教育出版社，2005.