Knight And Squire In The Canterbury Tales Essay - 913 Words

The Canterbury Tales were written by Geoffrey Chaucer the 1300s, and told the story of twenty-nine travelers making a pilgrimage to Canterbury, England. The pilgrims wished to visit the relics of Saint Thomas Becket, in the Canterbury Cathedral. In the prologue, the narrator depicts each character and their demeanor. Two particular characters in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, the Knight and Squire, help to exemplify the idea that wisdom and respect come with experience and age. The Knight’s wisdom and maturity above the Squire is proven not only through age, but he also proved his traits through battle and hardships. The narrator tells of the Knight’s voyages, stating that he â€Å"fought when Ayas and Attalia fell†(Chaucer 60), â€Å"embarked with†¦show more content†¦By describing the Knight like this, the narrator also establishes the Knight as a model citizen who demonstrates chivalry and enthusiasm to do the right thing, similar to the Squire. Rather than the Squire’s childish persona, the Knight is presented as a figure of maturity, formality, and authority, due to his title as a knight. The Knight’s maturity and genuinity illustrates how the Knight’s wisdom and respect comes from his experience and age above the Squire. The narrator established that both the Knight and Squire acted as model citizens, but he also exposed their motives for those actions, with the Knight’s motives being more wise due to his age and experiences. The narrator depicts the Knight as being genuinely kind, while the Squire has ulterior motives. The Knight is said to have â€Å"noble graces†(Chaucer 50) and pure intentions with his actions. This exposes the Knight’s drive to act as a proper knight and leave the most honorable legacy possible for himself. In contrast, the Squire is described as being motivated to act â€Å"in hopes of winning a lady’s grace†(Chaucer 90). The Squire is a younger knight-in-training, so it would be logical that his intentions aren’t as pure as those of a true knight, like his father. This is a demonstration of the Squire’s lack of wisdom, due to his naive motivation of courtship and his lack of driven motivation for his future as a knight. The Squi res lack of drive andShow MoreRelatedThe Perfection Of The Knight In The General Prologue Of1128 Words   |  5 Pages The perfection of the knight in The General Prologue of the Canterbury Tales represents an idealized form of chivalry. Through exhaustive conquest and moderate temperament, the knight embodies chivalric qualities that elevate him to an idealized state. Moreover, the knight is temperamentally moderate despite his martial successes and his merit is unmatched by any other knight. 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