In English 12N, our class just wrapped
up the prologue of The Canterbury Tales. For a class assignment, Ms. Whitley
put us into groups, assigned us two characters and told us to make an analysis
of their personality, their physical appearance and what Geoffrey Chaucer was
trying to explain through the use of satire. One of the characters that I had
to explain was the Knight.
The Knight,
along with the Parson, is a character that Chaucer used to be an example of
what someone should be like, in terms of personality and physicality. We all
know how much most of the characters in The Canterbury Tales need some kind of
spiritual guidance because many of them are the complete antithesis of what
they should be. The Knight is a chivalrous man who has traveled the world, to and
fro, to fight battles in war. He is highly respected for his bravery and his modest personality. The Knight can be considered modest because of his clothing. He wore a plain tunic with stains on them because he had just come back from a battle. I don't know about you, but if I were a highly respected knight, I'd flaunt in the best clothing with the finest jewelry on the highest horse that was offered to me.
Since my class
is also in the midst of the term paper process, the Knight reminded me of Macbeth,
a character in my own term paper. I know you're probably wondering how the
brave and modest Knight can compare to someone so selfish and murderous like
Macbeth, but before Macbeth made a complete 180 degree turn for the worst, he
was actually a good man. Before Macbeth murdered King Duncan, Duncan had
nothing but praises for him. In the beginning of Macbeth, the captain tells
Duncan that Macbeth killed the evil Macdonwald and saved all the lives of the
men who were on his side. Macbeth could have easily been the Knight in Chaucer’s
story because of all the battles they've fought and the honor that has been put
upon them from others.
