Chaucer and the Making of English Poetry

Description: Describes Chaucer's contributions to English literary tradition: a "new kind of organization" of large narrative, an "urbane" style that assumes a shared set of values with its audience, and a "new attitude" toward the "usefulness and dignity" of poetry, all influencing later poetry. Though deriving much from classical and Continental predecessors, Chaucer was also influenced by native English romance, particularly its "narrative 'koinê'" and "conversational dialogue." The fusion of Boethian and Stoic philosophy with courtly conventions characterizes PF, while "technical virtuosity" is found in HF. TC is an "expansion" of PF, rendered more subtle through the narrator's interventions and sophisticated characterization. Treats KnT as one of Chaucer's great accomplishments and considers a variety of styles and themes in CT: the "rough justice" of fabliau comedy, sincere religious devotion, structural complexity, etc. Includes recurrent attention to source material, with extended commentary on ClT, FranT, MLT, NPT, PardT, PhyT, PrT, and SNPT.

Chaucer Subjects: Sources, Analogues, and Literary Relations; Language and Word Studies; Chaucer's Influence and Later Allusion; Parliament of Fowls; Knight and His Tale; Clerk and His Tale; Franklin and His Tale; Man of Law and His Tale; Nun's Priest and His Tale; Pardoner and His Tale; Physician and His Tale; Prioress and Her Tale; Second Nun and Her Tale