Name: Soma khan

Class: BS English 4th

Section : B
Roll no : PF19262

A STUDY OF CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY IN THE CONTEXT OF

GEOFFREY CHAUCER’S THE CANTERBURY TALES FROM THE
PERSPECTIVE OF REALISM

Introduction:
Literary realism is part of the realist art movement that started in the nineteenth century in France
and lasted till the early twentieth century.
It began as a reaction tl eighteen century Romanticism and rise of the bourgeois in Europe.
Works of romanticism were thought to be too exotic and to have lost touch with the real world.
Some of the earliest writers of realism are Honoré de Balzac and Gustave Flaubert. Both of these
writers infused their writings based on detailed observations of society and presenting a true
picture of it.
Literary movement of realism started hundreds of years after Chaucer’s death, however his
poetry is very close to reality. In Chaucer’s work the characters, the setting and the story are very
close to reality and often can be seen in the present society.

The Problem Statement:

Keeping in mind the characteristics of realism this research will attempt to verify Chaucer's
works as based on realism and its relation to present society.

Research Objective:
Identification of those characteristics in Chaucer’s Canterbury tales which makes it a work based
on literary realism and relating it to the society of today.

Research Questions:
1. What are those characteristics which make Chaucer’s Canterbury tales based on realism?
2. What are those features present in Chaucer’s characters which make all those very close to the
people present in society today.

Significance and scope of study:

The aim of this study is to analyze Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales as a narrative poem based on
literary realism. The focus will be on its characteristics which make it a realistic work such as its
closeness to reality, the focus on characters more than the plot, unbiased opinions, importance of
class, no exaggeration, the language is natural without any flowery words.
Moreover an attempt will be made to relate today’s society to those characters that Chaucer’s
presented in this long narrative poem.
Literature Review:
Literature is the mirror of its age. Supreme literary artist is one who becomes a mouthpiece and
provides a real picture of his age with its minute details. Chaucer is a perfect representative of his
age. He is in true sense a social chronicler of England [1].
Chaucer’s modernism is best reflected in his realism. He reflects the real life of England of his
day. [2]

The Methodology:
Study design:
Descriptive qualitative method

Limitation of study:
Chaucer’s characterization In Canterbury tales. Its comparison to present society ,particularly
limited to Pakistani society of today.

Duration of Study:
Duration of study for research is from - - 2021 to - -2021.

Data collection and analysis:

The sources of data are secondary data sources such as previous research articles, documentaries
and various books. Primary Data collected through group discussion and surveys. Both primary
and secondary data is analyzed to eliminate any irrelevant points and make it more close to the
research problem statement. The method of analysis used in research is the qualitative analysis
which answers such as why, what and how.

References:

[1] Bukhari, U. (2018). Realism in Chaucer India.

https://www.scribd.com/document/310908340/Realism-in-Chaucer
[2] THE AGE OF CHAUCER. (n.d.). Www.Literaturemini.Com. Retrieved December 15, 2020,
from https://www.literaturemini.com/2018/07/geoffrey-chaucer-father-of-english-poetry.html