The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer

The Knight’s Tale

CONTEXT
Due to different invasions (Normands, Magyars, Sarracens and Slavs), established
monarchies were split up and weakened and a new way of social, economic and
political organization had to be applied. That new order was, in fact, what we know
today as Feudalism. Formed by three estates/estratums characterized by being
divided into groups by birth, that is, people became members by birth so their
status/membership was unchangeable. Each class has a specific function in society,
which is justified legally and/or religiously.
If we consider the social order as a pyramid then, from top to bottom, there was the
king, the nobility, the religious people and the chivalry (knights) -which shared the
same status- and, at the bottom, the peasants. This system established quickly in
the collective consciousness because: It was a “religious mirror”, that is, it was the
evidence of what the Bible “established” and, therefore, it justified the social inequity.
The nobility had extensive portions of land called “Feudal lordship”, which were
received by the king in exchange for an oath of loyalty and military assistance .
Those lands were plowed and sown by peasants who also lived there and made use
of a small part used for tributes or “rent.”
Specifically, the knights’ vocation is war and the use of their wealth is invested in the
most effective means of fighting, by physical training to which they devote all his time
- as well as their military power. The knights and the clergymen managed society
and controlled wealth. Their respective ideals were the prayer and the struggle, but
neither group despised wealth nor to spend time in its production.

THE KNIGHT'S TALE

It is a story within a story -as the other tales within Chaucer’s book- and framed in
the old feudal order.
The prologue states quite a special mention to the knight, where it depicts many
wonderful feats and features he had (he was loyal, honorable, generous, courteous,
brave); and the many times he traveled places, facing many contexts and fighting
when he believed it was pertinent, without forgetting his values and morals as well as
his commitment to the chivalry and his solemnity.
It tells the story of two knights, Palamon and Arcite, who are captured and
imprisoned in Athens. While in captivity, they both fall in love with the beautiful Emily.
Their love for her leads to a bitter rivalry and, eventually, a duel for her hand in
marriage. The tale explores themes of love and all the natural emotions in between -
what in philosophy is considered Humanism. This stance emphasizes the individual
and social potential, and agency of human beings, whom it considers the starting
point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The story is a classic example of
chivalric romance and courtly love and offers a glimpse into the values and ideals of
the medieval era.