The Importance of Social Class Exposed in The Canterbury Tales Essay

Social class was the foundation of everyday life during the Middle Ages. Social class played a significant role in the lives of medieval people. The aristocracy class and the immoral lower class were often viewed by society as practically different races. In The Canterbury Tales, Geoffrey Chaucer shows the wide variance among the classes in every aspect of their daily lives. The zeitgeist of the Middle Ages can be seen through his illustration of differences between classes in moral behavior, economic power, the autonomy and education of women during the Middle Ages. In today’s society the differences in morals between the rich and the poorer classes are virtually non-existent, but during Medieval times â€Å"morals and, above all, the virtues at its center, played an important role not only for distinguishing between good and bad, but, more importantly, even for the structuring of society† (Virtus 1). The aristocracy class and the immoral poor class had morals but how they demonstrated them varied; the aristocratic class used chivalry as the basis of their morals, while the immoral poor class did not. Chivalry was not only a code of conduct for those who followed it; chivalry was a way of life. ‘Chivalry first arose in Europe during the Crusades. Chivalry dealt with loyalty honor, and service to women on and off the battle field’ (â€Å"The Medieval Period: 1066-1485† 76). The Knight in The Canterbury Tales is the perfect example of someone who follows the code of chivalry. Chaucer describes him with much admi ration as â€Å"a most distinguishable man, who from the day on which he first began to ride abroad had followed chivalry, truth, honor generousness and courtesy† (Chaucer, "The Prologue." 117). While Chaucer praises the knight for ... ... the class system. Works Cited Chaucer, Geoffrey. The Canterbury Tales. Trans. R. M. Lumiansky. New York: Washington Square Press, 1971. Print. Chaucer, Geoffrey. â€Å"The Prologue.† The Canterbury Tales. Trans. Nevill Coghill. Literature: The British Tradition. Ed. Roger Babusci et al. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall, 1994. 115-136. Print. â€Å"The Medieval Period: 1066-1485.† Literature: The British Tradition. Ed. Roger Babusci etal. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall, 1994. 69-79. Print. "The Middle Ages: Feudal Life." Learner.org. Annenberg Foundation, 2012. Web. 11 Mar. 2012. Virtus: Moral Limitations of the Political Sphere in the Middle Ages. Thesis. Bielefeld Universit. Silke Schwandt: Bielefeld University. Print. Wheelock, Stephanie. Advanced English 12: Humanities. Eden Prairie High School. Eden Prairie. March 2012. Class discussion.

Discuss and consider the role of women in Stephen Dedalus creative Ess

Discuss and consider the role of women in Stephen Dedalus' creative process, how is this reflected in the language and narrative of the novel? From the very first page of "A portrait of the artist as a young man", where Stephen Dedalus writes in simplistic and linear style and uses inarticulate expression and description in his story of the "moocow", to the last where he writes in journalistic form with a vast array of vocabulary and complex language, there is a progression, a maturing, a creative development; and this is influenced by the experiences, relationships and personal growth Stephen goes through as he grows up. Women are certainly an integral part of this creative process, from his experiences with Eileen, to sleeping with a prostitute, and his relationship with his mother, and his attempts to discover what his sensual feelings mean in this journey of self discovery, women feature prominently and have great significance in the creative process of Stephen's life. Stephen is a very interesting and intricate character, and comes freakishly close to the contemporary boy of the time, there is such a sense of realism which is conveyed through him by Joyce, most likely because he is based on himself. For example, Joyce had a mother devoted to Catholicism, as does Stephen, and Joyce was also educated at Clongowes. I think a key reason as to why women play such an important role in Stephen's creative development is the fact that on many occasions he does not know quite how to relate to them, he sees them as a completely different species and really doesn't know how to respond to them, as his experience with the prostitute will testify. Stephen's relationship with the opposite sex begins to deve... ...ourse to his destiny, and this significantly emphasises the importance of women in Stephen's development artistically, it is not even a girl with whom Stephen has any association, to him it is the gender as a whole, and therefore shows how women have played such a significant role for him. In conclusion, there is no doubt in my mind that across the novel, women play possibly the most important role of all in Stephen's artistic development, and it is because of them, whether it be the overbearing but supremely influential mother of Stephen, the experience with the prostitute, the love Stephen feels for Emma, or the epiphany on the beach with the wading young lady, that Stephen reaches the artist status which he eventually obtains and the intertwining suggests a fated nature which Joyce expertly conveys through his language and conscious style of writing. Discuss and consider the role of women in Stephen Dedalus' creative Ess Discuss and consider the role of women in Stephen Dedalus' creative process, how is this reflected in the language and narrative of the novel? From the very first page of "A portrait of the artist as a young man", where Stephen Dedalus writes in simplistic and linear style and uses inarticulate expression and description in his story of the "moocow", to the last where he writes in journalistic form with a vast array of vocabulary and complex language, there is a progression, a maturing, a creative development; and this is influenced by the experiences, relationships and personal growth Stephen goes through as he grows up. Women are certainly an integral part of this creative process, from his experiences with Eileen, to sleeping with a prostitute, and his relationship with his mother, and his attempts to discover what his sensual feelings mean in this journey of self discovery, women feature prominently and have great significance in the creative process of Stephen's life. Stephen is a very interesting and intricate character, and comes freakishly close to the contemporary boy of the time, there is such a sense of realism which is conveyed through him by Joyce, most likely because he is based on himself. For example, Joyce had a mother devoted to Catholicism, as does Stephen, and Joyce was also educated at Clongowes. I think a key reason as to why women play such an important role in Stephen's creative development is the fact that on many occasions he does not know quite how to relate to them, he sees them as a completely different species and really doesn't know how to respond to them, as his experience with the prostitute will testify. Stephen's relationship with the opposite sex begins to deve... ...ourse to his destiny, and this significantly emphasises the importance of women in Stephen's development artistically, it is not even a girl with whom Stephen has any association, to him it is the gender as a whole, and therefore shows how women have played such a significant role for him. In conclusion, there is no doubt in my mind that across the novel, women play possibly the most important role of all in Stephen's artistic development, and it is because of them, whether it be the overbearing but supremely influential mother of Stephen, the experience with the prostitute, the love Stephen feels for Emma, or the epiphany on the beach with the wading young lady, that Stephen reaches the artist status which he eventually obtains and the intertwining suggests a fated nature which Joyce expertly conveys through his language and conscious style of writing.