1st Edition

Chaucer: The Basics

By Jacqueline Tasioulas Copyright 2020
    204 Pages
    by Routledge

    204 Pages
    by Routledge

    Chaucer: The Basics is an accessible introduction to the works of Geoffrey Chaucer. It provides a clear critical analysis of the texts, while also providing some necessary background to key medieval ideas and the historical period in which he lived. Jacqueline Tasioulas gives a brief account of Chaucer’s life in its historical and cultural context and also introduces the reader to some of the key religious and philosophical ideas of the period. The essentials of the language and pronunciation are introduced through close reading in a section dedicated to demystifying this often alien-seeming aspect of studying Chaucer.

    Including a whole chapter devoted to poetry the book also discusses key works, such as:

    • The Book of the Duchess
    • The House of Fame
    • The Parliament of Fowls
    • Troilus and Criseyde
    • The Legend of Good Women
    • The Canterbury Tales

    With glosses and translations of texts, a glossary of key terms and a timeline, this book is essential reading for anyone studying Chaucer and medieval literature.

    1. Geoffrey Chaucer: A Life in Time  2. Chaucer’s Language of Poetry  3. The Canterbury Tales  4. Troilus and Criseyde  5. The Book of the Duchess  6. The House of Fame  7. The Parliament of Fowls  8. The Legend of Good Women

    Biography

    Jacqueline Tasioulas is a Lecturer in English at the University of Cambridge and a Fellow of Clare College, Cambridge, UK.