The Knight from Canterbury Taled

"Followed chivalry, / Truth, honor, generousness and courtesy. / He had done nobly in his sovereign's war / And ridden into battle, no man more, / As well in Christian as heathen places, / And ever honor for his noble graces." Geoffrey Chaucer wrote this introduction to describe the knight in Canterbury Tales. Chaucer talked very highly of the knight's profession, wealth, and character.

The knight has had a very busy life as his fighting career has taken him to a great many places. He has seen military service in Egypt, Lithuania, Prussia, Russia, Spain, North Africa, and Asia Minor where, "He was of sovereign value in all eyes." Even though he has had a very successful and busy career, he is extremely humble. Chaucer maintains that he is "modest as a maid." Moreover, he has never said a rude thing to anyone in his entire life.

The knight, Chaucer tells us, "possessed / Fine horses, but he was not gaily dressed." Indeed, the knight is dressed in a common shirt that is stained, "With smudges where his armor had left mark." That is, the knight is, "Just home from service," and is in such a hurry to go on his pilgrimage that he has not even paused before beginning it to change his clothes.

Clearly, the knight possesses an outstanding character. Chaucer gives to the knight one of the more flattering descriptions in the General Prologue. The knight can do no wrong. He is an outstanding warrior who has fought for the true faith--according to Chaucer--on three continents. In the midst of all this contentment, however, the knight remains modest and polite. The knight is the embodiment of the chivalric code: he is devout and courteous off the battlefield and is bold and fearless on it.

It would be nice to think that a person such as the knight could exist in America today. The fact of the matter is that it is unlikely that people such as the knight existed even in the fourteenth century. As he does with all of his characters, Chaucer is producing a stereotype in creating the knight. As noted above, Chaucer, in describing the knight, is describing the chivalric ideal. The history of the Middle Ages demonstrates that this ideal rarely was manifested in actual conduct. Nevertheless, in his description of the knight, Chaucer shows the reader the possibility of the chivalric way of life.