Cantebury Tales - Chaunticleer: Behind the Rooster
Uploaded by Admin on Nov 21, 1999
In the book Canterbury Tales, Geoffrey Chaucer, gives us a stunning tale about a rooster named Chaunticleer. Chaunticleer, who is the King of his domain in his farmland kingdom. Like a King, he quotes passages from intellectuals, dreams vivid dreams, has a libido that runs like a bat out of hell, and is described as a very elegant looking Rooster. He has every characteristic of a person belonging to the upper class. Chaucer's hidden meanings and ideas make us think that the story is about roosters and farm animals, but in reality he is making the Aristocracy of his time period the subject of his mockery by making the reader realize how clueless the Aristocracy can be to the way things are in the real World.
Chaucer describes Chaunticleer in many different ways. One of them is his language. Chaunticleer's language is that of a scholar. He quotes many different scriptures in a conversation with Pertelote, such as, Saint Kenelm, Daniel and Joseph (from the bible), and Croesus. From each author he tells a story about an individual who had a vision in a dream and the dream came true. He may have been making all the stories up in order to win the argument with Pertelote, but, this seems unlikely because he does not take heed to his own advice and stay away from the fox that encounters him later. He is educated enough to know these supposed quotations but not intelligent enough to understand the real meaning of them. It is if he simply brings because they help him win the argument with his spouse and not because he actually believes what they say. Chaucer is using the idea that the Aristocracy has schooling throughout their childhood, but it is only done to have seemingly important but empty conversations.
His physical appearance is also described with such beautiful passion that it makes us think Chaunticleer is heaven on earth. "His comb was redder than fine coral, and crenellated like a castle wall; his bill was black and shone like jet; his legs and toes were like azure; his nails whiter than lily; and his color like the burnished gold." Chaucer describes Chaunticleer as the quintessential Cock, so perfect that his description is no longer believable when we realize he is describing a Rooster. Chaucer is setting up Chaunticleer to be as regal and grandiose as a King. Even though he...