A Knights Tale is a useful text in conveying medieval life and society. It displays many aspects of medieval life and society like jousting, the feudal system and living conditions in the middle ages. A Knights Tale also demonstrates a connection between Chaucer's pilgrims and the modern audience.…
The Film A Knights Tale is an historical tale set in the 14th Century based on “The Knights Tale” from the collection of stories written by Geoffrey Chaucer, called “The Canterbury Tales”. A Knights Tale is the story of how a thatcher’s son, William Thatcher, changed his stars, followed his dreams and became a knight. One of the films main themes is “With hard work one can better himself of his social class”. In a way William never really belonged with his peasant social class because he was always dreaming of belonging to the landed gentry. William finally gets his chance to joust in a tournament when the knight whom he is apprentice to, dies before the final jousting. After winning, William and the other two apprentices train secretly in…
Elizabeth Proctor and Abigail Williams are two main characters in Arthur Miller’s novel The Crucible. Abigail Williams was once the servant for Proctor however Elizabeth Proctor fires her after she learns about Abigail and her husband’s affair. Both women are same in some ways but they have different motives.…
Theseus proposes a honorable yet unnecessary method to win Emily’s heart. Since Theseus is infatuated with heroism and battle, he decides to test both Palamon's and Arcite’s abilities with a sword. This suggest the treatment of women during the 14th century was very possessive and controlled, as Emily had no choice but to accept. Theseus wants to test Palamon's and Arcite’s strength and character and if they really are strong enough to marry Emily. Not only does Theseus dramatize love, but he takes it to an extreme, telling both men to gather troops along side them to fight. Emily literally has hundreds of men fighting for her hand in marriage. Not only is this entertaining to Theseus, but it politically ties Athens and Thebes into an alliance.…
Jocelyn becomes attracted to William when he rides his horse by her side and the viewer sees her put a guard up as if she is not into him (Hegland, 2001). William changes his goal as to why he wants to win the tournament when he has to go up against Count Adhemar. In the tale Palamon and Arcite fall in love with Emeyle much like William and Count Adhemar do with Jocelyn. The competition between the two men to be “the best” becomes more intense when the winner gets Jocelyn’s heart. In the medieval times “a man is fuller and has more demands for his time then a woman” (Hegland,…
"The Knight's Tale" shows what happens when the rules of two different systems – chivalry and courtly love – come into conflict with one another. Palamon and Arcite have sworn a knightly oath to be loyal to one another, but they both fall in love with the same girl. The problem is, the rule of chivalry, which demands knights keep their oaths, is tested by the rule of courtly love, which demands that a knight put his love for his lady before everything else. This inevitably leads to a big, fat fight between the two knights. The tale solves the problem in the character of Duke Theseus, who proposes an organized contest to solve the feud. The winner gets Emily.…
The Man of Law's Tale (also called The Lawyer's Tale) is the fifth of the Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer, written around 1387.…
“The Knight’s Tale” begins with examples of the love between husbands and wives, starting with Theseus and Hypolita. The love between these two is the entire reason Emily was brought to Athens. Theseus and Hypolita were married and Hypolita left her position as Queen of the Amazons because she “loved strong Theseus far too well ever to think of turning back to dreary Scythia to reign over [the amazons] (40).” Hypolita’s decision to leave Scythia and go to Athens is a crucial part to the later story, because when Hypolita leaves, her little sister Emily follows, thus bringing Emily to Athens. A second instance of how the love between Theseus and Hypolita is crucial to the story is closer to the middle of the story, when Theseus is about to kill Palamon and Arcite. However, instead of killing them, he “[forgave them] both, at the asking of [his] queen…
As is common with the fabliau genre, romance is usually an element that is mocked. In the Knight’s Tale, courtly love is a major element for the coherence of the story. In courtly love, the knight utilizes fundamental chivalric rules, but also has inner feelings that cannot be directly revealed, when dealing with the lady with whom he is infatuated; this is evident with Arcite and Palamon. However, the “Miller’s Tale” perverts the concept of courtly love. Instead we are shown the forthright and graphic sexual tendencies among non-aristocrats, in which courtly behavior is mocked. We are told that Nick, the tenant of the house, grabbed Alison and begged her to have sex with him, saying “unless I have my will of you I’ll die of secret love.” (91) Such an action would have been extremely rebuked by the nobility because it is essentially the antithesis of courtly love. Another way that courtly romance is being made fun of is through the character of Absalon. He is the only character who somewhat practice courtly love, he is not as frank in his wants, but rather he is the type of lover who plays a guitar and sings to the object of his…
The Canterbury Tales were written in 1387 by English poet and author Chaucer. Throughout the book, it is made clear that much of medieval society was centered around Christian beliefs.…
An additional detail that lends itself to the comparison of the Miller and the Knight is the Miller bearing “a swerd and bokeler . . .by his syde” (558) as evidence that conflict is inevitable (Miller 149). In the “Miller’s Prologue,” the Miller asserts, “I kan a noble tale for the nones, / With which I wol now quite the knyghtes tale” (3126-27). Though the Miller can craft the tale with the finesse of the Knight, his content reflects his own rustic sensibilities. The Miller places himself in competition with the Knight in a verbal wrestling match to prove his place in society (Semenza 72).…
In the epic poem, Sir Gawain and The Green Knight by an unknown author, several characters break rules stated in “The Rules of Courtly Love” by Eleanor of Aquitaine. The biggest rule breakers are the lord and the lady. They break these rules through their words and actions. Two of the several rules that the lord and lady break are “Marriage is no real excuse for not loving” and “He who is not jealous, cannot love”…
This tale, consisting of four parts, tells the story of two knights named Arcite and Palamon who put their lives on the line for the hand of the lady they both love, Emelye.…
‘A Knight’s Tale’ directed by Brian Helgeland in (2001) starring Australia’s own Heath Ledger is a story of a young peasant who has grown up on Cheap side, and goes on a journey of fulfilling his dream of becoming a Knight. ‘A Knight’s Tale’ was set in the 14th century which was based on a book called “The Canterbury Tales” written by Geoffrey Chaucer. He was serving William Thatcher to help William become a Knight.‘A Knight’s Tale’ shows the viewer that no matter the circumstances one can always change their stars;“To never give up and keep trying”. The film achieves this by examining the themes of Destiny, Friendship, Classes and Film techniques. Film also plays a significant role in the movie as they allow the audience to determine hierarchy. One of the most important themes is destiny.…
The story The Knight’s Tale tells of two brothers, Palamon and Arcite, who fall in love with the same woman. The movie A Knights Tale released in 2001 is about a peasant-born man, William Thather who went on an expedition to become a knight and joined tournament jousting; something he is determined to win in and become prodigious legend. Throughout his journey, Thather wins the heart of a beautiful woman named Jocelyn.…