Chaucer’s “Canterbury Tales” has been praised as “the most celebrated storytelling event in world literature”, and “part of the permanent literary and sub-literary culture of English-speaking people”. While its social context and polyphonic nature have been seen as resulting from a vertically structured society becoming more horizontally organized, the present work of literary criticism offers a detailed study of Chaucer’s text. This effectively demonstrates his broadly based imaginative insights which encompass so much of the drama of human life. This critical approach also enables us to see how significant were some of the changes he made to his sources, enabling a recognition of his continuing relevance in encouraging new responses and attitudes beyond the merely medieval. These are evident in his awareness of the potential for domestic violence in the Clerk’s Tale, the need for trust in loving relationships in the Franklin’s Tale, and the importance of gaining new perspectives in the tale of the fascinating Wife of Bath. Her contribution and that of the homosexual Pardoner focus indelibly on their own lives, where a detailed study of the text reflects on what they themselves inwardly hope for or fear.
