Question

From your reading of the "General Prologue," describe how Chaucer uses minute detail to flesh out the character of the knight. What inferences can be drawn from the description? Cite words from the excerpt to support your answer.

Answer 1

The knight is portrayed as an ideal and noble knight who lives by the code of chivalry. He’s distinguished but not boastful. He has fought in the Crusades and is well traveled. His admirable traits come across in the language Chaucer uses, as in this excerpt:

Though so illustrious, he was very wise

And bore himself as meekly as a maid.

He never yet had any vileness said,

In all his life, to whatsoever wight

He was a truly perfect, gentle Knight.(PLATO)

Answer 2

The first pilgrim Chaucer describes in the General Prologue, and the teller of the first tale. The Knight represents the ideal of a medieval Christian man-at-arms. He has participated in no less than fifteen of the great crusades of his era. Brave, experienced, and prudent, the narrator greatly admires him.