Burrow, J.A, ‘The Canterbury Tales I: Romance’, The Cambridge Chaucer Companion ed. by Piero Boitani & Jill Mann, (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1986)
This article was found in a book of essays about Chaucer. It is published by Cambridge University whose reputation is far above water and is widly accepted to be an authority.
‘The term “romance” is not an exact one’ Begins J. A. Burrow’s study of The Canterbury Tales and sets out to show how Chaucer’s Tales are subversive to the romance genre. With close reading of The Wife of Bath’s Tale, Chaucer’s Tale of Sir Thopas, The Squire’s Tale, The Knight’s Tale and The Franklin’s Tale: the five ‘romances’ of the Tales that diverge from the romance stereotype. He makes the point that the feminine romance of Marie de France seems to have appealed to Chaucer more than the derring-do adventures of knights; which would be why Chaucer focuses more on the emotional consequences of action rather than the spectacle itself.
The Wife of Bath’s Tale is not an exact romance as it turns out to be a fairy tale dominated by women. Sir Thopas is clearly not a romance but a parody of Chaucer’s contemporary English romances. The Squire’s and Franklin’s Tale are looked on as having similar interest of the ‘rationalization of marvels’ that make up romances, and Burrow concentrates on The Franklin’s Tale.
The Franklin’s Tale quickly surprises and subverts its romance status as within a single couplet the genre convention of seeking honour in arms to instead ‘Swich labour’. Although the reciprocal nobility shown at the end of the tale can also be shown in the happy endings of many romances.
The Knight’s Tale is more epic than romance and based on more Italian forms of poetry and cannot comfortably be described simply as a romance.
Barrow continues with more general comments about the five tales saying that their scope is larger than romances are supposed to be. Matters of foreign relations and public order have no place in romances.
He ends with a few words about the endings. The Tales end are happy as romances should be, with ‘parfit joye’ and ‘soveregn bliss’, but they are more like fairy tales than romances, and the Knight’s tale ends highly questionably with: ‘What is this world? What asketh men to have?/ Now with his love, now in his colde grave,/ Allone, withouten any compaignye’.
In conclusion: the tales are like romances but are not romances.
Hansen, Elaine Tuttle, ‘Making Ernest of Game: The Franklin’s Tale & Some Partial Conclusions’, Chaucer and Fictions in Gender (University of California Press)
Found in the Luminarium: Anthology of English Literature Website. Although not affiliated with any institution the editor reassures that authorities of each given subject have been contacted.
In this article Elaine Tuttle Hansen wishes to outline and describe the process that Dorigen goes through from being in a position of power to accepted submission to male fantasy, unlike May’s characterisation in The Merchant’s Tale.
At the beginning of the tale Dorigen’s marriage to Arvengus is set up in her favour. He is being submissive to her and her taking pity on his submission. Alone, it is her ungoverned female subjectivity and sexuality that gives her ‘dangerous and story worthy powers.’ She plays games with Aurelius confident of her legitimate status, with knowledge of this romantic game and of its rules, though misplaced. She also pities Aurelius the way she does with Arvengus, embodying the masculine dilemma of romantic love. Dorigen’s joking and playing with Aurelius displays a paradox of feminine power; she has too much knowledge of romantic situations and it is this insight that becomes her weakness.
In trying to be both playful and serious Dorigen is paralysed by the return of Arvengus and the surprising removal of the rocks by Aurelius. Hansen argues that Dorigen’s recounting of female suicides giving the possibility of ‘self-destruction and willing victimisation’ also gives her a sort of power of autonomy. However by raising this as her possibly fate she completely reduces the masculine power of both male characters, which, paradoxically, reduces her own feminine power. The generosity shown by both male characters then restores the patriarchal order.
Hansen concludes with a brief look on how Chaucer has affected many modern writers and critics and of its continual popularity and importance as the beginning of a literary history of humanism in the Western Canon. She suggests that feminine readings can be part of the effort of opening up the myth and limits of the poet’s tolerance and sympathy for women as The Franklin’s Tale deals with the difficulties of trying to see another person’s point of view.
Davis, Craig R., ‘A Perfect Marriage on the Rocks: Geoffrey and Philippa Chaucer and The Franklin’s Tale’, Chaucer Review: A Journal of Medieval Studies and Literary Criticism, (37:2), 2002, 129-44.
Found on the Literature Online database. Fully reliable source that has links with other databases such as Project Muse and J-stor.
The Franklin’s Tale has been perceived as the most idealized depiction of mutual love in The Canterbury Tales, and closer social analysis of the poet’s own marriage may well be worthwhile, argues Craig R. Davis as he clearly sets out in the introduction. Noting the similarities between the marriage in Franklin’s Tale and Chaucer’s own marriage and the inequality of social status between the two partners.
Chaucer, like Arveragus, was of a lower birth in terms of class than his wife Philippa and had to work hard to stay useful in the social strata she was born into. Their duties also often kept them apart.
In the tale it is this social inequality that prefigures their idealized relationship, so this difficulty is a necessary part of the couple’s happiness. Arveragus’ social ambition is validated by his genuine suffering, which, for the Franklin, proves the appropriateness of their marriage between ‘humble worth and noble birth.’ It is important for Dorigen to establish the ‘public worth and personal submissiveness’ of Arveragus before she can think of his emotional position of his suffering for her.
Davis makes it clear that he does not suggest that The Franklin’s Tale is a record of Chaucer’s own happy marriage but only to notice that he creates a romance out of his own marital situation. A marriage where are matched so they may be able to find happiness and nobility through love. Though the Franklin idealizes the couple’s arrangement he shows one of its weaknesses, which is the shift of their relative status as time goes on. He then compares this to Chrétien de Troyes romances. It is also problematic that because Dorigen loves Arveragus she must let him do his service.
Arveragus must do his service because he must keep his minimal status that allowed him to marry Dorigen, otherwise she will feel that she has married beneath herself. Unlike other tales of knights it is the lady here who is tested in love. Davis suggests that the black rocks signify an immaturity in Dorigen, who cannot get a handle on the practical aspects of her unequal marriage.
Ultimately the Franklin shows how for those who love truly and keep their promises things work together for the good, though getting there may have its hardships. At the end the marriage of Dorigen and Arveragus is restored, matured, and on a more self-aware footing.
Davis concludes that ‘Perfect marriages can be just as fraught with emotion’. He tries hard not to idealize Chaucer’s life but it shows how a poet can ‘transform his own social experience into an especially compelling and self-affirming fiction.’
Rationale
J. A. Burrow’s ‘The Canterbury Tales I: Romance’ neatly explains how The Canterbury Tales are, and definitely are not, like Middle English romances. He analyses each of the five tales, maybe except the Squire’s, precisely pointing out how they differ from romance conventions exactly. What I like about this article is that Burrow gives examples of other Middle English romances, such as Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, which displays the context that Chaucer was writing in. The context is important as he shows how the jokes in some of the tales, as in Sir Topas, have been obscured over time. I would use this in my own essay to set the idea of romance as a genre and to show the characteristics The Franklin’s Tale shares and is different from the conventional romances. This would prepare the ground historically for the rest of the essay allowing the ideas of romance develop easily and naturally.
Elaine Tuttle Hansen’s ‘Making Ernest of Game: The Franklin’s Tale & Some Partial Conclusions describes the role Dorigen plays and her use of romantic games and power as well as exploring the constraints and limits of both masculine and feminine sexuality. What’s interesting about this essay is that it analyses in detail how she goes from an objectively stronger position of autonomy to a securer position of submission. By extension it also shows the position, power and limits of a feminine reading of Chaucer. I would quibble with Hansen about exactly how powerful Dorigen is at the beginning since she has no control about Arvengus’ duty to his country and because she is married and alone it hardly makes her seem powerful but highlights her vulnerability. Although it did make me think more of the story from her point of view and the story as a whole in a different light, an ability that should prove a critic’s worth. This essay could be used to explore Dorigen’s role and status throughout the tale and to bring a more feminine outlook that would give the criticism and more thoughtful, well-rounded, argument.
Though Craig R. Davis says he analyses The Franklin’s Tale in light of Geoffrey and Philippa Chaucer’s marriage in ‘A Perfect Marriage on the Rocks: Geoffrey and Philippa Chaucer and The Franklin’s Tale’ I feel that he only does this rather tenuously. He offers no more insight to the poem than saying that Chaucer’s own life has affected the poem he writes, which is, put clearly, obvious. Giving that he wrote about all different types of ‘estates’, being that type of comedy, it is no surprise that the poet’s own status is depicted here. However that gives no indication that his poetry is nothing more than similar to his life and redunds the half of the essay’s title. Despite this he does give a good close reading of The Franklin’s Tale paying special attention to class and social status. This article has some similarities to Burrow’s article particularly in reference to the conventions of romances. Would use this in conjunction with Burrow’s essay as extra support, to compare and contrast their reasons, for my own argument. It would also be used to develop the idea of the conventional Middle English romance in context and comparison to The Franklin’s Tale. It would also be used to supplement the argument of Hansen’s essay by highlighting Dorigen’s significance in respect to role and status within the tale.
"It's worthwhile though isn't it?"
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