Chaucer: Wordcrafter

Thanne seyde he, "O crueel goddes that governe

This world with byndyng of your word eterne,

And written in the table of atthamaunt

Youre parlement and youre eterne graunt,

What is mankynde moore unto you holde

Than is the sheep that rouketh in the folde?

For slayn is man right as another beest,

And dwelleth eek in prison and areest,

And hath siknesse and greet adversitee,

And ofte tymes giltelees, pardee.

[The Knight's Tale, lines 1303-1312 (of CT)]

In the Knight's Tale, as in his other works thus far, Chaucer proves to be skilled at layering his poetry. On the first reading, these ten lines of The Knight's Tale just sounded like beautiful poetry. Read aloud, the words flow together immaculately. However, after several close readings, and much contemplation, they intensify in meaning and beg for further exploration.

The basic categories of poetry, such as the genre and plot, are the first layer of The Knight's Tale, or of any other writing, that is revealed when one reads. The Knight's Tale is of the "romance" genre. However, these ten lines in particular deal with the idea of chance versus fate. These lines are part of Palamon's speech, in which he criticizes the ways of the seemingly unfair world: "...And ofte times giltelees, pardee." In these lines, Palamon describes the ideas of a philosopher, Boethius, because neither he, nor Arcite are able to marry Emeleye. One of Boethian Philosophy's tenants is that life is hopeless, and is full of meaningless suffering, and Palamon's speech describes life as such.

As part of the overall "plot" category, ideas of "time" and "setting" are important. The passage is written in the past tense, but since Palamon speaks in the present, it is as if Palamon is saying these words as one reads them. This makes the reader feel as if the ideas stated by Palamon are more significant.