<p>This dissertation provides a close analysis of the use of sententiae and narrative exempla in five of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, those of the Nun's Priest, the Wife of Bath, the Pardoner, the SillllrTOner, and the Parson. The handling of these illustrative materials is examined within the frarneYJork of traditional and late medieval sermon theory and practice. Major comrrentators such as St. Paul, St. Augustine, Gregory the Great, Alain de Lille, and Wycliffe had much to say over the centuries concerning the character of the Christian preacher or "rethor" and the nature of pulpit oratory generally. Chaucer, it is argued, was keenly aware of preachers and their sermons. He knew of both not only in the abstract from the theorists but in a very real sense from irrrrediate experience. Without doubt, preaching was the nost important and pervasive form of institutionalized oral expression of the fourteenth century. </p> <p> This study shows how Chaucer deliberately evokes the abrosphere of a medieval preaching situation in the five tales named above, doing so especially through the manner in which sententiae and narrative exempla are presented. It is concluded that he thus sheds light on the characters of those who are preaching and that he thereby gives a particularly sharp focus to the satire that is operating in these tales. It is further concluded that the role of The Parson's Prologue and Tale in the moral sphere of The Canterbury Tales becorres pararrount when viewed in the light of the good priest's attitude tcmcrrd and handling of illustrative sententiae and narratives. </p> <p>Chaucer' s indebtedness to the artes praedicandi and to homiletic materials of various kinds has not hitherto escaped the attention of scholars. Neither has his use of sententiae and narrative exempla. No previous study, however, had made an in-depth analysis of such illustrative materials within the context of traditional and contemporary conceptions of the Christian preacher and the sermon. The purpose of this dissertation is to fill this gap in the scholarship. The value in such an undertaking is two-fold. First of all, it should help to give the reader a renewed appreciation of Chaucer's achievement as a literary artist: by closely scrutinizing the poet's treatment of two major commonplaces of pulpit rhetoric one is able to understand more fully hew he went about the business of his craft. Secondly, the moral thrust of The Canterbury Tales is more forcefully felt when special attention is paid to the use of sermons illustrations by such outspoken pilgrims as the Wife of Bath, the Pardoner, and the Parson. The latter serves as a moral touchstone on the road to Canterbury, a fact that has received increasing scholarly attention in the last few years. None of these studies, ho.vever, has recognized sufficiently the dynamic homiletic qualities of the Parson's presentation, especially his lucid and logical treatment of Biblical sententiae. This study shows how, in both the content and rrethod of his discourse, the Parson provides the orthodox answer to the false preaching of those who have preceded him.</p> / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Issued also as thesis, Johns Hopkins University. / Bibliography: p. [111]-112.

Thesis--Columbia University. / Without thesis statement. Bibliography: p. 299-316.

The purpose of the paper is to clarify and elaborate on the theories and presentation of the performance of the General Prologue of the Canterbury Tales I gave on April 9th, 2015. Live performance is a valuable method of conveying Chaucer’s work to an audience as it allows an actor to present the many voices of Chaucer in a more liberated manner. I present my case in four sections. First, I discuss the theoretical concepts behind the performance, which includes the value of live performance over silent reading and oral recitation and how the performance should be viewed in an experimental context. I conclude that while oral recitation and silent reading are valuable, neither allows for the freedom to explore Chaucer’s many voices the way live performance does. At the same time, performance cannot replace research and thus performances like ours should be seen as experiments. Second, I discuss the historical context of the performance and how it was forged into a structural foundation. As well, I examine the manner in which the audience was involved. By using the date June 6th, 1389, we were able to create an interactive, visual means for the audience to engage with the voices. Third, I look at Chaucer’s meter, his spelling and the Middle English language in general and how these factors impacted both my rehearsal and final delivery. Ultimately, by committing to the language and Chaucer’s meter as faithfully as possible, I was able to provide a respectful and communicative relationship with the audience. Fourth, I look at three characters (Chaucer the Performer, Knight and Summoner) and how they were performed. I reveal how our performance demonstrates that each character uses many voices, not just one. Finally, I conclude by elaborating on the future of this project and how our performance has been valuable as a teaching tool as well as a means of presenting the work. Chaucer has many voices in the prologue, not just one, and true conveyance of them is most successfully achieved through live performance.

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This paper is a discussion of parallels between John Lydgate's Dance of Death and Chaucer's Canterbury Tales.

This thesis explores Chaucer's devices for securing verisimilitude by various methods in the Canterbury Tales.

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