Geoffrey Chaucer: The Man, The Myth
Uploaded by shaynanichole87 on Nov 28, 2005
Geoffrey Chaucer, one of English Literature’s best-known writers, has influenced many people through his writing, and also fueled the curiosity of those same people as well. Geoffrey Chaucer was a relatively normal man, except for the minor fact that no one knows a precise date of his birth or the manner of his death. He wrote poetry and short stories as amusement while he passed the time that he spent working for his country. He traveled to many other countries on diplomatic engagements. While traveling he spent a lot of time writing. In this period of time he wrote many famous works, such as The Canterbury Tales. Many of his works, like The Canterbury Tales, were about people that he encountered in his everyday life; there are even poems linked to his marriage. “For example, in The Book of the Duchesse Chaucer speaks of a ‘sicknesse/That I have suffred this eight yeere’ and says his cure is no nearer: there is only one physician who can heal him (Howard, 98).”
Geoffrey Chaucer was born in London, England between 1340 and 1345; an exact date has yet to be determined. His father was a successful wine merchant and was also deputy to the king’s butler. Chaucer’s education level was never revealed, but evidence shows that he could read French, Latin, and Italian. Chaucer did many different types of civil jobs for the monarchy. He did diplomatic customs and served as Clerk of the King’s Works, later he was elected as justice of the peace. In 1359, Chaucer was captured by the Ardennes during the siege of Reims, King Edward III paid Chaucer's ransom of 16 pounds. In 1366, he married Phillipa Roet, daughter of Sir Gilles de Roet. The marriage was arranged by Phillipa's foster mother, ironically named, Queen Phillipa. The two [Chaucer and Phillipa], as it shows in some sketchy records, allegedly had three children, Lewis, Thomas, and Elizabeth. It is for Chaucer's second son that the Treatise on the Astrolabe was written. Chaucer died mysteriously on October 25, 1400; no one knows the exact cause of death, though some speculate that he was murdered. During Richard II’s reign Chaucer supported him completely, but when Henry, Richard’s cousin, and Thomas Arundel overthrew Richard there may have been a problem with Chaucer’s loyalty. “Henry, Richard’s cousin, had no real claim to the throne and no real popular support. But he was...