Centuries before the first dictionary was available, Chaucer used a wide range of words from various origins and worked with intellectual or technical terms as well as vulgar expressions. He also switched playfully between colloquial, formal and professional speech. Additionally he used different dialects to create his characters. Due to all this we can imagine how the Englishmen and –women of the 14th century spoke. Chaucer had not been able to give this heritage to later generations if he would not have been a great sociolinguistic observer, i.e. if he wouldn’t have watched people surrounding him closely and if he wouldn’t have paid attention to the way they talk. This term paper examines Chaucer’s use of dialects and vocabulary in his famous work The Canterbury Tales.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
1.1 About this term paper
1.2 Chaucer’s life
1.3 The Canterbury Tales
2. Chaucer as a sociolinguistic observer
3. Chaucer’s use of dialects
3.1 Dialects of Middle English
3.2 Dialect as a tool for describing the Miller
3.3 Dialect in direct speech of the Reeve’s Tale and Prologue
4. Chaucer’s vocabulary
4.1 General information
4.2 Madame Eglentyne - An example for Chaucer’s use of French borrowings
4.3 The high and low – Dealing with registers
5. Conclusion
Objectives and Research Focus
This paper explores whether Geoffrey Chaucer can be categorized as a sociolinguistic observer by analyzing his specific use of language in The Canterbury Tales. The primary goal is to demonstrate how Chaucer’s deliberate manipulation of dialects and vocabulary serves as a tool for characterization, reflecting the social diversity of the 14th century.
- Chaucer’s biographical influence on his ability to observe social classes.
- The role of dialects as a literary device for character authenticity.
- The application of French loanwords to establish social registers.
- A sociolinguistic analysis of register variation and vocabulary choice.
Excerpt from the Book
3.2 Dialect as a tool for describing the Miller
The first example is the description of the Miller in the General Prologue. The Miller is a big, strong man drunk at the point of telling his story. He interrupts the Knight who has been the first to tell his courtly story and tells his tale of a rich old carpenter whose young wife betrays him with a student living in their house. This affair causes unusual trouble which also makes today’s readers laugh. Chaucer wrote it (and some of the other tales) in the style of the medieval French fabliau. The language he used is rather crude and naughty, so the narrator (or Chaucer himself?) apologizes for this crudity in advance.
The description of the Miller consists mostly of Saxon and Norse words with physical connotations. Lexically speaking, he is therefore “made up of almost 100 per cent ‘local content’” (Hughes 2000: 127). In the following extract of the General Prologue all of the Saxon and Norse words are italicized (compare Hughes 2000: 126):
The Millere was a stout carl for the nones;
Ful byg he was of brawn, and eek of bones,
That proved well, for over al ther he cam
At wrastlynge he wolde have alwey the ram.
He was short-sholdred, brood, a thikke knarre.
Ther was no dore that he noodle heue of harre
Or breke it at a rennynge with his heed. (lines 547-553)
As one can see, there are only two words in normal letters, namely stout and brawn. These are French borrowings but Chaucer adds them in a way that they do not disturb the overall tone of this passage.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: Outlines the significance of Chaucer’s work and defines the paper's goal of exploring his role as a sociolinguistic observer.
2. Chaucer as a sociolinguistic observer: Discusses Chaucer’s ability to observe and paint a realistic portrait of 14th-century English society through his characters.
3. Chaucer’s use of dialects: Analyzes the implementation of regional dialects in The Canterbury Tales to distinguish characters and create comedic effects.
4. Chaucer’s vocabulary: Examines the linguistic variety in Chaucer’s work, focusing on French borrowings and the concept of register in his character descriptions.
5. Conclusion: Summarizes the findings, concluding that while formal linguistic proof is limited, the intuitive evidence confirms Chaucer’s status as a keen observer of human speech.
Keywords
Geoffrey Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales, Middle English, sociolinguistics, dialects, vocabulary, registers, General Prologue, Miller, Reeve, French borrowings, social classes, linguistic observer, literary device.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the main focus of this research paper?
The paper examines Geoffrey Chaucer’s writing style in The Canterbury Tales to determine if he can be considered a sociolinguistic observer based on his use of language.
What are the primary thematic areas covered?
The themes include the sociolinguistic interpretation of Chaucer’s characters, the use of dialectal variation, and the application of different vocabulary registers.
What is the core research question?
The research seeks to answer whether Chaucer’s deliberate manipulation of dialects and vocabulary provides sufficient evidence to label him as a sociolinguistic observer of his time.
Which scientific methods are employed?
The author uses a qualitative literary and linguistic analysis, drawing upon historical context, dictionary definitions, and existing scholarship on Middle English to analyze selected excerpts.
What does the main body address?
The main body investigates biographical background, the structure of the Tales, the use of regional dialects (Northern vs. Southern), and the stylistic variation of vocabulary (registers).
Which keywords best characterize this work?
Essential keywords include The Canterbury Tales, sociolinguistics, dialect, register, Middle English, and characterization.
How does Chaucer use dialects to describe the Miller?
Chaucer utilizes a vocabulary rich in Saxon and Norse terms to reflect the Miller’s crude and physical nature, grounding him in 'local content'.
What is the significance of the Reeve's Tale in this study?
The Reeve's Tale serves as a key example of how Chaucer adopts specific northern dialectal forms to mimic the speech patterns of northern students, adding authenticity to his characters.
How does Chaucer utilize registers for the Prioress?
Chaucer incorporates a higher frequency of French loanwords in the portrait of the Prioress to establish her as a character of a different social class compared to the Miller.
- Citation du texte
- Katharina Schäfer (Auteur), 2007, Geoffrey Chaucer as a sociolinguistic observer, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/93881
