Middle English is considered a bridge of society to reach the Early Modern phase of literature. The concepts of literature during this era range from religion, courtly love, and Arthurian themes. However, the works of Geoffrey Chaucer, such as The Canterbury Tales, stand out from other literary works in this period. Chaucer’s works focused on the lives of people during Middle English, which led to the development of his most famous poetry, The Canterbury Tales. The Canterbury Tales is a collection of various literary genres, such as courtly love, saint’s life, allegorical tale, and beast tale. Chaucer’s imaginative mind presented 24 stories through a series of tales told by the pilgrims of the shrine of Becket in an inn.
One of the most profound genres in The Canterbury Tales is romance. Historically speaking, romance is a medieval verse narrative chronicling the adventures of a brave knight or other hero who must overcome great dangers for the love of a noble lady or high ideal. Today, the term “romance” has come to mean any story that presents a world that is happier, more exciting, or more heroic than the real world. Characters in romance “live happily ever after” in a world where good always triumphs over evil (Anderson, 1980, p. 1248). The tales of the squire and the knight are concrete evidence of the extent of this theme as they depict the adventures of the two chivalrous figures as they attain the love they desire. Actually, there are several factors before one can say that there is romance in a story. These components differ from one author to another and vary according to the age and culture of the story. However, there are some similarities in the context of their criteria that will make a good romance.
First, a romance must have a hero and heroine who fall in love with each other. Without these two people, there is no story; there is no romance. The two characters must have strong emotions and a strong desire to achieve the love they desire. In the Franklin’s Tale, a knight named Arveragus did all the tasks of labor and pain just to have the love of Dorigen, his beloved. Below is an excerpt from the Franklin’s Tale, showing the deeds our hero did to have Dorigen’s love:
“There was a knight that loved and did his pain
To serve a lady in his best wise;
And many a labour, many a great emprise,
He for his lady wrought, ere she was won.
For she was one the fairest under sun,
And also came from so high a kinship,
That well scarcely dared this knight for dread
Tell her his woe, his pain, and his distress.
But at the last, she for his worthiness” (Chaucer, 1387, lines 22-30).
To bring out the climax of the story, there must be a situation that will bring conflict between the protagonists. It must build tension in the relationship of the two and serve as a test of their pledged loyalties to each other.
“Until the knight of whom I speak of thus, That of Kayrrud was called Arveragus, Shaped himself to go and dwell a year or two, In England, that was also called Britain, To seek in arms worship and honour- For all his desire he set in such labour- And dwelled there two years, the book says thus” (Chaucer, 1387, lines 99-105).
The above excerpt retells the journey of Arveragus in performing his duty as a knight to his country. His journey served as a spark of conflict between the couple because it would test the loyalty of the two to their pledge of commitment and fidelity. With Arveragus away, Dorigen is in deep depression and mourning. This makes up the third element of romance which is the unique need for each other but not complete dependence (Harrison, 2008). Dorigen’s sadness is concrete evidence of how she desperately needs her husband. She fasted and complained about how her life would be without him. Presented below is a part of Franklin’s tale recounting the sorrow and hardships Dorigen experienced when Arveragus was away.
“For his absence weeps she and sighs, As do these noble wives when it pleases them. She mourns, wakes, wails, fasts, complains, Desire of his presence so constrains her” (Chaucer, 1387, lines 109-112).
Although Dorigen’s grief is relieved by Arveragus’ letter, it is still not enough to douse her desire to be with her husband. Her friends tried to comfort her, but their actions pushed her further into sorrow. After some time, Dorigen realized that she cannot live like this forever. So she decided to accept the company of her friends.
The ongoing conflict of romance is further aggravated by a mistake and an external obstacle, which is the fourth and fifth element of romance, respectively (Harrison, 2008). In romance, the mistake is presented as a misunderstanding or promises that are broken. The fourth element is considered to be effective if it directly involves the hero or the heroine. It must be a mistake that the reader must feel he or she can make when he or she is in the situation like the protagonists. Still, there are consequences in this mistake that cannot be erased; guilt being one of them. Shown below is the part when Dorigen made the greatest mistake in her relationship with Arveragus.
“Aurelie,” said she, “by high God above, Yet would I grant you to be your love, Since I see you so pitiously complain. Look, what day that alongside Britain You remove all the rocks, stone by stone, That they do not let ship or boat to go, – I say, when you have made the coast so clean Of rocks that there is no stone seen, Then will I love you best of any man, Here my truth in all that ever I can” (Chaucer, 1387, lines 281-290).
Dorigen’s request seems impossible, but she did not know that Aurelius would be able to fulfill this condition.
Going back, Aurelius is a squire who is secretly in love with Dorigen. He has admired her for about two years, even though she is married to Arveragus. Considering that he is the antagonist to the couple’s relationship, Aurelius is the external obstacle, the fifth element of romance (Harrison, 2008). What makes romance more exciting is the way these difficulties affect the characters, forcing them to bring out the good points and flaws within them. Aurelius is the obstacle that keeps the couple from achieving a happy ending. Presented below is Aurelius’s revelation of love to Dorigen:
“Madame,” he said, “by God that made this world, so that I knew it could make your heart glad, I would that the day your Arveragus went over the sea, I, Aurelius, had never gone there and would never have come back. For I know well that my service is in vain, and my reward is only the breaking of my heart. Madame, have pity on my painful suffering, for with a word, you may either save me or kill me. Here, at your feet, I wish I were dead. I have no leisure to say more. Have mercy, sweet one, or you will make me die” (Chaucer, 1387, lines 259-270).
Since Aurelius is deeply in love with Dorigen, he does all he can to fulfill her request, even if he must resort to deceit. Another great obstacle in this story is the scholar who knows magic. He manages to carry out Aurelius’s request to remove the rocks found on the shore. With this, Aurelius manages to have Dorigen, even though he knows that what he is doing is not in the context of chivalry. Below is some description of how the scholar performs his illusion of making the rocks disappear:
“When he the moon’s first mansion thus had found, The rest proportionally he could expound; And knew the moon’s arising-time right well, And in what face and term, and all could tell; This gave him then the mansion of the moon- He worked it out accordingly right soon, And did the other necessary rites To cause illusions and such evil sights As heathen peoples practised in those days. Therefore no longer suffered he delays, But all the rocks by magic and his lore Appeared to vanish for a week or more” (Chaucer, 1387, lines 577-588).
With this, Dorigen is caught in the trap she had set. She did not expect that such a request would be possible. The time came when Arveragus returned from his journey, and this brought greater confusion to Dorigen. To solve the problem, she told her husband about the dilemma. This part is the moment of connection or vulnerability, another element of romance (Harrison, 2008). It is the part where the character faces the risk of rejection, the part where the climax of the romance is. Presented below are some of the lines of the story where Dorigen faces her greatest fear of rejection.
“Alas!” she cried, “that ever I was born! Thus have I said,” quoth she, “thus have I sworn” – And told him all, as you have heard before; It needs not to retell it to you more.
This husband, with glad cheer, in friendly wise, Answered and said as I shall apprise: “Is there naught else, my Dorigen, than this?” (Chaucer, 1387, lines 755-761).
After the moment of vulnerability, the next element of romance is sacrifice. Sacrifice is the climax of some stories. A uniquely painful sacrifice on the part of Arveragus was when he let his wife go. He sacrificed his loyalty to his wife so that others may not think badly of Dorigen. He sacrificed their relationship so that Dorigen may be able to fulfill her promise and not lose the truth, which is considered as “the highest thing a man may keep” (Chaucer, 1387, line 771). Arveragus believes that it is better to lose his own “truth” than lose the “truth” of the woman he loved. It is better if he is humiliated than his wife. Below are some of the lines lifted from the tale that describe Arveragus’s response to Dorigen’s disclosure:
“For verray love which that I to yow have, But if ye sholde your trouthe kepe and save. Trouthe is the hyeste thyng that man may kepe.” But with that word he brast anon to wepe And seyde, “I yow forbede, up peyne of deeth, That nevere whil thee lasteth lyf ne breeth, To no wight telle thou of this aventure – As I may best, I wol my wo endure, – Ne make no contenance of hevynesse, That folk of yow may demen harm or gesse” (Chaucer, 1387, lines 769-778).
In every story, there is a resolution. This resolution is aided by fixing the mistakes done by the character as well as returning to the society to which they once belonged (Harrison, 2008). The most important part of every resolution is that issues, big or small, are handled rather than neglected. This means fixing the mistake done that will eventually lead to the happy ending awaiting the characters. In The Franklin’s Tale, the one who initiated the resolution was Aurelius. Looking deeper into the character of Aurelius, one can see that he has a romantic side. Being romantic as well as chivalrous is evident in his conversation with Dorigen. The lines below speak of how Aurelius finally let go of Dorigen, even though he seems too hesitant about it.
“Madame,” quod he, “this were an impossible!
Thenketh nouht that I wolde fulfille
Swich a request, it is unskillful.
For it is naught possibil, it to doon,
This nyce cas, this prison have I won,
That ye han seyn, and, swich a fool was I,
That I noot what to doon” (Chaucer, 1387, lines 1073-1079).
However, when he realized that his love for Dorigen was not right, he took the initiative to release her from her promise. He accepted that the promise was impossible to keep, and he made the ultimate sacrifice of his own happiness to ensure Dorigen’s happiness. By doing this, he resolved the conflict in the story and allowed for a happy ending for all characters involved.
In conclusion, The Franklin’s Tale is a romantic story that showcases the different elements of romance such as vulnerability, sacrifice, and resolution. Through the characters of Dorigen, Arveragus, and Aurelius, Chaucer was able to depict the different facets of love and how it can bring about different emotions and decisions from individuals.
