In The Canterbury Tales, the pilgrims travel in spring because it symbolizes spiritual rebirth, fertility, and sexual desire.
In what season are the pilgrims travelling?
Chaucer introduces his pilgrimage by saying that people want to travel in spring on pilgrimages, especially to the shrine of St Thomas Becket in Canterbury – who has helped them when they were sick (I 18).
What season does The Canterbury Tales take place in?
The Canterbury Tales begins with a Prologue (which means “a few words to begin”). In the prologue Chaucer describes the time of year, which is April, when the weather begins to get warmer after winter. He says that it is at this time that people begin to go on pilgrimage.
Why is the group traveling to Canterbury?
Pilgrims traveled to visit the remains of Saint Thomas Becket, archbishop of Canterbury, who was murdered in 1170 by knights of King Henry II. Soon after his death, he became the most popular saint in England.
What time of year do the pilgrims go to Canterbury?
Following the translation of Becket’s relics to a new shrine on 7 July 1220, this feast became the most important time for pilgrims to visit, although pilgrimage was common throughout the sunnier months of April to September when the roads were less muddy and the weather more pleasant.
Why is The Canterbury Tales set in spring?
The springtime symbolizes rebirth and fresh beginnings, and is thus appropriate for the beginning of Chaucer’s text. Springtime also evokes erotic love, as evidenced by the moment when Palamon first sees Emelye gathering fresh flowers to make garlands in honor of May.
Why does the group make its pilgrimage in April?
Why does this group make its pilgrimage in April? They were welcoming Spring. What event or circumstance causes the characters to gather? They are making a pilgrimage to Canterbury, to give thanks to Thomas Becket for rescuing them from sickness and escaping the Black Death.
During which month did the pilgrimage take place?
In what month did the Pilgrimage take place? April. The narrator describes the “burgeoning flowers and leaves, and the chirping birds.” Around this time of year, the narrator says, people begin to feel the desire to go on a pilgrimage.
What does the season symbolize in The Canterbury Tales?
In The Canterbury Tales, the pilgrims travel in spring because it symbolizes spiritual rebirth, fertility, and sexual desire.
Where does the journey start in The Canterbury Tales?
The action begins at a tavern just outside of London, circa 1390, where a group of pilgrims have gathered in preparation for their journey to visit the shrine of St. Thomas Becket in Canterbury. The narrator, Chaucer, encounters them there and becomes one of their company.
Who was the traveling group in The Canterbury Tales?
People in The Canterbury Tales are a group of 30 pilgrims who gather at the Tabard Inn in Southwark, London. They are traveling to St. Thomas à Becket’s shrine housed in the Cathedral in Canterbury for a religious pilgrimage.
Where did the pilgrims travel in The Canterbury Tales?
Written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer at the end of the 14th century, The Canterbury Tales tells the story of a group of 31 pilgrims who meet while travelling from the Tabard Inn in Southwark to the shrine of St Thomas Becket in Canterbury.
Why might the time of year that the pilgrims are traveling as identified in the prologue be meaningful use textual evidence to support your answer?
Based on the text, why might the time of year that the pilgrims are traveling, as identified in the Prologue, be meaningful? Spring represents a time of renewal, and those traveling on a religious pilgrimage might be seeking physical or spiritual renewal.
Did the pilgrims arrive in the winter?
Nonetheless a mix of rain and snow impacted the area on that mid-December day. However, records indicate that the Pilgrims were pretty lucky that season. Thomas Dudley of Massachusetts Bay wrote the following: “a calm winter, such as was never seen here since.” December ended mildly. January was moderate.
Did the Pilgrims survive the winter?
The Wampanoag people, the “People of the First Light,” are responsible for saving the Pilgrims from starvation and death during the harsh winter of 1620–21.
What does the season of spring symbolize?
A Time For New Beginnings
Spring is all about new beginnings and transformations – think of it as a season that symbolizes starting fresh and starting over.
Why is April important in The Canterbury Tales?
But to English teachers, Chaucerians and medievalists, April is well known as a grand month to go on a religious pilgrimage. In the prologue to his “Canterbury Tales,” Geoffrey Chaucer tells us of a charming English springtime and the desire it engenders to the people of his day to make a pilgrimage.
Why is the spring an appropriate time for a pilgrimage?
Why do you think “people long go on pilgrimages” during spring? The weather is a favorable for travel. Spring is a symbol of rebirth and new life. Where do the pilgrims meet before their trip?
When and why do people go on a pilgrimage?
A pilgrimage is a sacred journey, undertaken for a spiritual purpose. Pilgrims are different from tourists: they travel for spiritual reasons, not just to relax or for fun. Pilgrimage is a search for meaning, purpose, values or truth (and in this sense, like life).
Why do pilgrims travel in groups?
Travelling on long journeys in the Middle Ages was a dangerous activity. Pilgrims often went in groups to protect themselves against outlaws. Wealthy people sometimes preferred to pay others to go on a pilgrimage for them.
Which was a reason to go on a pilgrimage?
Some of the most common reasons include the following: Seeking miracles. Many people view pilgrimages as an act of devotion that can help them achieve or overcome something in their life that is difficult, such as an illness. Finding forgiveness.