Geoffrey Chaucer

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Geoffrey Chaucer summary

Geoffrey Chaucer

Q: What did Geoffrey Chaucer do for a living?

Geoffrey Chaucer is today one of the most highly regarded English poets, but during his lifetime his writing was largely subsidiary to his role in public affairs in 14th-century England. He undertook diplomatic missions to the European continent for several kings, and he served as a clerk for the maintenance of royal buildings.

Q: What is Geoffrey Chaucer known for?

Geoffrey Chaucer is considered one of the first great English poets. He is the author of such works as The Parlement of Foules , Troilus and Criseyde , and The Canterbury Tales . Humorous and profound, his writings show him to be an acute observer of his time with a deft command of many literary genres.

Q: What is The Canterbury Tales ?

Written at the end of his life, The Canterbury Tales is Geoffrey Chaucer’s best-known work. It is a collection of 24 stories told by a group of 30 pilgrims who travel from Southwark to Canterbury to visit the shrine of Thomas Beckett . Chaucer did not complete the work before he died.

English writer

Written by R.M. Lumiansky

Fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last Updated: Dec 9, 2024 • Article History

Quick Facts

Born:: c. 1342/43, London?, England

Died:: October 25, 1400, London

Notable Works:: “Hous of Fame”; “Legend of Good Women”; “The Book of the Duchess”; “The Canon’s Yeoman’s Tale”; “The Canterbury Tales”; “The Clerk’s Tale”; “The Cook’s Tale”; “The Franklin’s Tale”; “The Friar’s Tale”; “The Knight’s Tale”; “The Man of Law’s Tale”; “The Manciple’s Tale”; “The Merchant’s Tale”; “The Miller’s Tale”; “The Monk’s Tale”; “The Nun’s Priest’s Tale”; “The Pardoner’s Tale”; “The Parlement of Foules”; “The Parson’s Tale”; “The Physician’s Tale”; “The Prioress’s Tale”; “The Reeve’s Tale”; “The Second Nun’s Tale”; “Treatise on the Astrolabe”; “Troilus and Criseyde”

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What did Geoffrey Chaucer do for a living?

What is Geoffrey Chaucer known for?

What is The Canterbury Tales?

Geoffrey Chaucer (born c. 1342/43, London?, England—died October 25, 1400, London) was the outstanding English poet before Shakespeare and “the first finder of our language.” His The Canterbury Tales ranks as one of the greatest poetic works in English. He also contributed importantly in the second half of the 14th century to the management of public affairs as a courtier, diplomat, and civil servant. In that career he was trusted and aided by three successive kings—Edward III, Richard II, and Henry IV. But it is his avocation—the writing of poetry—for which he is remembered. Perhaps the chief characteristics of Chaucer’s ...(100 of 3813 words)

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