Reviews

The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer

catherzh's review against another edition

4.0

Yessss I am so stoked I finally made it to the end of this encyclopedia of medieval sex and fart jokes. It's fitting that I started the reading at the beginning of a long nomadic journey myself. I guess it's fair to say the stories I exchanged with friends and new friends and strangers along the way were not all that different (minus a noticeable lack of Greek mythological reference) from the type of tales Chaucer's hodgepodge of characters share with each other on their trip. I'm impressed with the scope of the Canterbury Tales, Chaucer's wit and broad knowledge base, and the translator's "fuck this" attitude when it comes to the prosaic passages on theology. The best stories are the well known Wife of Bath's and the last one about alchemy, relating how Chaucer himself likely got duped in real life. This is not to say I enjoyed reading all 500 pages of these mind numbing couplets. When I say I'm stoked to have finished this, what I mean is I'm glad it's over.

joaosilva's review against another edition

slow-paced

2.25

chailatte18's review against another edition

3.0

The Canterbury Tales is a tale of many tales. It follows a group of unique individuals with unique backgrounds all travelling from one place to the next together. Along the journey, they each tell unique stories that range from infidelity, to love, to farts. It really jumps around a lot, but then again, that should be expected.

I found I enjoyed this more than I was expecting. Although it was still hard to follow along because of the use of Middle English and the constant change of storylines.

On a side note, I was pleasantly surprised to read about Chanticleer the Rooster. As a kid back in the 90s, I watched a movie called Rock-A-Doodle that is about a cocky (hehe) Rooster named Chanticleer that crows to make the sun rise. I can see now where the premise of that story came from by reading Chaucer's (or the "Nun's Priest's Tale") about a character of the same name and species. Although the stories are quite different, it was still fun to come across a very minor loosely-based piece of history that links the two stories together.

teaganhunt's review against another edition

challenging funny slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

So difficult to read; so wonderful to unlock. Loved the characters, but worth reading with a translation open.

momogajo's review against another edition

adventurous informative lighthearted slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

Good view into beliefs of the time, but so racist/antisemitic.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism and Religious bigotry

munchkindad's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny lighthearted reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

meshsock's review against another edition

3.0

I was supposed to read this in high school and very much didn't, so I thought I'd pick it up. Pretty entertaining, but also very long. I made it mostly through...

ukko's review against another edition

challenging funny reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.75

ewoodrow23's review against another edition

adventurous challenging funny mysterious slow-paced

3.5

tattoosnmagic's review against another edition

5.0

A beautifully written classic novel. One of the books that inspired my love of the classics.