Comparing Clothing in Knights Tale and the Millers Tale Essay

One of the striking differences between the Knyghts Tale and the Millers Tale (which is supposed to "quit(e)" the Knyghts Tale) is that of clothing (the former tale) and lack of clothing (in the latter). Upon an inspection of the General Prologue's description of the Knyght, I found that clothing is a very signifcant part of the Knyght's Tale. Chaucer's decription of him may forshadow (or, since Chaucer wrote the tales after they were told, color his perceptions of the Knyght) the importance of clothing in the Knyght's Tale. Special attention is paid to the Knyght's coat of mail. "He was a verray, parfit gentil knyght. But for to tellen you of his array, His hors were goode, but he was nat gay. Of fustian he wered a gypon Al bismotered with his habergeon, For he was late ycome from his viage, And he wente for to doon his pilgrimage." (lines I [A] 72-78). The rust-stained mail is indicative that his armor was worn out, perhaps really useless, and only serves to weigh him down. The idea of an artifice such as armor or clothing that was designed to protect but later becomes a worn-out, useless, binding, and ultimately harmful object is echoed throughout the tale. Chaucer may have been satirizing the Romantic tale rather than glorifying it by copying it. Of Romances (more specifically, the Knyghts Tale), Finlayson wrote "A principal characteristic of romance is its formalism of language, gesture, and story--what might be considered its deliberate exclusion of naturalism." (pg 130). Formal language is a form of dress, an ornamentation. The naturalism that lacks in the Knyghts Tale is certainly found in the Miller's fabliaux with it's frequent descriptions of nakedness. The nakedness in the Miller's tale is almost a we... ...her hand in marriage. Finally, Palamon takes her hand. And finally, flesh touches flesh. The ending is fitting, for only by stripping away the artifices that bind, does anyone become happy. Perhaps the Knyght wishes to shed his armor, for it is a hindrance to him also with its rust that colors his clothes. The Miller, in the next tale, goes to the extreme of shedding clothing, which, as we later read, has its danger also. Works Cited Chaucer, Geoffrey. The Canterbury Tales. Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces. Ed Mack, Maynard et al. W. W. Norton and Co. New York, NY. 1992. Finlayson, John. "The Knyghts Tale: The Dialogue of Romance, Epic, and Philosophy". The Chaucer Review: A Journal of Medieval Studies and Literary Criticism. ed. Frank, Robert W., Pennsylvania State Press, University Park, PA. Vol. 27 no. 2. 1992. 126-149. Riverside Chaucer