Chaucer’s Humour

There exists hardly any doubt that Chaucer occupies a unique position among his predecessors, contemporaries and successors because he is at the same time a poet, a dramatist, a novelist, a humourist, a realist and a satirist. Another thing, which distinguishes him from other literary giants, is that he is gifted with unusual keen observation and his penetrating eye spares nothing, which remains hidden from our eyes. His artistic talent touches the Olympian heights in "The Prologue to the Canterbury Tales" which is a truthful and realistic presentation of the life of the fourteenth century England. Chaucer depicts everything as he observes in practical life and he follows the first steps of Plato, who says,
"The words must be the cousin to the deeds".

The writings of Chaucer may be divided for purposes of convenience into three periods: the French, the Italian and the English, but English period from 1384 to 1390, his skill of characterization got out in the face of “The Prologue to the Canterbury Tales”. God has bestowed Chaucer with all the good qualities of a humourist.

We know that humour can be used in a broad as well as a limited sense. In the broader sense, it stands for boisterous humour (fun), intellectual humour (wit), gentle or mirthful humour, and bitter humour (satire). Chaucer’s works reflect all these different types of humour. E.Albert rightly says:

“In the literature of his time, when so few poets seem to have
any perception of the fun in life, the humour of Chaucer is
invigorating and delightful”

“The Prologue to the Canterbury Tales” shows Chaucer's devotion to his work. Chaucer is a born humourist and in his handling of the wife of Bath, he reminds us of Shakespeare's treatment of Sir Toby in Twelfth Night and of Falstaff in Henry IV. Chaucer ridicules his society delicately and sarcastically, which amuses and compels us to seriously ponder over it. When "The Prologue to the Canterbury Tales" begins, we find a gentle touch of humour on the knight's character. Geoffrey Chaucer says that he was as gentle as a maid of his bearing was.
"And of his port as meeke as is a mayde".
(L - 69)
­
On the other hand, his son, the Squire, who was getting the training of the knighthood at the age of twenty, was very jocund. Chaucer tells us that his curly hair looked as if they were pressed in a machine and his clothes were embellished with red and white, as if it were a meadow full of fresh flowers. He was compared to the month of May and he kept on awakening whole night like a nightingale.
" Embroided was he; as it were a meede",
-----------------------------------------------
" He sleep namoore than dooth a nyghtyngale "
(L - 89-98)
Similarly, in the handling of religious characters like the Prioress, the Monk, the Friar and others, are beautifully and skillfully painted before us and all the colors of his pantry arc not only a well-harmonized but also symmetrical to each other.

The very first (female) character, which Chaucer introduces before us, is the Prioress. Chaucer tells that she was very sympathetic towards animals and careful in her worldly table manners. She was physically attractive and her eyes were as gray as a glass with a long and well-proportioned nose, besides this she had a fine forehead like a Span.
"Hire nose tretys; her eyen greye as glas,
But sikerly she hadde a fair forheed: "
(L – 152,154)

Chaucer in his impressive style elaborates the picture of the Monk. He describes that the Monk had no sign of hair on his head so it shone like a glass and his head looked as if it had been anointed. His eyes rolled in his head and appeared like the fire under a cauldron and his palfrey was as brown as a berry.
" His heed was balded that shoon as any glas,
And eek his face, as he hadde been enoynt."
(L - 198,199)

In the same way, Chaucer brings to notice the third religious character of the Friar. He states that the Friar's neck was as white as the flower of Lilly and he compares his strength with a champion.
" His nekke whit was as the flour-de-Iys;"
(L - 238)
The Friar was very fond of playing and played so madly as if he were a puppy-­dog in spite of this his eyes twinkled in his head in the same way as the stars do in the frosty night, while playing the harp.
" His eyen twynkled in his heed aryght
As doon the sterres in the frosty nyght."
(L – 269,270)
In the Prologue to the Canterbury Tales, we also meet with the Clerk, one of the ideal characters of Chaucer. Although, he was a serious and scholarly person yet we find a gentle touch of humour in his character. Chaucer says that his horse was as lean as a rake, and he anxiously prayed for the souls of those who gave him the means to carry on his studies.
" But al that he myghte of his freendes hente
And bisily gan for the soules preye."
(L – 301,303)

In the Reeve's character, Chaucer forcefully compares his legs with a staff / stave and he says that no calf muscle was visible on his legs. He pleased his master by lending him his own things and got many thanks and prizes.
" Ful longe were his legges and ful lene,"
(L – 593)

The height of tolerance comes when a writer makes fun of himself also. That is exactly what Chaucer does. He takes delight in raising a gentle smile at himself. In The Prologue, he refers to himself as a simple unlettered man:

"My wit is short, ye may wel understonde". (L – 748)

After making a comprehensive study of "The Prologue to the Canterbury Tales", we come to know that Chaucer is sincere to his art that he neither changes nor passes remarks on anybody because he believes that an artist should narrate everything as he hears and observes, that's why Mansfield pays a glowing tribute to Geoffrey. He calls him, "a great Renaissance gentleman mocking the Middle Ages”. True humour enables us “to love while we ‘laugh with’ others, and do not ‘laugh at’ others. Most of Chaucer’s humour is perfectly innocent fun.