Definition of a Knight According to Chaucer

Total words: 941

The Idea of a knight represents loyalty, nobility, and justice. To Chaucer theses qualities were very meaningful. They represented the ideal knight who was expected to be proper, respectful and just. Becoming a knight is not always an easy thing to achieve. That person has to prove to the people and the king that not only is he worthy but, that he also has heart to live or die for his king and country. There are three stages to becoming a knight first you are known as a page, then you become a squire. Finally when you have proven your worth and have acquired these three important characteristics of loyalty, justice and nobility is when you become a knight.

In the first stage, a boy that is born to a knight and becomes a page when he is around six or seven years old. The duties of a page are to dress the king and put on his armor. The one thing about the page is that they really never learned how to read or write. In those times it was not expected. They had to concentrate more on their training then on their studies. However, the lady maids in the castle would help the page to learn his table manners and manners in general. One of the most important things that a page is taught is how to be quick, graceful and flexible.

The next stage is a squire. A boy can become a squire only if at age fourteen and can promise that he is ready to go from a page to a squire. When a boy becomes a squire he becomes the King's personal servant. He does everything for the King, anything that has to be done for him is done by the squire. He also was expected to prepare food and to sever the knight or in most cases his father. A squire has to go through a lot more then a page does in order to be dubbed a knight. First, he has to pray all night. In the morning he has a page help him to put a chain around his neck after suiting up with his armor. After all of that he has to stand and his lord would then slap him with his hand or the flat of a sword in order to recognize that he has been dubbed a Knight.
After the first two stages were completed, you were now a knight. A knight has to be very loyal, trustworthy and just. Those are just a few of the knightly characteristics. Once you become a knight you have to devote yourself to the king and your country for the rest of your life. This basically meant that you lived for your king and your people. A knight has many duties, some more important than others. First and for most, the knight has to protect the castle, this is his most important duty. Another duty that a knight has is to plan attacks on other castles. This would be called a siege.

Not only did the knight protect the castle and plan sieges, knights were also fighters in the battles. A knight would ride with honor while fighting theses battles. Although the knight had to be fierce in battle, he has had to remember that he is fighting for the ideals of the king, country and most importantly he had to abide by the code of chivalry.

Knights had to follow the Code of Chivalry. The Code of Chivalry was very important when being a knight. It is basically a hand book for knights to follow, in order to honor his duties. There are many things that a knight has to honor in the Code of Chivalry. A few examples are that he has to live to serve his king and country, live one's life so that is worthy of respect and honor and live for freedom, justice and all that is good. These are just a few of the most important codes. "In the beginning..... no man was higher in birth than any other, for all men were descended from a single father and mother but when envy and covetousness came into the world, and might triumphed over right ... certain men were appointed as guarantors and defenders of the weak and humble." ~ (The Book of Lancelot of the Lake). I liked this quote because it explains that not just any man can become a knight. It states that all men are created equal which I think a knight must always remember, that they are not better then any one man. A knight is one who doesn't judge he is to protect not only the wealthy but the poorest man in the kingdom. He is there to protect all of his people.

In conclusion, a knight is expected to be a noble and honorable man throughout his whole life, these are qualities that I would like to apply to my everyday activities. When reading Chaucer's A Knights Tale I realized that these characteristics are not only important but respectful. Chaucer's knight was said to be the ideal knight. He participated in fifteen of the great crusades of his era. The knight in the Canterbury Tales attempted to convert whole cultures to Christianity by the force of their swords. In the story you could tell that Chaucer greatly admired the knight., as do I. This is the main reason why I chose to write my paper on the knight and the journeys and obsticals they had to overcome

Work Cited
What Life Was Like "In the Age of Chivalry."
Life in Medieval Castle

Tappan, Eva March. When Knights Were Bold. Cambridge, Ma
The Ribersidepress, October 1911

http://www.astro.umd.edu/~marshall/chivalry.html

Add a Review for this free essay

Be the first one to review this free Essay

Sticky Note Text....

Welcome! Not a Member? Click here to Join Now!
Log in
Forgot Password?