Chaucer - Not Just Paperwork

Welcome to Celebrate Creativity - Chaucer -Not Just Paperwork

Before Shakespeare, before Austen…even before Milton, there was Jeffrey Chaucer. Boldly writing in English when most of the literary world preferred Latin or French. Imagine that audacity!"

Cue pause: 1 second, let the audience absorb “audacity.”

“The English language just wasn’t considered worthy of literature, and here was, Jeffrey Chaucer giving the English language -  life, color, and humor.”

Fireflies harp

"Chaucer didn’t just write stories—he invented a whole way of telling them. And the people he created? Funny, scandalous, and strangely familiar. Some things really don’t change."

"So, Chaucer wasn’t just funny—he was innovative. Let’s talk about his life and how he took English from everyday speech to literary gold.”

Transcript

Dream Space Layers

Welcome to Celebrate Creativity - Chaucer - Not Just Paperwork

Ice Caverns Flute 01 

Before Shakespeare, before Austen…even before Milton, there was Jeffrey Chaucer. Boldly writing in English when most of the literary world preferred Latin or French. Imagine that audacity!"

Cue pause: 1 second, let the audience absorb “audacity.”

“The English language just wasn’t considered worthy of literature, and here was, Jeffrey Chaucer giving the English language -  life, color, and humor.”

Fireflies harp

"Chaucer didn’t just write stories—he invented a whole way of telling them. And the people he created? Funny, scandalous, and strangely familiar. Some things really don’t change."

"So, Chaucer wasn’t just funny—he was innovative. Let’s talk about his life and how he took English from everyday speech to literary gold.”

Chaucer was born around 1343, the son of a London wine merchant. —not in a castle or a manor house, but into a family of London wine merchants. That modest but comfortable middle-class background meant he wasn’t destined to till the soil, but neither was he born into power. He grew up in the bustle of London: taverns, markets, pilgrims, foreigners passing through. All of it would later spill into his writing.

He grew up in the noisy, bustling world of the city—taverns, sailors, pilgrims, gossip in the marketplace. And that background matters. Because when he eventually sat down to write The Canterbury Tales near the end of his life, he didn’t just give us lofty kings and queens. He gave us millers and merchants, a saucy Wife of Bath, even a shady pardoner. He was writing the voices of everyday people. In a way, he’s the first author who understood that the real drama was happening outside the castle walls.

As a teenager, Chaucer found his way into the royal household. As a young man, Chaucer found his way into royal service. In his teens, he was a page in the household of the Countess of Ulster, which gave him an education in courtly manners and, more importantly, connections. By his twenties, he was actually fighting in the Hundred Years’ War. And here’s a fun bit: he got captured by the French and held for ransom. Who paid to get him back? King Edward III himself. Imagine being so promising that the king says, “We can’t afford to lose that guy!” It’s basically like your boss bailing you out of jail because they know you’re going to write the next great Netflix series.  This shows just how far Chaucer had already climbed: he was valuable enough to be rescued by the crown.

Back in England, Chaucer carved out a very different career—one that doesn’t exactly scream “literary genius.” He became a tax collector. Officially, the “Controller of Customs for Wool, Skins, and Hides” at the Port of London. Which means that by day, Chaucer was basically a medieval IRS agent, checking shipments and collecting duties. By night? He was inventing English literature. That’s right—your first great English poet was literally moonlighting.

But Chaucer’s life wasn’t just paperwork. He traveled widely on diplomatic missions—to France, Spain, and most importantly, Italy. There he discovered Dante, Petrarch, and Boccaccio. Boccaccio’s Decameron—a collection of stories told by travelers—was the spark that lit Chaucer’s imagination. Think of it as the original “storytelling anthology series.” Chaucer thought: why not do the same thing in English? But instead of elegant Italian nobles, he gave the stories to pilgrims on the road to Canterbury. Pilgrims who fight, flirt, cheat, laugh, and sometimes pray.

“Remember, at the time, English wasn’t considered worthy of literature, and here he was, giving it life, color, and humor."

"Chaucer didn’t just write stories—he invented a whole way of telling them. And the people he created? Funny, scandalous, and strangely familiar. Some things really don’t change.”

He married Philippa de Roet, a lady-in-waiting to the queen and sister of Katherine Swynford, who would later marry John of Gaunt, one of the most powerful men in England. This family tie gave Chaucer both security and patronage, though it also entangled him in the messy politics of the day.

While working all these “day jobs,” Chaucer was also writing. His early works, like The Book of the Duchess (a dream-vision elegy) and Troilus and Criseyde (a tragic love story), show him experimenting with classical and courtly traditions. But his great leap forward was The Canterbury Tales.

Instead of lofty kings and queens, Chaucer gave us a pilgrimage—a mixed bag of ordinary people on the road to Canterbury: a knight, a miller, a prioress, a pardoner, a wife from Bath, and many more. Each tells a story in a voice that feels startlingly modern—by turns bawdy, tragic, comic, and sharp. Through them, Chaucer captured the humor and sensibilities of medieval society, from the sacred to the profane, and he did it in Middle English, helping cement it as a literary language.

In fact, Chaucer wasn’t just funny—he was innovative. He took English from everyday speech to literary gold."

He invented narrative strategies that allowed multiple perspectives, blended social critique with entertainment, and made storytelling itself a playground for creativity. That’s why we celebrate him today.”

Geoffrey Chaucer: soldier, tax man, diplomat, poet. The first great voice of English literature, the original showrunner of English storytelling, and the man who proved that everyday speech could rise to the level of art.

Breathless Harp

Now  "Chaucer’s creativity shines brightest in his characters. Let’s meet a few of them, with a modern twist here and there so we can all relate."

Wife of Bath – bold influencer / podcaster
"First up, the one everyone loves—the Wife of Bath. Think of her as the ultimate influencer of the Middle Ages."

"Confident, witty, unapologetic, and completely in charge of her story.”

Here's a brief excerpt -

"Experience, though no authority, that’s my guide. I’ve had five husbands, and I’ve learned what works, what doesn’t, and how to get what you want. Some call me bold; I call it practical. Love? Power? A laugh at life’s absurdities? I take them all.”

And the following is from another translation that describes the wife of Beth taking a more serious look and why she has had five husbands -

"Experience, though no written authority,
Were in this world, is good enough for me
To speak of the woe that is in marriage;
For, gentlemen, since I was twelve years of age,
Thanked be God who is eternally alive,
I have had five husbands at the church door --
If I so often might have been wedded --
And all were worthy men in their way.
But to me it was told, certainly, it is not long ago,
That since Christ went never but once
To a wedding, in the Cana of Galilee,
That by that same example he taught me
That I should be wedded but once.
Listen also, lo, what a sharp word for this purpose,
Beside a well, Jesus, God and man,
Spoke in reproof of the Samaritan:
`Thou hast had five husbands,' he said,
`And that same man that now has thee
Is not thy husband,' thus he said certainly.
What he meant by this, I can not say;
But I ask, why the fifth man
Was no husband to the Samaritan?
How many might she have in marriage?
I never yet heard tell in my lifetime
A definition of this number.
Men may conjecture and interpret in every way,
But well I know, expressly, without lie,
God commanded us to grow fruitful and multiply;

"Chaucer’s original Middle English is definitely denser than the English of today and full of period-specific idioms. Modern translators turn the tone of the wife of Bath into witty, confident language so listeners immediately get her personality. ‘Some call me bold; I call it practical’ captures her humor and self-assured voice without being literal."

Pardoner – slick salesperson / motivational speaker
"From bold and savvy to slippery and persuasive…meet the Pardoner. If you think today’s motivational speakers can charm a room or country preachers can you influence a congregation, wait until you hear him.”

"Hear me now, for I have relics and pardons to sell. I promise salvation, forgiveness, and guidance…for the right price, of course. But let’s be honest—I know how to spin a tale, and who doesn’t love a story with a little drama and a moral twist?”

"The original emphasizes his greed and slyness through clever wordplay. Modern phrasing like ‘for the right price, of course’ captures his humor and moral ambiguity so contemporary audiences immediately understand him.”

Check out Chaucer’s lines describing the pardoner - in my opinion, one of the best descriptions of a hypocritical pastor that I've ever read - 

I stand like a clerk in my pulpit,
And when the ignorant people are set down,
I preach as you have heard before
And tell a hundred more false tales.
Then I take pains to stretch forth the neck,
And east and west upon the people I nod,
As does a dove sitting on a barn.
My hands and my tongue go so quickly
That it is joy to see my business.
Of avarice and of such cursedness
Is all my preaching, to make them generous
To give their pennies, and namely unto me.
For my intention is only to make a profit,
And not at all for correction of sin.
I care not a bit, when they are buried,
Though their souls go picking blackberries! 
For certainly, many a sermon
Comes often times from an evil intention;
Some for pleasure of folk and flattery,
To be advanced by hypocrisy,
And some for vain glory, and some for hate.
For when I dare debate no other ways,
Then I will sting him with my sharp tongue
In preaching, so that he shall not escape
To be defamed falsely, if he
Has trespassed to my brethren or to me.
For though I tell not his proper name,
Men shall well know that it is the same,
By signs, and by other details.
Thus I repay folk who make trouble for us pardoners;
Thus I spit out my venom under hue
Of holinesses, to seem holy and true.
I preach of nothing but for greed.
Therefore my theme is yet, and ever was,
`Greed is the root of all evil.'
Thus I can preach against that same vice.
Which I use, and that is avarice.
But though myself be guilty of that sin,
Yet I can make other folk to turn away
From avarice and bitterly to repent.
But that is not my principal intention;
I preach nothing but for greed.

Miller – loud comedian / outrageous friend
"And if the Pardoner is smooth and sly, the Miller is the opposite—loud, crude, and impossible not to notice. Think of him as the stand-up comic of the 14th century—he’ll shock you, make you laugh, and leave a lasting impression like a loud comedian or outrageous friend who sits in a corner at a party and tells dirty jokes

The Miller, who for drunkenness was all pale,
So that he hardly sat upon his horse,
He would not doff neither hood nor hat,
Nor give preference to any man out of courtesy,
But in Pilate's voice he began to cry,
And swore, "By (Christ's) arms, and by blood and bones,
I know a noble tale for this occasion,
With which I will now requite the Knight's tale."
Our Host saw that he was drunk on ale,
And said, "Wait, Robin, my dear brother;
Some better man shall first tell us another.
Anything else soon "By God's soul," said he, "that will not I;
For I will speak or else go my way."
Our Host answered, "Tell on, in the devil's name!
Thou art a fool; thy wit is overcome."
"Now listen," said the Miller, "everyone!
But first I make a protestation
That I am drunk; I know it by my sound.
And therefore if that I misspeak or say (amiss),
Blame it on ale of Southwerk, I you pray.

And finally, another very brief excerpt from the Miller

"I tell it like it is—don’t sugarcoat life. I’ll make you laugh, shock you a bit, maybe blush, but you’ll remember it. Life’s messy, so why pretend otherwise?”

Now Chaucer would've never have used a phrase such as “don’t sugarcoat life” - but it is a good interpretation of the concept being described. "‘Don’t sugarcoat life’ is certainly a modern idiom, and Chaucer’s Middle English would have been even more earthy and blunt.

"Chaucer wasn’t just inventing personalities—he was living among them. He traveled, worked as a diplomat and civil servant, and observed everyone from royalty to commoners. His insights into human behavior are timeless."

"Even today, we recognize their traits: the bold influencer, the slick salesman, and the outrageous comedian. They feel alive, not just historical footnotes.”

Now, here’s the thing: Chaucer never actually finished The Canterbury Tales. He seems to have planned over a hundred stories. What we got was twenty-four. But that unfinished quality is part of its charm—it feels alive, like a binge-worthy show that got canceled mid-season, but still left us with unforgettable characters.

Chaucer died in 1400, and here’s another poetic twist: he was buried in Westminster Abbey. His tomb became the first stone in what we now call Poets’ Corner. Later came Spenser, Dryden, Tennyson, Dickens—even Shakespeare. But it all started with a London wine merchant’s son who wrote in the language of the people.

Harp flourish

"So why is Chaucer a creative genius? He didn’t just write stories. He invented ways to tell them, elevated English as a literary language, and populated his tales with vivid, psychologically rich, and endlessly entertaining characters.”’

So you think that Reality TV has dramatic characters? Chaucer’s pilgrims would make them look tame.”

"Chaucer wasn’t just inventing personalities—he was living among them. He traveled, worked as a diplomat and civil servant, and observed everyone from royalty to commoners. His insights into human behavior are timeless."

"Even today, we recognize their traits: the bold influencer, the slick salesman, the outrageous comedian. They feel alive, not just historical footnotes."

"So why is Chaucer a creative genius? He didn’t just write stories. He invented ways to tell them, elevated English as a literary language, and populated his tales with vivid, psychologically rich, and endlessly entertaining characters.”

Geoffrey Chaucer: soldier, tax man, diplomat, poet. The first great voice of English literature, the original showrunner of English storytelling, and the man who proved that everyday speech could rise to the level of art.

"Reality TV has dramatic personalities? Chaucer’s pilgrims would make them look tame.”  "He invented narrative strategies that allowed multiple perspectives, blended social critique with entertainment, and made storytelling itself a playground for creativity. That’s why we celebrate him today.”

Tease for Next Episode

"Next time on Celebrate Creativity, we dive into Shakespeare—whose words, wit, and wonder demand not one, but at least two episodes. From the streets of London to the stage of the Globe, his words would change the way we see the world—and set the bar for creativity like never before.

Stay tuned."

medieval harp fade for 5–6 seconds.