You're Dead to Me

Geoffrey Chaucer: the medieval father of English literature

February 27, 2026

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  • Geoffrey Chaucer was born into a relatively prosperous, cosmopolitan merchant family in 14th-century London, and his family's material situation improved significantly due to social mobility following the Black Death. 
  • Chaucer's early career involved serving as a page boy in aristocratic households, leading to military service in the Hundred Years' War where he was captured and ransomed, and later holding numerous high-level civil service and diplomatic roles. 
  • Chaucer is considered the father of English literature because he championed Middle English, pioneered the use of iambic pentameter in English poetry, and his work, especially *The Canterbury Tales*, features a diverse range of social voices, cementing his influence long before the printing press arrived. 
  • Chaucer's literary influence is pervasive, extending through Shakespeare's works and into modern literature, such as T.S. Eliot's *The Waste Land* and Zadie Smith's *NW*. 
  • Chaucer pioneered two significant literary techniques: developing the concept of the unreliable narrator, which became crucial for the novel, and creating complex, three-dimensional characters, especially female characters like the Wife of Bath, centuries before Shakespeare. 
  • Professor Marion Turner highlighted that Chaucer's nuanced depiction of female characters, such as the Wife of Bath and Criseyde (in *Troilus and Criseyde*), offered a sympathetic interiority often missing or later condemned by subsequent authors. 

Segments

Chaucer’s Family and Black Death Impact
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(00:04:00)
  • Key Takeaway: Chaucer’s father was a London wine merchant (vintner), and the family benefited materially from social mobility after the Black Death wiped out a third to a half of the population.
  • Summary: Geoffrey Chaucer was born around 1342 in London’s Vintry Ward to John Chaucer, a vintner, and Agnes. The Black Death (c. 1348) caused massive labor shortages, leading to wage inflation and significant inheritance opportunities for survivors like Chaucer’s parents. This post-plague environment fostered remarkable social mobility in the late 14th century.
Medieval Education and Early Career
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(00:08:43)
  • Key Takeaway: Medieval grammar school education for boys involved active learning, including rhetoric and debate, and Chaucer’s first job was as a page boy for Elizabeth de Burgh, Countess of Ulster.
  • Summary: Educated boys like Chaucer attended grammar school where they learned Latin, rhetoric, and performance, unlike modern passive learning models. At age 14 or 15, he became a page in an aristocratic household, a desirable position that allowed him to mix with higher classes, and he likely met his wife, Philippa de Roe, during this time.
Fashion Scandal and Military Service
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(00:14:22)
  • Key Takeaway: Chaucer’s first documented appearance in records involved his patron buying him a fashionable, tight-fitting garment called a Poltock with two-colored hose, which was considered scandalous enough to be blamed for the return of the plague.
  • Summary: The earliest record of Chaucer details his patron buying him a Poltock and two-colored hose around the early 1360s. Chroniclers linked these tight, short garments to moral decay, even suggesting they caused the plague to return. Shortly after, Chaucer participated in the Hundred Years’ War, where he was captured in 1360 and ransomed for £16, paid by King Edward III.
Royal Service and Literary Influences
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(00:28:30)
  • Key Takeaway: Chaucer maintained a close, lifelong connection to John of Gaunt, his patron, partly due to Gaunt’s long-term relationship with Chaucer’s sister-in-law, Katherine Swinford.
  • Summary: John of Gaunt, as regent for Richard II, heavily favored Chaucer, granting him key jobs like customs controller; this relationship was reinforced because Gaunt’s mistress was Philippa Chaucer’s sister. Chaucer’s diplomatic missions to Italy allowed him to read Dante, Boccaccio, and Petrarch, fundamentally influencing his decision to write major works in English.
Chaucer’s Diverse Career and Courtroom Drama
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(00:31:31)
  • Key Takeaway: Chaucer held a staggering variety of official positions, including Member of Parliament (for Kent, not Suffolk), Controller of the Wool Custom Trade, and Clerk of the King’s Works, overseeing the Tower of London renovations.
  • Summary: Chaucer’s extensive CV included roles like Deputy Forester and negotiator for King Richard II’s marriage. A 1379 lawsuit involving the term ‘raptus’ was recently clarified by new documents, showing it was a labor dispute over Cecily Champagne leaving her employer to work for Chaucer, not a sexual assault case.
The Canterbury Tales Structure and Legacy
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(00:38:44)
  • Key Takeaway: The Canterbury Tales features a diverse group of pilgrims competing to tell stories to win a free meal, allowing Chaucer to juxtapose high and low genres, including philosophical tales and extremely rude stories.
  • Summary: The work is unfinished, reflecting Chaucer’s tendency not to complete projects, but it is significant for including voices from all classes, from the Knight to the Plowman and the Miller. Chaucer’s use of the ten-syllable line and early iambic pentameter established a fundamental rhythm for English poetry, and his use of London English aided the standardization of the language.
Later Life and Death
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(00:48:18)
  • Key Takeaway: Chaucer continued writing prolifically into the 1390s, securing his allowances from the new King Henry IV (John of Gaunt’s son), and his final known work was a poem titled ‘A Complaint to His Purse.’
  • Summary: Chaucer lived through the usurpation of Richard II by Henry IV, weathering the political change due to his connections on both sides. He died sometime before the end of October 1400, likely while living in the precincts of Westminster Abbey, which is why he was buried there before the concept of Poet’s Corner existed.
Chaucer’s Posthumous Literary Foundation
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(00:51:43)
  • Key Takeaway: William Caxton’s printing of The Canterbury Tales cemented Chaucer’s work as the foundation of the English literary canon.
  • Summary: Early 15th-century poets like Lydgate promoted Chaucer’s work, imitating his style. When Caxton established the printing press, The Canterbury Tales was one of his first major publications, with over 80 manuscripts existing at that time. Caxton later printed a second edition after acquiring a better manuscript, indicating sustained popularity.
Nuance Window: Chaucer and Character
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(00:52:53)
  • Key Takeaway: Chaucer developed the literary device of the unreliable narrator, influencing later novelists, and created deeply dimensional female characters.
  • Summary: Chaucer was instrumental in developing the unreliable narrator, where the storyteller’s bias colors the narrative, a technique seen later in modern novels like Lolita. He also made characters, particularly women, far more complex than previous stereotypes; for example, his Wife of Bath is nuanced, funny, and discusses serious issues like rape and the lack of female literary voices. In Troilus and Criseyde, Chaucer transformed the source character of Criseyde from a fickle betrayer into a sympathetic figure showing vulnerability and constrained options.
What Do You Know Now Quiz
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(00:56:16)
  • Key Takeaway: Chaucer was captured and ransomed for £16 during the Hundred Years’ War, and his final poem was a financial complaint.
  • Summary: Geoffrey Chaucer’s father was a wine merchant (vintner). The first documentary evidence of Chaucer’s life relates to scandalous revealing leggings (poulaines) worn by Elizabeth de Burgh. Chaucer was captured and ransomed for £16 during the Hundred Years’ War, and his wife was Philippa de Roy, whose sister was connected to John of Gaunt.
Podcast Credits and Further Listening
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(00:59:04)
  • Key Takeaway: Listeners interested in literary history can explore related episodes on Arthurian literature, Charles Dickens, and the traveler Ibn Battuta.
  • Summary: The episode credits list Rosalyn Sklar for research and multiple doctors for writing and production roles, including Greg Jenner. Listeners are directed to other literary history episodes featuring Mike Wozniak, such as those on Charles Dickens and King Arthur. For more 14th-century lives, the episode on the traveler Ibn Battuta is recommended.