Geoffrey Chaucer
THE LIFE AND TIMES OF GEOFFREY CHAUCER
Geoffrey Chaucer is considered the greatest literary figure of medieval England and an outstanding writer of world literature. He made a huge contribution to all of English Literature by using English in a time when most poetry was written in Anglo-Norman or Latin. He is best known for his collection of stories written in the Canterbury Tales.
Chaucer?s birth date is unsure but scholars assume he was born during the 14th century in London around 1340. No information on Chaucer?s birth can be found, most likely because of his lower social class level. Geoffrey was the son of John Chaucer, a wealthy wine merchant and his wife Agnes. The name Chaucer came from a French origin that meant ?Shoemaker.? Little is known about his early years and education but his works show he could read French, Latin, and Italian.
In 1356 when Chaucer came to be seventeen he became a page in the household of Prince Lionel, the third son of Kind Edward III. Then in 1359 Chaucer set off on his first military expedition to France during the Hundred
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