Generic mix in Chaucer's The Canterbury tales

Abstract

This paper will explore usage of different genres in individual Chaucer’s tales and explain the advantage of their mixture. The tale in which the intergeneric communication is most evident is The Nun’s Priest’s Tale, but it is also present in others. The one mentioned will be the main subject of the paper in which the beast fable, romance, dream vision and moral debate are successfully blended together to display the biggest flaws of the time through the context of animal characters.

Keywords

• genre
• bestiary
• generic stereotype
• convention
• parody
• dream
• moral