"Shakespeare and Milton were the greatest sons of their country," said G.K. Chesterton, "but Chaucer was the father of his country." The Canterbury Tales have sometimes been thought dry, even intimidating, of little relevance to the modern world. Nothing could be further from the truth, argues the distinguished literary critic Stephen Fender. Wise, moving, whimsical, funny, bawdy and vivid in the extraordinary picture they paint of medieval England, The Canterbury Tales also explore themes which have preoccupied us for hundreds of years, such as the conflict between fate and free will, the gap between rhetoric and truth and the extent to which we can trust any authority. It is no wonder, perhaps, that The Canterbury Tales have come to be seen as a founding statement of English national identity.
