LTEN 107 Spring 2007

Some questions to consider for discussion:

1. The Knight mentions love many times. Find one of these instances in Part I or Part II. Cite it, translate it, and discuss how it relates to larger themes of love in the tale. How does the Knight seem to be defining love? Do all the characters see love in the same way?

2. How are women represented in the tale? In its very opening we find Theseus confronted by the widows in black. Why do you think they appear here? What is their function in the tale? What do they tell us about Theseus? How does he interact with women? Who is Ypolita? What is her situation? How is her sister, Emilye characterized?

3. How is Fortune characterized in the tale? What role does it play? How does Fortune compare to love?

3. In Book Three we find descriptions of the temples of Mars, Venus and Diana. How would you characterize these descriptions? What do the various temples represent and what do they tell us respectively about the characters who chooose to worship in them? Finally, who is the “I” describing these temples to us? What do you make of the use of first person here?

4. Take a look at Theseus’s famous speech on the First Mover on page 65, line 2987. What is the chain of love? Who is the mover? What does this speech tell us about Theseus? The Knight? The function of order and hierarchy in the tale?