The Canterbury Tales

Most of Chaucer's characters are named after a profession. What does this emphasis on the characters' social roles suggest about medieval society?

The Canterbury tales, the prologue 

Asked by
Last updated by Judy5839
Answers 2
Add Yours

I think that Chaucer was out to satirize various professions for the hypocrisy they possessed while being legitimized by powerful institutions like the Catholic Church and government. 

I am just starting out my studies with this -  but I wonder if by identifying each character with a professional name he is putting a hierarchy to the society that he lived in -  it seems that there is a tremendous amount of interpersonal strife throughout these stories so maybe Chaucer is trying to show the sociological implications