Comment on Chaucer's portrayal of the military class in the Prologue to The Canterbury Tales.

Numerous characters among Chaucer's pilgrims represent the
Church, but only two represent the military, the knight and his son, the young squire.
Chaucer's knight is a man of courage, honor, and devotion, a soldier of the Crusades who
has lived up to the ideals of chivalry:

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There was a Knight, a most
distinguished man,

Who from the day on which he first
began

To ride abroad had followed
chivalry,

Truth, honor, generousness and
courtesy.

He had done nobly in his sovereign's
war

And ridden into battle, no man
more,

As well in Christian as heathen
places,

And ever honored for his noble
graces.

Although the knight
by tradition is a member of the aristocracy, there is no vanity in him; he is wise and
modest. He dresses not in rich attire, but wears instead his "fustian," a tunic made of
coarse, common fabric. Having just returned from service, his tunic is "stained and dark
with smudges" from his armor. Chaucer's knight is the epitome of one engaged in military
service, "a true, a perfect gentle-knight."

The squire,
about twenty years old, is developed in sharp contrast to his father. He is a well
dressed, good-looking young man, "A lover and cadet, a lad of fire." Full of vigor, the
squire's interests are those of youth:

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He could make songs and poems and
recite,

Knew how to joust and dance, to draw and
write.

He loved so hotly that till dawn grew
pale

He slept as little as a
nightingale.

Despite his
frivolous pursuits, the squire does seem to possess the potential for becoming a true,
chivalrous knight. He is strong and agile, rides well, and had performed with courage
when tested in battle, even though his experience had been
brief:

He'd
seen some service with the cavalry

In Flanders and Artois
and Picardy

And had done valiantly in little
space

Of time, in hope to win his lady's
grace.

He lacks the
experience and wisdom of age and service, but the young squire is not a bad young
man:

Courteous
he was, lowly and serviceable,

And carved to serve his
father at the table.

Through
the knight and the squire, Chaucer presents two views of the military class, the
tried-and-true devoted soldier/knight and the youthful but promising next
generation.