In Hir Courages: Rethinking Chaucerian Beasts

Abstract: “Chaucer’s Ass: (non-)human interpretations”

Francis Tobienne, Jr.

Purdue University

Geoffrey Chaucer’s use of the non-human animal in the Canterbury Tales (CT) is anything but benign; in fact, Chaucer’ s use of animal discourse in CT parallels that of animal speech in the fourth book of the Old Testament (OT); namely, that of prophecy and forewarning in the Book of Numbers. What is more, animal speech becomes the vox deus not vox populii and precedes events centered on human-to-human importance, if not survival. Balaam’s ass as described in Numbers 22:22–28 arguably provides a template for Chaucer’s chosen vesselage to communicate to his contemporaries. Most famously, the Peasants’ Revolt of 1381 can be an example of this type of Chaucerian Méthod Scientifique (if we are to believe The Man of Law’s Tale); for Chaucer, as proto-social scientist then, animals provide the following theological rubric: identify and define the problem; make observations; look for regularities; wonder why these regularities exist; propose a hypothesis; test hypothesis with an experiment; and, reproduce results. Collectively, and as I will argue, Chaucer uses the non-human animal to communicate events of extreme importance beyond the mere bestiary, or beast fable; the implications all point to the stubborn, human-animal and perhaps create a new mythology by which to tell a/the story.

Beyond the CT, textual evidence will be reflected using contemporary sermon records, the Bible, belles-lettres, travel accounts as well as news records involving the events presented during Chaucer’s time. By way of comparison and as supplement then, two additional texts that privilege non-human animal speech in a didactic and forewarning manner, will be used; namely, Mandeville’s Travels and Sege of Mylan. Both texts provide animal agency in terms of hybrid deformities, cultural otherness and even monstrous alterity–in order to provide a more stable identity to a constructed normative–the stubborn, Christian human animal.

I hope that my findings may provide lux to cultural (animal) studies.