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Year 8

Geoffrey Chaucer's ‘The Canterbury Tales’: compelling characterisation

I can create a compelling character profile inspired by the characters created by Geoffrey Chaucer in his 'The Canterbury Tales'.

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Year 8

Geoffrey Chaucer's ‘The Canterbury Tales’: compelling characterisation

I can create a compelling character profile inspired by the characters created by Geoffrey Chaucer in his 'The Canterbury Tales'.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. 'The Canterbury Tales' is a poem written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer in the late 14th century.
  2. Chaucer creates a group of characters who are going on pilgrimage, and they tell each other stories on the way.
  3. In the first section of the poem, Chaucer creates compelling descriptions of each pilgrim.
  4. Creating a compelling character could include describing their role in society, as well as how they look, speak and act.

Keywords

  • Compelling - convincing, persuasive

  • Pilgrim - a person who travels to a place of religious significance for religious reasons

  • Character profile - a brief description of a character which establishes important ideas about them

  • Snapshot - a brief insight into something or someone

  • Miller - a person who works in a corn mill where grain is ground into flour

Common misconception

Middle English is the same as Old English. Both are general terms, and mean the same thing.

Middle English was spoken from about 1100-1500. Old English was spoken before 1100. Both are technical terms and have a specific meaning.


To help you plan your year 8 english lesson on: Geoffrey Chaucer's ‘The Canterbury Tales’: compelling characterisation, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Consider how you will read the full character profile of the Miller with your class. There is scaffolding in Learning Cycle 1 to prepare them for what they might find - does this need to be developed further with additional definitions of vocabulary and ideas from you?
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Teacher tip
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Equipment

You will need a copy of the description of the Miller in 'The Canterbury Tales'. This can be found in the additional materials.

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Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of upsetting content
  • Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
  • Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering
  • Depiction or discussion of sexual content
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Supervision

Adult supervision required

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Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
In 'Myths, legends and stories that inspire', we use the terms narrator, author and character. Match each term to its definition.
Correct Answer:narrator,the person telling the story
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the person telling the story

Correct Answer:author,the person who wrote the text
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the person who wrote the text

Correct Answer:character,a person in a text
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a person in a text

Q2.
In 'Myths, legends and stories that inspire', we meet many different characters. One way writers develop their characters is to create character profiles. In English, what is a character profile?
a long description of a character which establishes everything about them
Correct answer: a brief description of a character which establishes important ideas about them
a drawing of the character from the side
a description that focuses solely on what a character looks like
Q3.
The word compelling means 'convincing, persuasive; exciting and interesting'. Which of the following uses the word compelling (or a form of it) accurately? ('Myths, legends and stories that inspire')
Correct answer: She almost forgot the story wasn't real, so compelling was its plot.
Correct answer: She was late for her lesson because she was caught up in a compelling novel.
She found the play compelling and boring so left in the interval.
Correct answer: The evidence was very compelling and the jury found the defendant guilty.
The speech wasn't compelled so everyone left.
Q4.
A pilgrim is a person who travels to a place of religious significance for religious reasons. Which of these sentences uses the word (or a form of it) correctly?
A large group pilgrimed their way to the holy place.
The holy place was pilgrimed.
Correct answer: There were many pilgrims inside the religious temple.
Correct answer: The pilgrims walked slowly, telling stories along the way.
The site was visited pilgrimidely every year.
Q5.
In 'Myths, legends and stories that inspire' we read a poem called 'The Canterbury Tales' which was written in the 14th century. Date this poem in relation to Shakespeare.
Correct answer: This poem was written before all of Shakespeare's plays and sonnets.
This poem was written before most of Shakespeare's plays and sonnets.
This poem was written at the same time as Shakespeare's plays and sonnets.
This poem was written after most of Shakespeare's plays and sonnets.
This poem was written after all of Shakespeare's plays and sonnets.
Q6.
In 'Myths, legends and stories that inspire' we will read a poem called 'The Canterbury Tales' which was written between 1387 and 1400. Who was on the English throne during this time?
King Henry VIII
Queen Victoria
Queen Elizabeth I
Correct answer: King Richard II
King James I

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
wrote 'The Canterbury Tales' ('Myths, legends and stories that inspire').
Correct Answer: Geoffrey Chaucer , Chaucer
Q2.
Chaucer wrote 'The Canterbury Tales' in English ('Myths, legends and stories that inspire').
Correct Answer: Middle
Q3.
Which of these statements about 'The Canterbury Tales' is correct? ('Myths, legends and stories that inspire')
It is written in Old English.
Correct answer: It was written before Shakespeare's plays and sonnets.
It is a play.
Correct answer: It is about a group of pilgrims.
It has a main character.
Q4.
What do we learn about the character of the Cook when he is first introduced in 'The Canterbury Tales'? ('Myths, legends and stories that inspire')
he is the narrator of the poem
he wins wrestling matches
he plays the bagpipes
Correct answer: he makes excellent stews
Correct answer: he has an open wound on his leg
Q5.
What do we learn about the character of the Miller when he is first introduced in 'The Canterbury Tales'? ('Myths, legends and stories that inspire')
Correct answer: he wins wrestling matches
Correct answer: he tells rude jokes
he is a good judge of beer
he is honest
Correct answer: he is very strong
Q6.
Which of these statements about Shakespeare and Chaucer are correct? ('Myths, legends and stories that inspire')
Correct answer: They both wrote poems.
They both wrote plays.
They were writing at the same time.
They both wrote in Middle English.
They both wrote in Old English.

Additional material

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