The Knight’s Tale Video

“The Knight’s Tale” is a chivalric romance adapted from Giovanni Boccaccio’s Teseida and is the first story in Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales. Widely considered Chaucer’s magnum opus, The Canterbury Tales was originally composed in Middle English between 1387 and 1400. The collection is comprised of 24 poems narrated as part of a storytelling contest between a group of pilgrims traveling from London to Canterbury to visit the shrine of Saint Thomas à Becket. When the pilgrims draw lots to see who will tell the first tale, the Knight, whom Chaucer describes as both a storied mercenary and a modest gentleman, is chosen.

The principal characters in “The Knight’s Tale” are cousins, Arcite and Palamon, who sacrifice their lifelong friendship to win the hand of the beautiful Emelye. They seek victory through acts of chivalrous vainglory to marry the princess, which ends with tragic consequences for one of the knights.

The poem opens with the story of Theseus, a duke returning to his native Athens after conquering the realm of the Amazons, formerly named Scythia, and marrying Hippolyta, an Amazonian queen. While bringing Hippolyta and her sister, Emelye, back to Athens, Theseus encounters a group of women clad in black on the side of the highway near Thebes. The oldest of the women begs for Theseus’ pity, saying that she was once the wife of King Cappaneus, who was vanquished by Creon, the new ruler of Thebes. After conquering Thebes, Creon refused to bury the bodies of those slain in battle—the very soldiers mourned now by the women on the road.

Theseus orders his army towards Thebes, swearing vengeance on Creon and soon defeating him. While surveying the battlefield afterward, Theseus’ men come upon two of Creon’s knights, Arcite and Palamon, who are injured but not dead. Theseus sentences the young men to lifelong imprisonment in an Athenian tower.

One day, after years of imprisonment, the knights spot Hippolyta’s sister, Emelye, picking flowers in a garden near the tower’s window. Both men immediately fall in love with her.

Over the years, the knights’ friendship crumbles as they vie for her affection. Eventually, Arcite is freed with the help of his childhood friend, Perotheus, a duke who happens to be visiting Athens. However, Theseus agrees to free Arcite on the condition that Arcite never steps foot in Athens again, tragically prohibiting him from courting Emelye.

After spending a year or two in Thebes, Arcite dreams of the god Mercury tells him to go to Athens and pursue Emelye’s love. He decides to do so in disguise, taking a job as a page in Emelye’s household. Under the name Philostrate, Arcite eventually earns the approval of Theseus himself, who makes him a squire of his chamber.

Meanwhile, Palamon has been imprisoned for nearly seven years when he decides to escape from the tower and flee the city, intending to return in disguise, much like Arcite. With the help of a friend, Palamon escapes his jailor after spiking his spiced wine with narcotics and opium. Reaching a grove, Palamon comes upon Arcite riding his war horse. Arcite is talking to himself, and Palamon overhears him lamenting life without Emelye’s love. Still hidden, Palamon grows angry and leaps out to confront Arcite. Since neither is armed, the men vow to meet in the same place the next day and fight to the death for Emelye.

Both knights return, armed for battle. But they are interrupted by Theseus, Hippolyta, and Emelye, who are out on a hunt. When Palamon reveals that he and Arcite are the formerly imprisoned knights, Theseus initially sentences them to death. But Hippolyta and Emelye intervene, begging Theseus for mercy. Upon receiving their word never to wage war on Athens, Theseus decrees that the knights will compete for Emelye’s love in a duel, each armed with one-hundred knights. The winner will marry Emelye.

The night before the duel, Palamon prays to a statue of Venus, asking the goddess of love to make Emelye his wife. When the statue shakes, Palamon interprets it as an omen that the goddess is listening. Meanwhile, Emelye prays to Diana, goddess of chastity, to remain unmarried, adding that if it is her destiny to get married, she would prefer to marry someone who truly loves her.

Finally, Arcite prays to the god of war, Mars, for victory in battle. In return, Mars whispers the word “victory” to him, a third omen. Chaos soon erupts in the heavens, with Mars and Venus waging war on each other. That is until experienced Saturn offers a compromise wherein Venus can help Palamon win his lady and Mars can help Arcite win the battle.

Theseus commissions a lavish stadium for the duel, and the day of the competition finally arrives. The two sides compete valiantly, but in the heat of battle, Palamon is accidentally wounded by a sword thrust. Theseus declares Arcite the winner, but before the knight can claim Emelye as his prize, Pluto sends an earthquake that frightens Arcite’s horse, causing him to throw the soldier to the ground, wounding his head.

With his dying breaths, Arcite tells Emelye that she should marry Palamon, and acknowledging the chivalric code of conduct, he admits that his wounded enemy is worthy of her love. Following a heroic funeral for Arcite, Emelye indeed marries Palamon, fulfilling their three prayers.