Friday, November 22, 2013
Miller's Tale Discussion Question #1
Chaucer claims that he is only repeating faithfully what he heard on the pilgrimage and that if any reader is offended, he should not blame the author, but himself. What are the implications concerning an author's responsibility to his readers? What sort of truth is he bound to?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
The author is not bound to tell the truth, but his readers should have the right to know whether it is the truth.
ReplyDeleteThe author is writing to write. It is up to the readers to believe or not believe the story that is being told.
DeleteI think you are wrong Ian, because the video we watched about Chaucer explained to us that Chaucer's writing was revolutionary at the time because of his loyalty to 'tell it like it is' and be as realistic to the world he lives in. While it may not be all authors' responsibilities to convey the truth, it was one of Chaucer's motivations in writing the Canterbury tales. The best of writers write to convey a truth.
DeleteI agree with Harry L. And the implication is that the author does not have a responsibility to the readers to be rude or inoffensive, because they freely chose to read his book, and by extension, to be exposed to whatever he chooses to include it. Chaucer is bound to tell the whole truth, without censoring, be it offensive or heretical or not.
DeleteThe author is bound to tell the reader some sort of the truth but has the right to change certain things to add to the story telling, as long as the general meaning of the story is true.
ReplyDeleteChaucer warning the reader to skip this tale is like a disclaimer warning that it might not seem true. Because of this, Chaucer is able to tell any tale he wants, already having forewarned the reader that it may not seem so realistic.
ReplyDeleteThe author should bound to stick to the fundamental truth of what occurred during the story. The reader should expect their to be a personal twist to the tale based of opinion, matter of perspective, and how the author wants the story to come across.
ReplyDeleteThe author is bound to use the whole truth and cannot censor or paraphrase the events that take place if he wants his story to be believed. As soon as an author lies or withholds information I believe the work can no longer be an expression of real events and now only show the opinions that the author holds. If that takes place the story changes from possibly non-fiction to a fictitious story made to amuse the masses and express a belief.
ReplyDelete