Search - Chaucer & the Canterbury Tales on DVD

Useful for teaching any of Chaucer's works

Medieval Maven | Houston | 02/08/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The title is somewhat misleading, because this lengthy documentary is about so much more than the Canterbury Tales. Indeed, it covers Chaucer's life and career and the various literary works he produced, including the Canterbury Tales, but also Book of the Duchess, etc. It also provides a great deal of incidental information about life in the 14th-century, the politics, economic situation, the Black Plague, the 1381 Rising, etc. Terry Jones is not only a member of the Python group, but also a published scholar about the 14th century, including books about Chaucer's pilgrim knight (titled Chaucer's Knight), and the politics near the end of Chaucer's life (Who Murdered Chaucer?). He has participated in other documentaries about the period that are a bit more humorous and Python-esque, such as the delightful series, Medieval Lives. However, this foray is much more serious. The length would make it cumbersome to show in a single class period, but at the college level, it would be a useful adjunct, for viewing in the library, for students taking courses in Chaucer and other medieval literature. I did not have any problems with the sound or understanding the accents."

Chaucer

Elaine M. Manneh | Anaheim, California | 05/17/2009

(1 out of 5 stars)

"The video portion is excellent but the audio leaves so much to be desired. I tried to use it in my English class and the students couldn't understand anything that was being said. This is unfortunate because there is too little out there in a visual format to enhance this topic."

Terry Jones' Canterbury Tales

English Major | 08/20/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I was a little disappointed because I thought this was going to be a filmed version of some of the Canterbury Tales. Instead, it is a narrative by T. Jones about the background history of the times, and of Chaucer, and shows some places in England that relate to the Tales. The DVD is interesting to me because I have a deep interest in English history, but was not what I expected. There was no way to discern this from my reading of the blurb that accompanied the Amazon DVD info. Or, because it didn't say 'narrative only', I expected something different.



Nonetheless, I have appreciated it for what it is. Just wish I'd known that before I sent for it."

Chaucer

Crissi | Austria | 07/14/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"The picture quality is not the best - and Terry Jones is somehow being interviewed - if they would have filmed one of his lectures, it would have been much better."