... defies description. Nevertheless, in a common literary reversal, the narrator endeavors to tell the reader anyway. Here Chaucer shows off his knowledge of classical literature, mentioning two major instances of dream-visions among the ancients. The story of Joseph from the Hebrew Bible would have been known to ... now established himself as well-versed in the Latin literature held in high regard at the time, especially with his references to Ovid and classical mythology. The proem sets the stage for the main story of this poem, the narrator's dream. It can be considered that everything th...

• Word Count: 5753
• Approx Pages: 23
• Grade Level: High School

... (wide-ranging). He draws on the new (in the late 16th century) learning of the English renaissance and on topical discoveries and exploration. We find references to exploration, sea-voyages, mythology, religion, kingship and rule, subjectivism ("nothing else is"), alchemy (especially the mystical beliefs associated with elixir and quintessence), astronomy cosmology, both ancient and modern (references to spheres, geocentric universe), law ... social and political changes divided Dryden from Donne - the English civil war, the restoration of the Stuarts, and the "Glorious of 1688. The rul...

• Word Count: 7662
• Approx Pages: 31
• Grade Level: High School