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I am doing the Pardoner's Tale but as they are kind of related I thought I contribute.

Our teacher told us not to buy the translations - he thinks that we should learn to "think" in old english when reading it to make things quicker in the exam. It does work actually - I notice it most when doing essays and finding quotes. In relation to the question, I am just looking at themes within the tale and prologue and the way in which they compare to my other text (Death of a Salesman). Then doing lots and lots of past papers, both timed and open-ended. We've done flow charts, tables of quotes that kind of thing.

Hope that helps.

=D
I studied it at the beginning of year 13, not yet sure how I'm going to go about revising for it.
Reply 3
affinity89
I am doing the Pardoner's Tale but as they are kind of related I thought I contribute.

Our teacher told us not to buy the translations - he thinks that we should learn to "think" in old english when reading it to make things quicker in the exam. It does work actually - I notice it most when doing essays and finding quotes. In relation to the question, I am just looking at themes within the tale and prologue and the way in which they compare to my other text (Death of a Salesman). Then doing lots and lots of past papers, both timed and open-ended. We've done flow charts, tables of quotes that kind of thing.

Hope that helps.

=D


We went through the entire text at school a couple of months ago and now my teachers given a couple of questions to do over the hols. The thing is hes never told us how to go about the questions, done any sort of revision strategies with us.
Reply 4
Basil Hallward
I studied it at the beginning of year 13, not yet sure how I'm going to go about revising for it.


yep that sounds just like me
Reply 5
I'm studying it, and the copy you're given to take into the exams (as long as you're with Edexcel, which I presume you are) has some brilliant notes at the back of it. Read those, think about the major themes and make sure you understand the WHOLE thing. Also read up on courtly love, the position of women at the time, the reasons people would go on a pilgrimage and marriage in Chaucer's time, because context is double-weighted for Edexcel.

Get hold of some past papers and see what the questions have been before. Then try some of them. Chances are, they'll ask you something similar again, because I think they've had Chaucer on the syllabus for a while.

Out of interest, if you are Edexcel, which other texts are you studying?
Reply 6
Well I am doing OCR English. I have Hamlet, The Merchants Tale and Prologue, Who's afraid of Virginia Woolf?, The Homecoming and The Great Gatsby (coursework) as my prescribed texts.

And no, I can't take the text into the exams :frown: Thanks for your advice though :biggrin:
starforsure
We went through the entire text at school a couple of months ago and now my teachers given a couple of questions to do over the hols. The thing is hes never told us how to go about the questions, done any sort of revision strategies with us.


Are you doing English Literature or English Lit Lang? I am doing the latter and the requirements for essays differ greatly from the former.
Reply 8
English Literature
starforsure
English Literature


=( Ok. I don't think I can help with you essay/past paper guidance then. Good luck anyway!

=D
I just re-read it loads of times and keep a list of references inside the front cover to the line numbers for the key scenes. I've also written my own translations next to some lines.

Having said that, I've not done any practice questions on it yet, which would be handy.
Reply 11
mmm...yeah I should start on some practice questions. Here is one of them:

Does the Merchant's Tale disurb more than it amuses?

It doesnt amuse me. Nor does it disturb me. I slept through all my Chaucer lessons. They were always on a Friday afternoon- the last two lessons :P

Well on a more serious vein, it is clearly not amusing and it does disturb- the treatment of women is pathetic, May's marriage to January. Also, sex in a tree lol!

Whats more disturbing than that?
Reply 12
Oh, gutted that you can't take it into the exam. That means that you'll have to learn some quotations, you poor thing! (I'm not looking forward to the day when I have to memorise Middle English quotations.)

TMT doesn't amuse you? I think it's hilarious! Especially when it describes Januarie having sex with May, with all the skin flapping around his neck, because it's just so gross. I suppose it's disturbing because Januarie's perception of marriage is so flawed and because there isn't a single morally sound character in it. Also, at the end, it seems as if May will continue to deceive Januarie, which isn't very nice.
Reply 13
Well when you put it that way, it is quite funny. Yeah I remember that sex scene lol
I guess May will never be faithful to Januarie but with his sight restored it is going to be harder for her to meet Damyan.

It is also kind of ironic that Januarie who has always followed his "bodily delit" till now, has seen his "young fresshe" wife do the same.

Also, here is not the long wooing of courtly love; one letter from the pining male, and May promptly gives in, offers her body, and makes arrangements for consummation.
Reply 14
Haha i feel the same way as i am doing this text for edexcel english lit and its good but hard, i have done many essays as my teacher always gives us some but i cannot seem to get higher than a C in them as he says i do not develop my points and if i did i could easily get an A or a B, so i know now where i need to work on.

take a look at my essay question i have to do over easter:

"In the 'Merchant's Prologue and Tale' Chaucer presents a world dominated by money and possessions."

To what extent do you agree? You should include in your answer an examination of AT LEAST THREE distinct passages.
Shuky
Haha i feel the same way as i am doing this text for edexcel english lit and its good but hard, i have done many essays as my teacher always gives us some but i cannot seem to get higher than a C in them as he says i do not develop my points and if i did i could easily get an A or a B, so i know now where i need to work on.

take a look at my essay question i have to do over easter:

"In the 'Merchant's Prologue and Tale' Chaucer presents a world dominated by money and possessions."

To what extent do you agree? You should include in your answer an examination of AT LEAST THREE distinct passages.


That question isn't too bad, really.
Reply 16
Basil Hallward
That question isn't too bad, really.

yh but i only actualy got it from my email about 10 mins ago lol, you got any suggestions.

The marriage!
Reply 18
Basil Hallward
The marriage!

in what ways, i thought the marriage was out of dotage or holinnes lol.

ohh she married him because she had to due to her status etc.
Reply 19
I'm studying it for the Combined Edexcel course. Which adds another spanner in the works, as I have to revise both the language and literary devices.

I have literally translated every line into modern, (or near enough) English, incase I opt to do the context question and I'm not too familiar with the extract given.

I have read the text 3 times now, so the apparent and underlining themes and messages are becoming clearer. I have also colour coded important bits such as the wedding night.

I suppose the important things to focus on is the idea of women in society - How May completely subverts our expectations. She ends up having the power over Janurie and moulding him like wax. How what Janurie purports himself to be is built upon self-delusion, blindness and eventually physical blindness. Also probably Damian's role as the courtley love figure and how Chaucer uses the Merchant to be satirical and heavily ironic at times.