"The Canterbury Tales

The Canterbury Tales is Chaucer’s last work in which the formal and thematic limitations of medieval literature are overcome. The work has framing of the pilgrimage, telling us about the group of pilgrims who are on their journey to Canterbury. Chaucer offers a cross-section of contemporary English society running from the Knight to the Ploughman, every class is represented, with the exception of the nobles and the serfs.
The Prologue
The Prologue is the core of the work. The poet, who is one of the pilgrims, describes his companions with microscopic details. In the Prologue, the characters are described directly, the poet tells us about their clothes, behavior, language they use, their body and face etc. Later they are described indirectly through their behavior, their own words and subjects of the tales they tell. From the Tabard Inn the whole company is willing to go to Canterbury, to the grave of holly Thomas Beckett.

The Prologue itself begins with the lyrical description of the awaking nature in April.

When April with his showers sweet with fruit
The drought of March has pierced unto the root
And bathed each vein with liguor that has power
To generate therein and sire the flower; [...]

Then the poet tells us about people who are longing to go on pilgrimage in this lovely season, just as he does. The poet is ready to start his journey to Canterbury and in the Tabard Inn he meets a company that is also going to Canterbury. He spoke with all of them and he became one of this companies."