Description Of Humanity’s Darkest

The third part of the Knight’s Tale contains an element unique when compared to the other parts. In its description of the arena, the temples for each of the gods have a great importance. Here, the narrator focuses greatly on a column’s decoration where we can see several scenes taking place. These scenes personify different aspects of humanity that reflect in some way to this tale. The story describes these elements here:

“2002 The open werre, with woundes al bibledde;
2003 Contek, with blody knyf and sharp manace.
2004 Al ful of chirkyng was that sory place.”

Line 2002 makes a quick yet very deep description of war. It says: “with wounds al bibledde”. The fact that it doesn’t specify who has the wounds represents how war injures everyone. Also, how even those that aren’t injured must carry the burden of having killed another to survive. This will appear vividly on the battle between Arcite and Palamon. In the last one, Palamon carries the guilt of having to loose Arcite, who was a very close to him, because of his love. Still, in a war, strife carries all the responsibility for the deaths and pain.

This conflict of interests forces people to suffer through war even if these do not necessarily reflect their own. Due to this, “Contek” carries the “bloody knyf and sharp manace”. At least with in the Knight’s Tale this holds true. Both sides of the conflict raised and army to fight with them. Even though honor and fame awaited those that participated (whether they died or lived), only death remained for those that lost in such a meaningless contest.

The conclusion of this quotation summarizes the outcome of the conflict between Arcite and Palamon, as well as the outcome of any war. When the narrator describes a place as “Al ful of chirkyng”, it gives me the image of an unstable structure that continues to stand despite the damage time has caused it. Similarly, war is an old structure that continues to stand despite time and our own efforts. Even today it remains a “sory place” that we wish to avoid. Sadly, this meaningless strife dragged both Palamon and Arcite to war, through the passion of their love for Emelye. Could we still be dragged into strife today, for a meaningless passion or an unfounded belief?

The Knight's Tale: Time Line

A Knight Through His Tale

In the end of the first part of The Knights Tale, the reader receives a rhetorical question. It asks the reader who has the worst situation, Arcite or Palamon. Because one describes the other’s situation, they cannot be judged objectively. Instead, we receive a description of their envy for the other and hate for their own problems. In this way both found happiness but are unable to see it. The possibilities of their blessed state exist only in what they can do in their current position which is described here:

1349 That oon may seen his lady day by day,
1350 But in prison he moot dwelle alway;
1351 That oother wher hym list may ride or go,
1352 But seen his lady shal he nevere mo.
1353 Now demeth as yow liste, ye that kan,
1354 For I wol telle forth as I bigan.

The situation entraps both men making it impossible for either to find an exit without great risks. Still, both can hope to find their beloved if they see the advantages of their current position and use them correctly. Unfortunately, both characters sulk in their superficial misfortune instead of trying to solve the problem before them. Thus, the situation doesn’t restrain them from obtaining their happiness but own mental state does.

This part of the Knight’s tale reflects some of his morals and way of thinking. How both characters eventually persevered in order to achieve at least part of their goal shows this. With this story the Knight tells us about his own way of thinking and how, like the heroic knight of many stories, he eventually fights his way through difficulties in order to reach his goal. Evidently, he also says that his wisdom allows him to see the solutions to a problem since he tries to teach us this lesson through his tale. Still, he achieved the opposite. Instead of portraying his wisdom, his tale revealed his shallowness. His attempt to teach such a superficial and well known moral shows that his knowledge doesn’t extend very far. Also, his talk of Athens as if it were a medieval place proves this. One can say then, that the Knight tried to impress us with his knowledge and wisdom by means of his tale but fails to do so. Instead, he uncovers his own ignorance and superficiality.

When They Crossed The Seas With Rivers Of Blood

The land of the colonized, Colombia and all of Latin America reflect in Dirian Merina’s “Migrations”. I related greatly to two elements used in this poem since they form part of my heritage. The first of these had to do with our history as a colony and a nation. It makes a reference to the ships crossing the oceans like “veins and blood rushing”. The image this portrayed was that of a bleeding continent, slowly losing its resources, cultures and richness. This was represented in the poem by the enormous list of items in the ships’ cargo, many, unique to the New World. Still, this reference doesn’t necessarily remain in that colonial past. Today, we trade away our fortune in resources for low prices and cripple our native’s culture by isolating them.

The second part of the poem that moved me was the mixing of races described there. It represented fusion of races as it truly happened. First, came the whites and the Indians. Then, blacks were added to the combining population. Eventually it ended with the more obscure degrees of mixing. This showed how these different degrees become irrelevant by become a single race. Although, this unique race can or not appear eventually, it could make our culture homogeneous as well. So, this poem left with a question I continue to ponder: is such a level of cultural similarity, like that found in Latin-American countries, really acceptable? Would such a racial unification really help reduce world problems?