The Knight is the first pilgrim whom Chaucer describes in the General Prologue. Chaucer characterizes the Knight as representing the ultimate medieval Christian man of arms. In saying, “He was a true, a perfect gentle-knight,” it is understood that the narrator greatly admires him. Chaucer further describes the Knight as having, “truth, honor, generousness, and courtesy.” The narrator then reveals the Knight’s military career, which includes a discussion of his fighting in the Crusades, wars in which Europeans traveled by sea to non-Christian lands and attempted to convert whole cultures by the force of their swords. Another character quality the narrator tells us about the Knight is his meek and gentle manner, writing, “He [the knight] was wise and his bearing modest as a maid. He never yet a boorish thing had said in all his life to any.” Chaucer comments on the Knight’s physical appearance, of his nice horses, but suggests “he was not gaily dressed.” The Knight, we are told, “wears a tunic made of coarse cloth, and his coat of mail is rust-stained,” as he has recently returned from a voyage.
The narrator’s description of the Knight depicts admiration of a Knight that is meek, not head-strong. The Knight is not shown to be a show-off or act conceited. He doesn’t wear flashy, shiny armor; he wears commoner clothing or a “fustian tunic.” One might expect a Knight to be uptight in demeanor and posture, foraging for the next fight, a uniform in tip-top, Marine-like shape, his armor shining and polished to the hilt. But this Knight does not and did not; physically he appeared and acted as if and just like anyone else not a knight; he doesn’t appear to aspire to be more or better than everyone else. For these reasons, I think the narrator looked-up to the Knight, not for what he could be or for what others think he should be but for whom he was: an ordinary person who did extra-ordinary things, but never boasted about what he did.
Admiration for whom you are not for what you are supposed to be.
