NAME_________________________________________PERIOD______DATE____________
Canterbury Tales Presentations
Directions: You are to retell your tale in a creative format. To do a good job, the story and plot
line need to be clear and easy to follow. You also need to include some helpful aids to
distinguish your story from the others, as well as the pilgrim who tells the story. The satire of
Canterbury Tales comes from the societal ranking of the pilgrims and their stories’ levels of
appropriateness or morality. Your presentation should also include, therefore, a “breakdown” for
the audience in which you analyze the satirical elements and cultural/ historical elements.
Requirements:
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Poster, PowerPoint, video, tableaux, skit, storybook for visual aids to presentation
An outline and planning guide for your presentation (see directions and sample)
A creative retelling of the Tale
An explication/ analysis of your tale, looking at elements such as satire, allegory… using
textual support
A handout, review guide, or presentation that contains the satirical targets and aims, and
your explanation of the elements (and a summary of the tale if you prefer) e-mailed to
Davis for her to post online (to help students who were absent the day you presented) as
the class will all be tested on the Tales overall.
Example outline of presentation:
I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.
VI.
Ask the class some connection question to get them thinking about themes,
characters, or events they can relate to in your tale.
Explain your pilgrim to the class. Where do they fit in society?
-Refer to General Prologue
-Physical description
-Personality and career
Give a brief summary of the tale in some creative format (storytelling, song,
interpretive pantomime, PowerPoint with visuals, animation…)
Find passages / lines from the tale that are notable, memorable, humorous… and
share with class. Note any literary devices used!
Discuss the message, theme, or moral of the tale. Why did this pilgrim tell this tale?
What is/are the connection(s) between the pilgrim, the story, the listener, Chaucer,
and you?
Discuss satirical aims of the tale (by Chaucer or the pilgrim). What is the tale
commenting on? This can be in the context of Chaucer’s time or modern contexts.
.
Include who is presenting each aspect in the outline.
Include any resources, visual aids, websites, or other resources to be used in each section.
TOTAL TIME- 10-20 minutes, WILL CUT YOU OFF AT 20!!!!
NAME_________________________________________PERIOD______DATE____________
Presentation Requirements:
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Was the group or individual well prepared? Try to limit “ums” and “likes”…
Did they engage the entire class in their presentation? Was it interactive or creative?
Was the presenter loud, confident, entertaining, organized, and informative?
Were there visual aids & a review guide of important information for the class to take
notes on?
Your presentation should include the following elements, which should be reflected in your
outlines.
-The name of the pilgrim/tale
-A brief description of pilgrim’s job with definition if obscure
-Brief analysis of the pilgrim (what kind of person is he/she in Medieval society and in
context?)
-A summarized or creative version of your tale (but not altered beyond recognition)
-A analysis of the tale, including quotes that will illuminate the text for the audience, and
discussing elements of literature along the way (refer to sample outline to see what types of
questions you should be asking while analyzing the text).
-Satirical aims and other purposes of the story
-Materials to turn in must be typed, organized and easy to read and follow
Please feel free to use your creative license to make this presentation not only informative, but
interesting to the class (who will be watching many presentations!). If you get creative, don’t
forget to include the necessary elements. If you are not the “creative type” (self-proclaimed) then
be sure your still ask interactive questions and are well-prepared for your presentation.
ALSO: If you use secondary sources (and most of you will), you MUST include a
bibliography in your PowerPoint or on your poster (you can turn in a printed copy as well.)
Points breakdown:
Visual aids- Colorful and interesting to look at…………………………………….20 points
Outlines- Easy to follow and detailed ……………………………………………...10 points
Presentation is well-prepared, creative, informative, interactive, useful..………….20 points
Explication of tale- clear what the satirical aims and elements are…………………20 points
Review guide e-mailed to share online for students who missed presentation……..10 points
Total points for entire presentation- 80