Carleton Brown, "The Squire and the Number of Canterbury Pilgrims"

Brown, Carleton. "The Squire and the Number of the Canterbury Pilgrims". Modern Language Notes. The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1934 p. 216 of 216-222


Brown notes a discrepancy between the number of pilgrims Chaucer states are traveling together and the actual number named in the General Prologue. He suggests that this discrepancy, which has never been satisfactorily solved, points to a change of plan in the composition of the general prologue.

He references scholars who have found reason to think the squire was written later and inserted in to the narrative--the military exploits of the knight and the squire do not match in time, the squire comes with a single servant while the Knight is alone.

Without the squire, the number is right, and all three of the nun's priests can be counted. Chaucer does not count himself.

Also, contains an interesting discussion of the various military expeditions the Knight and the Squire could have been involved in, and their dates.

Available on JSTOR.

--Carina Saxon