Commoners in The United Kingdom - Commoners in The Three Estates

Commoners in The Three Estates

In Medieval literature, commoners are one of three estates. The General Prologue, from the Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer, explores "the Medieval social theory that society was made up of three 'estates'". The Nobility were a "small hereditary aristocracy, whose mission on earth was to rule over and defend the body politic". The Church had the responsibility of "look after the spiritual welfare of that body". Commoners "were supposed to do that work that provided for its physical needs". The social status was a division of different classes and their places and occupations in Medieval society.

The General Prologue introduces "social organization", which Chaucer demonstrates when depicting the Knight, Parson, and Ploughman to exemplify the most noble character from each estate. These three characters are chosen to "seem as governing ideals". Each character has a certain role in society, and with their ideal moral lifestyles, they represent the most virtuous of the estates in which they belong. It is apparent that Medieval society values that class system as the main categories of hierarchical society. The set social division is evident, and with all three estates, the General Prologue examines the good and bad people in society. Chaucer's "representatives of the three estates are moral and social exemplars; the Knight, the Parson, and the Ploughman all strive but they do it selflessly rather than competitively".