Medieval Dream Lore
In medieval times, dreams were highly regarded as something not to be taken lightly because they foreshadowed events that would soon come true. Also, dreams were normal parts of life that also described and showed the personality of a person based on the dreams they would have. People used dream books to keep track of their dreams and to find the means of their dreams. In medieval life there were three types of dream books; dream alphabet, dream lunar, and dream books proper. In
the article “Dreams and Poetry” by Alexander Arguelles reports the "Language of dreams is a symbolic language, and the popularity of dreams in the Middle Ages is due to the fact that they were a normal expression, a part of the cycle of medieval symbolic thought. The most common way of interpreting dreams was through use of ‘dream books’…” (Arguelles 251). Dreams in medieval times were important to all people because they were though of as a language and were symbolic because they were thought of as foreshadowing of events that will soon happen in real life.
This superstition of dreams in medieval times relates to how Chanticleer is very superstitious about his dream and that it will come true, which it did. This idea of the importance of dreams in medieval time relates to how Chanticleer tells stories told about dreams coming true in real life. This made it more believable that dreams had a deep and significant meaning. Likewise, Chanticleer tells Pertelote that dreams are real, not only from his stories of things that happened in the world, by
showing that even many philosophers of the medieval age agree and say that dream really do matter. Chanticleer responds
to Pertelote “By saying that dreams do matter, “Take Cato now, that was so wise a man, / Did he not say, “Take no account of dreams”?(217) In medieval times almost all people believed in dreams and their significant, even those who were higher and more educated in society. Since many upper-class people also believed in dreams, this created a general idea in medieval society that is shown in many places in the "Nun's Priest's Tale."
the article “Dreams and Poetry” by Alexander Arguelles reports the "Language of dreams is a symbolic language, and the popularity of dreams in the Middle Ages is due to the fact that they were a normal expression, a part of the cycle of medieval symbolic thought. The most common way of interpreting dreams was through use of ‘dream books’…” (Arguelles 251). Dreams in medieval times were important to all people because they were though of as a language and were symbolic because they were thought of as foreshadowing of events that will soon happen in real life.
This superstition of dreams in medieval times relates to how Chanticleer is very superstitious about his dream and that it will come true, which it did. This idea of the importance of dreams in medieval time relates to how Chanticleer tells stories told about dreams coming true in real life. This made it more believable that dreams had a deep and significant meaning. Likewise, Chanticleer tells Pertelote that dreams are real, not only from his stories of things that happened in the world, by
showing that even many philosophers of the medieval age agree and say that dream really do matter. Chanticleer responds
to Pertelote “By saying that dreams do matter, “Take Cato now, that was so wise a man, / Did he not say, “Take no account of dreams”?(217) In medieval times almost all people believed in dreams and their significant, even those who were higher and more educated in society. Since many upper-class people also believed in dreams, this created a general idea in medieval society that is shown in many places in the "Nun's Priest's Tale."