Truth (Chaucer poem) Essay Questions

Compare and contrast two stanzas of the poem. Consider similarities and differences of theme, tone, and style.

Both the first and second stanzas urge the addressee to disconnect from the world. In the first stanza, the speaker urges Sir Philip to “flee from the crowd,” and goes on to emphasize the perils of caring about wealth, power, or fame. In the second, he builds on this theme by suggesting that even attempting to make the world a better place will get the addressee too involved with it. The tone of the two stanzas is also similar. In the first stanza, the speaker is extremely logical and measured. He methodically moves from one point to the next, like an advisor checking points off a list. In the second, although the speaker dwells longer with a single point, and argues it from different angles, he retains the logical approach of the first stanza by soberly listing possible actions and describing its impacts. However, the style of the second stanza differs from the first. The first stanza lacks any figurative language or even strong imagery. It is almost like a book of advice merely translated into verse form. In contrast, the second stanza uses a simile in its second line, and then two metaphors later in the stanza. This figurative language makes the point more vivid, and shifts “Truth” into a more poetic register.

Discuss the relationship between “Truth” and the idea of contemptus mundi.

Contemptus mundi was a popular idea in medieval philosophy. It emphasized the impermanence and moral decay of the world, and urged people to distance themselves from the world in favor of paying attention to spiritual matters and the afterlife. Both its more comforting and more extreme manifestations appear in “Truth.” In the context of Sir Philip’s disgrace, the first stanza’s claim that worldly accolades don’t matter is likely a comforting gesture, meant to reassure the nobleman that his loss of wealth and status has not ruined his life. However, the following stanzas become more emphatically negative, not just about the worst aspects of secular life like social climbing and wealth hoarding, but about the world overall. The exclamations that make up the third stanza cast human beings as refugees wandering a strange and hostile land. This exhortation urges a deep distrust of everyday life, and suggests that to feel fully comfortable in this life is to forget that one’s true home is with God in paradise.