Geoffrey Chaucer lived in the fourteenth century. He is probably most well know for his somewhat humorous and incredibly detailed characterizations in The Canterbury Tales. Through his characters, Chaucer is able to give us some insight into what life might have been like at that time, for people from many walks of life. His flair for characterization was, most likely, a direct result of his interactions with a wide, and probably colorful, range of people throughout his life. He had the priviledge of associating with merchants, military personnel, religious clerks and royalty, among others. He lived during a time when the Christian Church of England was becoming very powerful. Its religious influences are manifest throughout the literature of Chaucer, as well as that of his contemporaries. Such influences have played a major role in shaping society as we know it today, both in good ways and in bad.