start of "The Canterbury Tales," the narrator introduces the setting: a lively evening at the Tabard Inn in Southwark, where a group of twenty-nine pilgrims gathers for their journey to Canterbury. The narrator, eager to join them, describes the characters in vivid detail, beginning with the worthy Knight, his young Squire, and their Yeoman. Other characters, including a Prioress, a Monk, a Friar, and various tradesmen, are introduced through engaging descriptions that highlight their distinct personalities and social roles. As the pilgrims anticipate their storytelling competition during the pilgrimage, the framework for a series of tales that reflect both their individual experiences and the complexities of 14th-century society is established. (This is an automatically generated summary.)