In the 14th century, there was a definite structure in society. People who lived during this time were separated into classes which followed along a hierarchy of ranks. When one was born, whatever rank they were born into whether it be nobility or peasantry, they genuinely stayed in this rank for the entirety of their lives. No matter how hard they worked or how much effort they put into promoting their ranks, it was very rare for one’s rank to ever change. However, William Thatcher, one of the squires from the movie A Knight’s Tale, managed to do just that. Having been born in the Cheapside borough of London in the early 1350s, William Thatcher was almost guaranteed to be a peasant for the rest of his life. For the longest time, Will had to endure clothes made of …show more content…
This scene in the movie provides enough evidence that he was not educated as a young child. However at the age of 8, Will’s father, John Thatcher, did send him to be placed under the tutelage of Sir Ector, a French nobleman. This would allow Will to learn some life lessons and would even give him an opportunity to “change his stars”. Stanford 2 Will spent a long time serving as one of Sir Ector’s squires. When Sir Ector dies after a freak blow to the head at a small-town jousting meet (c. 1970), William takes the chance to disguise himself in his knight armor and proceed to enter in tournaments under another name. This brings about many, many life changes for both Will and his traveling companions, Rowland, Geoffrey, Wat, and Kate. The quirky band of friends are able to save up money and treat themselves to better lives than what they had. They purchase new clothing, attend festivals, buy fine foods, and upgrade their traveling equipment. They're able to have and do more due to Will’s wins in the jousting competitions. Will is even allowed to mingle with Jocelyn and generally has more respect from those watching because he appears to be a knight in