Greed And Corruption In The Canterbury Tales

In his 1387 anthology, The Canterbury Tales, Geoffrey Chaucer tells the story of thirty-one people embarking on a pilgrimage from London to the shrine of St. Thomas Beckett in Canterbury. Along the way, the thirty pilgrims, six of whom have taken religious vows, participate in a story-telling contest. Each person will tell two stories on the way down and two stories on the return trip. Chaucer repeatedly calls into question the integrity of the religious characters, indicating he believes the medieval church and some of its representatives have been overcome with greed and corruption.
The first character to face the author’s criticism is the Nun, who frequently defies her religious vows. Chaucer writes, She [wears] a coral trinket on her arm,
A set of beads, the gaudies tricked in green
Whence hung a golden brooch of brightest sheen. (162-164)
In displaying ornate jewelry, the Nun ignores …show more content…
(725-726)
In this quotation, Chaucer divulges that the Pardoner, similar to the other religious characters, is deceiving in his actions and has been involving himself in fraudulent activities. In “The Pardoner’s Tale,” the Pardoner defends his deceitful behavior, stating it can “bring [others] to repent” (9). In this quotation, he attempts to justify his actions, by saying they may be able to help others refrain from sinning. However, while he believes many of its agents are corrupt, Chaucer believes there are still many honest and true workers in the Church. The Parson, for example, “knew Christ’s Gospel and would preach it” (491). In addition, the poet describes him as, “holy and virtuous” (525). The Parson serves as a foil to the other religious characters in the poem, as he represents virtue, while the other characters represent vice. While the poet does include a few genuine characters, he includes many more treacherous characters, indicating he feels the Church is mostly