General Prologue

the roots are the most corrupt parts of the church. He writes a story about a Pardoner who is supposed to be a good image for the church but is instead completely opposite from what he should be. When he is introduced in The General Prologue as well as in The Pardoners Prologue and Tale, Chaucer swirls some satire into his few lines of this character. “Then priest like in my pulpit, with a frown, I stand, and when the yokels have sat down, I preach, as you have heard me say before, and tell a…

character is discovered, it can be understood just how accurate this description really is. One of the Squire’s most prominent traits is his amorousness, better known as his disposal to love--particularly the sexual kind. In fact, it can be seen in the prologue that “he loved so hotly that till dawn grew pale, he slept as little as a nightingale” meaning that he literally chose love over sleep most nights. (Chaucer…

to mention that he was drinking as he was giving his prologue. So when he tells his story he sobers up. Then when he finishes, he goes into a big spiel about how all of the members of the trip should repent and give him money, forgetting that he already blew his cover. While this story is entertaining, Chaucer also certainly gets the point of the hypocrisy of the Church across to all those who read…

The Canterbury Tales is a compilation of stories written by Geoffrey Chaucer around the 14th century. Chaucer was the son of a middle-class merchant, he was constantly around the docks as a kid, so he picked up a lot of lower working class jokes, humor, and mannerisms. When he grew up he worked in the royal court, so he got to also see upper-class life in this time. So Chaucer, knew how every class acted, and he knew that they were not so different, despite their social stratification. Although…

In Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, the general prologue skims over the characters as the narrator chooses to show us. The last two pilgrims the reader is introduced to are the Summoner and Pardoner, who were travelling together before meeting the larger party. When describing the Summoner, the narrator begins by saying he had a cherubic face except it wasn’t a compliment. His face was red and full of pimples and he had narrow eyes. He was passionate and lecherous. He pretended to be wise…

stories told by these pilgrims are introduced in different portions of the pilgrimage to Canterbury. Chaucer’s goal of the story was to incorporate each pilgrim in at least four tales; however he never had the chance to finish his work. In the general prologue Chaucer gives a detailed description…

absolves confessors by having them pay him (ll. 222-236). By blatantly lying to others about his abilities as a clergyman, the Friar takes advantage of others willing to confess their sins as an opportunity to swindle money. In lines 259-261 of the “Prologue,” Chaucer writes, “For though a widow mighn’t have a shoe/ So pleasant was his holy how-d’ye-do/ He got his farthing from her just the same” (ll. 259-261). The Friar’s ability to be able to receive aid from a poor widow shows how excellent…

Geoffrey Chaucer, born in 1342, gained major recognition for his work on The Canterbury Tales. This book of poetry involves a collection of Tales of pilgrims going on a journey to the shrine of St. Thomas a Becket, as was a tradition at that time. Chaucer’s pilgrims represent people belonging to all the levels of status in the society of 14th century. Chaucer does not discriminate with his characters; rather presents a characteristically true picture of them. His presentation of characters is…

Characterization has been the cornerstone of literature for centuries. Character presentation can attain any framework or shame. In The Canterbury Tales, Geoffrey Chaucer uses thoughts and actions, to characterization of the Friar and the Monk to emphasize corruption in the Catholic Church. The monk is a religious character who is corrupt. Instead of reading on his cell, he prefers to go hunting. He also decides to wear decorative clothes instead of dressing in simple clothes. The Friar is…

greed is ironic because he goes on to tell a story that illustrates the terrible outcome of greed. The pardoner is preaching the sin that he commits. The irony is that “The Pardoner’s Tale” is centered on greed being the root of all evil. In the prologue, the pardoner admits to being greedy and uses satire by saying,…