Canterbury Tales (Barron's Book Notes) Read online

  ^^^^^^^^^^CANTERBURY TALES: THE MONK

  The Monk's description is the first that is really noticeably sarcastic. Monks are supposed to stay apart from the world, not go out for "venery" (hunting)--a word that, along with Venus, carries sexual connotations, since it also means "hunting" women. All the comparisons are ironic: his bridle bells are as clear as the chapel bell he's supposed to be in charge of; his face seems "anointed" like one of the blessed, which he's clearly not; he's not "pale as a ghost" or spirit, which a monk should be. There's a "love knot" under his chin, which Chaucer, ever polite, merely calls "curious" (downright suspicious might be more like it).

  The narrator naively agrees with the monk, or pretends to, that there's no earthly reason to sweat over books or manual labor as decreed by St. Augustine, founder of the Monk's order. The Monk, in saying this, knows (more than the Prioress does) he's going against his calling. Others know it, too, for the Host, in the Monk's Prologue, teases the Monk that he doesn't look like one, but more like someone in charge of the food and drink, or like a rooster with plenty of hens. This reinforces the piggish, selfish picture we have of him. The Monk takes it in stride and tells a tale, actually several, describing the ups and downs of fortune's wheel in the lives of Satan, Adam, Hercules, and others--so boringly that the Knight begs him to stop and the Host asks him to discuss hunting instead. Does the company and Chaucer see more about the Monk than he sees of himself? There is evidence in the way he talks, in the way he seems to believe it's pointless to follow his monastic duties. But you could also find ways of showing that while the Monk is stupid about his priorities, he is not truly evil, just misguided.

  ^^^^^^^^^^CANTERBURY TALES: THE FRIAR

  The Friar is "wanton and merry," but this pleasant-sounding description is dripping with sarcasm. By the 14th century, friars, who were supposed to give up all worldly things and live only by begging for food and alms, were almost totally corrupt. They were known for flattering the rich and deceiving the poor, and especially for seducing women in outright disregard for their vow of celibacy.

  Chaucer's Friar, Hubert, is a "limitour," one who is licensed to beg in a certain area. If the Monk's portrait contains veiled sexual innuendoes, Hubert's are blatant. He is "ful solempne" (very impressive) because he knows so much about "daliaunce" (small talk or flirtation). He's married off women "at his owene cost"--implying that he seduced them first. He's "well beloved and familiar" with "worthy women" of his area. We can imagine what that means. He's allowed to hear confessions and give easy penances if he knows he'll get well paid. Chaucer comments here on the hypocrisy of society, too, in saying sarcastically that people can give money to "poor friars" to atone for their sins instead of "weeping and praying."

  It gets worse. Hubert keeps trinkets to give pretty wives (like the present-day picture of a traveling salesman). He knows all the bars and is more familiar with barmaids and innkeepers than the lepers or beggars he's supposed to be soliciting for. (Ideally, after buying necessities, friars were supposed to donate to the poor and sick any leftover money from begging.) Sharpening the irony, Chaucer says it's not right for someone of Hubert's profession ("facultee") to be acquainted with lepers, since after all there's no money there. But when it comes to the rich and the food sellers, suddenly he's "curteis" and humble. So much for Christian charity. His "In principio" (Bible recitation) is so pleasant that he can always get a farthing (or "fair thing," another sexual reference); he gets more money from his illegal takings ("purchas") than his legal "rente." He wears clothes better suited to a pope than to the "poor scholar" he's supposed to be, and he meddles in "love-days," which were assigned for settling civil disputes out of court. Friars were allowed to represent the poor, otherwise they were under strict orders not to interfere. Hubert even lisps to make his English sound more appealing, presumably to women. Is he "worthy"--as Chaucer calls him (line 270)--in the same way the Knight is worthy, or is Chaucer's last line of description the final underlining irony? Obviously, Hubert is everything that a friar shouldn't be--corrupt, rich, greedy, and lecherous--and the tale he later tells reinforces this. He tells of a corrupt summoner (an officer who orders people to appear in court) whose behavior involves trickery, lies, and violence--strikingly similar to the Friar's own nature. The summoner gets dragged off by the Devil. Are we to believe that the Friar is headed the same way?

  ^^^^^^^^^^CANTERBURY TALES: THE MERCHANT

  The Merchant's description is short but telling. You might recognize him: the wealthy businessman who puts up an impressive, expensive front but who is hiding the fact that he is in debt. With the Merchant, Chaucer begins reports of three men who live by "reson," even though the Merchant and Sergeant of Law's "resons" deal more with money than truth, as the Clerk does.

  The Merchant wears a Flemish hat, a "motley" (variously colored) coat, and well-fastened boots. That he's an individual is clear even from so few lines: his hat is distinctive for his time and class, his remarks are solemn, and his "governaunce" (manner) dignified. But he is typical in scathing ways. He always talks about increasing his profits, a sin not only of greed but of pride, and worse, he deals in "chevyssaunce," moneylending for interest, which was illegal. He's concerned with protecting the ocean trade routes between Holland and England. You would be, too, if you staked your fortune as he does on the English wool you exported to the Continent. He also ignores the law against "eschaunge" (exchange). It was illegal for private citizens to buy and sell foreign currency (in this case, French gold coins)--out of fear of inflation, much like now--but unscrupulous merchants did it anyway. No wonder Chaucer said he didn't know the Merchant's name! If he based him on a real person, it probably wouldn't be a smart idea to poke public fun at a powerful man to whom many people owe money. We learn more about the Merchant in the Prologue to his tale. He's been married only two months, his tale therefore deals with the idea of a well-balanced marriage.

  ^^^^^^^^^^CANTERBURY TALES: THE CLERK

  But if the Merchant's picture is somewhat tainted, we get a sense of great affection for the Clerk, a man after Chaucer's own heart who spends his money on books. He looks thin and studious, the way the Monk and Friar ought to look but don't. Even his horse is lean "as a rake." He is studying for the priesthood, but doesn't yet have a living (benefice) from it, and is too pious to take secular "office." He's a philosopher who borrows money for books.

  NOTE: "Philosopher" also meant "alchemist," one who tries to make gold from lead. Some readers see parallels between this Clerk and the lecherous clerk Nicholas in the Miller's Tale, who also keeps books by his bed, whose interests are alchemy and lust. Decide for yourself whether the analogy is fair.

  Some see a greediness in the Clerk's book buying because they are fine volumes with "blak and rede" bindings. (At least he remembers to pray for those he borrows from!) Unlike some of the other pilgrims, he never speaks "more than was nede," but when he does he speaks well, with "moral virtu." Before he tells his tale later, in fact, the Host teases him for being so quiet. His tale about the worthy Griselde, deals with the virtues of patience and "a stiff upper lip" in the face of disappointment.

  ^^^^^^^^^^CANTERBURY TALES: THE SERGEANT OF THE LAW

  A barrister of high standing appointed by the king, he somehow gets demoted to merely a Man of Law (plain lawyer) in the actual tale-telling. But in the Prologue he is "ful riche of excellence," discreet, and wise, or at least he seems to be because of his impressive style. Might this imply that like the Merchant he is less than he appears? There is evidence for this, since

  Nowher so bisy a man as he ther nas,

  And yet he semed bisier than he was.

  (lines 323-324)

  He is able to purchase land "fee simple"--flat out--because of his insider's knowledge, and can find and close any loophole. He spends time at the "parvys," the portal of St. Paul's Cathedral in London where lawyers often met to discuss cases. His list of accomplishments reads like a resume, and he knows every case since William the Conqueror.<
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  In making his material success so obvious and detailed, Chaucer implies that the man has little to show as a human being. But lawyers in the Middle Ages generally had reputations as poor as they do now, and preachers had a field day chewing out lawyers almost as much as friars for their price-gouging and attempts to increase their gains. Ironically, in introducing his tale, the Man of Law protests he will tell a story in prose because he's a plain-speaking man. (And after all that, it's not in prose!) He tells a tale of a Sultan's conversion to Christianity in order to marry, and the sufferings he and his wife undergo before they are reunited--a completed contract, as it were.

  ^^^^^^^^^^CANTERBURY TALES: THE FRANKLIN

  The wealthy landowner, the Franklin is one of Chaucer's most colorful characters, literally. His beard is white as a daisy, a symbol of earthly or heavenly love. Here, it's earthly all right. Earthy, too, as the Franklin delights in food and pleasure as "felicitee parfyt" (perfect happiness). But this portrait isn't sarcastic, as are the Monk's and Friar's, since the Franklin's station in life is to be a generous good neighbor. Elected a knight of the shire many times (Chaucer was one himself), the Franklin is "Seint Julien," patron saint of hospitality, in his neck of the woods. He's held other public offices as well, and he is almost the social equal of the Sergeant of the Law. A "sangwen" complexion (sanguine disposition) was one of the four "humors" believed to govern the body, in this case, outgoing and hearty. He carries out his part in life, "Epicurus [who personified pleasure] owene son." Even as he introduces his tale about "trouthe" in marriage, he notes that the only "colors" he knows are not descriptive, just the ones he sees in the meadow--such as daisies!

  ^^^^^^^^^^CANTERBURY TALES: THE FIVE TRADESMEN

  The Haberdasher, Carpenter, Weaver, Dyer, and Tapestry Maker are doing well. Their wives wish they were aldermen; they would love to be called "madame" and be honored by entering the church first. This is a vivid picture of rather petty men, although the guilds to which they belonged were important union-type groups that supported restoration work on churches and other significant social functions. Guilds had enough political power so that their members could easily have had enough land to be elected aldermen.

  ^^^^^^^^^^CANTERBURY TALES: THE COOK

  The Cook is an excellent chef, but less excellent a human being. He "knowe a draughte of Londoun ale" perhaps too well, and the real giveaway is the "mormal" (open sore) on his shin, which is unappetizing and might be syphilitic. His evident bad habits are reinforced by the Tale he tells, unfinished, about an unsavory young cook who corrupts others with his bad habits.

  ^^^^^^^^^^CANTERBURY TALES: THE SHIPMAN

  The Shipman knows his seafaring business and tides and routes, inside and out. Chaucer admires his skills because England's strength as a medieval super-power depended on its navy. But "of nice conscience took he no keep," and he's not above watering down the wine he brings from Bordeaux for men like the Merchant and the Tradesmen. He's not averse to killing either, sending his prisoners "hoom to every lond" by water, i.e., overboard. His tale is of a monk who is as much of a pirate as he is himself, abusing the hospitality of a kindly merchant.

  ^^^^^^^^^^CANTERBURY TALES: THE DOCTOR OF PHYSIK

  He is a "verray, parfit" practitioner of his art, but is he "true and perfect" in the same way that the Knight is? Certainly he is very learned, familiar with all the ancient and modern physicians (including some who, according to his time and place, he shouldn't have even heard of!). He knows astrology, which was considered a respectable science in Chaucer's day, although some conservatives were against it as anti-Christian. He knew every patient's "humor" and can help align the patient with favorable astrological signs.

  NOTE: The four humors--"hot" (choleric), "cold" (melancholy), "moiste" (sanguine, like the Franklin), and watery (phlegmatic)--were believed to rule the body, and an excess of one created illness.

  The Doctor by medieval standards is no quack, but he is suspicious. He has arrangements with "apothecaries" (druggists) who help him make a profit. Some doctors and pharmacists, then as now, were accused of overcharging patients on prescriptions and then splitting the difference. The Doctor also knows "but litel on the Bible," a sure sign that his knowledge, even though it encompasses the stars, is restricted to the lower "physical" things in life, since it doesn't contain God.

  Finally, Chaucer says sweetly, he's saved all the money he's made from the plagues that were common in the Middle Ages, "For gold in phisyk is a cordial [medicine]. Therefor he lovede gold in special" (lines 445-446). Is this the only reason he loves gold, because it's a good medicine? Look at the way he's dressed, in taffeta and "sendal" (silk); that should give you a clue. His tale, which he tells us deals with the price of sin, is of an unjust judge who has to get the woman he wants. The woman, Virginia, is so honorable, however, that she dies rather than submit to him. In keeping with the Doctor's profession, he gives a long hymn to nature for forming that perfect machine, the body.

  ^^^^^^^^^^CANTERBURY TALES: THE WIFE OF BATH

  She is one of Chaucer's most lively inventions. She thinks very highly of herself and her skill as a weaver (better even than the renowned Belgians). She lets us know she's entitled to make the first offering at church services, an honor carrying great social prestige. (But watch out if you cut in front of her, then she won't give a penny.) She shows off her Sunday clothes with evident pride, including "ten pounds" of "coverchiefs," finely textured veils arranged over her head. Her clothing tells us she is no shy, retiring wallflower.

  But we're more interested in her famous love life than in her fashions. She's had five husbands--later, in her Prologue to the tale she tells, she gives the histories of all five--not to mention "other company in youth." (But, says Chaucer, we don't have to mention that. Is he perhaps embarrassed?) She's an old hand at pilgrimages, and, it's implied, the loose morals that sometimes go along; she knows, probably in both senses, "muche of wandring by the weye." She's gap-toothed, a medieval sign that some believe had to do with sexual accomplishment, or with a bold, faithless nature, or with traveling. The Wife of Bath, we find out, has plenty of all three.

  Her tale deals not surprisingly with the upper hand a woman must maintain in marriage. She is "somdel [somewhat] deaf," but that doesn't stop her from amorous adventures; she also later gives more detail about her "other company" that Chaucer passes lightly over by saying,

  Of remedies of love she knew per chaunce,

  For she koude [knew] of that art the olde daunce.

  (lines 475-476)

  The "remedies of love" implies she knows of Ovid's ancient work of the same name, which deals with all the rules of the love game. The idea of knowing the rules of the game, especially of a sexual nature, shows up often in reference to the Wife.

  Is she meant to be purely ironic? It wouldn't be strange to Chaucer's audience to hear of five husbands, since no woman, especially one with property and one as willing as the Wife, would stay a widow for long. She uses all her "reson" for defending the delights of the lower regions of the body. But can you find anything in her portrait that cuts, for example, like the knife Chaucer uses against the Doctor? The Wife is teased, but is she judged? More than any other character, Chaucer lets her speak for herself.

  ^^^^^^^^^^CANTERBURY TALES: THE PARSON

  The poor Parson, like the Knight, is the ideal of what someone of his class ought to be. He is "lerned," "in adversitee ful [very] pacient," and is a "noble ensaumple" (example) to his parishioners. Given what we've already seen of learned men and their abuses, it's unusual that this one should possess such virtue--he is even "loath" to collect his "tithes" (income tax on which he lives). He practices what he preaches, knowing that he must set the example for the common people, "For if a preest be foul, on whom we truste, No wonder is a lewed [ignorant] man to ruste" (lines 503-504) like "iren." He doesn't, like some priests, run to London and rent out his parish to someone else. His ideal qualities make him ideal to tell the last tale of the trip, a
sermon on the Seven Deadly Sins, which reminds us there is a serious spiritual purpose to the pilgrimage and to the Tales.

  ^^^^^^^^^^CANTERBURY TALES: THE PLOWMAN

  The Parson's brother, in spirit as well as in blood, is the Plowman, who is also the perfect ideal, "living in pees and parfit charite." This portrait may well have amazed Chaucer's audience, just as we'd be surprised to hear of such a chivalrous workman. This Plowman would work for a poor person without pay; he pays all his church taxes on time; he loves his neighbor as himself. He rides a mare, a humble horse. This portrait is especially interesting because peasants in Chaucer's day rose up frequently against Chaucer's own middle class. Some think Chaucer may have presented an ideal plowman because he had such a low opinion of the real ones. But do you think Chaucer would have linked him with the Parson if he meant the picture to be ironic? Even if he is not as rowdy and fully human as some of the others, he is genuine.