The Canterbury Tales
Prologue Character Analysis
Directions: Complete the chart below for each character discussed in the Prologue to analyze appearance, attire, and actions.
Character/
Social Class
Knight
Squire
Yeoman
Nun
Monk
Actions
Appearance
Attire
Friar
Merchant
Oxford Cleric
Sergeant at
the Law
Franklin
Guildsmen
(Haberdasher,
Dyer,
Carpenter,
Weaver,
Carpetmaker)
Cook
Skipper
Doctor
Wife of Bath
Parson
Plowman
Miller
Manciple
Reeve
Summoner
Pardoner
Host
Middle Ages – Characteristics of Social Classes
Nobility
 Bright colored clothing
 Elaborate designs
 High collars
 Accessories: furs or jewelry; silk and fine leather
belts
 Clothes made of wool, linen undergarments
 Winter: clothes with fur, long fitted tunics
 Spring/Summer: shorter tunics, fitted pants, pleated
skirts
 Shoes: The length of the toe was said to indicate the
rank of the wearer
 Job was to defend other social classes
 Hereditary – born in only
 Political, military, legal lords
Clergy
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Clothing made of wool
White, brown, or black – not dyed
Simple in style, designed for comfort
Cloaks with hoods and habits
Rope belt with wooden beads for counting prayers
Different colors represented different Holy Order
Clergy at larger churches dressed more ornately than
those at smaller churches
No inheritance; performance was basis for
advancement
Younger sons who did not inherit father’s position
often entered clergy
Educated
Appeal for charity to the poor
Rejected temptations of material world
Merchant Class
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Bright colors
Better quality material
Clothing adorned with silver or other metals
Tunics, jackets, hose (leggings), breeches
Felt hats
Decorative and practical items were hung from belts
Made goods for people in the nobility and aristocracy
and others from the merchant class
Could afford luxuries
Economic jobs in cities (banking, overseas trading,
buying & selling goods)
Owned land
Elected town officers
Legal skills
Guilds – labor unions
Peasants
 Simple: straw hats that they made themselves
 Linen undergarments that they made themselves
 Leather flasks
 Hose (leggings/pants)
 Pewter badges or good luck charms
 Shabby clothes, rarely taken off (skin ailments)
 Leather boots could be found among the peasants, but
bare feet were common
 Short cropped hair
 Jack of all trades (farming, making own clothes &
shoes, fixing tools)
 Specialized (blacksmiths, wheelwrights, carpenters,
bakers)
 Women dressed similarly to men (skirts instead of
trousers)
 Opportunities to escape farm life by moving to cities
(skilled craftsmen)
Women
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Women were defined by their husband’s social class.
Older men often married very young women and the
women usually outlived her husband, she was usually
a young widow and her family often forced her to
marry again.
If a woman fell in love with someone her family
disapproved of, she was often sent away to become a
nun; therefore, not all nuns acted like nuns.