Prologue
THE CANTERBURY TALES
VOCABULARY
Solicitous – showing care or concern
 Garnished – decorated; trimmed
 Absolution – act of freeing someone of a sin or
criminal charge

VOCABULARY
Commission – act of giving authority to an
individual
 Sanguine – confident; cheerful
 Avouches – asserts positively; affirms
 Prevarication – evasion of truth

VOCABULARY
Capital – wealth in the form of money or
property
 Timorous – timid
 Derision – contempt or ridicule
 Maxim – general truth or rule of conduct,
expressed in a brief form
 Stringent – strict
 Cant – insincere or meaningless talk

DIRECT CHARACTERIZATION

Presents direct statements about a character
such as Chaucer’s statement that the Knight
“followed chivalry,/Truth, honor…”
INDIRECT CHARACTERIZATION

Uses actions, thoughts, and dialogue to reveal
a character’s personality. By saying “he was not
gaily dressed,” for instance, Chaucer suggests
that the knight is not vain and perhaps takes
the pilgrimage seriously enough to rush to join
it straight from battle.
THE “PROLOGUE”

Uses the pilgrimage as a device to frame the
stories told by individual characters
THE NARRATOR IS PORTRAYED AS
Naïve and observant
 (naïve means that he believes what he is told)
 This allows the reader to read between the
lines and make up our own minds about each
character.

THE NARRATOR USES

Indirect characterization to provide details
CHAUCER’S ATTITUDE TOWARDS THE NUN

Is one of amused tolerance.

In other words, he puts up with her because
she’s not really harming anyone
THE FRIAR IS DESCRIBED AS
Someone who gives easy penances for sins.
 The bigger the sin, the more money you had to
pay and the less guilty you would feel.
 If the Friars were rich, you knew they charged a
lot of sinners money for forgiveness

THE FRIAR

Will use people for money
THE PILGRIMS AGREE TO

Allow the host to be the judge over who tells the
best story.
THE PARDONER’S HAIR IS DESCRIBED AS”
“Rat-Tails” to imply that he is morally corrupt.
 He is a rat.

THE WOMAN FROM BATH

Is selfish and arrogant.
THE FRANKLIN’S GIRDLE IS

“white as morning milk” to remind us of his
obsession with food
THE OXFORD CLERIC IS DESCRIBED AS

Borrowing money from his friends and spends it
on studies and books and then prayed for his
friends to thank them. (but he doesn’t pay
them back)
EXAMPLE OF DIRECT CHARACTERIZATION

“Children were afraid when he appeared”
THE MILLER COMES RIGHT AFTER THE
PLOWMAN

To show the virtues of the Plowman and the
foolishness and criminality of the Miller.
TO DEFER MEANS TO

postpone
AN EXAMPLE OF IRONY IS WHEN

The three rioters are sure that they can destroy
death, yet they fail to see that they are falling
into his trap.
THE MORAL OF THE “PARDONER’S TALE” IS

Greed is the source of all evil.
THE THREE “RIOTERS”

As Chaucer calls them, are three young men
who are prating, arrogant and greedy
AN EXEMPLUM IS

Telling a story with a moral, almost like a
sermon, and does this through the use of clear
characterization.
HOW DO TWO OF THE RIOTERS DECIDE TO
INCREASE THEIR SHARE OF THE GOLD?

They plan to stab the other upon his return with
the wine and the bread
WHO IS THE REAL TRAITOR
In “The Pardoner’s Tale” ?
 The three rioters.

SOLICITOUS

Is when you do things for others to show
respect.
COMMISSION

Means to give someone authorization.
AVOUCHES

Means that you assert (declare) something
positively.
TIMOROUS
Means that you are shy.
 “She was as timorous as a mouse.”
 The opposite meaning would be assertive

PALLOR

Means extreme paleness.
HOARY
Means Senior (as in senior citizen).
 The most opposite in meaning would be young.

SANGUINE

Means cheerful.
THE OLD MAN IN “THE PARDONER’S TALE”

Is Death and plans for the three rioters to die.
EXEMPLUM

Is different than a short story in that it gives an
example to teach a lesson.
THE THREE RIOTERS ARE

“prating” when they boast of killing death.
THE PARDONER HIMSELF
Believes that greed is worse than dying.
 However, he is a hypocrite because he is
greedy. And cheats people.

STUDY THIS

And you will pass the test!!!