Canterbury Tales Satire

Satire is defined as the use of humor, exaggeration, or irony to describe someone. In “The Canterbury Tales” written by Geoffrey Chaucer, satire is used often. CHaucer uses satire to describe a Prioress (nun), a Cook, and a Friar. Compared to these people today, the features Chaucer gives them do not match up.
To begin with, Chaucer uses satire to describe a nun. “Her way of smiling very simple and coy” (Chaucer 123). By saying this, he is saying that the nun is flirtatious. A nun is a woman who is supposed to be married to the church. This meaning she can have no other relationship other than with god. Also, “Another Nun the secretary at her cell, was riding with her, and three Priests as well” This is an example of Satire because he is stating that a nun is something they are not or should not be. Also, Chaucer wrote “She use to weep but if she saw a mouse caught in a trap, if it were dead or bleeding. And she had little dogs she would be feeding with roasted flesh, or milk, or fine white bread” (Chaucer 148-151). This is saying that the nun felt bad if she say a dead mouse but she fed her dog meat which came from a dead animal. This is satirized because she can not feel bad for a dead animal when she is feeding a dead animal to her dogs. A nun today would not feed her dog a dead animal if she felt bad for a dead mouse. Another example of why the prioress is satirized in “The Canterbury Tales” is because chaucer says she wore a golden brooch that stated “Amor VIncit Omnia” (Chaucer 166). That quote translates to “love conquers all.” Sense a nun is someone who is
married to the church and can not have other relationships they would not agree with that quote. This is saying she wants something other than God’s love. “All types of romantic relationships are forbidden, as nuns are not allowed to marry or have sex while they are nuns” (Stetson). This is the vow of chastity that a nun must take. If they are giving themselves to God, they should not be with those three men. However, a nun is not the only person CHaucer satirizes in “The Canterbury Tales.” Another character Chaucer uses Satire to describe is the cook. A cook could be compared to a chef today. A chef is a professional cook. They could work in a restaurant or they could work in somebody's house. Chaucer wrote “He could distinguish London ale by flavor” (Chaucer 392). Chaucer is saying that he is a bad cook. He can tell that he is not at a fancy place eating that it is just a man cooking. If you are hired as a cook nowadays you have to be extremely good. If you are not you will be fired and replaced by someone better. Also, “That he should have an ulcer on his knee. As for blancmange, he made it with the best” (Chaucer 396-397). Blancmange is french for “white”. This means that Chaucer is suggesting that he made white foods the best because he used the disgusting white pus that came out of the ulcer on his knee. Today, if a person even had the slightest idea that was going on the cook would be fired in a heartbeat. They would not risk it they would just find someone else. A lot of personal cooks probably would not even get hired if they had an ulcer on their knee because that is just how snobby people are nowadays. Another example of him using his ulcer to help him cook is when Chaucer wrote “Make good thick soup” (Chaucer 394). He is hinting that he used stuff from his ulcer to help thicken the soup. A cook today would never do that. If they even thought about doing that they have a sick, twisted mind. Lastly, Chaucer used satire to talk about a friar. A friar is a member of any of certain religious orders of men. He is supposed to be a respectful guy. However, Chaucer wrote “He’d fix up many a marriage, giving each of his young women what he could afford her” (Chaucer 216-127). Chaucer is saying that the Friar is going around breaking up marriages and dating many girls. This is not the respectful, religious guy a friar is supposed to be. If a Friar was going around doing that today he would be looked at badly and probably be removed from his church. Also, another example of Chaucer satirizing the Friar is “For he was qualified to hear confessions, or so he said, with more than priestly scope; he had a special license from the Pope” (Chaucer 222-224). This is satirized because Chaucer is saying that the Friar is lying about being able to listen to people's confessions. He is just saying that to take advantage and hear what other people and mostly what women have done. A Friar is someone who went out among the people, to preach and to pray, to educate and to serve the sick. Not someone who would tell people they are certified to hear confessions just to take advantage of them. Chaucer is saying the Friar is going behind the Pope’s back and if that were to happen today the Friar would be removed from the church. A Friar was supposed to help and serve to the sick but the Friar Chaucer wrote about was not helping them, only hurting them. He was charging people and keeping the money being a beggar. “He was the finest beggar of his batch” (Chaucer 256) and also “(For a small fee) in many helpful ways” (Chaucer 265). This is saying he was acting as a beggar when he should have been helping a beggar and also that when he was supposed to be helping for free just out of generosity he was charging people. This is not something a Friar today would do. They would want to just go out and help people in need. Not take from them. All in all, Chaucer uses Satire a lot in “The Canterbury Tales.” He uses it to describe the Prioress (nun), the cook, and the Friar.
By reading this people can tell it is satirized because they compare what he wrote to ow those people are now and they are exact opposites. That is mostly the point of writing using satire. It is to make the person look bad and make them the opposite of what they should
be.