How far is the pardoners tale gothic?
How far is the pardoners tale gothic?
The gothic genre, thought to be introduced in 1769 by Horace Walpole’s noel The Castle of Otranto, was remembered for its crude, grotesque, exaggerated nature. Although in medieval times the Gothic movement had not commenced, Chaucer’s can be considered a forerunner to this movement as many aspects in the pardoners tale are clear gothic, however Chaucer did not perceive his writing as Gothic, he did not intentional write a Gothic tale like later authors did. The pardoner’s tale is considered the most Gothic out of all the ‘Canterbury Tales’ as it is the most abundant with gothic elements. These elements include Chaucer’s description of the Pardoner, the attractiveness of evil in the text, the presence of supernatural and horror, the digressions, and the personification of death. It’s because of the gothic elements this text that modern interpretations have viewed The Pardoners’ Tale as one of the earliest examples of a Gothic text.
A common element that is found in the gothic style is the breaking of conventional moral or ethnic code. Morals and ethics in the 13th century originated from the Church which had the authority in medieval England. The Church was known by many to be corrupt because of its hypocrisy and exploitation of the society. Common peasants in the society were expected to be 10% of their wage to the Church, which is how it attained its extraordinary wealth. Although the majority of people were aware of the Churches corruption no one would challenge it in fear of the punishment of eternal hell therefore the Churches established authority was able to prevail while the people carried on being exploited. Chaucer acknowledged this corruption, and with his presentation of the Pardoner he attacks the established Church. The Pardoner breaks all of the moral conventions set by the Church, his fraudulent nature is exposed by Chaucer as “he hadde a pilwe-beer, which that he seyde was Oure Lady veyl.” The role of the
The gothic genre, thought to be introduced in 1769 by Horace Walpole’s noel The Castle of Otranto, was remembered for its crude, grotesque, exaggerated nature. Although in medieval times the Gothic movement had not commenced, Chaucer’s can be considered a forerunner to this movement as many aspects in the pardoners tale are clear gothic, however Chaucer did not perceive his writing as Gothic, he did not intentional write a Gothic tale like later authors did. The pardoner’s tale is considered the most Gothic out of all the ‘Canterbury Tales’ as it is the most abundant with gothic elements. These elements include Chaucer’s description of the Pardoner, the attractiveness of evil in the text, the presence of supernatural and horror, the digressions, and the personification of death. It’s because of the gothic elements this text that modern interpretations have viewed The Pardoners’ Tale as one of the earliest examples of a Gothic text.
A common element that is found in the gothic style is the breaking of conventional moral or ethnic code. Morals and ethics in the 13th century originated from the Church which had the authority in medieval England. The Church was known by many to be corrupt because of its hypocrisy and exploitation of the society. Common peasants in the society were expected to be 10% of their wage to the Church, which is how it attained its extraordinary wealth. Although the majority of people were aware of the Churches corruption no one would challenge it in fear of the punishment of eternal hell therefore the Churches established authority was able to prevail while the people carried on being exploited. Chaucer acknowledged this corruption, and with his presentation of the Pardoner he attacks the established Church. The Pardoner breaks all of the moral conventions set by the Church, his fraudulent nature is exposed by Chaucer as “he hadde a pilwe-beer, which that he seyde was Oure Lady veyl.” The role of the