The Prioress, The Friar In The Prologue To The Canterbury Tales
The Prioress, the Friar, and the Miller in the Prologue to The Canterbury Tales provide exceptional examples of what H.S. Bennett meant when he asserted that ‘no detail was too small” for Chaucer to see.
➢ Chaucer is a careful and astute observer. o Detailed descriptions of each characters
• Exposes character’s flaws/weaknesses
• Social/political
➢ Uses satire to deliver a message o Prioress and friar: Criticizes the church – revealing the corruption of the actions of some characters
➢ Chaucer uses irony o Characters’ behavior are inappropriate; details are uncharacteristic of the person they are meant to modeling (Medieval Period) o Immoral, at times
The Prioress (the Nun) unlike the stereotypical Medieval nun
• Chaucer – satirizing the Church/corruption in religious orders/mocking the church
• …show more content…
o Life of sacrifice o Devoted to helping God o Helping others o Giving up worldly possessions; o Vows of chastity and poverty – sexual abstinence and living without money/state of being poor
➢ Uncharacteristic qualities o Contradicts the normal expectations of a nun
➢ Physical appearance – How does Chaucer describe her? Attractive?
➢ How does she behave? Etiquette – social manners?
➢ Pious? Does she appear genuinely devoted to serve God? o Or does she appear to be a woman drawn to the comforts of more regal lifestyle
➢ How does the prioress appear emotionally? Extreme
➢ Owns a dog – prohibited in medieval religious orders o Lines 146 – 148 o “Of smale houndes hadde she that she fedde/ With rosted flessh, or milk and
➢ Chaucer is a careful and astute observer. o Detailed descriptions of each characters
• Exposes character’s flaws/weaknesses
• Social/political
➢ Uses satire to deliver a message o Prioress and friar: Criticizes the church – revealing the corruption of the actions of some characters
➢ Chaucer uses irony o Characters’ behavior are inappropriate; details are uncharacteristic of the person they are meant to modeling (Medieval Period) o Immoral, at times
The Prioress (the Nun) unlike the stereotypical Medieval nun
• Chaucer – satirizing the Church/corruption in religious orders/mocking the church
• …show more content…
o Life of sacrifice o Devoted to helping God o Helping others o Giving up worldly possessions; o Vows of chastity and poverty – sexual abstinence and living without money/state of being poor
➢ Uncharacteristic qualities o Contradicts the normal expectations of a nun
➢ Physical appearance – How does Chaucer describe her? Attractive?
➢ How does she behave? Etiquette – social manners?
➢ Pious? Does she appear genuinely devoted to serve God? o Or does she appear to be a woman drawn to the comforts of more regal lifestyle
➢ How does the prioress appear emotionally? Extreme
➢ Owns a dog – prohibited in medieval religious orders o Lines 146 – 148 o “Of smale houndes hadde she that she fedde/ With rosted flessh, or milk and