2. Summary of Tale
• Three drunken and debauched men set out from a pub to find and kill
Death, whom they blame for the death of their friend, and all other
people that previously have died. An old man they brusquely query tells
them they can find death at the foot of a tree. When the men arrive at
the tree, they find a large amount of gold coins and forget about their
quest to kill Death. They decide that they cannot just take the coins in
broad daylight, but rather wait until night and steal the money then. The
three men draw straws to see who among them should fetch wine and
food while the other two wait under the tree. The youngest of the three
men drew the shortest straw. The two men who stay behind secretly plot
to kill the other one when he returns, while the one who leaves for the
town poisons some of the wine with rat poison. When he returns with
the food and drink, the other two kill him and drink the poisoned wine —
also dying (and finding Death, as per the old man's directions) as a result.
3. The Pardoner
• He is clearly a complex man as revealed in the
prologue to his tale. He finds it easy to sermonize
to the other Pilgrims emphasizing his text that the
love of money is the root of all evil, and gives
advice as to how people should live their lives in
order to avoid sin. At the same time he confesses
that he readily succumbs to temptation and likes to
indulge himself with rich food and fine living. The
money he obtains to support his lifestyle comes
from the sale of relics which are mainly purchased
by bad sinners.
[He is guilty of the same vice he
preaches in his tales]
4. Pardoner continue...
• Again Chaucer takes the opportunity to highlight the hypocrisy
of the Medieval Church through the portrayal of the Pardoner.
The old cliché of “practice what you preach”, for which the
Pardoner does not do. The Pardoner sells pardons and relics to
sinners by the authority of the Pope, in which these relics are in
fact false; just stones and bones found by the Pardoner. The
Pardoner’s work is based on deceit, selling relics to the unwary.
The Pardoner’s intentions are simply “for
to wynne” (to profit), and “nothyng for
correccioun of synne” (and nothing to do
with the correction of sin)
5. Social & Historical Context
• The Church created Pardoner’s to
gather money from sinners in
return for absolution
(forgiveness), which established a
great and wealthy source of
income for the Church, but also
the corruption of the system which
came with it. For Pardoner’s were
often seen as confident tricksters.
Some people often saw this as an
abuse of power by the
Church, who we’re wealthy and
left huge populations of Europe
in poverty.
6. • The Pardoner is portrayed
as deeply
corrupt, greedy, and
abusive. A pardoner in
Chaucer's day was a person
to whom one paid
treat/money in exchange for
forgiveness of sins.
Pardoners would exact a fee
for their services and in
many cases were guilty of
using these fees for their
own gain. Chaucer's
Pardoner openly admits the
corruption of his practice
while hawking his wares.
7. Pilgrimage
• The idea of demonstrating religious devotion
by making a journey to a holy shrine or site.
• It was a core part of Catholic practices.
• These pilgrimages of The Canterbury’s Tales
are making a pilgrimage to the martyr St
Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral.
8. • Sermons always
contained a tale or some
issue based on MORALS:
a lesson or message
conveyed to be learnt
from a story or event.
9. Language & Structure
• Confession: The Pardoner uses the prologue to
confess, yet, he shows no sense of guilt or shame for
what he does: selling fake relics and pardoner to gain
money for his own self. In which he extracts money
from his congregations for a comfortable life and
doesn’t express and need to repent.
• Lines 43 – 136: The Pardoner describes in a boastful
way how well he “performs” as a preacher. He quotes
things he says to his congregation to encourage the
devout to come up and give him money. This is the first
confession: the techniques he uses to achieve his
deceptions.
• Lines 137 – 176: Here concludes the Pardoner’s second
confession: that everything he does is for his own
gain. He explains the dark depths on his greed: “I wol
have moneie, wolle, chese, and whete,/ …Nay, I wol
drynke licour of the vyne,/ And have a joly wenche in
every toun.” Yet he then ‘redeems’ the moment by
reminding the pilgrims of his skill as a public preacher –
“For though myself be a ful vicious man,/ A moral tale
yet I yow telle kan”.
10. Language & Structure
• Through the tale the Pardoner
gives effectively lengthy sermons
on the nature of the sins he says
they habitually
commit, demonstrating his skills in
sermonising (a religious practice).
He uses rhetorical
techniques, demonstrating
personal passion and
enthusiasm, balancing with biblical
references and allusions. PRIDE
colours his delivery, making him
keen to show just how effective he
is at preaching to deceive.
11. Imagery...
Most vivid earthy image is used to convey the grossness and
corruption of gluttony: passage 238 – 260. He describes the
actions of eating to seem revolting:
Whan man so drynketh of the white and rede/ That of his throte
he maketh his pryvee/ Thurgh thilke cursed superfluitee”
Therefore creating the drunken man’s throat into a privy
(toilet), in which his “bely” is “Fulfilled of donge and of
corrupcioun”, which is a gross and vulgar depiction of the
excess of drinking and eating. The Pardoner continues with the
repulsive image, explaining how cooks are inflicted into coarse
labour through verbs such as “stampe”, “streyne” and
“grynde”, in which they “Out of the harde bones knokke they/
The mary, for they caste noght awey” to make this glutton
sauce.
12. Imagery...
• Another vivid imagery used
effectively is to show the behaviour
of sinners, through gambling, in
which they commit blasphemy and
an aggressive stance. In the lecture
against “hasardrye” (gambling) the
Pardoner conjures frantic gamblers
blaspheming, “By Goddes precious
herte” and “by his nayles”. In their
fury they warn the imaginary
opponent that if they attempt to
cheat “this daggere shal throughout
thyn herte go!”Here the Pardoner is
creating a frantic and aggressive
setting and voice, showing the evils
of gambling and how it can lead to
brutal conflicts.
13. Allusions
• During Chaucer’s time, using allusions (references to stories or in
this case the Bible) would have displayed intelligent through
wider reading, making them appear educated, for a very small
proportion would have done such, which makes the person seem
more superior and knowing.
Pardoner uses allusion for DRUNKENESS “Lo, how the droken Looth, unkyndely/ Sin of drunkenness lead to him
Lot & Herod
Lay by hise doghtres two, unwityngly;/ sleeping with his daughter whilst drunk,
(Looth & Herodes) So dronke he was, he nyste what he committed by the daughters
wroghte” themselves to continue the family line.
This story has been twisted by the Pardoner,
“Herodes, whose wel the stories
for the Pardoner states that Herod whilst
soghte,/ WHan he of wyn was replete
drunk ordered John the Baptist’s death, when
at his feeste,/ Right at his owene table
really what happened was that Herod’s
he yaf his heeste/ To sleen the Baptist
daughter asked for him to kill John, in which
John, ful giltelees.”
Herod thought that the opinions of people
were more important than the words of God.
So, Herod ordered John's death.
Attila & Samuel/ “Lamuel”
“Looke, Attilla, the grete conquerour,/
Deyde in his sleepe, with shame and
States that Attila because of a nose
dishonour,/ Bledynge ay at his nose in
bleed due to heavy drinking. (actually
dronkenesse.” …”What was
comaunded unto Lamwel,/ Nat Samuel,
true).
but Lamwel, seye I”
14. Allusions
The Pardoner uses allusions for
“Corrupt was al this world for The Pardoner states that
GLUTTONY
glotonye!/ Adam oure fader, Adam & Eve were thrown out
Adam & Eve
and his wyf also,/ Fro Paradys of Paradise for their gluttony,
for that vice” yet it was the sin of
temptation and pleasures of
the flesh which caused this.
The Pardoner uses allusions to demonstrate
on:
“The heighe God forbad Matthew 5:34 of the Gospel of
SWEARING/BLASPHEMY sweryng at al,/ Witnesse on Matthew states that “But I say
Mathew; but in special/ Of unto you, Swear not at all;
neither by heaven; for it is God’s
sweryng seith the hooly
throne”.
Jeremye./ Thou shalt seye Yet the Pardoner also states that
sooth thyne othes, and nat “Lo, rather he forbedeth swich
lye,/ And swere in doom, and sweryng/ Than homicide, or any
eek in rightwisnesse;” cursed thing” stating that
swearing is worse the murder,
which is not true and is another
evidence of the Pardoner abusing
his powers and knowledge.
15. The Pardoner uses many allusions to support his
opinions of sinning, and allusions were a key
part of sermon, therefore the pilgrims would
conclude that what the Pardoner is saying was
right. However, a minority was educated whilst
the majority of the poor were uneducated and
illiterate, only scholars, priests and such read the
Bible. Deception afoot, for the Pardoner twists
and uses references to fit to his sermon, and
therefore in twisting some, he may be attempt to
present new references to show off to the
congregations.
16. Rhetoric
• Rhetoric is the art of writing or speaking
persuasively. The Pardoner demonstrates
this effectively thought his Prologue and the
Tale. We witness great passion and energy in
his language, for example during the remarks
on Gluttony, the Pardoner exclaims
“cursednesse”, “confusioun” and
“dampnacioun”, which all contain
explanation marks at the end.
• The uses of powerful imagery and allusions
also continue to present the Pardoner as a
brilliant persuasive speaker/orator.
• Even when the Pardoner confesses he shows
such confidence and stridency, which
convey the powerful express of his greed.
17. Rhetoric
• Moreover, the fact that the Pardoner also speaks directly to
his audience presents him to be effective. He shows his
audience, in which we can imagine, for example, when he is
confessing about the fake relics, he presenting to the
audience bones adding content and imagery. He draws his
audience in, bringing them to listen closely to his
tale, “But, sires, now wol I telle forth my tale”.
• Finally the Pardoner continues to bring his audience in and
makes them think using a rhetorical question at the end of
his Tale – “What nedeth it to sermon of it moore?”
(All these engage the audience and readers to give drive and
energy to the Pardoner’s Tale)
18. Macabre is a quality of certain artistic or literary works, characterized by a grim
or ghastly atmosphere. In these works, there is an emphasis on the
details and symbols of death.
• Chaucer is a gothic
author, for this tale
contain elements of
macabre; with its
repellent descriptions of
the destructive effects of
committing sins, the
Pardoner’s macabre
trade in bones and relics
and the mysterious and
dark figure of the old
man, who contains a
supernatural quality.
19. Macabre
• Supernatural: stalked by Death, in the Old Man:
personified as Death? Death himself? Agent of
Death?
• Funeral at the beginning sets the mood of
something dark and gothic
• Violent and sudden end of the three young
folk, due to their wickedness & corruption
• Breaking religious codes, which to Christians
would have been a serious and dark thing to do
• The breaking of conventional moral and/or ethic
codes
20. Social & Historical Context
• The term “gothic” means
(amongst others) inspiration by
arts or images from the Middle
ages. Chaucer did not see his
world as gothic, like audience
see now. These elements were
a part of everyday world &
culture, as people from the
Middle Ages believed much in
the supernatural and the
connotations that came with
them. i.e. Good & Evil, Black &
White.
22. Deception
• This is the main and biggest theme presented in
the Tale and the Pardoner himself
• The Pardoner’s life is based on deceiving people
into parting with their money. Yet the Pardoner
explains this in his confession to the
Pilgrims, which may be an attempt to become
honesty.
• However at the end of his tale he attempts to sell
his fake relics and pardons, which could show that
he is so unaware of his deception and has also
deceived himself.
23. Deception
• There is three strands of deception in the Tale:
• 1) The three young rioters deceives themselves into
believing they can kill the thief Death
• 2) Deceived by the Old Man into going to where the gold
waits them. Either because the old man is Death or a
supernatural agent
• 3) They bring about their own Death by two acts of
deception against each other
Deception was a powerful theme for readers in Chaucer’s time (Social &
Historical Context). Due to the far less laws in the Middles Ages and being
cheated by people was a constant fear.
Most people believed that the Devil was present in the world and was able
to change his appear to do his trickery. If you neglected prayer then the
Devil could deceive you into a trap.
Superstitions of people lead to suggestions into witchcraft
24. Corruption
• Strong sense of physical
corruption, decay and disfigurement.
i.e. “O dronke man, disfigured is thy
face” and the poorest wife in the
village whose “children sterve for
famine” showing decay.
• Sins such as drunkenness and
gluttony resulted into disfigurement.
• Physical decay of the relics and
bones reflect the Pardoner’s moral &
spiritual corruption.
• Nowhere in the tale or what the
Pardoner says conjured light or
innocent, enhancing the imagery of
darkness and macabre = corruption.
25. Gluttony
• Committing any sin of over indulgences (the
excess of eating and drinking) and
drunkenness, went against the Church and
was not seen as obedience to its ruling.
• The Pardoner shows so much hate for the sin
of Gluttony, despite committing them:
“Corrupt was al this world for glotonye” and
“O, glotonye, full of crusednesse”
26. Abuse of Power & Avarice
• Greed is one of the third deadly sin explored by the
Pardoner. Which is the one the Pardoner spends his
whole life committing.
• RADIX MALORUM EST CUPIDITAS: the love of money is
the root of all evil – is the Pardoner preaching.
• The Pardoner abuses his powers by deceiving the trust
of people, when giving fake relics and pardons to gain
money for himself. This reflects the Church also, for in
creating Pardoners they we able to have a great source
of income, and despite this wealth left majority of
Europe poor.
27. Death
• Death is the supernatural horror personified in
the Old Man and the “thief” who takes the
lives of young people (which is metaphoric).
• ‘The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God
is eternal life through Jesus Christ out
Lord’, this would have been is a phrase
understood by Chaucer’s audience
