Chaucer's Pilgrims: An Historical Guide to the Pilgrims in The Canterbury Tales
"This volume as a whole is eminently useful, especially for novice and undergraduate readers of Chaucer. Individual bibliographies attached to each essay will provide young researchers excellent starting places for further study." -- Choice
The summoners' tale ( canterbury tales) The Summoner's Tale is one of The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer. The tale is a fierce counterpunch to the preceding tale by The Friar which had been an offensive attack on summoners. Summoners were officials in ecclesiastical courts who summoned people to attend and worked in a similar way to ushers. The Friar had accused them of corruption and taking bribes and the Summoner seeks redress through his own story.
shipman's tale (canterbury tales ) Shipman's Tale (also called The Sailor's Tale) is one of The Canterbury Tales Chaucer launches another attack against the Ecclesiastical community by having the Shipman portray a Monk in a most unsavory light. The Monk breaks his vows with God and he shows himself as a manipulator by falsely claiming that he is related to the Merchant. Not content with taking advantage of the wife’s desperate position regarding money, he betrays her confidence, and his actions risk her unfaithfulness being revealed.
Man of law's tale (canterbury tales ) The Man of Law's Tale (also called The Lawyer's Tale) is the fifth of the Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer. The prologue to the Wife of Bath’s tale is actually longer than her tale.Chaucer uses it to justify the five marriages that the Wife of Bath entered into.The clear suggestion is that what women most desire is to have complete control over their husbands.There are also additional comments concerning the chastity of women. It was widely thought in Medieval England that a life of chastity would bring the person closer to God.
Manciple's tale (Canterbury Tales ) The Manciple, a purchasing agent for a law court, tells a fable about Phoebus Apollo and his pet crow, which is both an etiological myth explaining the crow's black feathers, and a moralistic injunction against Gossip.In the tale's prologue, the Host tries to rouse the drunken Cook to tell a tale, but he is too intoxicated. The Manciple insults the Cook, who falls semi-conscious from his horse, but they are reconciled by the Host and the Manciple offers the Cook another drink to make up.
