The pardoners tale

Radix malorum est cupiditas

The love of money is the root of all evil

How does the old man threaten the boys?

They should treat old people the way they would want to be treated when they're old "if you should live that long" - foreshadowing

Quest to kill death

They're drunk and swear to protect eachother at all costs, came across old man, mean to him, the old man is humble they connect him with death "isn't it time to die" man is waiting to die and addresses the earth with his mom

The three rioters

They're wild like to party, gamble, go to brothels and bars, they wanted to kill death (the bubonic or Black Plague)

extra

- read shmoop - re red notes - quizlets

How many people did death kill

1000 (mentioned man woman serf and children)

What does the pardoner talk about

Church's - he is not criticizing people he wants to help - he's basically a bad guy but can tell a good story

Fiend

Devil or satan

St paul

Follower of Jesus - made baskets and tents

How far do the men walk?

Half a mile

Revenge

He gets back at people through preaching

Old man - spy for death?

He tells the boys that they can find death under a certain tree - there's gold under the oak tree - they got distracted and then greed came in - they say they'll wait for death and kill him with a dagger - youngest is greedy and wants it all then the men plot against eachother

Make offering in gods name

He'll pardon you

Box of cloth and bones

Help with worms or snake bite - put in well - drink the water it gets rid of jealousy and multiplies animals - make soup with it - never doubt faith in wife - mitten (increase grain harvest)

Foreshadowing

Hints, based on text clues, about future events/plot events

What does the pardoner say about greed?

It's a curse - avarice

What is the theme of the tale

Money is the root of all evil

Setting

Morning - drinking and gambling at the tavern

Whom does the boy say has died?

One of the rioters friends

Exemplum

Short story or anecdote that illustrates a certain moral point (developed in the Middle Ages) Example: Chaucer's Pardoners Tale = greed

List of events

Tells people where he's from, shows the church's pardons giving him ability to preach, then talks about the box with cloth and bones

character - the pardoner

chaucer pokes fun at the church through his character - sells relics and pardons for sins - loves luxury living (fancy clothes) - manipulative, weird looking guy (thin hair, no facial hair, high voice) and strange sexually (missing testicles? homosexual?) his relics might substitute for his missing parts - proud of his misdoings

character - the rioters

epitome of wickedness they represent the sins of gluttony, drunkenness, blasphemy, etc youthful which makes them impulsive they are symbolic figures they represent concepts and show morals

what happens when the young rioter returns from the town?

everything that the other 2 planned, the first two rioters kill the one who went to town, then they drink the wine to celebrate and die from the poison

what does the young rioter who went to the town plan to do in order to have all the treasure for himself?

he buys 3 bottles of wine and puts poison in 2 of them, then he will have one left to drink after the other two are dead

what does the pardoner ask of the pilgrims when he finishes his tale?

he wants money to absolve them of their sins

what moral do you think chaucer wants us to draw from the pardoners tale?

money is the root of all evil, however chaucer also wants us to realize that supposedly holy members of the church can be evil and corrupt like the pardoner

character - old man

one of chaucer's most ambiguous and mysterious characters - shrunken and wrinkled - begs death to free him from his body which is slowly wasting away - he is condemned to walk the earth until god decides to take mercy and end his life some people think the old man represents jesus in an allegorical reading of the tale however the rioters think he is spying for death he has the plan to teach the boys about death

what does the young rioter tell the apothecary that the poison is for?

rats and a polecat (skunk)

why is it ironic that the pardoner preaches a story with this particular moral?

the pardoner tells us that all he cares about in life is the gain of money (greed) but he preaches a tale against the evils of greed

why does the pardoner expect the travelers to go along with paying him since he is corrupt?

the people want to make sure they will go to heaven, so they will even pay a corrupt member of the church to make sure it happens (they don't want to take any chances he's right and not pay him)

examples of irony

the rioters swear to protect each other but instead the kill each other they expect to be rich for the rest of their lives, but their greed causes them to die the man wants death while the rioters seek it out (also a character foil) the old man told them they would find death (a person) under the oak tree but instead they find their own deaths

what is the first rioters plan while the third is away?

they plan to play wrestle him while he returns with the supplies and then stab him to death