Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales
Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales is a collection of stories in the framing of a pilgrimage of 30 or so pilgrims, ranging in status - a distorted microcosm of the 14th century English society. Using from gentle to scathing satire, he comments on the Catholic Church as one of the most powerful elements in medieval society and its abuse of authority. The portraits of the Prioresse and the Pardoner reflect the corruption in the institutions of the Church and its people.
PRIORESSE
The Prioresse is one of the most fully described pilgrims in the General Prologue, with gentle satire. Being everything a nun should not be, she is guilty of the sin of vanity and worldly indulgences as well as the exploitation of sexuality and beauty. Her virginity is seen as an object of attractiveness, since during this time period, chastity is valued more than marriage. Her courtly manners and inappropriate sophistication is emphasized by the use of French words such as "pleasaunt" and "charitable and pitous".
The Prioresse's misdirected charity and kindness is reflected in her sentimentality for animals rather than humans, portrayed in the lines:
"She was so charitable and pitous,
She wolde wepe if that she saugh a mous,
Knaught in a trappe..." (Line
Chaucer uses this undercutting and anti-climax as well as the sudden crisp one-line statements following a series of flowing descriptions to highlight the irrelevancy and irony. At this point readers would have reached a conclusion that the Prioresse is inadequate and failing the role as a nun and figure of the Church.
Her corruption and worldliness is emphasized by the irregularity of the portrait itself. The use of rhyme breaking such as "Eglyntyne" and "dyvyne", "senely" and "fetisely" creates irregularities in the rhythm which are appropriate for the elements of the Prioresse, stressing her flaws as ...
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Chaucer uses this undercutting and anti-climax as well as the sudden crisp one-line statements following a series of flowing descriptions to highlight the irrelevancy and irony. At this point readers would have reached a conclusion that the Prioresse is inadequate and failing the role as a nun and figure of the Church.
Her corruption and worldliness is emphasized by the irregularity of the portrait itself. The use of rhyme breaking such as "Eglyntyne" and "dyvyne", "senely" and "fetisely" creates irregularities in the rhythm which are appropriate for the elements of the Prioresse, stressing her flaws as a nun, as well as double stressing on words like "hire grettest ooth" and "ful fetys" and "ful semely".
Further more, this defectiveness is enforced by her typical medieval romance heroine allusion with reference to her beauty through imagery of her broad "fair forheed" and "eyen greye as glas". Her "simple and coyly" smile and flirtation indicate to readers that she conscious of her own accomplishments and beauty and aware of the power play that it gives her. The narrator at last mentions her rosary beads, wearing it as though it were jewelry indulging in the materialistic possessions that a nun should not have. Chaucer concludes the Prioresse's portrait without any reference to her religious duties, with her brooch that says "Amor vincit omnia" meaning "Love conquers all" - Something completely inappropriate for a nun.
PARDONER
Chaucer uses harsh satire in the description of the portrait of the Pardoner. As the last portrait and most significant, he reflects the corruption of the Catholic Church and the inadequacy of its people as one of the grotesque figures of the church, the other being the Summoner. Pardoners sold indulgences, where a person could lift their sins from penance in exchange for money. In the 14th century, the practices of Pardoners became increasingly under criticism.
The imagery used for the description of the Pardoner is seen as grotesque and repelling. He has yellow wax stringy hair that hangs thin and greasy, his "glarynege eyen hadde he as an hare" and his ridiculous pretensions to wear the latest fashion. Chaucer uses a lot of references to animals including hares, hawks and mares when describing the Pardoner. He is seen as ridiculous singing 'a love duet' with the Summoner as the deep bass and the Pardoner singing like a bleating goat. He is an amusing but repulsive character, where critics most often see him as a monster.
There is a disturbing giveaway of the Pardoner's honesty when he claims a pillow case is the veil of the Virgin Mary and passing off pigs' bones as those of a saint. "He made the person and the peple his apes."
CRUCIBLE
The corruption and abuse of power of the Church in the 14th century, parallels to that of the more recent 1950s theocracy of McCarthyism in America. It was a system designed to protect and unite, giving the people cohesion and yet it develops into a great repression. The McCarthy era was a four year campaign that reflected the American pathological fear of communism, however, riddled with hypocracy and corruption. People were accused by assocation, became automatically guilty and many lives were ruined. Using the historical context of the 1692 Massachusetts Salem witch hunts, Arthur Miller explores the nature of humanity and the individual in the face of fear and authority.
Danforth's evilness: seen as evil, corrupted and abusing the powers of the court and his position as a magistrate.
In the court scene, in Act III, Abigail in the face of fear prentenses a bird is attacking her. She acts this, feeling that she has lost ground in the court and Danforth's disbelief - A desperate act to lift the accusations and doubts off her. The other girls follow her represent the sheep mentality, when the individuals follow the mass. Self interest. Mary Warren eventually turns against Proctor, under so much pressure. Represents the individuals in McCarthyism who buckle underneath the pressures of authority and the theocracy, including those who accused inorder to be saved as well as those who submit out of fear and self preservation and those who take advantage, manipulte assertiveness.
The last scene, Proctor signing the paper. Theocracy has enough power to surpress him, make him submit. Again the same example of the majority of the the nature of the population in such a situation, however, his later defiance to authority, represents the individuals who stood up and against the McCarthy era.
Concludes, the purging process seperates the heroic individuals, matyrs, Proctor Nurse and those who hanged, the individuals who submit to the authority and those who gain and abuse it.
The dramatic scene where Proctor signs the paper to confess:
Biggest irony: after 300 hundred years, is that although humanity has progressed 300 hundred years, human nature has not changed.
