1. In the anthology book, The Canterbury Tales (1478), Geoffrey Chaucer implies that it is the best to have something in moderation as it is better than having too little or too much of one thing as it can cause trouble depending on the situation involved. The author supports this claim by showing how too much cleverness and cunningness led Nicholas to get branded by Absolon but also shows how John, the carpenter, having too little cleverness and cunningness was taken advantage of and constantly fooled throughout the take because of that. The author’s purpose is to show the importance of moderation in order to explain how by not having this ability or skill to know what is and what is not enough was the main conflict that led the main charters to downfall in the tale. The intended audience appears to be those who do not know the difference between having too little of something or too much of something such as cleverness as John had too little of it while Nicholas had too much of it but both ultimately ended up suffering at one point. 2. …show more content…
–Factual: Why does John board Nicholas in the first place? -Interpretive: John’s wife, Alison, is younger than he is and he boards a younger man to live with them so wouldn’t he at least stop to think if that was the right thing for him to do? -Evaluative: Nicholas, Absolon, and Alison were the main ones who should be punished for deceiving and lying to John but Nicholas, Absolon, and John get punished but not Alison. Why does John get punished when he was the one who was the victim throughout the tale and why does Alison who was the one who deserved the biggest punishment does not get punished? 3. “No matter what the carpenter answered, it counted for nothing no one would listen to him. He was sworn at with great oaths and held to be crazy by the whole town, for one cleric will naturally stand by another.” (pg.