Parson In The Canterbury Tales

This ideal pilgrim represented the hope for the Roman Catholic Church when everything else was falling apart. The genuine life of the Parson pointed out that not all of the church was in the wrong. The Parson represented the remaining purity. His lifestyle choices were almost directly opposite of the many other pilgrims. One notable difference was his extreme selflessness. Chaucer wrote, "He much disliked extorting tithe or fee," unlike the Pardoner. He helped fellow Christians in need; he was just a call away (495-504).Chaucer was very clear about his standing with the Parson. "I think there never was a better priest. / He sought no pomp or glory in his dealing, / No scrupulosity had spiced his feelings./ Christ and His Twelve Apostles and

Excluding the Parson, the majority of its characters contradicted the belief of purity and godliness. Chaucer saved the most extreme character descriptions for last; the Pardoner was one of the strongest examples of a corrupt religious character in The Canterbury Tales. The Pardoner sold relics of no value and of no significance to the gullible Christians by his convicting songs and sermons. John Wellford says, "He is, therefore, a 14th-century English version of the snake-oil salesman." He took advantage of the ignorant and deceived congregations into handing in hard-earned money for fake souvenirs. The most horrifying idea the Pardoner presented is the irony in his sermons and his lifestyle. He lived his life knowing right and doing wrong. The Pardoner was a man who led his life radically in contradiction to his supposed beliefs. The Pardoner's moral in his tale was "Radix malorum est cupiditas." The moral means "Greed is the root of all evil," in Latin (Chaucer line 8, 142). His purpose in telling the tale was to reap the benefits of those simply wanting forgiveness and a relationship with God. The Pardoner wanted tangible

Chaucer's Canterbury Tales changed the way people viewed the Catholic Church. He chose to write a fictional story, yet his intentions are still clear. One cannot misconstrue a segment from The Canterbury Tales' prologue. Chaucer wrote, "For if a priest be foul in whom we trust / No wonder that a common man should rust; / And shame it is to see-let priests take stock-/ A soiled shepherd and a snowy flock. / The true example that a priest should give / Is one of cleanness, how the sheep should live," (511-515). Chaucer needed the common man to see the hypocrisy and double standards of the Roman Catholic Church in the thirteenth century. Conveniently, as history shows, reform was soon on its way (Collinson). Elton declared, "The Church was full of weaknesses and abuses; reforms had been talked about for a very long time," (105). The Canterbury Tales assisted in preparation for what is known as The Reformation of the fourteenth century. The Roman Catholic Church was put on the spot, revealing the need for reform. The Canterbury Tales emphasized the realities of the Roman Catholic Church in Chaucer's