Who Is The Parson In The Canterbury Tales

Amid the numerous characters descriptively presented in Chaucer's "The Canterbury Tales", there is one that separates himself from the rest, due to his personality and behavior. This is the character of the Parson, or priest, who constantly is basking in the positive light with which he is presented. The Parson is a man, both poor and rich; poor in income and belongings, but rich with holy thought and commitment. There are many examples of his unique persona presented by the author, which allows the reader to get a grasp of his purpose, use, and background. The Parson is first described by his personality, which one may conclude as positive. This is shown throughout lines 477-528. First, the Parson is introduced as "[...] a good

One see's aspects such as how he lived and how he affects others. "Going by foot, and in his hand a staff. He gave this noble example to his sheep (495-496)." Shown here is an example of how he approaches matters, like walking to and from places, no matter the distance and despite the effort. And his behavior is one of educated background. He is not only a man of God, a priest, but also a teacher. In fact, he portrays a Christ-like individual when teaching. As said above, he refers to his parishioners as "sheep". Also it is shown here, "Well ought a priest to give an example, by his purity, how his sheep should live." (505-506) Once more, the parson invites men and women to follow his lead, to learn from his purity, which is something one would relate to Christ. An additional point is how the parson does not omit a single soul: "But he did not omit, for rain nor thunder, in sickness or in trouble to visit." (492-493). Rain symbolizing good, and thunder symbolizing bad, it is stated that neither will be omitted. The parson would gladly take anyone into his parish, even if they were infirmed or of bad dissent. This again relates to Jesus and the way he