1. Assignments due Today
Researching You Project (Module 8)
Module II.6 - Part I. Vocab - Create a chart showing the
definition for each word, as well as its part of speech. Part
II. THEN, use any 10 of the words to tell a creative,
original story about one of the pilgrims you invented for
your Discussion Board assignment. Your story must be in
paragraph form (at least two paragraphs) and have the
vocabulary words underlined. The subject of the story
must be related to that selected pilgrim and his/her
pilgrimage, so make certain you identify him/her.
Week 2 Exit Tickets – Dropbox (Watch 3 of the 5 Lessons)
2. The Nun’s Priest’s Tale
Brief description of widow and
her lifestyle.
Story of Chanticleer- rooster with
seven wives, whose favorite is
Pertelote.
Chanticleer has a dream of his
death – fox.
Pertelote sees it as a sign of
weakness and claims that dreams
have no meaning. Chanticleer
argues with her, using male
authorities.
One day, A fox sees Chanticleer
singing; he flatters him to come
over and snatches him away from
the farm.
3. Plot
Pertelote burns herself
because she can’t cope with
him being gone.
Chanticleer tricks the fox
back by telling him to tell
the people chasing him that
it is not worth it.
While his mouth is open,
Chanticleer escapes.
The fox tries once more to
coax Chanticleer into his
mouth, but his flattery fails.
4. Social Commentary
Contrast between the poor (poor widow and her hut)
and the rich (rooster – made to seem ridiculous and
pompous)
Revolves around the statement that you should not
trust the people who try to flatter you.
Imitates overblown descriptive style of romance
stories through Chanticleer dreaming about his death
and courting his love.
Church hierarchy- hens at the farm are always being
disposed of - in the church, lower status nuns were
always moving in and out.
Chanticleer’s dream of death is seen as sign of
weakness by Pertelote- men at the time were not
supposed to show feelings.
5. Allegory of the Original Fall
Adam/Chantecleer
Eve/Pertelote
Serpent/Fox
Paradise/Chicken yard
Fall because of women
Humans are bestial, lose their
dignity and are reduced to
6. Interpretation/ Criticism
Chanticleer represents the priest, Pertelote and the hens represent the nuns.
That comparison sets up metaphors for clergy corruptness, such as nuns &
priests breaking chastity vows
The emphasis on the poor widow at the start is ironic, considering the
clergy rarely lived the lives of poverty they preached.
7. Interpretation/ Criticism
There are numerous references to
Greek gods to tell the story, seeming
to question the priest's knowledge of
the Bible, which could be used to tell
the tale.
The Priest compares the hens to the
wives of Roman Senators during
Nero's burning of Rome. After the
burning of Rome, Christians were
persecuted by the Roman
government, which is a very odd
comparison for a clergyman to make.
Boethius
Burning of Rome
8. Teller VS. Tale
Story characters vs. Real characters
Chanticleer= Priest
Pertelote= Prioress
Hens= Nuns/ ladies of ill-repute
Fox= rebellious against the church
Old widow= Pope
VS.
9. Teller VS. Tale
Priest and Prioress did not follow
clergy rules they set for themselves
and others.
In prayer that priest recites at end of
the story, he uses the term "my lord"
which refers to God.
However, in Chaucer’s style, he uses
“my lord” to refer to a relationship
between two people that is a close
and personal relationship.
This suggests that the prioress and
the priest's relationship was more
than just being clergy people.
Relates to the story b/c it said they
were “married”, just like the priest
and the prioress.
10. Morals!
The morals of the
story are:
1). Don’t let flattery
mislead you.
2). Fool me once,
shame on you,
fool me twice,
shame on me.
11. Exit Ticket
6.29 – Mod 2 – The Nun’s Priest’s Tale
What’s your favorite
animal? What
characteristics make
it your favorite?
Explain.
