Hypocrisy Revealed in Canterbury Tales - 891 Words

In Geoffrey Chaucers The Canterbury Tales he reveals an underlying flaw in society. Chaucer portrays the Pardoner as hypocritical in order to get his message across to readers. The Pardoner is shown to be the exact definition of a hypocrite by preaching to others to lead a spiritual life, while not living by those preachings himself. In Canterbury Tales, Chaucer reveals hypocritical qualities in the Pardoner through vivid characterization, tone, and morality. In the Pardoners prologue, Chaucer describes what a swindler and model of deceit the Pardoner actually is with vivid characterization. The Pardoner is so convincing in his acts that [i]n one short day, in money down he dr[aws]/ More than a parson in a month or two./and by his†¦show more content†¦This is simply an easy way for the Pardoner to trick others into feeding his infinite appetite for greed (Boenig 4). Another example of this shows that the Pardoner ha[s] a cross of metal set with stones/ And, in a glass, a rubble of pigs bones. (Chaucer 695-66). These were more so-called relics which the Pardoner defrauds others into obtaining. Virtues of honesty and godliness are never displayed in the Pardoners persona. The absence of such qualities makes Chaucers ambition of showing hypocrisy amongst society easily attainable. In Canterbury Tales, Chaucer reveals hypocritical qualities in the Pardoner through vivid characterization, tone, and morality. The Pardoners total lack of respect for the Churchs expectations and the congregation allows Chaucer to display flaws in society. Chaucer is able to demonstrate scams and illustrate hypocrisy in the Church, and society in general through the techniques he uses in Canterbury Tales. Works Cited Boenig, Robert. The Pardoners Hypocrisy and His Subjectivity. Gale Group Databases. Lugoff-Elgin High School Lib., Lugoff, SC. 23 Feb, 2006. . Chaucer, Geoffrey. The Canterbury Tales. Trans. Nevill Coghill. Glencoe Literature, The Readers Choice, British Literature. Columbus: Glencoe/McGraw Hill, 2000. 118-119. Pardoners Prologue and Tale, The. Wikipedia. 23 Feb. 2006. 24Show MoreRelated Geoffrey Chaucers The Canterbury Tales Essay629 Words   |  3 Pagesstory that he writes, whether intentional or not. In Geoffrey Chaucers story, Canterbury Tales, many of the characters on the pilgrimage make this statement evident with the tales that they tell. Such a distinct relationship can be made between the character of the Pardoner and the tale that he tells. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Through the Prologue to the Pardoners tale, the character of the Pardoner is revealed. 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