Pardoner's Prologue & Tale - Guiding Reading Questions

British Lit Pardoner's Prologue & Tale - Plot Questions to Understand 

This is to help you understand your reading, and to guide your note taking. This is not the homework questions for the blog. Scroll down to the next post for your homework blog posts for Monday!

Pardoner's Prologue
Remember, this portion of the text is the Pardoner's conversation to the other pilgrims. This is part of the frame story not his tale within the frame!!! Think about why Chaucer would incorporate this little prologue. 

1. What does his motto mean "Radix Malorum est cupiditas?" (know what covetousness means too!)
2. Why is it an ironic motto for the pardoner?
3. Make a note of things the pardoner does or says that makes him detestable to the audience.
4. What are some of the things the pardoner says he MUST have in his life? (page 321) What does this tell us about the Pardoner's character and Chaucer's view of pardoners?

Pardoner's Tale
5. Pardoner keeps repeating "look in the Bible" or "read it in the Bible." Why would he say that to the parishioners? (Think of who his audience is).
6. Pardoner begins his tale by introducing characters & their vices. Then he goes into a long winded speech about why these actions are vices. What are the actions and how does he justify that they are vices?
         -- There are four. He picks the storyline back up on page 327.
7. Who is the villain that the "roisterers" are talking about? What makes him a villain?
8. What do they swear to do? What do they swear to each other?
9. Describe the old man in appearance and in attitude.
10. What do they find under the tree instead of the villain Death?
11. What is the original plan? What do the two brothers plan? What does the youngest brother plan on his way to town?
12. Pardoner turns to didactic language after the tale ends. What is his message? What is the hidden message (or not so hidden)?
13. How does the Host react to the Pardoner's Tale? What type of diction does he use to get his point across?

Analytical Questions to Consider:

What Deadly Sins are being committed here?
What aspects of the tale are allegorical?
The deaths are anticlimactic in their tellings. Why?
What tactics at the end of this story does he employ to ensure that people buy pardons and/or relics?



Good luck & post questions here for classmates or myself if you are confused by a quote or plot point!

Canterbury Tales Prologue Homework!

Canterbury Tales Prologue Resources

1. Choose your blog homework. Answer one of the questions below and ...
2. ALSO comment on one other person's response to a different question. 
3. Please label which question you are answering!

1. Read the Prologue in Middle English! Can you decipher some of the words? Which ones? How does the middle English compare to the olde English? You can listen to the prologue being read on youtube here. 

2. The Wife of Bath doesn't look like I would expect her to . . .

Chaucer's Wife of Bath What do you expect her to look like?

3. The Knight is illustrated below in a modern painting by Arthur Szyk. If you had to depict THREE of the characters from the pilgrimage in Canterbury Tales. What would they look like? What images would be carried by them? What colors would be incorporated?

4. If you were creating a modern day pilgrimage, who would go on our pilgrimage and where would we be going? Let's go on a pilgrimage! Define where we are going and who is coming with us!

Everyman Notes/Questions to Consider

Things to Consider When Reading Everyman

1. At the heart of every morality play, there is a dramatic conflict. What is the central struggle in Everyman?

2. How does the author make Death an effective messenger?

3. How do the allegorical figures also seem human?

4. What changes does Everyman undergo along his journey?

5. What or who assists Everyman along his journey?

6. What themes or messages does the author present to the audience?

7. The names of characters are supposed to be obvious links to the abstract concepts. Be sure to understand what each character is connected to in modern language. For example, what does fellowship represent? We don't use the word fellowship as much anymore, so what does it mean in your own words?

Grendel's Mother

Grendel's Mother Representations

Visual Interpretations of Characters from Beowulf

Grendel Realized

Grendel interpretationGrendel Movie Interpretation


Beowulf does not give us a clear definition of the looks of any of the characters. Here are a few representations of Grendel. The third image is the most recent rendition of Beowulf. See the bottom for questions.

Grendel Interpretation 2

Which Grendel interpretation do you like best or least and why? Be specific about what visual elements are present. Also, what would you add, subtract or change if you had to create a Grendel visual image? 

Kennings!

Create your imaginative kennings here. Please post two by Thursday to earn full credit.
Remember to incorporate auditory devices or imagery into each kenning.

I look forward to guessing what each is!