Chaucer devotes no fewer than eighteen lines to describing the Pardoner's relics, and in his own prologue, the Pardoner himself calls attention to his "sholder-boon / Which that was of an hoolyjewes sheep" (VI 350-51), among other relics. Explain why you think he might place this much emphasis on the relics?
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3rd Quarter Blog Post 3
Step inside your mind and into the library of books you've read. Which one best represents the painting below and why? You must use a q...
In “The Canterbury Tales,” Chaucer thoroughly describes each and every one of the characters in the prologue including; The Knight, The Wife of Bath, The Squire, and most importantly, The Pardoner. Chaucer goes into detail about the characters, highlighting their physical attributes as well as personal characteristics. For example, The Knight is conveyed as a heroic and courageous figure, and his son (The Squire) is depicted as a handsome dancer. Chaucer identifies The Pardoner as the man who sells relics in exchange for profit. Chaucer places a lot of emphasis on The Pardoner’s relics because they reveal the way Chaucer perceives him. When describing him in the prologue, the Chaucer states, “The Pardoner had hair yellow as wax...In driblets fell his locks behind his head…” The physical characteristics of The Pardoner convey him in a negative way, and make him seem dirty, maybe even poor. The Pardoner places importance on the relics because they are his only source of income, and his prize possessions. Even though the relics may seem like antiques with little meaning, they are given much emphasis because of the amount of money and value people place on them. Without the relics, The Pardoner would have no money to fulfill his greedy nature. As Chaucer lists out all of The Pardoner’s supposed relics, it can be inferred that he is skeptical of their real value. Since he is an outside narrator, Chaucer sees how The Pardoner acts, and is suspicious of his intentions, especially since he works at a church where he collects donations. The relics are just another way for Chaucer to further his opinions for one of the characters in the story, how he acts, and what his actions say about his personality.
ReplyDelete-Brynn Klaber: Pardoner’s Relics
ReplyDeletePrompt 1: Pardoner’s Relics, why are they emphasized?
I enjoyed reading your post on relics! I liked how you emphasized how the relics could be taken or seen as antiques. -Emily Ally
DeleteI love how you referred to the relics as antiques! -Carissa Boddie
DeleteEmily Beaupre
ReplyDeleteNovember 16, 2020
In the prologue, Chaucer devotes several lines to each character in order to describe them in depth. With most of the characters, Chaucer spends most of the lines illustrating the appearance of the character. However, with the Pardoner he devotes more lines to emphasizing the Pardoner’s relics than his actual appearance. Chaucer chooses to put such an emphasize on the relics in order to show the corruption of not only the Pardoner but also the church during this time. The Canterbury Tales are a satire of the social stratification and roles during this era. During this time, it was not uncommon for Pardoner’s to sell relics in exchange to have an object of holy value. It is not surprising that Chaucer devotes so many lines to describing the Pardoner’s relics as they are a symbol of the characters immoral values. They show how the Pardoner is not a holy man but rather a stealthy man who abuses the power of the church and the blind faith of the other characters to make a profit for himself. Therefore, the author uses the relics as a method to criticize the character of the Pardoner.
The fact that the Pardoner brings attention and spends so many lines on his relics shows the importance of them to his character. The pardoner emphasizes the relics for two main reasons. The Pardoner emphasizes them in order to give him status and the appearance of spiritual authority as relics are supposed to be the remains of saints although his are fakes. The relics are also used as his props to make money. He emphasizes the relics so much as he wants to convince the other characters to buy them in order for him to sell more and more which illustrates his greediness. The fact that they are fake is used to underscore his lack of moral character. The relics are important to the character of the Pardoner as the are one of his only sources of income, and as a greedy man he wants to sell as many as possible. However, to the reader the relics symbolize his corruption by showing that he is not a man of faith but rather a self-serving character who only cares about making a profit for himself.
I love how you pointed out the contrast between how Chaucer describes the other characters compared to how he describes the Pardoner, and I also thought it was good how you separately explained why the relics were important because it emphasizes how unique they were. -Brynn
DeleteThomas Stewart
ReplyDeletePardoner's Relics
In “The Canterbury Tales,” Chaucer places a lot of emphasis on The Pardoner’s relics because they reveal the corruption of the Pardoner and his lust for personal gain. When describing him, Chaucer says “The Pardoner had hair yellow as wax...In driblets fell his locks behind his head…” The physical characteristics of The Pardoner convey him as a greedy and dirty man. The Pardoner places importance on the relics because they are what show his value and wealth. The relics are what represent the Pardoner's wealth and his rich-like status may be what keeps people returning to the Pardoner, as they may seek his wisdom in an attempt to become rich like him. Without the relics, the Pardoner may not come across as this high and mighty figure that is present within society. He only cares about his wealth and reputation, as it is positive reflection of himself onto the rest of the population. "I preach for nothing but for greed of gain And use the same old text, as bold as brass" This quote shows that he is obsessed with personal gain and could care less about helping others. Without the relics, the Pardoner would not come across as this greedy and self-absorbed preacher. Chaucer is able to inform the reader of the Pardoner's true nature by placing emphasis on his relics, one of the only things the Pardoner finds important.
I definitely agree with your response and how the emphasis on the relics reveal the corruption of the Pardoner.-Carissa Boddie
DeleteCaroline Hunt
ReplyDeleteIn “The Canterbury Tales” the Prologue introduces characters and hints to their personality with detailed descriptions of their physical appearance. Chaucer devotes no fewer than eighteen lines to describing the Pardoner’s relics in order to accentuate the corruption and fraudulent nature of the Pardoner. A Pardoner is travels throughout the countryside selling official church pardons. They are supposed to be trustworthy religious figures who spread the word of God and allow for everyone, both rich and poor, to be able to pay off their sins. However, the Pardoner in “The Canterbury Tales” is a cowardly man who boasts his wealth and status in order to create the allusion that he belongs among the wealthy.
Chaucer emphasizes the relics in order to demonstrate to the reader the true nature of the Pardoner. He is a greedy and selfish man who preys on the poor and weak in order to boost his own status and ego. Through the characterization provided the in the prologue with the emphasis being on the relics, instead of the selfless acts a Pardoner is supposed to partake in, allows for the reader to see the true intentions of the Pardoner.
The Pardoner focuses on his relics a large amount in order to boost his status and ego. He is a very materialistic man who is motivated by greed in money which the poor and wealthy are able to give him. The Pardoner likes to be seen as a perfect man who is selflessly helping the church and people of the church out of the goodness of his heart. However, the emphasis on the relics portray that he is an immoral shallow man. The Pardoner is obsessed with the relics in order to create the image that he is a wealthy man with privilege and status when in reality due to his morals and greed he is the poorest man in the world. The overcompensation about the relics emphasize the greed and cowardly nature of the Pardoner as he is just as corrupt as the Catholic Church.
Jackie Denenny
ReplyDeleteI think Chaucer puts lots of emphasis on the Pardoners relics to convey the Pardoner's greed. In the General Prologue, the Pardoner is described with "the same small voice a goat has got" and "bulging eye-balls, like a hare." Both of these descriptions compare him to prey animals which make him seem weak. Since his physical appearance is not so attractive, he uses his relics to make him seem strong, wealthy and powerful. In the Pardoner's Tale, the Pardoner reveals his true intentions and motivations. He said "I preach for nothing but for greed of gain." His true intentions are rooted in greed and wealth. The Pardoner does not care about the people or god he supposedly serves. He also said "Let me preach and beg from Kirk to kirk. And never do an honest job of work." Nothing about the way he does his job or treats other people is honesty. These relics symbolize all he works for and thinks about. Without his relics, the Pardoner would just be seen as a poor lonely man.
I definitely agree that the Pardoner is greedy.
Delete- Lilly Cox
Emily Ally
ReplyDeletePerhaps the most interesting aspect of the Pardoner’s Tale is the discrepancy between the Pardoner’s character and the tale he tells. We tend to focus on the message of his tale, but it is the Pardoner’s immoral behavior that changes the emphasis of the moral. Chaucer gives his reader a very unsavory description of the Pardoner. In Chaucer’s time, a pardoner was supposed to dispense “indulgences,” for contributions to the church through the use of relics. These indulgences were often perceived as forgiveness for sins or a ticket out of a possible condemnation to hell. Of course, with so much money changing hands some pardoners became corrupt and took advantage of the people they were supposed to help.The Pardoner himself admitted his own corruption, telling the pilgrims just before his tale that “I preach for nothing but for greed of gain.” He then goes on to tell the pilgrims a tale that, ironically, condemns the love of money as the root of all evil. Following the tale, the Pardoner has the temerity to actually try to solicit money from his fellow travelers:
“I’ve some relics in my bale
And pardons too, as full and fine, I hope
As any in England, given me by the Pope.
If there be one among you that is willing
To have my absolution for a shilling
Devoutly given, come!”
So, while it is common and correct to say that the Pardoner’s tale carries the moral that money is the root of all evil, the fact that the tale is framed by the Pardoner’s own admission of guilt and then his attempt to beguile the other travelers demonstrates another moral: Those among us who preach morality should be viewed with caution and judged more by their deeds than by their words.
I really liked how you gave so many quotes to support your line of reasoning because it is always important to have a lot of evidence when establishing your own opinion. -Brynn
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteThank you Brynn!! I appreciate your insight! -Emily Ally
DeleteNovember 16th Grace Dunaway
ReplyDeleteIn “The Canterbury Tales” Chaucer introduces an array of characters in the prologue, mainly by describing their physical attributes. Also in the prologue, he devotes 18 lines to describe the Pardoner’s relics. The reason that Chaucer places a lot of emphasis on the Pardoner’s relics is because relics were a sign of prosperity. The Pardoner seemed to be a religious man as “he’d sewed a holy relic on his cap”. From this, the reader can infer that the Pardoner was a religious figure, which are often highly regarded members of society. However, the descriptions of the Pardoner’s relics, items that display great wealth, characterize the Pardoner as greedy and materialistic, two descriptions that are not meant to describe “holy men”. In this way, the use of the relic descriptions allow the reader to understand that the Pardoner is hypocritical, as religious figures are supposed to live a modest life. The Pardoner reinforces this idea when he states “I preach for nothing but for greed of gain”, describing himself as a greedy man. In this way, the Pardoner’s reputation as a holy man is tarnished due to his inability to live by God’s will and teachings. Because of the Pardoner’s reputation of being hypocritical, his relics are really the only thing in his life that give him some importance. Also, the way that Chaucer spends so many lines describing the relics reinforces the idea that the relics truly define the Pardoner. The relics symbolize wealth and a high status in society, one that the Pardoner wishes for above all else.
I think your response was very insightful. The in-depth description of the Pardoner's relics definitely characterize Pardoner by his materialistic tendencies and greed. I loved how you pointed out the irony in this- the man supposedly living for God is actually living for himself (his wealth and high-status). -Mary Claire Haldeman
DeleteI enjoyed reading your take on relics! I think your evidence paired quite well with your opinion. -Emily Ally
DeleteI agree that the Pardoner's reputation was very hypocritical and that even tho he was supposed to be a religious man and not care much about social status and wealth but he wished to have a high status in society-Caitlin
DeleteBrooks Farabow
ReplyDeleteOne interesting aspect of the narration of "the Canterbury Tales" is how direct character descriptions are. For example, we immediately get the sense the pardoner is not trusted by the narrator by the insulting tone used describing him with figurative language such as, "...hair yellow as wax...in driblets fell his locks behind his head. Based on his mostly neutral descriptions of other characters in the prologue, it can be inferred the Pardoner is symbolic of some negative. This is proved by his story, as he represents the theme greed is the root of all evil. The pardoner provides a moral, that you should be satisfied with what you have while it lasts. The pardoner's life seems to have little meaning, in large part thanks to the symbolic description of his relics. Most moral people of any time period would probably agree life is more valuable than any material possession. By describing the pardoner's details in much more length than that of anyone else, he is made a shallow character reliant on material possessions for attention. Ironically the pardoner personifies the evil identified in his sermons nearly perfectly by ripping off helpful victims of his deceit with his relics. Another important point to make is that the pardoner is provided some sympathy by Chaucer indirectly as the narrator mocks his sexuality, something someone intelligent would understand is out of his control. With a modern interpretation, the relics can symbolically tie the pardoner to an economy which inevitably exists, and his only fault was in his deceit. The character serves as a warning against obsession, in specific obsession with wealth.
I think your response is very well-written. I think your point about the figuritve language used to describe the Pardoner is very interesting- Chaucer was definitely attempting to characterize him in a negative manner. I love your point about the Pardoner's purpose being a warning against obsession with wealth- I think it's valid considering he was willing to scam people using fake religious artificats in order to attain wealth. That is completely immoral, but he did not mind because he was blinded by his obsession with wealth.
Delete^Mary Claire Haldeman
DeleteMary Claire Haldeman
ReplyDeleteChaucer devotes a substantial amount of lines to describe the relics of the Pardoner. While he spends more time describing the physical characteristics of other characters and traits of other characters, he devotes time to the material possessions of the Pardoner in order to both characterize him as greedy and materialistic, and to highlight the corruption of the Catholic Church. In the context of The Canterbury Tales writing, the Catholic Church placed significant emphasis on relics, religious artifacts and objects that people would travel and pay to see. Many religious figures profited off of the people, advertising fake relics and scamming people for their money. Chaucer uses the Pardoner and his fraudulent relics to criticize the Church and its immoral practices. The Pardoner is ironically characterized by his blatant greed and hunger for wealth. If he were a true Pardoner, he would have been focused on the spiritual state of the people around him, striving to point them to heaven. He would not have been consumed by earthly possessions, but rather living with an eternal perspective. Greedy and corrupt “religious” figures like the Pardoner were commonplace, tainting pure religion to fit their wicked, personal agenda for wealth. Many people were illiterate during Chaucer’s lifetime. They were solely dependent on the Church for guidance as they could not read the Bible or have access to it on their own. Therefore, the Church often took advantage of the people’s ignorance, advertising relics and selling indulgences in order to exponentiate the Church income. People, ruled by fear of hell and brimstone, and determined to ensure their “pass” to heaven, fell for the Church’s money-making schemes.
I definitely agree with your emphasis on the material possessions of the Pardoner.
Delete- Lilly Cox
I agree the material use of the relics makes the Pardoner's story all that more believable. -maggie
DeleteLilly Cox
ReplyDeleteWeek November 16
I personally believe that Chaucer places such a substantial amount of emphasis on the Pardoner’s relics because he is intending to portray to readers the greed in which the Pardoner obtains. In contrast to the way that Chaucer physically describes the other characters, he narrows his focus on the Pardoners relics and primarily focuses on his greed to make a profit solely for himself. Although, Chaucer does claim that, “The Pardoner had hair yellow as wax...In driblets fell his locks behind his head...” This physical description permits readers to infer that the Pardoner is potentially dirty and idolizes his greed, rather than his physical well-being. Ultimately, the relics are a symbol for the immorality that the Pardoner obtains, which is a primary reason for Chaucer to place so much emphasis on them. Although the relics may lack importance to some, they actually are the prime source of income for the Pardoner. Most importantly, if the Pardoner was without his relics, he would mutually be without a source to maintain and ultimately fulfill his foundation of greed.
Greed is definitely is big part of this story from the Pardoner's perspective.-maggie
DeleteCarissa Boddie, Week November 16
ReplyDeleteIn "The Canterbury Tales" Chaucer places a large amount of emphasis on the relics and describing their physical attributes. I believe this is done to display Pardoners greed. He says "I preach for nothing but for greed of gain." which shows he preaches for no one but himself. The relics are the main source of income for Pardoner. If he went without them he would not be able to fulfill his greed. Without his relics he would be just be a poor and lonely man
lily perry, week november 16
ReplyDeletei think that overall in "The Canterbury tales" Chaucer puts enough emphasis on the relics and does a really good job with the descriptions and letting the readers get a good picture of the characters in the story because there is a good understanding of what everyone looks like which is helpful for me and any other readers because you can picture what they look like and understand the story line better. with the description of each character we get a better understanding of why the characters do whta they do.
In the prologue of the CanterBury tales, Chaucer gives a description of several characters, choosing to focus either on their professions, character traits, background, or physical attributes. The description of the Pardoner is no different, but holds a clear focus towards a physical description of his belongings, followed by a brief detailing of his career. The pardoner’s character is meant to be of the religious type, being a member of the church and offering holy, sage advice to those that are lost. However, his spiritual and selfless occupation is contrasted by his possession of many material items of varying values. Chaucer’s choice to go into detail about these relics shows an obvious importance of these relics to the Pardoner himself, and highlights the opposition between his career, and his material possessions. The relics show how the Pardoner is not deserving of such a position, as his morals are clouded by his need for personal advancement and wealth. The more detail Chaucer goes into concerning the Pardoner’s relics, the more the readers can see how unfit he is for his career, and that the people he claims to have helped would be better off without his tainted and corrupt advice. - regan a. allen
ReplyDeleteCaitlin Fleming
ReplyDeleteWeek of November 16
In the General Prologue of the Canterbury Tales, Chaucer gives a description of many characters and usually focuses on one main aspect of each character. For the pardoner he goes into a deep description about the relics he posesses. I believe he puts the amount of emphasis that he does on the relics to show the irony of it all. The Pardoner makes himself out to seem like he is extremely religious and devoted to his beliefs, but in reality he wasn't preaching for God he was preaching to make himself look good and powerful to other people. By focusing on the Pardoner's relics it provides irony because he is supposed to be this very religious man who gives people advice, whereas he values materalistic items which is not something that very religious people typically do.
Maggie Heckman
ReplyDeleteIn the General prologue and the Pardoner’s Prologue of the Canterbury Tales we learn of a deceitful man known as the Pardoner who wrongfully earns his living by selling pardons for people's sins. This business preys upon the guilt and fear of the congregation which makes this job immoral and the Pardoner cruel. In the Prologue we learn that the Pardoner carries many “relics” , some of unknown value and power that are part of his act in his business. These relics assist the Pardoner in creating a facade of trust and a connection with God. This is essential in keeping members of the congregation interested in the Pardoner and his work as a basic level of trust is needed in order for the Pardoner to get paid. The poet emphasizes these relics to reflect the Pardoner himself, as both are fraudulent and misleading in the eyes of a member of the congregation. In emphasizing the relics the poet is able to draw this reflection to explain to the reader exactly how wrong the work of the Pardoner is. The Pardoner has no spiritual power or guidance that would allow him to absolve sins if a fee is paid to the church. So therefore, all that the Pardoner is able to sell is lies with the assistance of the charade created in using the relics to gain the trust of the people he cons. This assistance from the relics can be seen in the quote, “And with these relics, any time he found Some poor up-country parson to astound”. This quote demonstrates how the Pardoner is able to amaze and gain the trust of a parson by using the power of the relics appeal.
In the "Canterbury Tales", Chaucer puts a large emphasis on the pardoner's relics to illustrate his clear misconception along with his evident hypocrisy. The Pardoner was a lustful and greedy man who profited solely on his manufactured misconception and lies. He made his living through the donations that were based on his fake relics. Putting a large emphasis on the Pardoner's relics also highlights his clear hypocrisy, as the Pardoner immediately began telling a story criticizing the greed and lust of society, when in reality he had more greed than any of the stories he told. It was also interesting to see the Pardoner ask for donations based on his relics to the people at the feast, right after he just admitted to them that they were fake relics and that he was a scammer.
ReplyDelete-John Biesecker