Not The Tipical Nun
In Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, the Prioress is describe in the General Prologue as being a foolishly sentimental woman who would weep over the death of a small dog. She speaks French, has good table manners, and sings the divine services well. She wears fine clothing, and jewelry; including, a gold medal with "Love Conquers All" in Latin inscribed on it. (p.3-4) "The Prioress' Tale" proves that this nun is certainly not the ideal clergy of her time. The tale shows that she is sentimental, un-Christian, and childish of character. In her tale, the Prioress tells of a small boy living in a town in Asia. It is a small town mostly inhabited by Jews. The boy is a devout Christian who is eager to learn the meaning of a song in Latin. He diligently learns the song, and is pleased to learn it is about the Virgin Mary. The young boy sings the song while walking home. This disturbs the Jews, and they send a murderer to find him and kill him. Needless to
The Prioress, although she tries to hide it, is fairly un-Christian. She wears nice clothing, and jewelry. "And on this brooch was first inscribed a capital A, surmounted by a crown, and after that Amor Vincit Omnia." (p.4) The money from such lavish items could have gone to the poor. With her she brings a nun and 3 priests with her. (p.4) She obviously cares more about herself than the poor, or common people. In the story, the prioress identifies with the motherly figures. This connection is shown how she wants what she cannot have. Both this and the brooch (which is most likely about earthly love rather than heavenly love) show that the Prioress spends more time thinking about secular things instead of the chastity, poverty, and obedience. The Prioress is definitely not what she thinks she comes off as. She is the antithesis of a pious nun of the Middle Ages. Chaucer uses this characterization of her to show his own religious apprehensions, an
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Approximate Word count = 646
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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