Canterbury Tales

A detailed Summary of Canterbury Tales


What comes to mind when you think of a police officer? Someone honest, hard working, and a person who abides by the law. According to Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, the Summoner is "one paid to summon sinners to trial before an ecclesiastical court," or in other words a church cop. Just by reading the prologue description of the Summoner one can tell that he is of lower status and disliked. The tale he tells on the way to Canterbury talks of his feelings towards the church and its clergymen. He is aware that the Friar solicits the homes of church members asking for donations and food products that he claims are brought back to the church. When in fact the Friar keeps both the money and food for himself. Throughout the tale the Summoner expresses all of the Friar's faults, when in fact he is unknowingly revealing his own corruption.

The main portion of the tale talks about the friar's visit to an ill friend named Thomas. His sole purpose is to explain all the reasons why his money is greatly needed and appreciated. "The Summoner's Tale," from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, talks of an angry drunk named Cambyses. A knight in his company along a journey states the line "And drunkenness is filthy to record of any man especially a


refers to the Summoner as a bar. During that time period a holly bush hung outside a doorway meant a tavern. As stated on page twenty of the prologue, "He wore a garland set upon his head large as a holly-bush upon a stake."(21)

>From beginning to end the Summoner shows his hatred towards the Friar due to his bribery and lying. Another disagreement takes place for how could the Summoner be angry about the Friar's actions, when he himself involved in the same wrongdoing. It is against the law to cheat the church, along with accepting bribes from criminals. Again through the prologue of the entire book, Chaucer tells of the ways in which the Summoner not only accepts bribes of wine and money from men who have concubines, he is also known to search them out. (Canterbury Tales, 20)

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Some common words found in the essay are:
Canterbury Tales, Thomas Friar, Tales Summoner, Canterbury's Tale, , Friar Thomas, canterbury tales, Chaucer Summoner, Chaucer's Canterbury, chaucer's canterbury tales, chaucer's canterbury, tale summoner,

Approximate Word count = 803
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

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