The Canterbury Tales Remade: The Pardoner's Tale

To walk in search of warmth and tales a man,

the head of a business, with a woman,

who was a knight for rights along her life.

They met along a low-life that a wife’s

Tale told about a place of cheating love.

A soldier came that heard the tale of love

Insulted he was and for justice he asked.

Agreed them all and so the head was tasked

to tell a moral tale. By them he was

soon pushed to start this thoughtful tale. Because

to them he was unknown, about himself

he talked, about his greed and vicious self.

When done, his tale, he begun. About three men,

Who were then leading all of the tradesmen.

Long ago while drowning in excess and

Vice the three news heard that a friend a grand

end had by deaths hand. Enraged by this they

set out to kill this death. Then they said “hey”

to a tired elder who passed by, “we

need to find a certain death, old shabby

man, do you know of his whereabouts?” He

answered, “why young lad, for him I simply

wait, but if you wish to find him, that tree!

Underneath it he usually rests”. So

They set out to end this death an also,

make him for his crimes pay. Under the tree

a sac full of cash they found. The bulky

bills they decided not to deposit

until the night, when accountants don’t sit,

instead they party and drink as will soon

they. To do this they sent the youngest one

for food and ale for their greedy bastion.

One in town the young one found some poison

From his job and with it defiled some

meals for his bros. Meanwhile, the two, gruesome

Like gangsters of old, plotted machine guns.

When the friends met again the bang of guns

Made the youth’s blood flow with the poisoned ale

Since they all met death it was not all failed.

Still, it was greed that caught them, just like I

Will be caught by my own varied dark lies.

Rereading

During the entire blog entry, Chung made and an argument about the importance of rereading in order to understand a text. Although she described her experience in revisiting texts, specifically The Great Gatsby she also made it clear that doing this is an essential part to becoming a good reader and therefore, writer. Still, this has not been the first time I have been exposed to this concept. During class, not only did I watch a lecture that emphasized greatly on the importance of rereading but also, the very activities we do. The analytic essay we did on The Albatross shows this practice in a smaller but equally important way.

Before reading this blog I underestimated the importance of rereading books. Since most of their ideas seemed clear I believed that such practice was not necessary in order to completely understand it. Now, I see the connection between reading smaller texts like those on an exam and the longer books. Just like it is necessary to read the same poem several times in order to understand its meaning, a book must be reread in its entirety. Usually, when I was given a book of a certain length I didn’t consider the possibility of reading it several times. My process was simply reread any segments that were troublesome or particularly dense. Although this provided with key information that allowed to me to perform close readings and do most of the analysis required to obtain a good idea of the book’s meaning, I lost in an area I had not seen before. The process itself made me lose sight of the more generalized view of the book. Although I might understand all the pieces individually, I might lose myself in the way these independent pieces fitted together. This process came from the misconception that a book was a collection of smaller texts but as Coming Through Slaughter proved to me this is not always true.

Although the writing in this book may seem episodic, in the sense that it deals with glimpses of life rather than a fluent narrative, understanding how those independent pieces tie themselves together is essential. Thanks to the course I now understand how the workshop on close reading, the lecture on how to become better readers and this blog entry come together. Even if this was not necessarily the original intention of the class what I learned through these three essential processes will allow me to view future readings in a different way. Now, books will no longer be a collection of smaller pieces but a whole that must be seen in its entirety in order to be understood.

Zooming Out

In a more general perspective the book keeps its reader interested while always maintaining an overall constant tone through the whole work. This tone flows with the context in which it the story takes place. Anguish, solitude and powerlessness remain constant for both father and son. If we continue, we even see that this son and father have something in common with city life. They do not try to live but to survive. As I continued to read through I realized that they became the carcass that used to contain a human being, as society defines it. Now, they are empty, like moving corpses striving to survive.

We can see the state of their mind from the way both characters interact with each other. For example, when they discussed whether they will die or not due to their lack of food, I did not feel fear or even any emotions at all. This type of conversation does not remain unique in the book but repeats itself and continues from beginning to end. This is it:

“Why do you think we're going to die?

I don’t know.

Stop saying I don’t know.

Okay.

Why do you think we're going to die?

We don’t have anything to eat.

We'll find something.

Okay.

How long do you think people can go without food?

I don’t know.

But how long do you think?

Maybe a few days.

And then what? You fall over dead?

Yes.” (100)

In this point I realized they were not trying to reach any goals with their endless walk. They were just fighting for survive but only because they fear death like animals fear death. No longer did they wonder what came after death or what it would mean to the other. It was simply an event that had to happen and that should be avoided if possible but not something to worry about. The reason I came to this conclusion is the neutral tone of the conversation. They analyze their possibilities of survival coldly and don’t show any trace of fear. Death can only be talked about like this if one no longer fears it.

I also realized that there was no small talk between them during their long walking periods. If any, it was concise and greatly composed of monosyllables. Enjoying life no longer interested them, only surviving. This reminded me greatly of the life we have which can sometimes lead us to concentrating so much on obtaining what we need that we forget what we want that makes us happy. The two of them have lost the possibility of achieving happiness from their sight either because they no longer care about it or they no longer believe they can obtain it. Although the setting we see here is post-apocalyptic I believe this can be applied to our current situations. Could this be one of the intended messages this book had? This reminded me that zooming out can be good since we are able to see where we are truly aiming at with out actions.

Forced To Leave Humanity Behind… Again

A particularly shocking scene occurred when father and son encountered the man that lightning had hit. Somehow our two main characters find themselves forced to do something that would normally go against their ideals because of their own dire situation. This moment is probably a cliché since it has been overused by many apocalyptic stories. In these, the characters find themselves in a position where they have to sacrifice their morals or ideals in order to survive. At some point this might have been a shocker to the reader but now such a scene has lost some of its initial power. Still, this raised the question of why would such an obscure theme become recurring in pop-culture.

At some point this might have intended to deal with the hard decisions people have to take in order to survive under certain extraordinary circumstances. Still, in this book it seems different because the moment when circumstances force them to leave the man on the road, the decision has already been taken. They don’t doubt whether they should leave him or not behind. They continue walking although they know that without assistance he will perish. Cleary seeing such a gruesome occurrence must disturb them deeply and the child has a harder time assimilating this. Still, both know that they cannot help him. They only have the choice of how to deal with this. The moment that reflects this idea to the fullest is:

“They went on. The boy was crying. He kept looking back. When they got to the

bottom of the hill the man stopped and looked at him and looked back up the road.

The burned man had fallen over and at that distance you couldn’t even tell what it was. I'm sorry, he said. But we have nothing to give him. We have no way to help

him. I'm sorry for what happened to him but we can’t fix it. You know that, don’t

you? The boy stood looking down. He nodded his head. Then they went on and he

didn’t look back again.” (50)

What most shocked me of this scene was not the fact both left their humanity behind long ago but that the boy supposedly being innocent accepted this so easily. He cried but he understood the situation. This attitude makes a testament to the hardships they have experienced before this point and also it proves such a thing has happened to them multiples times before. This leads me to the conclusion that their situation has “broken” both of them. The fact that the child has lost all hope could signify that humanity, in this book, has lost its future as well. Since I have not finished the book I cannot say for sure the true message the author tries to portray in his work but this could prove to be a possibility later on: children can symbolize the future and what is to come, could this child represent that he views humanity’s future as one without hope?

Two Views on Post-Apocalyptic Parenthood

As I began reading The Road a part of the father’s personality caught my attention: the importance of his son. Having seen other post-apocalyptic works like Akira and Neon Genesis Evangelion, a dichotomy of ideals of parenthood appeared that proved too great to ignore. In this novel we see a father who apparently cares deeply for his son and willingly sacrifices pleasures like a coca- cola (apparently very scarce here) that might give us, at first glance, the impression of a loving father. In contrast we see in those two films in general, adults who either do not care for children or that are too immature themselves to care for them. In any case, these adult characters demonstrate very little parenthood skills due to their lack of hope in the future. Why does such a great difference appear? Is this simply something cultural? Or can this whole act be just a way for him to maintain sanity after losing it all?

In The Road the moment that shows this dependence in the man for the child is here:

“Can I ask you something? He said.

Yes. Of course you can.

What would you do if I died?

If you died I would want to die too. So you could be with me?

Yes. So I could be with you.

Okay.” (p.11)

Under different circumstances such a statement would show a father’s love for his son. In this case though, I do not clearly understand what moves this character to have such a deep attachment for his son. After (apparently) losing it all and having to fight very hard for survival why carry this child and give him so much? Even a parents’ love has limits for we can only tolerate losing a certain amount of those essential things for our psychological wellbeing. Family, friends, national pride and material acquisitions exemplify some of these things that help us continue. I imagine after losing one, people depend more on the others but even so, loosing too many too quickly can shatter a person’s will to live. Maybe his son was important enough for him that he could accept all other losses and move on with him. Still, considering the accommodated life most people in the United States have such losses would have very probably defeated an average person. The cover of the book portrays this idea of defeat. The man looks forward but with hopelessness and exhaustion.

In the relationship between him and his son, this means that maybe he only seeks a reason to continue living in him but that does not mean the strength of such attachment will remain constant throughout the novel. Because the environment around them is so hostile, and any sings of people mean danger to them, they are forced to bond between each other. If this condition doesn’t remain, the father’s love for his son can easily disappear. Encountering a community of refugees or simply a friendly person can suffice in order to break that apparently strong bond.

I compare this untried adult-child parental relationship to the tried ones that appear in those two Japanese films because of their contexts’ similarity. The one difference is that both films are placed several years after and apocalyptic event and society has reconstructed itself to some point. Still, the adults that have seen such an event prove egotistical and do not care for the children’s future. These two reflect part Japanese society after World War II. For them, the two atomic bombs and the fall of their government, which had taken a very important role in the society during that period, meant the fall of those essential pillars that keep us willing to live. In the films, the result was a society that “broken” adults had built and that because of this reflected their morals and ideology. This relates to the road because the moment those adults that rebuilt their societies began losing themselves was a time similar to where the father and his child walk right now. When they slowly give up and loose hope.

Due to this I question the relationship we are given in the beginning of the road. The man no longer envisions a future with his son but dreams of a past with his love that vanished forever. This attempt of his to run away from reality in his dreams signalizes that he might do the same when he recieves an opportunity in real life. If the opportunity to attain that dream appears will he willingly sacrifice his relationship with his son in order to attain it?

A Darkness That Fills Our Minds And Covers Our Eyes

Throughout Edgar Allan Poe’s Poem The Raven, a feeling of darkness overwhelms the reader and allows him to enter the poem. Although a lot of symbolism appears in the story, it would not have the same effect without this dark setting.

Even if the feeling of darkness and cold results from the whole poem, several elements contribute greatly to this. One of these elements appears in the repetition of phrases that give the feeling of fear as if the character tried to convince him of what he says. Such a thing appears here: “’Tis some visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door— some late visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door;—this it is and nothing more.” (Poe)

The first sentence is even more important in this sense as we can see here: “Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary” (Poe) This phrase sets the tone for the poem. It gives a very vivid image of loneliness, darkness and sadness. Even though this tone does not contain the majority of the meaning in the Poem, it proves essential to the effect it has on the reader.

But In Context…

“The Pardoner’s Tale” shows a classic moral story that convinces its audience of the evil in greed. Such a tale would not demonstrate any outstanding characteristics if it was not for the short prologue that describes who is telling this story. Unlike the normal setting where the story teller typically shows superior wisdom to his listeners, greedy and flawed characterize the Pardoner. These problems our character has develop into an ironical situation since he preaches against his own lifestyle. These twisted morals appear most evidently here:

“423 "But shortly myn entente I wol devyse:
424 I preche of no thyng but for coveityse.
425 Therfore my theme is yet, and evere was,
426 Radix malorum est Cupiditas.
427 Thus kan I preche agayn that same vice
428 Which that I use, and that is avarice.
429 But though myself be gilty in that synne,
430 Yet kan I maken oother folk to twynne
431 From avarice and soore to repente.
432 But that is nat my principal entente;
433 I preche nothyng but for coveitise.
434 Of this mateere it oghte ynogh suffise.”

Lines 423 through 426 not only describe the ideology the Pardoner spreads but also show the personality he uses when he is preaching. While doing this, The Pardoner instills in people the ideology he supposedly believes in. Line 426 explains this ideology: “426 Radix malorum est Cupiditas” or “Greed is the root of all evil”. It would seem like this man represents the average religious person who tries to improve the world through religion. The next few lines though, change that vision by showing the true person that hides bellow that curtain of ideology.

Lines 427 to 434 show the Pardoner’s corrupted thinking and demonstrate a darker side, not only of his personality, but also the Church’s. In line 427 and 428 he says that he preaches against the same vice that drives him: greed. Still, even though it corrupts him, the Pardoner continues to exercise great power over people which lines 429 to 431 demonstrate. Here, The Pardoner says that although he has to carry the responsibility for that sin, he continues to cleanse others of it. The last lines complete the picture of the Pardoners mind by explaining his true intentions with these apparently selfless actions: he only has interest in the economic benefits preaching like this can give him.

Anyhow, this man’s description matches an institution’s that many times demonstrates similar flaws and actions: The Catholic Church. The Pardoner could represent the corrupt Church that proved guilty of many of the crimes it preached against. Still, this preaching does not damage others but also the good ideals the church tries to teach. The “Pardoner’s Tale” does try to teach a good lesson but it becomes an ironical joke due to the teller’s blatant greed.

In a similar way the Church corrupts the positive ideals the bible tries to portray by committing the crimes it fights against. Today this duality of the Church appears more often since the institution can no longer hide these flaws but at the time secrecy hid all of the its mistakes from the general public. Still, many saw the injustices The Church committed and fought them even with things as simple as a story, of a corrupt pardoner, that told a tale with a moral that vanished with the teller’s own greed.

Freedom’s Burden

In the Prologue and Tale of the Wife of Bath a single idea repeats itself through both of them. This idea appeared due to the oppression of women during that time or at least presents such a sharp dichotomy with their status of repression and submission that it has to relate to that. This idea portrays a very strong feminism which the following quotation explains to its fullest:

“1038 "Wommen desiren to have sovereynetee
1039 As wel over hir housbond as hir love,
1040 And for to been in maistrie hym above.”

In the Tale we see this as an ideal to reach and in the prologue it appears as the results of acquiring such freedom and power. Such an ideal appears takes particular importance since the Wife of Bath based her entire way of living upon this. She took control of all her relationships but this came with several problems. These appeared due to her application of such idealism. They based on her need to maintain this power in order to remain happy. This happened the first time when she reached her final husband and he didn’t allow her to take absolute control. Every human has a desire for power but basing one’s happiness on it, like she did, will without a doubt make such happiness unstable. For someone to have so much power over another like her will have great effects on both the subject and the ruler. She became addicted to it and became very good at obtaining what she wanted. Meanwhile her husband’s weren’t necessarily agreeable with her like the last one but the majority of the time she outlived her subjects. In the end, her source of happiness has the single fault of being based on another person. Even if that other person can be replaced, she will be alone at some point and therefore she will be unhappy at some point. Can such power truly be a positive source of happiness for women (or anyone) as she attempts to show in her tale and prologue?

Anyhow, attaining power doesn’t necessarily mean that she tries to obtain happiness through it. With that she would be able to obtain an extensive amount of freedom, really rare for her time period. That freedom which appears to be the most sublime of desires a woman can attain, could mean a burden she doesn’t necessarily take into account when her hunger for freedom reaches its peak. We see an example of this at the end of the tale where the old woman asks the knight to choose. He then decides to give his own freedom to the woman like this:

“1230 "My lady and my love, and wyf so deere,
1231 I put me in youre wise governance;
1232 Cheseth youreself which may be moost plesance
1233 And moost honour to yow and me also.
1234 I do no fors the wheither of the two,
1235 For as yow liketh, it suffiseth me."”

At that moment the woman receives the knight’s freedom and she becomes partially responsible for his wellbeing. Even if the knight, having chosen to give his freedom, will have to bear with his decision, she, being the one that decides, now carries the responsibility for both of their futures. Although the decision the woman took in that case was probably the correct one, (or at least one in which both found happiness) can that feeling of freedom suffice to compensate for carrying the weight of their decisions? Having freedom empowers us and allows us to make our own future which many find to be positive. Still, the responsibility for our own actions can be enough to break a person. Can you imagine having to carry the responsibility of taking decisions for others? Only a psychopath would not care if he hurt another person by doing this.

The freedom these tales advocate does show a possibility for pain and suffering. Even the Wife of Bath has not achieved happiness this way because her husband does not give her the absolute freedom she needs. This tale reflects a good ideal that one must apply in moderation. Everyone should have a right to choose but going as far as choosing for others proves to be excessive especially for those that decide. Still, such an unchangeable society required an extreme ideal such as that one to promote any kind of change. Although it seems extreme for us now, it was necessary at the time to exemplify a freedom for women. A freedom that was unseen until very recently.

A Drunk’s Tale

This tale has a unique narrator that differs greatly from the Knight’s epic tone. Told by a drunken Miller who knows of his state, this tale has such an unusual content that it resembles more modern pieces of satire such as Family Guy. Few elements of society escape these pieces’ critiques. One of these many elements was the church who played a great role in that time’s society.

The carpenter: an ignorant and simple man. This can describe most of England’s population at the time. Since the church controlled all information, everyone believed what they were told to believe. Any dissent meant severe punishment or even death. This tale mocks people’s ignorance by making the carpenter, a representative of England’s majority, suffer from this ignorance. Nicholas the astronomer, who has received an education, ultimately achieves all he wishes by using the carpenter’s ignorance against him. Although this Church created ignorance barely appears in the story it can be clearly seen here:

“3454 Men sholde nat knowe of Goddes pryvetee.
3455 Ye, blessed be alwey a lewed man
3456 That noght but oonly his bileve kan!”

Here the carpenter argues strongly against Nicholas’ studies and education. The church probably instilled such believes into him. Still, Nicholas uses these believes further when he talks to him about the flood by making it into a repetition of the biblical one. This reference made such an unbelievable idea plausible in the carpenter’s mind. These two religious elements within the story criticize the Church and its way of manipulating general knowledge. It is true then, that

“3842 And turned al his harm unto a jape.”

since his situation and the conditions that led to it show so much absurdity, they are laughable.

Finally, everyone fooled the carpenter because of his ignorance. His suffering probably showed absurdity to an educated mind at the time, which proves that this story aimed at such an audience. An audience that wouldn’t take the story seriously and that would go beyond the obvious jokes seeing the bold critiques. This critique, at least, daringly defied the systems of the time which remained closed to change for centuries after its publication. Even though this tale went beyond bathroom jokes and humor, we must not take it too seriously since even so it remains a drunk’s tale.