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.