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Canterbury Tales: Power Corrupts - School Essays

Canterbury Tales: Power Corrupts

The pilgrims in Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales exhibit human characteristics ranging from righteousness to corruption. Two of the pilgrims, the Clerk and Frere (Friar) demonstrate traits on opposite ends of the spectrum of human nature. The Clerk, wishing to educate himself and others, strove to reach a higher understanding of philosophy. The Friar used his position in the church to take advantage of innocent people for his own benefit. The Clerk was noble and just while the Friar was greedy.
The Clerk was an ecclesiastical student at Oxford. He had completed all the necessary courses to qualify him for the B.A. Despite that, he did not have a secular job or a church ...

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the money on books and education. He loved to teach others and be taught. He listened carefully to what everyone had to say and never said anything more than what was appropriate for the specific time. This showed his modesty and willingness to learn new viewpoints and not just teach everyone his views.
The Friar was a happy and lustful man, who having taken a vow to poverty and preaching, added as part of his “job” begging people for money. He knew all the gossip about what was going on in the four orders of Friars. The Friar would find husbands for his ex-mistress at his “owene cost” (Prologue, line 213) and would find himself new women to entertain. He was also licensed to hear confessions and give absolution in cases beyond the jurisdiction of the parish priest. This gave him immense power over other people lives. He would grant people penance if they were willing to “donate” money and luxuries to him, even though it was illegal to do so within the church.

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PAPER DETAILS

Added: 1/23/2004 07:18:10 PM
Category: Book Reports
Type: Free Paper
Words: 1173
Pages: 5

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