The Canterbury Tales
Chaucer uses satire in the Canterbury Tales to expose his attitude
towards the Catholic Church of the Middle Ages. The first way in which he does this is
by satirizing a common nun of the Middle Ages. Chaucer, in The Canterbury Tales, tells of
a nun who is supposed to be married to the church. Her attitude towards her appearance
should be one of little concern, but instead she primps and spends her time consumed in
her vanity. He shows the nun not as someone married to the church, but someone married
to herself and her vanity.
Chaucer's attitude toward the church is one in which he expresses that it is a
hypocritcal institution, and has a hint of scorn in his writing. In the tale of the
Summoner, Chaucer satirizes the Friar. He shows the friar as a beggar who uses his money
not for the betterment of the church, but for the betterment of himself. The Friar begs
of a man named Thomas to stop paying all the other friars and to be loyal to him. Thomas
is sick, and the Friar blames his illnesses on his unwillingness to give of his
pocketbook to the friar. In the end the friar gets what he deserves. In his greed and
his impatience he receives the gift of a fart from Thomas. This satire shows his
slightly scornful attitude towards the Catholic Church. Chaucer shows us how we, too,
have faults, and he uses his sense of humor to make us laugh the characters and at
ourselves.
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