Canterbury Tales

The Yeoman
The yeoman is the servant who accompanies the Knight and the Squire. He resembles Robin Hood in his attire; he carries a green coat and hood. His weapons include bow, arrows and a dirk. Chaucer emphasizes the yeoman´s ability with his weapons. Furthermore, the narrator suggests that the yeoman hides in the forest to attack his victims. Ironically, he carries a metal of St. Christopher, which is supposed to protect the travelers on their journey. In this specific case, the metal is protecting the criminal instead of the travelers.

The Prioress

The prioress is the first religious figure mentioned in the text. Her description is rather entertaining. She has no vocation. She sings poorly and she speaks French with an English accent. Chaucer´s irony is emphasized with the description of her charitable attitude and good manners. The narrator exemplifies her charitable and tender feelings with her exaggerated reaction towards the trapped mouse. The prioress tries to be courtly with her manners and posture. Indeed, she seems to be more worried about her manners in the table than helping other people, as it is expected from a nun. She feeds them with roasted flesh, milk and white bread. Besides, this nun is pretentious with jewelry. Chaucer criticizes the religious character that care more about material and superficial matters than helping other people.

The Friar
The friar depicts the corruption of the religious institutions in the medieval society. Unlike monks that had to follow their vows in the monastery, friars could beg for alms within a limited district. The friar abused from his position; he obtained sexual favors from young women in order to arrange a marriage for them. The depravity of the Friar is reinforced when the narrator describes him with white neck and affected slip, which were common symbols for depravity. Besides, Chaucer states that there is no better man at his profession than the friar. He is able to get money from people at any circumstance; for instance, he even gets money from a widow without any pity. The friar absolved people from their sins in exchange to material goods. Furthermore, the friar´s vocation as a religious person is constantly criticized by the narrator since he spends more time in the taverns and inns than with the lepers and beggars.

The Lawyer
The narrator depicts the corruption of the lawyer when dealing with properties. Chaucer criticizes landed class lawyers during the medieval times, who were able to break old inherited land titles for their own benefit. As well, the lawyer as portrayed as a show-off since he pretended to know every judgment and case since “King William´s time.” However, this is exaggerated since according to scholars there are no records available starting from that time.