To judge of things that well reported be. Then had your story all been told in vain.įor certainly, as all these clerks complain, I should, before this, have fallen down for sleep, That from your bridle hang on either side,īy Heaven’s king, Who for us all has died, I pray you heartily tell us something else, Wherefore, sir monk, Don Peter by your name, Sir Monk, no more of this, so God you bless! Sir, sey somwhat of huntyng, I yow preye.” Thanne hadde your tale al be toold in veyn.įor certeinly, as that thise clerkes seyn, I sholde er this han fallen doun for sleepe,Īlthogh the slough had never been so deepe I pray yow hertely, telle us somwhat elles,įor sikerly, nere clynkyng of youre belles Wherfore, sire Monk, or daun Piers by youre name, Sire Monk, namoore of this, so God yow blesse! That certain things have happened, and it’s pain.Īs you have said, to hear of wretchedness. He spoke how Fortune covered with a cloud You say the truth this monk, his clapper’s loud. “Yea,” said our host, “and by Saint Paul’s great bell, Right now ye herde and pardee, no remedie I noot nevere what and also of a tragedie
He spak, how Fortune covered with a clowde. Ye seye right sooth this Monk, he clappeth lowde, “Ye,” quod our Hoost, “by Seint Poules belle, Lines 14-39: The Host asks the Monk to tell another tale Such things are gladsome, as it seems to me,Īnd of such things it would be good to tell.” What you have said is right enough, and isįor me, I say it’s saddening, if you please,Īs to men who’ve enjoyed great wealth and ease, Swich thyng is gladsom, as it thynketh me,Īnd of swich thyng were goodly for to telle.” Where as men han been in greet welthe and ese,Īnd the contrarie is joye and greet solas, “Hoo!” quod the Knyght, “good sire, namoore of this, An academic journal article on the “Patriarchal Christianity” of “Nun’s Priests’s Tale”.Webpage on “Nun’s Priest’s Tale” from Havard University’s Geoffrey Chaucer Page.An animated video of Nun’s Priest’s Tale.en./wiki/The_Nun%27s_Priest%27s_Tale Accessed 29 Sept. The priest proves himself to be a modest, sharp-witted individual and nothing more by successfully delivering a tale of good fortune. In most cases, the lesson would only be seen by the reader upon the fall of the main character. It is interesting that the story takes a complete turn and the character is able to learn a lesson. This tale turns out to be all that it is explained to be, a moral lesson driven by romance. The host proceeds to flatter the priest, and, in the end, wishes him good luck. The fox tries to flatter him down but he has learned his lesson and the tale ends. He eventually flatters the fox back resulting in his release where he is able to fly into a tree out of harm’s way. He is fooled by the flattery of the fox which brings us to the moral of the story: never trust a flatterer. He listens to the fox and ends up getting snatched up. Chanticleer notices a fox watching him, but the fox warns him to not be afraid. In an effort to get her to take his dream seriously, he reiterates that ‘murder will reveal itself’, and gives proof of this belief, but to no avail. Chanticleer has a nightmare of someone trying to kill him but his dear wife will not reason with his dismay. Chanticleer is described to be attractive and with a “merry…crowing”.Ĭhanticleer possesses many hen wives, his most magnificent being Pertelote. He begins his tale, by introducing a rooster named Chanticleer, who belongs to an elderly, poor widow. The Knight requests that a tale of good fortune be told and calls on the Priest to deliver it. The Nuns’s Priest is asked to tell his tale in an effort to lighten up the group after the previous, tragic story. This story is an animal fable that conveys a moral lesson. The story of Chanticleer and the Fox became further popularised in Britain through Chaucer’s retelling below (“The Nun’s Priest’s Tale”). This 626-line narrative poem is a beast fable and mock epic based on an incident in the “Reynard cycle,” a literary compliation of medieval allegorical Dutch, English, French and German fables. “A coloured illustration from Heinrich Steinhowel’s Esopus,” by unknown artist, 1501.