Vocabulary #1
A principle or belief concerning what is right and wrong.
moral
A young rooster.
cockerel
This pilgrim is an educated poet who the author of The Canterbury Tales, Geoffrey Chaucer, based on himself.
The Narrator/Geoffrey
This loud, rude, and drunken pilgrim is as large in stature as a gatepost. He tells a tale to make fun of the Reeve, whose carpentry on his place of business he was not satisfied with.
Matt the Miller
This tale is a chivalric romance that involves a love triangle between two cousins (Palamon and Arcite) and the sister-in-law of a duke (Emily).
"The Knight's Tale"
A saint’s tomb or other sacred place that has been constructed in their memory.
shrine
A short, fictitious story that seeks to teach a moral. Many fables feature anthropomorphic animals.
fable
This person is an innkeeper who comes up with the idea for the storytelling competition and appoints himself the judge of it as well. He has the wealth of a noble and the personality of a tradesman.
This grey-headed pilgrim is surprisingly humble and shy considering his line of work. He tells the first tale, and also has a son who is going on the same pilgrimage as him.
The Knight
This tale is a fable that features an anthropomorphic cockerel and an anthropomorphic fox. The moral of this story is that you should never be too confident or sure of yourself.
"The Nun's Priest's Tale"
A long trip taken to a sacred place for a religious or moral purpose.
pilgrimage
The study of God and religious beliefs.
theology
This pilgrim brings people before the church to answer for their crimes. He has blemishes all over his face and smells of pickled onions.
The Summoner
This pilgrim is offended by "The Miller's Tale" because the most embarrassing character in it is based on him, so he decides to get revenge by telling his own tale about Matt the Miller.
Oswald the Reeve
This tale is a farce that involves a love "square" between an old carpenter (Oswald), his young, beautiful wife (Alison), her lover (Nicholas), and a clerk from the village who also loves her (Absalom).
"The Miller's Tale"
A person who suffers or dies for their beliefs.
martyr
The study of some of the most basic questions about human life and the world around us.
philosophy
This pilgrim sells "get out of jail free" cards for the church that are said to clear people of their sins. He has long blonde hair, pale skin, and blue eyes.
The Pardoner
Tradesmen
A work of comedy that features ridiculous characters who participate in horseplay, absurd situations, and crude humor.
A published collection of poems or other pieces of writing.
anthology
Behaving or appearing human-like as something non-human, such as an animal.
anthropomorphic
As a woman of the church, this pilgrim is offended by "The Miller's Tale," so she makes her companion tell the tale that follows.
Prioress Eglantine/The Nun
Prioress Eglantine/The Nun, Brother John/The Priest, the Summoner, and the Pardoner would all be considered members of this social class.
Clergy
A story about knights that centers around love and typically ends in a marriage.
chivalric romance