Canterbury Tales - Comparison of the Millers Tale and the Knights Tal

A Comparison of the Millers baloney and the Knights humbug It is common when considering The Canterbury Tales to discuss how some levels count knowing to emphasise the themes of others. both such tales are the Millers Tale2 and the Knights Tale3. At first glance these two tales seem an incongruous pairing. The Knights Tale is told by an eminent person, is an historical romance which further escapes a tragic ending, and its themes are universal the relationship of individuals to providence, fortune and uncaring will. The Millers Tale is told by a drunken cherl (MT 3182), is a farcical fabliau, and has a plot, not themes4. And yet, in my opinion, there is much to be gained by version the Millers Tale with the themes and characters of the Knights Tale firmly in mind. The juxtaposition of the Millers Tale to the Knights Tale makes its very lack of significance significant5. These two tales have seemingly opposite doctrines, and yet, it seems to me, both have the same object to encourage us to survive the misfortunes and uncertainties of life as best we can. The Knights Tale tells us to maken virtu of necessitee(KT 3042) while the Millers Tale expects every wight to laughen at this stryf(MT 3849). The Millers Tale is designed to quite (MT 3127) the Knights Tale. It certainly matches it in quality of composition, solely repays the other tale mainly through its use of comedy. Humour throws new light on the characters and actions of the preceeding tale. The folly of the carpenter in the Millers Tale is by no manner the only comic device used by Chaucer to create humour, but it is central in many ways. He is, in theory, the authority figure of the tale, and it therefore opens with him ... ...e Chaucer ternion Edition (Oxford OUP, 1987), The Millers Tale. wholly line references to the Millers Tale will be give in text, preceded by the initials MT. 3. Larry Benson, The Riverside Chaucer Third Edition (Oxford OUP, 1987), The Knights Tale. All line ref erences to the Knights Tale will be given in text, preceded by the initials KT. 4. Helen Cooper, Oxford Guides to Chaucer The Canterbury Tales (Oxford OUP, 1989), p. 101. 5. Cooper, p. 101. 6. Cooper, p. 99. 7. Robert Miller, The Millers Tale as a Complaint, Chaucer Review, 5 (1970), p. 147-160. This from p. 150. 8. Derek Pearsall, The Canterbury Tales II Comedy, In Piero Boitani and Jill Mann (eds), The Cambridge Chaucer participator (Cambridge Cambridge University Press, 1986), p. 125-142. This from, p. 131. 9. Cooper, 99. 10. Pearsall, p. 129.