In Geoffrey Chaucers The Canterbury Tales, a collection of tales is presented during a pilgrimage to Canterbury Cathedral. The pilgrims on the journey are from divergent economic and social backgrounds but they have all amalgamated to visit the shrine of Saint Thomas. Chaucer uses each pilgrim to tell a tale which portrays an arduous medieval society. The values, morals and social structures of the society can be examined through the fictitious tales, unravelling a corrupt, unjust and manipulative world, a world that is based around an ecclesiastical society.Society was closely associated with the Church. Chaucer was clearly unhappy with the way members of the Church were exploiting the people; that is why so many religious figures are on the pilgrimage. In the General Prologue, the narrator describes each character. The religious characters include the Prioress, the Friar, the Monk, the Summoner and the Pardoner. Many of these characters are quite high in their respective division of church structure. They should be completely pure in mind and be role models for others. However, this is not the case as Chaucer portrays the Prioress and Monk as having romantic ideas rather than religious. The Prioress knows what love means when she should not. On her, "heeng a brooch of gold ful sheen, / On which ther was written a crowned A, / And after, Amor vincit omnia" (ll. 160-162). This means love conquers all; a well-behaved nun should not be thinking about love. She should be "statilch of manere" and "digne of reverence" (ll. 140-141), meaning she should be worthy and dignified but it seems as if Chaucer is portraying her in a different fashion. The Monk also does not fulfil the responsibility of his position. As a follower of the rule of Saint Benet, he should abide by the strict code of conduct. However, he "didnt give a plucked hen for that text" (l. 177 (translated)) and he also went hunting but "hunteres been nought holy men...
