The General Prologue Essay Example for Free

The General Prologue Essay Unlike monks, Friars were allowed to leave the monastery but they were supposed to do so to serve the community. The friar should have begged for money and preached to the laity but Chaucers Friar only associates with the wealthy, Ful wel beloved and famulier was he/ With frankelyns over al in his contree. He was not strict on sinners pleasant was his absolutioun instead he took money to absolve sins, immorally taking money from those in poverty For thogh a widwe hadde noght a sho,/ So plesaunt was his In principio,-/ Yet wolde he have a ferthing, er he wente. Chaucer lists the various sins of the Friar: he sells pardon from sin for a price, seduces women who ask for pardons, and frequents bars rather than giving charity to the poor He knew the tavernes wel in every toun Bet than a lazar of a beggestere. Chaucer is deeply sarcastic; he picks out the misdemeanours of the Monk but seyd his opinion was good and that certainly he was a fair prelaat. This sarcasm emphasizes Chaucers contempt of the church as he mocks the Monk and invites the reader to dislike him. Similarly Chaucer uses irony in his portrait of the Friar, as he often does in the use of the word worthy. When he says, This worthy man was cleped Huberd he uses irony to express is distaste; the friar is not worthy in his profession or in his private life which should be dedicated to the church. The Parson, portrayed later in The General Prologue provides a strong contrast with the friar as a man who performs his duties honourably and looks after his congregation. Chaucer obviously respects the Parson; he is a good man also a lerned man benign he was, and wonder diligent,/ And in adversitee ful pacient. All these qualities are highly regarded and admirable, and none are shared with the Friar. The portrait of the Parson increases the impression that the church was corrupt at this time by giving an example of what was expected. Additionally, the parson is the only religious character presented as truly devout which suggests that the majority of the church was corrupt. Chaucer introduces religious characters in The General Prologue as unworthy and dishonest, particularly the Friar who deceived and neglected his people. He uses the religious characters on the pilgrimage to comment on the church, which had great power in his time. Great attention is paid to the appearance of the characters, particularly of the Monk, which highlights the materialism present, a great contrast to the poverty vowed in the religious orders.