The Canterbury Tales

by: Geoffrey Chaucer

The Nun’s Priest tale

Tale of Cock & Hen,Chauntecleer & pertelote

Power point presentation by: Jennifer Healy

Narrator:

The priest tells a tale about Chauntecleer. The priest is witty and one who tends to keep himself in the background.

“He started his tale careful to keep it plain and happy, as he spoke to us all, each one, this pleasant priest, this worthy man, Sir John” (50-52).

Characters:

2

Chauntecleer He is a noble cock. He acts much like a Knight

does and looks like a Knight in shining armor.

“His comb was reader than even the finest coral, and notched as if it were a castle wall, his bill black like jet it shone, legs were azure blue, his nails whiter than any lily flower and smoky yellow, like gold, was the rest of his color, this noble cock was the unmistakable ruler”(39-45).

Has a beautiful singing voice; great at crowing His responsibilities are:

Crowing and taking care of his wives

Main Characters:

Pertelote

She is Chanticleer's lady (wife) She is the “fairest of all…” (49)

Seven hens: they were chanticleer's sisters and lovers. They all had feathers of similar color.

Fox: Don russel. He hunted and tricked chanticleer

Widow: a poor, old woman. She was a wife and is a mother of two daughters. The cock, hens and the other animals live on her

farm

Characters

THERE ONCE LIVED A POOR, OLD WIDOW, WHO LIVED IN A SMALL Cottage. SHE HAS TWO DAUGHTERS AND THEY LIVE A SIMPLE LIFE. ON HER FARM LIVED A BEAUTIFUL COCK NAMED CHAUNTICLEER. HE HAS THE GREASTEST CROWING VOICE. HE IS THE RULER OF SEVEN HENS AND THE ONE WHO STOLE HIS HEART, IS HIS “WIFE”, Lady pertelote.

One morning, chanticleer awoke from a bad dream. He dreamt that a beast tried to hunt him down as he was roaming in the yard. “My heart is frightened…I nearly died…which well accounts for my heavy groaning…” (74,86-87). Lady pertelote feels shame towards chanticleer, for she cannot love a coward. She tells him that dreams are meaningless and he is having bad dreams because of something he ate. She suggest he take a laxative.

summary

Chauntecleer will not take the laxative, because his stomach is fine. He believes dreams have meaning. He tells lady pertelote, “congratulations on your lore, but nevertheless…”(149-150). Chauntecleer quotes from higher authorities, who believe that dreams do have meaning.

2

Then, “it happened that Chauntecleer, filled with his pride, was strolling”(337-338) with his seven hens and lady pertelote. Everyone was happy and “overflowing with peace, then suddenly his world was shattered in pieces…a black coal fox, a master of sly deceit” (369,370,381), was hiding in the yard. Don russel was his name and he was eyeing the beautiful Chauntecleer. He loved his beautiful voice and asks Chauntecleer to sing. The vain Chauntecleer closes his eyes and starts singing. “Russel, the fox leapt like a frightened deer and by the neck took hold of Chauntecleer” (496-497).

2

“nothing compare to the cries of hens in the yard…but sovereign Lady Pertelote cried higher and louder”(522-525), that everyone heard and started to chase the fox. The widow, her two daughters, the dogs, the hens, the cows, people with sticks and even the hogs, were in pursuit of the fox.

2

“and now good men, allow me to ask you all; can you see how fortune swiftly turns again and defeats the hopes and pride of wicked men?” (564-566).

Chauntecleer tells the fox to shout unpleasant insults towards his pursuers and show off his catch. When the fox opened his mouth, he released Chauntecleer. Chauntecleer was able to escape and fly up into a tree. The fox tried to lure Chauntecleer by flattery, but Chauntecleer learned his lesson.

“But you think this tale could never happen, not between a fox, and a cock and a hen; at least approve the story’s moral, good men” (599—601).

1

Cato:

Diotichs of Cato: the author of a Latin collection of proverbial wisdom and morality. A popular medieval school book for teaching Latin and used as a moral compass.

“remember Dionysius Cato, that wise, wise man, who said “there’s nothing real in dreams” (119-120).

Daniel:“in the old testament at the story of Daniel, and see if he

thought dreams were merely empty” (296-297).

Daniel 2: 1-49

Allusions

Adam and eve:

Genesis 3: 1-25

“woman’s advice brought us original woe, requiring Adam to pick up his sticks and go right out of paradise, where he’d lived so easy” (421-423).

Joseph:

genesis 31: 1-11

“and read about joseph and there good wife, you’ll see if dreams can sometimes- I do not say they’re always true-be warnings of things that surely will fall” (298-300).

2

Nero:

Was a roman emperor. he was a tyrant. According to the legend, he sent his senators to death. As they were sentenced to death, their wives screamed and cried for their husbands.

“O sorrowful hens so fully you once crude as senators wives in Rome, when Nero fired the city and all of them knew their husbands were dead” (531-533).

3

“his voice would gurgle more gloriously than an organ” (31).

“the noble cock was, the unmistakable ruler” (45).

“to share he’d found some corn, he clucked and called and the hens came running to him, out in the yard. No he was royal, not afraid any longer” (340-340).

“…her husband sang more nobly and entrancingly than mermaids” (433-434).

“surely I would be worse than even a devil” (448).

metaphors

Mock heroic: Makes human beings to lose their dignity, because they are reduced to

animal like values---beast fable

Ego: Chauntecleer--- physically beautiful and knight like. Knows he has a

beautiful voice. Flaunts all his assets.

Rich: animals live and act like royaltyPoor: the widow and her daughters live in povertyContrast between the real world and barn filled with animals of nobility.Flattery—The fox tells Chauntecleer he has a beautiful voiceTreacheryComic irony—animals with intelligenceDreams:Trust your intuition- What would have happened if Chauntecleer went with his gut feeling?Deception—The fox deceives Chauntecleer through flattery.Undermines woman’s place in society “woman’s advise brought us original woe” (421).

themes

TRUST:

At the end of the story, Chauntecleer learns his lesson He was careless with his judgment to listen to flattery. Don’t be so trusting of people you do not know. “trust is a virtue one should not give away too soon”

(www.nunspriesttale.weebly.com)

Trust your gut feeling—intuition

Morals

I personally enjoyed this tale. I enjoy reading fables. Fables are found

in my most favorite book, Grimm's Fairytales. There are many animal and human stories, such as, Beauty and the Beast, Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, The Little Mermaid and many more.

Beastly fables have a moral in the story, for example; In Beauty and The Beast, Belle learned to love The Beast. She learned to love him for himself not his physical appearance. Because, looks can be deceiving.

I also find beastly fables to be a good read for children. It is easy to relate to and is entertaining. Children love to see animals talk and act like humans.

Personal Evaluation

Share with your classmates about a time when

you had a gut feeling about something.

Was the feeling through your dream? Or Just a gut feeling…?

How long does it take you to trust someone? Why? What qualities does a person need to have, in

order for you to trust them?

Class Participation

Chaucer, g, the Canterbury tales/a new translation by burton raffle (2008). Modern library ed.:new York, new York.

www.ancienhistory.com

www.nunspriesttale.weebly.com/themes-and-morals

Work cited