The Franklin's Tale

The Franklin's Tale begins with the courtship of the Breton knight Arviragus and Dorigen, who come to be married happily. Their marriage is one of equality, in which neither of the two is master or servant. However, soon after they marry Arviragus is sent away to Britain to work for two years. Dorigen wept for his absence, despite the letters that he sent home to her. Her friends would often take her on walks where they would pass the cliffs overlooking the ocean and watch ships enter the port, hoping that one of them would bring home her husband. However, she was distressed by the rocks that were near the shore. She feared that whatever ship brought her husband home would crash on these rocks and sink. These friends would also have garden parties in which they would invite singers and squires to dance. One of these squires, Aurelius, had been in love with her ever since she arrived in Brittany. Eventually he declared his love for her. She agrees that she would be his lover if he would find a way to clear the rocks that endangered incoming ships. Aurelius lamented this condition, thinking that such a task would be impossible. His brother suggested that Aurelius meet a student of law at Orleans who was versed in the sciences of illusion. Aurelius made a journey to Orleans to meet this student; he found in the student's house the most fantastic luxuries. The student asked for one thousand pounds to remove all of the rocks from the shore off of Brittany. The student consulted his tables and contrived to make the rocks disappear for a week. When Dorigen learned of this, she was overcome with grief, realizing that she must forfeit either her body or her fair name. She thinks about the numerous instances in which a faithful wife or a maiden destroyed herself rather than submitting herself to another. She cites the maidens of Lacedaemon who chose to be slain rather than defiled, and Hasdrubal's wife, who committed suicide during the siege of Carthage, and Lucrece, who did the same when Tarquin took her by force. Arviragus returned home and Dorigen told him the truth of what had happened. He tells her that he will bear the shame of her actions, and that adhering to her promise is the most important thing. He therefore sends her to submit to Aurelius. When Aurelius learns how well Arviragus accepted his wife's promise, Aurelius decides to let Dorigen's promise go unfulfilled. He claims that a squire can be as honorable as a knight. Aurelius then went to pay the law student, even though his affair remained unconsummated. The law student forgave Aurelius' debt, proving himself honorable. The tale thus ends with this question: who was the most generous? Arviragus, Aurelius, or the student.

The Manciple's Tale

When Phoebus lived on earth, he was the lustiest of bachelors, a superior archer and the envy of all for his singing. Phoebus had a white crow that he had taught to speak and a wife whom he kept guarded out of jealousy. Yet guarding a wife so closely is unnecessary ­ if she is faithful, there is no need to do so, but if she is unfaithful no amount of monitoring will keep her faithful. Phoebus treated his wife well, but this was merely a gilded cage for her. Once when Phoebus was gone she sent for her lover. The white crow saw what they did, but did not say a word. When Phoebus returned, the crow gave the sorry news to Phoebus. The enraged Phoebus murdered his wife with an arrow and subsequently went on a rampage, breaking his musical instruments. The crow lamented that he told Phoebus the news. Phoebus, believing that the crow lied about his wife, called the crow a false thief and plucked off his white feathers. He also cursed the crow, telling him that all crows should forever be black and never sing beautifully again. The Manciple leaves this as a warning: never tell another man that his wife has been unfaithful, for such gossip only causes the cuckolded husband to hate the messenger.

The Nun's Priest's Tale

The Nun's Priest tells a tale of an old woman who had a small farm in which she kept animals, including a rooster named Chanticleer who was peerless in his crowing. Chanticleer had seven hens as his companions, the most honored of which was Pertelote. One night Chanticleer groaned in his sleep. He had a dream that a large yellow dog chased him. Pertelote mocked him for his cowardice, telling him that dreams are meaningless visions caused by ill humors. Citing Cato's advice, she tells him that she will get herbs from an apothecary that will cure his illness. Chanticleer, however, believes that dreams are prophetic, and tells a tale of a traveler who predicted his own death and whose companion dreamed about who murdered him and where the victim's body was taken. Another man dreamed that his comrade would be drowned, and this came true. He also cites examples of Croesus and Andromache, who each had prophecies in their dreams. However, Chanticleer does praise Pertelote, telling her "Mulier est hominis confusio" (Woman is man's confusion), which he translates as woman is man's delight and bliss. He then 'feathered' her twenty times before the morning. Following her advice, Chanticleer goes to search for the proper herbs. A fox saw Chanticleer and grabbed him. Pertelote began to squawk, which alerted the old woman, who chased the fox away. Chanticleer was thus saved.

The Pardoner's Tale

There once lived in Flanders a group of three rioters who did nothing but engage in irresponsible and sinful behavior. They were blasphemous drunkards who, while in a tavern one night, witnessed men carrying a corpse to its grave. A boy told the rioters that the dead man was one of their friends, slain by an unseen thief called Death. They remark that Death has slain thousands, and vow to slay Death themselves. The three drunken men go off to find Death, but only come across an ancient man shrouded in robes. He claims that Death will not take him, and says that they can find Death underneath a nearby oak tree. When they found the tree they only found bushels of gold. They decide to take the treasure and divide it evenly, but realize that if they immediate went into town with it they would be presumed robbers. They therefore draw lots; the one with the shortest straw shall go into town and fetch food and drink for them. They shall stay in the forest with the gold until they can leave in the middle of the night. The youngest drew the shortest lot and was sent into town. The two that remain decide to murder the third once he returns, for they would then be able to divide the gold by two instead of three. However, while the third rioter was in town, he bought poison from an apothecary which he poured into the wine bottle. When he returned, the two rioters stabbed the third, murdering him. They then drank the poisoned wine and died themselves.

The Pardoner interrupts the end of his tale with a diatribe against the sin of avarice, then launches into a sermon in which he attempts to sell relics to the other travelers. The Host argues with him, telling him that the only relic he would want from the Pardoner is his testicles enclosed in a hog's turd. The knight mediates the conflict.

The Merchant's Tale

The Merchant tells a tale of a prosperous knight from Lombardy who had not yet taken a wife. But when this knight, January, had turned sixty, whether out of devotion or dotage, he decided to finally be married. He searched for prospects, now convinced that the married life was a paradise on earth. Yet his brother, Placebo, cited the advice of the scholar Theophrastus, who advised men never to wed, for servants show more diligence and do not claim nearly as much. To this the knight retorted with Biblical stories that state a man without a wife is bent on ruin. These stories cites the creation of Eve for Adam as proof that a wife is man's support, as well as examples of humble and devoted wives. January, wished to have a young wife of no older than thirty, for a young wife would be more pliable, but Placebo warned him that it takes great courage for such an aged man to take a young wife. He warned him of the misery that can come from taking a wife, for she could be shrewish or a drunkard, facts that a husband will not learn until well into the marriage. Despite the common opinion that Placebo has a wonderful wife, he knows what faults she has. They argue about the merits of marriage, with Placebo predicting that January will not please his wife for more than three years, but Placebo eventually assents to January's plan. January finally decided to take a young and pretty wife, foolishly believing that nobody would find fault with his choice. He spoke to Placebo and his friends about his choice, praising his intended wife. January, however, worries that a man who finds perfect happiness on earth as he would with his wife would never find a similar happiness in heaven, for one must choose between one perfect happiness and another. Justinus countered by stating that it is more likely that married men will get to heaven than single men. He muses that marriage might be January's purgatory.

January thus married his intended, May, in a joyous ceremony. On their wedding night January, consumed with lust, ravaged his wife. He essentially forced himself on May, believing himself justified because they were now married. However, Damian, January's squire, was infatuated with May. He wrote a love letter to May that he pinned in a silk purse next to his heart. One day Damian was not attending January, and to cover for him the other squires told January that Damian was sick. May and January went to visit Damian, and during this visit Damian slipped May the purse with his love letter. She read it and then tore it up to destroy the evidence. May took pity on Damian and gave him a letter in return. Damian felt better the next day, and groomed himself to look presentable for May. January's house had a garden so magnificent that even he who wrote Romance of the Rose could not describe its beauty, nor could Priapus accurately describe its art. January loved this garden so much that only he was allowed to touch the key to it. In the summer he would go there with May and have sex. January became increasingly possessive of his wife, which caused Damian great grief. May made a double of the key to the garden in warm wax which she gave to Damian. January came to the garden looking for May, wishing to have sex, when Damian covertly entered. Damian hid in a tree. It so happened that at this time Pluto, the king of fairies, and Queen Proserpina were walking in this garden, discussing the injustices that women do to men, yet while one man in a thousand is good, no woman is worthy. He gives as an example Damian, May and January. Damian remained in the pear tree, waiting for January to be finished with his wife. May claimed that she was hungry and wanted a pear. Since January was blind and could not climb the tree, he hoisted her so that she could climb to where Damian was hiding. While she was in the tree, she and Damian had sex. At this point Pluto came upon the three and witnessed this injustice. He restored January's sight. Trying to deny what had happened, she tells him that he must still be blind, for if he truly had sight he would never had seen her having sex with Damian. Foolishly January believed this.

The Friar's Tale

The Friar's Tale tells of an archdeacon who boldly executed the Church's laws against fornication, witchcraft and lechery. Lechers received the greatest punishment, forced to pay significant tithes to the church. The archdeacon had a summoner who was quite adept at discovering lechers, even though he himself was immoral.

The Summoner interrupts the Friar's Tale with an objection, but the Host allowed the Friar to continue his tale. The Friar tells that the summoner of his tale would only summon those who had enough money to pay the church, and would take part of the charge. He would enlist the help of prostitutes who would reveal their customers to the summoner in exchange for their own safety (and offer of sexual services). One day, the summoner was traveling to issue a summons to a yeoman, who had been hunting. The summoner claimed to be a bailiff, knowing that his actual profession was so detested. The yeoman claimed to be a bailiff, and offers hospitality to the summoner. The two travel together, and the summoner asks where the yeoman lives, intending to later rob him. The summoner asks the yeoman how he makes money at his job, and the bailiff admits that he lives by extortion. The summoner admits the he does the same, and they reveal to each other their villainy, until the yeoman finally declares that he is a fiend whose dwelling is in hell. The summoner asks the yeoman (the devil) why he has a human shape, and he claims that he assumes one whenever on earth. The summoner asks him why he labors as such, and the devil says that sometimes he and others are God's instruments. The devil claims that the summoner will meet him again someday and have more evidence of hell than had Dante or Virgil. The summoner suggests that the two continue on their way and go about their business, each taking their share. On their travels they found a carter whose wagon loaded with hay was stuck in the mud. The carter cursed the devil for his troubles, and the summoner suggests to the devil that he take all of the carter's belongings as retribution. The horses pull the wagon from the mud when he prays to God. The summoner suggests that they visit a stingy old crone, but the devil suddenly leaves him and tells the summoner that they may meet again. The summoner gives her a notice to appear before the archdeacon on the penalty of excommunication, but she claims that she is sick and cannot make it there. She asks if she can pay the summoner to represent her to the archdeacon, but he demands twelve pence, a sum that she thinks is too great, for she claims she is guiltless of sin. She curses the summoner, saying that she would give his body to the devil. The devil hears this and tells the summoner that he shall be in hell tonight. Upon these words, the summoner and the devil disappeared into hell, the realm where summoners truly belong.

The Wife of Bath's Tale

The Wife of Bath's Tale tells a story from a distant time, when King Arthur ruled the nation and fairy queens and elves were common. However, now friars are common where elves once were. King Arthur had a knight who, when riding home one day from hawking, found a maiden walking alone and raped her. This crime usually held the penalty of death, but the queen intervened and begged her husband to spare the knight. She told the knight that she would grant his life if he could answer the question "what do women most desire?" She gave him one year to find the answer. The knight went on his journey and could find no satisfactory answer. Some said wealth, others jollity, some status, others a good lover in bed. The knight was despondent that he could not find an answer. When he reached the end of the twelve months before he must return to meet his fate, he found an old woman and asked her the question. She agreed to give the answer and assured him that it was the right one, but would only tell him the answer if he would marry her. She told him that women desire to have the sovereignty and to rule over their husbands. When the knight faced the queen and gave the correct answer, the old woman announced the knight's pledge, which constrained him to wed. The knight, although pardoned, was miserable that he had to marry such an old crone. She realized his unhappiness, and confronted him about it. He criticized her for not only being old and ugly, but low-born. She scoffs at his snobbery as a definition of a 'gentleman' and defends her poverty as irrelevant to God. She gives him a choice: he can have her as a wife old and ugly, but humble and devoted, or young and fair, but independent. He chooses to give her independence. When he kisses her, she transforms into a young and beautiful woman. They lived happily together; he was devoted to her, while she tended to his pleasure. The Wife of Bath ends the Tale with its moral: let Christ grant all women submissive husbands who sexually satisfy their wives.