The Similarities Between The Miller And The Summoner

Throughout our reading of the general prologues to the characters it came to our attention that both the Miller and the Summoner have similarities and differences in traits to the Pardoner.

For example there is a contrast that highlights the difference in masculinity between the Miller and the Pardoner. The Miller is described as a real manly man, “The Millere was a stout Carl for the nones; Full byg he was of brawn and eek of bones That proved wel, for over al ther he cam At wrastlynge he wolde have alwey the ram.”.(Chaucer,547) this quote meaning that he was a big and broad shouldered man who would always win if wrestling. Also it was said that “His berd as any sowe or fox was reed”(Chaucer,554) this red beard compared to a wild animal also

insinuates that he is a manly man, especially to the long yellow haired Pardoner who’s face was described with “as smothe it was as it were late shave, I trowe he were a geldying or a mare”(Chaucer,693). This is a great difference as the Miller gets compared to a wild animal and the Pardoner gets compared to a female horse. The fact that he is described with no facial hair and to have female features it really highlights the contrast of masculinity between the two pilgrims.

There was also a difference of intelligence between the two as the Miller was described as a “Janglere”(Chaucer,562) which is very much like a jester.

This insinuates that the miller may not have been educated very well and he could be made a fool of. In contrast to this the Pardoner was no fool and in fact was quite devious as he would trick people into thinking that pigs bones were in fact relics from holy saints and from this he would make his money. This shows that the Pardoner knew how to play tricks on

people.

Much like the Pardoner.

The Summoner was described “Ful prively a finch eek koude he pulle”(Chaucer,654) this shows that the Pardoner is not the only one to be able to play tricks as the summoner can too. Both the Summoner and the Padoner seem to take pride in them selves because of the few minor things that they have going for them for example the Pardoner wore his hair down and uncovered because “Hym thoughte he rood al of the newe jet”(Chaucer,684) this meaning that he felt he was looking great and keeping up with the trends. Similarly to this minor thing to take pride in, the Summoner seemed to take great pride in the very few latin words that he knew, “And whan that he wel drunken hadde the wyn, than wolde he speke no word but Latyn. A fewe termes hadde he, two or thre, That he had lerned out of som decree”(Chaucer,639). This shows that although the Summoner only knew two or three terms in latin he would still try his ut most to speak it after drinking

alcohol.

A difference we noticed between the summoner and the pardoner was that both of them seem to be bad people but the difference is that the summoner comes across as a bad person due to his facial features and the fact that no ointments could clear his pimples and reddened skin. This may be a metaphore for his ugly intentions or insides. The pardoner is no better as a person but he has nice long hair that is up to date with the fahion of his time and has a clear face in comparison to a rugged man with a beard. The fact that his gender is treated to be ambiguous maybe this is a metaphore for his intentions. He may come across as a nice man who sings in church but really he just wants the money.