The Pardoner's Prologue and Tale facts for kids
The Pardoner's Prologue and Tale is a story found in The Canterbury Tales, a famous collection of stories written by the English writer, Geoffrey Chaucer. It tells us about a character called the Pardoner and a story he shares with the other travelers.
Contents
Who is the Pardoner?
The Pardoner was one of the many people traveling to Canterbury. He came from a place called Rouncivalle and was journeying with his friend, the Summoner.
What the Pardoner Looked Like
The Pardoner had hair as yellow as wax, which lay smoothly on his head. He had bright, black eyes, and his face was very smooth, as if he had just shaved. His voice was thin and weak, but he wasn't really an old, spiritual man.
The Pardoner's Character
Even though the Pardoner was a priest, he didn't live a life that followed the teachings of Jesus. He often showed traits like greed, gluttony (eating too much), and pride. He made his living by preaching and selling fake relics to people. He would lie to them, promising them good things if they paid him. He cared more about getting money than living a holy life.
The Pardoner's Story Begins
The host of the journey asked the Pardoner to tell a happy story. But the other travelers wanted him to tell a story that taught a good moral lesson.
The Tale of the Three Rioters
The Pardoner began his story by talking about three young men. These men were from a town in Flanders. They spent their time doing things like gambling and eating too much.
One night, the three men were at a tavern. They saw a corpse being carried to a grave. They asked who had died and learned it was a friend of theirs, killed by someone they called "Death." The three men decided they would find "Death" and get revenge for their friend.
On their way, they met an old man. He told them that "Death" would not take him, even though he was old and suffering. The old man said he had left "Death" under an oak tree and that it would still be there. The young men ran to the tree. Instead of finding "Death," they found a large pile of gold!
They wanted to take the gold, but they decided to wait until night so no one would think they had stolen it. They sent the youngest man to get three pies and three bottles of wine.
While the youngest was gone, the two remaining men made a plan. They decided to kill the third man when he returned so they could split the gold between just the two of them. At the same time, the third man had a similar idea. He wanted all the money for himself. So, he bought poison and poured it into two of the wine bottles, keeping one un-poisoned bottle for himself.
When the third man returned, the other two jumped out and killed him. But to celebrate, they drank the poisoned wine. Not knowing it was poisoned, they choked and died.
So, in the end, the gold was the "Death" the old man had spoken of. Because of their greed, all three men died with nothing.
The Story's Lesson
The main lesson of the Pardoner's story is that the love of money can lead to all sorts of bad things. It shows how wanting too much can make people do wrong and lead to their downfall.
The Irony of the Pardoner
There's something interesting, or ironic, about this story. The Pardoner himself is a very greedy man. Yet, he tells a story that warns against greed, saying it's the cause of all evil.
