For Friday: Chaucer, "The Miller's Tale"

Note: The "Chaucer" group (fittingly) will answer these questions.

Answer TWO of the following...

Q1: In the Tales, the Knight goes first, since he's the highest in the social order. So why do you think Chaucer lets the Miller (one of the lowest members of the group) go next? What reasons does the Narrator give in the poem, and why might the Miller be a dramatic contrast to the kind of tale the Knight probably told (which was a tale of chivalry--two knights fighting over the love of a single woman)?

Q2: As we see in "The General Prologue," Chaucer enjoys satirizing many members of the company through detailed descriptions of their person. How does he engage in similar satire in "The Miller's Tale"? Examine the description of one of the main characters--Nicholas, Alison, or Absalon. 

Q3: Discuss the role of Alison in “The Miller’s Tale”: is she a typically powerless woman seduced and controlled by men, or is she the actual ‘hero’ of the tale? How does the Miller—or Chaucer—want us to ‘read’ Alison?

Q4: Chaucer makes an elaborate apology for this tale, writing “I’m sorry that I must repeat it here/And therefore, I entreat all decent folk/For God’s sake don’t imagine that I speak/With any evil motive...And so, should anyone not wish to hear,/Turn the page over, choose another tale.” Why do you think Chaucer includes such a bawdy, low-humor tale in his collection since he could have easily cleaned it up? Do you think low comedy and sexual humor has a place in literature? Did they have different standards in the 14th century, or is Chaucer merely part of an old tradition we still take part in today?