An Analytical Study of Religious Corruption in The Canterbury Tales

Abstract

The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer is written within a narrative framework. It is told by twenty-nine pilgrims who are on their way to visit the shrine of Saint Tomas Becket. The host of the inn decides to go with them, and they tell tales along the way to entertain each other. Although the story is supposed to have twenty-four tales from thirty characters, religion and faith are the most dominant themes in the poem. Corruption of religious men is one of the most important themes in The Canterbury Tales. The characters are corrupted. They are very preoccupied with secular things. They have no time to spend on religious things. This paper aims at investigating the corruption and hypocrisy of characters in The Canterbury Tales. It argues that although some characters in The Canterbury Tales are religious men and women, in fact they are highly corrupted. To test the validity of this proposal, five tales are analyzed.