Chaucers Canterbury Tales - Comparing Dishonesty in The Physicians a

Dishonesty and Hypocrisy in The Physicians and Pardoners Tales Chaucer presents characters in the Physicians and Pardoners Tales who are very similar to each other in one eventful bureau. Although the characters square upm on the surface to be reverberate images of each other, they have an important underlying similarity both the doctor and the pardoner are not what they appear to be to most people. both(prenominal) are hypocritical, although they show this hypocrisy in different ways. One way of seeing this hypocrisy, in the case of the physicians drool, is to examine the way the similarities and differences between the ennoble Virginius and the physician himself in terms of what he sees as moral actions. It seems passably clear that the physician identifies himself with Virginius during the telling of the tale. One of the main ways in which the physician identifies with Virginius is by sharing his concern for Virginias future state of virtue. He shows his concern with Virginias future by speculating on whether she will continue to be a thousand foold moore vertuous than she is beautiful -- as she is at the beginning of the tale -- when she woxen is a wyf (VI.40 VI.71). Virginius shows his concern for his daughters virtue by killing her rather than allowing her excellence to be compromised the physician shows that he believes it necessary for a father to prevail his daughters virtue in a long comment (VI.71-104) describing a fathers handicraft to have his daughter watched over by governesses, or maistresses (VI.71). The most important way in which Virginius differs from the physician -- and the physician clearly does not see this -- is in the moral application of the tale. The physician clearly intends for the ta... ...uthority or to shaving beneath the surface of the tale, as is shown by the hostility of the host. Harry Bailly does not respond to the pardoners accusation that he is moost envoluped in synne, but merely appeals to take in in threatening the pardoner. N all achieves the result that he wants, and the reason for this affliction in each case is his general failure to be honest, either with others (in the case of the pardoner) or with himself (in the case of the physician). For this reason, Chaucer pokes fun at both of them in subtle ways throughout their tales. References Benson, C. David. Explanatory Notes to The Physicians Tale in The riverside Chaucer. General Ed. Benson, Larry D. Boston Houghton Mifflin, 1987. Chaucer, Geoffrey. The Canterbury Tales in The Riverside Chaucer. General Ed. Benson, Larry D. Boston Houghton Mifflin, 1987.