Chaucer's excessively open satire of the Prioress in the General Prologue is undeniable. With so much emphasis on its misplaced ideals, the words scream that something is seriously wrong. A cursory examination reveals a woman seriously disconnected from reality and the faith she claims to represent. Keeping this powerful portrayal in mind, the ensuing narrative must be interpreted with the character in mind. On this basis, I will attempt to demonstrate that Chaucer deliberately used the tale as an extension of The Prioress. His portrayal challenges the foundations of his religious order, and his story ultimately represents a religion that challenges its own tenets. The subtlety of the latter's discernment increases as it not only questions the Prioress's beliefs, but also extends to questioning the priorities of her audience's faith. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay On its own, The Prioress's Tale does not differ radically from the standard miracle of the Virgin. But the reader should always be aware of Chaucer – the author – and his attempts to develop the English language. For when its history is considered in correlation with its description, almost every aspect of it assumes a new identity. And with graceful mockery of her in the Prologue, Chaucer – the narrator – is careful to clearly expose the superficiality of the exalted sister. The first six lines mark the only time she is completely free of ironic undertones; the remaining majority advance their character through gentle satire. Chaucer's delicate use of language only serves to increase the reader's understanding of the Prioress in this satire. For he elegantly constructs his character then comically undermines it with a singular and impartial truth: “And Frenssh she spoke in a manner full of doing and fetishism,/ For Frenssh of Parys had to hire without knowing” (ll. 124, 126), “At the time she was taught, was she with alle;/...In curteisie was set ful muchel hir of fear./...And paid rent to counter-refute joy / Of the court, and to be estatlich in manner,..." (ll.127-141), "...She was so charitable and so pitiful/ She would cry if she cried a mous/ Trapped,.. ." (ll. 142-150). This disappointment reinforces the idea that the Prioress is trying to be someone she is not. Even her picturesque beauty is subject to flaws: she is "nat undergrowe" Although he never criticizes her, Chaucer makes it clear that the Prioress is disillusioned by the fashionable lady's delicate ways. Her exaggerated empathy and thirst for social advancement spoil her image as a servant of God. Perhaps more influential in the connection than the mockery is the phrase with which Chaucer ends his sketch: “Amor vincit omnia.” By choosing this ambiguous Latin idiom to conclude his intriguing and flawed portrait, he creates a lingering question mark that resonates throughout his narrative. While the improbable "amor" means sensual love (brotherly or heavenly love seems more appropriate), the vague nature of the word allows the mind to wander until it is introduced into its narrative. By the time this happens, the translation is insignificant, because the adage has much more magnitude - it stands in direct opposition to the substance of his story. While the reader is still pondering the depiction of the Prioress, Chaucer reinforces her portrait twice before his story begins. The first case arises from Harry Bailly's excessive condescension: ...and with this word he said, as briefly as it had been a mayde, "My lady Prioress, by your levy, that I maystand you up, nat greve, I Wolde demen that you tell a story next, if so, you volde.Now did you mean except, my lady Deere? (ll.445-451) The repetition of these submissive statements (by the All People's Army) is undoubtedly intended to mock its supposed lofty stature and insistence on good manners. The other distinctive feature appears at the end of his invocation to Mary. Likening herself to "a child twelve months or younger", she is essentially stating that her understanding of the story that follows is limited, if even present. And although she only prays for guidance from the “blessed Queen,” her inability to perceive seems to guarantee divine intervention in her story. So, his song probably can't do any harm. At this point in the argument, the omnipresence of the author Chaucer must again be examined. Any thread could have been chosen for The Prioress's Tale. The fact that the Virgin's miracles were popular at the time only reiterates why the story was chosen for her: she had a reputation to uphold. The concordance with its analogues further shifts the center of the story. Chaucer did not need to change the plot, because it coincides with the storyteller. This unedited tale is precisely the model story that a character with such temperaments would tell. The meaning is now inscribed in the voice and character of the Prioress. A reading of the story quickly resolves two of the lingering questions that previously remained. The help the Prioress prayed for is nowhere to be found; his story is riddled with bigotry and would border on blasphemy were it not for his incredible incompetence in understanding his own words. This blindness leads to another crucial flaw that once again mocks his ignorance. “Amor vincit omnia,” which she displays so prominently, can be called nothing less than the antithesis of her morals. Love between men is nowhere and the scene of condemnation acts as a complete denunciation of the Prioress as a fraud: With torments and with an echo of shameful death, This provost makes these Jews to serve that of this modere wiste, and that one immediately. no cursed swich observes. “Yvele will get what yvele wol deserves”; Therefore with wild hors he made the drawn hem, and after that he did it by law. (ll.628-634) This passage is so brutal and contrary to the doctrines of Christianity that one wonders how it came to be so widely accepted. Apparently Chaucer also wondered about this. With a closer look at the text, the last part of the link is complete. The basis of the analogous plot fits perfectly into the context of the Prioress. Given his affinity with the court, the high rhyme scheme (seen elsewhere only in The Man of Law's Tale) would indeed satisfy the ears of his "humble" companions. Likewise, the collective association of Christians with exorbitant goodness and Jews with abominable baseness is explained by his overly emotional disposition. The selectivity of its language draws pathos from the reader and makes its truth even more difficult to resist. Because the repetition of the words "litel" and "innocent" in the description of the "clergy" and the exaggeration of the mother's reaction when she cannot find her lost child naturally arouses sympathy. And in the only notable digression from the analogues, the Prioress's child is seven years old and not ten years or older. She carefully emphasizes this, as evidenced by the use of commas: “a small clergy, aged seven” (l. 503). The allusions to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and the mention of Hugh of Lincoln were sentiments that most listeners undoubtedly picked up on. When these moving performances..