Characters in The Miller's Tale Essay

Theres a clever variation on a popular saying that proclaims sarcastically its only funny until someone gets hurt. Then its hilarious! Its a lighthearted proverb of sorts that is trendy mostly among middle-schoolers, but certainly conveys our societys enjoyment of slapstick humor quite effectively. However, is watching someone elses pain really that amusing? This is the question that came to mind immediately after reading Chaucer's The Millers Tale from his Canterbury Tales. It seems apparent that Chaucer intended the tale to be crude, going so far as to offer a warning before hand, but also suggests that it is not a tale to be serious about. But truly, what is so comical about the unfortunate fate that most of the characters meet? It is thus understood, in my opinion, that The Millers Tale is not just a silly story or a game, it is a tragedy, and theres nothing funny about that.

There are four main characters in The Millers Tale, John, a wealthy but old carpenter, his wife Alison, a vibrant, beautiful young woman of only 18 years, Nicholas, a charming yet conniving astrology student who lodged in the couples home, and Absalon, a charismatic parish clerk. All three men have something in common; they are madly in love with the flirtatious Allison, which eventually leads to their undoing. Nicholas, by todays standards, would be labeled as the quintessential ladys man- hes described as being talented at making love in secret, and has arranged his room meticulously and specifically to entice the ladies. He is very arrogant, and while he is successful at seducing Alison, he is not content in just that. He treats it as a game, as the prologue foreshadowed, and hatches an elaborate plan to get Allison to himself. He uses his known experience with astrology to trick John, Allisons husband into believing that he has foreseen a terrible flood, one that is akin to Noahs, and that if John wants to save Allison, he must embark on ridiculous, somewhat humiliating tasks, including buying three tubs (one for him, Allison and Nicholas) and suspending them from ropes from the roof so they can float when the flood rolls in. He succeeds in exhausting the poor man enough to crawl into bed with Allison without him even noticing.

His other competition, aside from her husband however, is not a dimwitted fool but an Oxford educated, dapperly attired parish clerk named Absalon. It was love at first sight when he met Allison, and he became determined to at least get one kiss from her. He sings her love songs outside her window, appears in plays and other public events in hopes of catching her eye, and does all but throw himself at her. His attempts are futile though, as Allison is infatuated with Nicholas, and finds Absalons efforts to be nothing other than irritating. But Absalon is absolutely unflappable in his intent, and continues trying even after being rebuffed several times. However, the morning after Allison and Nicholas sleep together, Absalon shows up- outside her window again- asking for a kiss. Egged on by Nicholas, Allison agrees, but presents her bare bottom for Absalons unsuspecting lips to kiss. Baffled by what has just happened, Absalon swears revenge. He returns, feigning innocence, and asks for another kiss and offers Allison a golden ring. He decides to teach her a lesson and has brought along a hot iron. And this time, it was not Allison who mooned Absalon, it was Nicholas (who charmingly farts in his face to add insult to injury), and with his iron ready, Absalon brands him, causing him to shout for water, in his pain.

This leads to John, who in contrast to Absalon and Nicholas is not an entirely terrible person, although he does have his faults. A jealous man, he fears nothing more than betrayal from Allison and keeps her in a cage so to speak to prevent this. His fixation on keeping her to himself makes her affair even more ironic, and his fate even more cruel. He is extremely gullible, and blinded by his obsession with his beautiful wife, which makes him fall easily for Nicholass ridiculous trick. He trusts the sly student absolutely, which is his fatal mistake. He works himself up into such a tizzy preparing for the flood that he forgets about his main concern- Allisons faithfulness. Obviously, it all ends wretchedly for John- he awakens to Nicholass cry of water!, as he has been badly burned, which of course John mistakes for his surprise at the oncoming flood he has been preparing for. He hastily cuts his tub from roof, and plunges- uncushioned by water- to the ground. He breaks his arm in two places and faints from the terrible pain. Nicholas and Allison seize this opportunity and run into the street, calling to neighbors for help, and introduce themselves as husband and wife. They explain that John is mad, which seems true as he begins spouting nonsense about Nowels Flood, which now clearly sounds completely ridiculous. So not only is John cuckolded, he is also branded as insane. This seems to be a rather harsh punishment for someone who has not done very much wrong, besides being foolish. Although he tried to control Allison, it is true by his instinctual reaction to protect her that he did love her, as he was not an inherently bad person. This fact is what makes the tale so troubling, as Johns life is destroyed simply because he has a pretty wife.

While the three men in the story ended up being punished for their sins in one way or another, it must be noted that there was a character who escaped the tale unscathed. Allison, the unfaithful and lecherous wife ended up getting exactly what she wanted: Nicholas, and freedom from her two unwanted suitors. It is not quite discussed or elaborated upon in the tale, but the reader is left to wonder if Allison foresaw her victory at all. She seems to play somewhat of a passive role, especially at the beginning, seeming like the victim of a jealous husband and even denying Nicholass affections at first. But, while it is somewhat subtle, it becomes apparent that Nicholas is not the only one with a witty mind. It is said she sees Absalon as her private ape, suggesting that she is smarter than him, and is not enticed by just any attractive man, and agreed upon Nicholass plan, which seems to imply that she played a part in orchestrating it as well. She causes physical pain to Nicholas- as it is on her behalf that he is burned with a hot iron, emotional pain to Absalon by rejecting and subsequently humiliating him, and both physical and emotional pain to her husband John, as he ends up breaking his arm as a result of him trying to protect her (from the flood), and cuckolding him and proclaiming him mad.

This makes the apparent punishment of the men in the story almost incongruent to the moral of it, as the worst offender in the tale emerges as the victor. Furthermore in contrast, the least offensive character, and in turn the one with the most sympathetic qualities, emerges simply gutted of anything he ever had. Yes, the narrator forewarned about such insensitivity, but The Millers Tale seems to go beyond that to teeter on the edge of tastelessness. Nicholas is branded, Absalon humiliated, and John is ruined absolutely- not exactly outcomes that evoke giggles. And while the irony of it all makes the story surprising and thus entertaining, it does not appear to be just a light-hearted anecdote, but a crude exercise in vulgarity.