The Canterbury Tales: The Miller's Tale Resources

Websites

Luminarium

Includes lots of resources for studying "The Miller's Tale," including an audio clip, bibliographies, and selected critical commentary.

Miller's Tale Background

Jane Zatta's background on "The Miller's Tale" gives some interesting information about the symbolism of the Noah's Ark story, relating the story to the class conflict expressed in the tale.

Chaucer and Boccaccio

Learn about the connection between Chaucer and Boccaccio (author of the Decameron).

Movie or TV Productions

BBC's Canterbury Tales: "The Miller's Tale" (2003)

The BBC's modern retelling of "The Miller's Tale" sets the action in a karaoke bar, where the owner's much younger wife is the star. She finds herself drawn to a young guest who promises her fame and fortune.

Pier Paolo Pasolini's Canterbury Tales (1971)

A somewhat raunchy version of Chaucer's classic by the famous Italian director. Available on DVD, but may be a little hard to find.

Historical Documents

First Printed Edition

Images of the pages of "The Miller's Tale" from the first printed edition, by William Caxton.

Illustrations of "The Miller's Tale"

Collects renderings of the events in "The Miller's Tale" from 1573 to 1913.

The Miller

A picture of the Miller from the Ellesmere manuscript.

Decameron: Day 3 Novel IV

Read this excerpt from Giovanni Boccaccio's Decameron – it has lots of similarities to "The Miller's Tale" and may have inspired Chaucer's work.

Audio

Alisoun's Portrait
Read aloud in Middle English.

Resources to Help Students Learn Middle English

Teach Yourself to Read Middle English

This page, provided by Harvard, offers ten lessons that start with a general explanation of the principles of Middle English pronunciation and move on to actual practice with the tales themselves.

A Basic Chaucer Glossary

This is a helpful glossary of Middle English terms often used in Chaucer. The 100 most common words are denoted by an asterisk.

Video

BBC's "Miller's Tale"

Watch a clip from the BBC's modern adaptation of "The Miller's Tale."

The Miller's Rap

Baba Brinkman raps “The Miller’s Tale.” Wonder what Chaucer would think of this...