Teaching The Canterbury Tales: The Pardoner's Tale

Instructions for You

Objective: To put it lightly, Big Geoffy C. was an ambitious man: he planned for each character in The Canterbury Tales to share four "amusing and instructive" stories. Not only was he going to tell over 115 stories, but they all had to teach some kind of lesson. No wonder he never finished it all. And here your students are complaining about simple homework, arewerite?

People have been using stories to teach lessons for thousands of years. The purpose of today's activity is to identify the different types of literature that tell a moral or a lesson, as well as expose your students to "moral" stories from different countries and cultures, using "The Pardoner's Tale" as a jumping-off point. All together this activity should take about an hour and a half.

Materials Needed: links to Shmoop's pages on fables and parables, a copy of the text for reference and/or Shmoop's summary page

Step 1: We're sure that you've already discussed the more literal aspects of the prologue and "The Pardoner's Tale"…you know: who said what, main characters, plots twists…stuff like that. It's time to jump off the cliff and take a deep dive. You'll begin this lesson with a 15-minute discussion about the greater purpose of this specific tale, asking the following:

• We know that the Pardoner was trying to get people to understand that "avarice is the root of all evil." Why didn't he just tell them that? Why do you think he chooses to tell a story instead?
• Can you think of time in your life when people tried to get their message across through a story?
• Why do you think telling a story is more effective than just telling people the point that needs to be made?

Step 2: It's time to move to a conversation on storytelling with a purpose. You might consider saying something like:

Storytelling's used in lots of different places, and it isn't just for children. Most people love a good story. A lot of times, it's more than the actions and the characters that make a great story—though those are certainly important. A good story has something a bit deeper—like a lesson. The Pardoner tells an exemplum.

Write the word and definition on the board: An exemplum (an example) is an anecdote or short narrative used to make a point or moral or sustain an argument. It was used commonly in the medieval period.

Ask the students: What other types of stories are you familiar with that tell a moral in a story?

Fables and parables are the two most common types that most students would be familiar with. Shmoop it up a bit with your students and give them about 20 minutes to take a look at a definition and an example for each:

Fables: "The Tortoise and the Hare"

Parables: "Prodigal Son"

If you're hesitant to use the bible as literature, you can use "The Emperor's New Clothes" as an example of a parable instead.

Step 3: Once the class has read the definitions and stories, hold a ten-minute discussion around the following questions:

• What was the moral or lesson each provided?
• Considering the style and structure, what are the differences between the two?
• Do you find one more effective than the other? Why?

Step 4: Time to expose the students to a bit of diversity and see how other nationalities choose to express morals through stories. Divide the students into six groups, and then assign each group one of the following fables that they can look up online and read. If you wish to use different fables or add a few more to the mix, here's a source.

• "The Tiger, the Ram, and the Jackal" (African)
• "The Jackal and the Wolf" (African)
• "The Monkey's Fiddle" (African)
• "The Foolish Lion and the Clever Rabbit" (Indian)
• "The Monkey and the Crocodile" (Indian)
• "The Mice and the Elephants" (Indian)

Step 5: Provide the following directions and questions to the students:

1. As a group, look up and read the story you've been assigned. One person can read it aloud to the entire group or members can read it silently. For those groups reading one of the Indian fables, read the first few paragraphs of this page, which provides some context on the Panchatantra and will make the lesson being taught a bit easier to understand.
2. Take notes as your group answers the following questions:
   • What's the moral/lesson to the story?
   • How's it similar to or different from the tales and fables you are familiar with? Explain.
   • Why do you think these tales have endured for over a century?
3. Get back together as a class and discuss the same questions to gather insights from different groups. This should all take about 30 minutes.

Step 6: Once the discussion's complete, assign the students a simple 200-word reflection to write at home on the following topic: From your personal experience, what has been the most memorable fable or parable that you've heard or read, and what impact did it have on you?

Step 7: If there's time, you can have volunteers share their personal reflections with the class.

Instructions for Your Students

To put it lightly, Big Geoffy C. was an ambitious man: he planned for each character in The Canterbury Tales to share four "amusing and instructive" stories. Not only was he going to tell over 115 stories, but they all had to teach some kind of lesson. No wonder he never finished it all. And here you are, complaining about simple homework.

People have been using stories to teach lessons for thousands of years. The purpose of today's activity is to identify the different types of literature that tell a moral or a lesson, as well as expose you to "moral" stories from different countries and cultures, using "The Pardoner's Tale" as a jumping-off point.

Let's jump off.

Step 1: We're sure that you've already discussed the more literal aspects of the prologue and "The Pardoner's Tale"…you know: who said what, main characters, plot twists…stuff like that. It's time to jump off the cliff and take a deep dive. You'll start with a 15-minute class discussion about the greater purpose of this specific tale, talking about the following:

• We know that the Pardoner was trying to get people to understand that "avarice is the root of all evil." Why didn't he just tell them that? Why do you think he chooses to tell a story instead?
• Can you think of time in your life when people tried to get their message across in a story?
• Why do you think telling a story is more effective than just telling people the point that needs to be made?

Step 2: It's time to move to a conversation on storytelling with a purpose. Teach will ask: What other types of stories are you familiar with that tell a moral in a story?

Fables and parables are the two most common types that most students would be familiar with. Shmoop it up a bit and take 20 minutes to take a look at a definition and an example for each:

Fables: "The Tortoise and the Hare"

Parables: "Prodigal Son"

Step 3: Next up, teach will hold a ten-minute discussion around the following questions:

• What was the moral or lesson each provided?
• Considering the style and structure, what are the differences between the two?
• Do you find one more effective than the other? Why?

Step 4: You're going to get divided into six groups, and each will be assigned with a fable to look up online and read.

Step 5: As a group, look up and read the story you've been assigned. One person can read it aloud to the entire group or members can read it silently. For those groups reading one of the Indian fables, read the first few paragraphs of this page, which provides some context on the Panchatantra and will make the lesson being taught a bit easier to understand.

Step 6: Then, take notes as your group answers the following questions:

• What's the moral/lesson to the story?
• How's it similar to or different from the tales and fables you're familiar with? Explain.
• Why do you think these tales have endured for over a century?

Step 7: Get back together as a class and discuss the same questions to gather insights from different groups. This should all take about 30 minutes.

Step 8: Once the discussion's complete, you'll complete a simple 200-word reflection at home on the following topic: From your personal experience, what has been the most memorable fable or parable that you've heard or read, and what impact did it have on you?

Step 9: If there's time, your teacher will have volunteers share their personal reflections with the class.