Retribution in The Canterbury Tales
Retribution is essential to a balanced humanity, acting as an offset for immoral deeds. Although retribution remains a necessary part of existence, it can be circumvented through penance, as exemplified in The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer. Upon entering the process of penance, the sinner must take the initial step and feel repentance for their immoral actions. However, without contrition, avoidance of punishment can only be achieved through a display cunning maneuvering, which then acts as redemption. Validated by the Miller's, Pardoner's, and Friar's Tales, retribution is administered to all sinners devoid of contrition, unless he possesses an unparalleled canniness.
In "The Pardoner's Tale", three drunkards portrayed as obtuse simpletons, ultimately decline penance through their lack of contrition, and thus receive a deathly consequence. Inebriated, "they started in their drunken rage/ Many and grisly were the oaths they swore,/ Tearing Christ's blessed body to a shred;/ 'If we can only catch him, Death is dead!'" (Chaucer 251). Their blasphemy towards Christ further diminishes the characters while their sense of logic is mocked - for the slaying of Death is impossible. Evident in their actions and declarations, the drunkards lack the mental acuity required to prevent them from retribution. Additionally, in their search for Death, they fail to recognize gold as the surrogate, and thus bypasses the offer of penance. Choosing to continue with their immoral subterfuges instead of apportioning the gold, they proceed closer towards retribution. Furthermore, when the youngest drunkard receives another chance at penance, he declines the offer once again. "To men in such a state the Devil sends/ Thoughts of this kind, and has full permission/ To lure them on to sorrow and perdition;/ For this young man was utterly content/ To kill them both and never to repent." (255) Without remorse, penance cannot be completed and thus death manifests itself in the inevitable fates of the drunkards.
Similarly, "The Friar's Tale" portrays a simple-minded Summoner who bluntly rejects contrition. Although he possesses skill in fraudulence, his canny in other areas of intellect is deficient exemplified by his failure to differentiate between the words and true desires of the carter. "Besides, you lack the brains to catch my drift. If I explained you wouldn't understand;" (298). In addition, his deep devotion to profiteering causes him to lose common sense as he unhesitatingly makes pact with the Devil. Oblivious to the Widow's offer of penance, he boldly declares that he possesses no contrition for his actions. "The devil,' she said, 'can carry him away/ With pan and all unless he will repent!' / 'No you old cow, I have no such intent,' The Summoner said, 'there's no repentance due/ For anything I ever had of you.'" (302). With this statement, he seals his fate because no redemption can be granted without contrition for a man of such density. Comprised of the omniscient voice of the narrator, the concluding segment of the tale highlights the underlying concept of contrition. "And, Summoners, flee the sins that so beset you, And learn repentance ere the devil get you." (303) The preaching tone and shift in viewpoint issues a warning for future sinners; accept contrition as part of penance or else suffer the retribution.
Finally, in "The Miller's Tale", an exception is made to contrition being a necessary part of penance. Instead of receiving punishment for his sinful deeds, Nicholas redeems his actions through employing peerless canny. His persuasive appeal is displayed in his discourse with John:
"The waters will abate and flow away
Round nine o'clock upon the following day.
Don't ask me why and even if you do
I can't disclose God's secret thoughts to you.
You should be satisfied, unless you're mad,
to find as great a grace as Noah had.
And I shall save your wife, you needn't doubt it." (97)
Merging wit with rhetoric, Nicholas implements a prophetic tone as he initializes the speech with two succinct and direct sentences, stating them as though they were facts. The confidence he delivers breeds faith in his audience, and his association with God elevates his status to that of a reliable source. In addition, his prophets arouse fear, but through promising to save John's wife, Nicholas not only places himself in John's good graces, but also gains his wholehearted trust. Unsurprisingly, Nicholas is victorious in his scheme. "The revels started and the melody/ And thus lay Nicholas and Alison/ Busy in solace and the quest of fun, Until the bell for lauds had started ringing/ And in the chancel friars began their singing." (101) The auditory appeal is suggestive of triumph and victory. Thus, the canny maneuvering in this scheme acted as redemption and led his evasion from retribution.
In short, the process of penance cannot be completed without its core essence, contrition. Without it, retribution remains inevitably in their fate. For the medieval society, it preaches against the sins by exemplifying their consequences, with retribution often taking on the form death. However, it also offers hope after crime, and encourages the redemption of one's actions. This concept remains valid in today's society. Often dramatized in modern television, the cheating boyfriend is granted condonation only after a display of true-felt remorse. With her forgiveness, the penance is complete and retribution of losing his girlfriend is avoided. However, as a natural part of humanity, there must be exceptions. Rarely, a character may come along that possesses a canniness so unmatched that it acts as redemption for his sin, thus allowing him to evade the common fate. Nevertheless, retribution still serves as a warning for potential sinners.
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