Meet the Miller

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Meet the Miller

In the "General Prologue" of The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer presents his reader with a blend of unlikely yet entertaining characters that find themselves on a pilgrimage to Canterbury. Chaucer then describes the different characteristics and the outward appearances of these characters at length. He probably does so in order to bring these characters to life, giving us a more vivid understanding of what kind of people they were. The Miller is one of the most vivid characters that I have encountered in Chaucer's work for he is perfectly delineated as the man he is, without including any unnecessary detail.

The Miller is described as a short and sturdy man who possesses uncanny strength. The undisputed champion of wrestling is he. He even seems hero-like at first:

The millere was a stout churl for the nones;

Ful byg he was of brawn, and eek of bones.

That proved wel, for over al ther he cam,

At wrastlynge he wolde have alwey the ram.

He was short-sholdred, brood, a thikke knarre; Norton, 545-549.

Although he is said to possess extraordinary strength, he is described in a derogatory manner as we read the passage. It seems that he is more of a brawl-initiator than a hero. The man wrestles for the ram, probably a prize awarded at such matches, clearly a peasant pastime. Even initially, it does not seem like we are dealing with a highly sophisticated person here.

Actually, the Miller does use his head! I only hope he does so in rare instances for the author mentions that "ther was no dore that he nolde heve of harre, / or breke it at a rennyng with his heed" (Norton, 550-551). There you have it. Our hero engages in heaving doors off their hinges or breaking them down with his head. But do ...

... middle of paper ...

...nded by. The Miller is, in fact, described as the scum of society, but he is necessary scum. Chaucer presents us with the facts of life, and whether we may think they are disgusting or unsuitable to be presented to us in such a blunt manner, they must be told, for they remain an undisputed piece of the Middle-English pie.

Sources

Abrams, M. H. and Greenblatt, Stephen. eds. The Norton Anthology of English Literature.

W.W. Norton & Company: New York, 2000.

Sumner, Laura. "The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnell."

Smith College Studies in Modern Languages. V, No.4: Mass., 1924.

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/CT-prolog-para.html,10/24/00.

http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/canterbury/, 10/24/00.

http://www.classicnote.com/ClassicNotes/Titles/canterbury/,10/24/00.

http://www.classicnote.com/ClassicNotes/Titles/canterbury/tale1.html, 10/24/00.

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