Question

What is the most valid moral that you find in "The Pardoner’s Tale"—in other words, what message or idea in it still applies best to life today? Discuss how this message is delivered in the tale. Analyze any way in which the message is ironic, such as a discrepancy between the tale and the teller; between what is expected and what happens; or between what is said and what is meant.

Answer 1

Answer:

Explanation:

The moral lesson that Pardoner's Tale gives and is still valid today is that one must not be greedy as it can lead to many other evil acts. This idea still best applies to life today as we live in a world where people have become more avid which leads to many pernicious deeds.

In his tale Pardoner tells that three friends were sitting and drinking when they here the funeral knell. Someone come and tells them that one of their friend is killed last night by someone named 'Death'. To take revenge the three friends make a quest to search for 'Death'. They come across an old man in sorrow who is waiting for 'Death' to come and take his life when they hear the name 'Death' they ask the old man where is 'Death' and he tells them that he left 'Death' under an oak tree. The three friends reach under the oak tree but did not find 'Death' but instead, they find a bag full of gold coins. They become greedy and think of stealing the bag in night time and send one friend to fetch some bread and wine from home so that they can wait till night to steal. That one friend becomes greedy and conspires to kill his other two friends so that he could take all the money for himself. So he puts poison in two wine bottle and goes back to his friends where his two friends attack him and drinks wine from the poisoned bottle. Thus, Pardoner concludes his tale that all must be aware of 'sin of avarice' which brings 'treachery and death'.

This tale contains many ironic elements. But the overall irony of the tale was the Pardoner who usually preaches every sermon on greed is himself greedy of relics.