Question

THE CANTERBURY TALES PROLOGUE
For each character named in the prologue, identify their “work” (if any) and social status, their clothing or props (what they mean), and 5 key words or symbols used to characterize the person. Is the description favorable or unfavorable? Please number the character and present
them in order.

Answer 1

Answer:

The structure of the Shipman's Tale can be understood in terms of Chaucer's puns on "cosyn," referring to relationship (between the monk and the merchant, and, indirectly, between the monk and the merchant's wife), and "cosynage," referring to deception. Used no fewer than sixteen times, the two meanings of "cosyn" take on different emphases in the two parts of the tale. In the first part the "relationship" aspect of "cosyn" dominates, with the "deception" aspect submerged. In the second part, the deception aspect dominates. The structure of the tale depends, then, on the structure of the pun.