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Unit 11: The Prologue to the Canterbury Tales (Non-detailed Study): Discussion and Analysis-III
Digvijay Pandya, Lovely Professional University

Unit 11: The Prologue to the Canterbury Tales Notes

(Non-detailed Study): Discussion and Analysis-III

CONTENTS
Objectives

Introduction
11.1 The Man of Law’s Tale

11.1.1 Introduction to the Man of Law’s Tale
11.1.2 Prologue of the Man of Law’s Tale

11.1.3 Man of Law’s Tale Text

11.1.4 Epilogue to the Man of Law’s Tale
11.2 The Wife of Bath’s Tale

11.2.1 Prologue to the Wife of Bath’s Tale
11.2.2 The Words between the Summoner and the Friar

11.2.3 The Wife of Bath’s Tale Text
11.3 Summary

11.4 Keywords

11.5 Review Questions
11.6 Further Readings

Objectives

After studying this unit, you will be able to:
• Explain the prologue and introduction to the man of law’s tale
• Explain the prologue and text of the wife of bath’s tale
• Describe briefly the analysis of the man of law’s and wife of bath’s tale.

Introduction

In the prologue to The Man of Law’s tale, there is a reference to stories Chaucer has already published
in The Legend of Good Women. This leads to commentary about the nature of a story as something
told rather than as something that happened. It also presents the medieval notion that stories are
something like a commodity which can be used up. In other words, there is a limited number of plots
and most of the good stories have already been told. Actually, Chaucer will contradict this notion in
The Canterbury Tales by rearranging incidents and characters to create vigorously new stories. Because
several elements of this prologue do not seem to fit what follows, many critics believe that the Man of

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