Reading Chaucer's Nun's Priest's Tale: Mixed genres and multi-layered worlds of illusion

The concept of destiny and free will in Chauntecleer's dream

“…Thus, there is no way to restrict the symbolic value of the Widow in "the Nun's Priest's Tale" to a man‐like or god‐like figure. Interestingly, Finlayson finds it sufficient to view "the widow as the Church, the cock as the secular priesthood, and the fox as the false friar" (Finlayson, 2005, 494). Regardless of how accurate Finlayson's proposal is, it provides a piece of evidence that viewing any character of "The Nun's Priest's Tale" as an exclusive representation of destiny or God is never feasible.…”

“…Interestingly, "The Nun's Priest's Tale" is viewed by Norman Eliason as "an animal fable," a joke, that may not be taken seriously beyond the moral value of any other medieval fable (Eliason, 1972, 172). On the contrary, other critics like Richard J. Schrader (1970), James D. Boulger (1974), and F. Anne Payne (1976) believe that the downfall‐escape experience of Chauntecleer is worthy of investigation, considering that animal figures in fables symbolize people (Finlayson, 2005, 495) and that their rise and downfall sometimes allude to certain theological/philosophical issues such as the original Fall of Adam and Eve, suffering, survival, death, and resurrection (Payne, 1976, 211–112). Schrader views "The Nun's Priest's Tale" as a moral narrative that criticizes certain demeanors such as flattery and pride; thus, he blames Chauntecleer for endangering himself morally and physically through his pride and improper relationship with Pertelote (Schrader, 1970, 284–290).…”

“…This reading is adopted by several critics like James J. Paxton (1994), John Finlayson (2005), and Lesley C. Kordecki (2011) who promote fables' animals to the level of humans, explaining that Chauntecleer is "a bird symbolizing a person" (Smith & Wasserman, 1999, 162) who "outsmarts" Russell, the foxy character in the tale (Brody, 1979, 33). This claim concurs with Peter Travis's confirmation that "by casting his ars poetica as an Aesopian beast fable, Chaucer is reopening that interlinear space—invoking his readers' memories of a time when they were most intimately engaged in the craft of literary analysis, imitation, and production.…”