The Pardoner's Tale of Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer is a structured novel that begins with the narrator obtaining twenty traveling companions at an inn. They are all going to Canterbury to pay homage to a saint. Along the way, these colorful individuals decide to make the journey more bearable by holding a story-telling contest. Each will tell a story on the way to Canterbury and a story on the way back. The winner will be decided by the innkeeper, who will accompany them. Unfortunately, it appears that Chaucer never got around to finishing the novel, so there is only one story for each character. However, it does a great job of portraying a lively picture with each description of the characters and their stories. While most of them are well portrayed, the one character who is better developed is the Forgiver. He sells the Church's forgiveness to people who have sinned and seek absolution. He also preaches against sins, especially greed. Ironically, in the prologue of his story, he admits that he is guilty of that sin and is quite proud of it. His story is also about greed; in it, Death takes three greedy men to their early graves. Looking at Chaucer's description of the pardoner, the pardoner's confessions about himself, and his tale, one can see how they are all appropriate characterizations of the pardoner. The general prologue establishes the structure under which the novel will develop. The narrator meets his new companions and describes each of them, some in more detail than others. When he begins to write about the pardoner, he talks about his physical appearance. Her curls fell in streams behind her head, down to her shoulders, which... in the center of the paper... ide, but on the inside, too. He sells grace to cleanse people's souls of sin and carries around "holy relics" in his bag to show to people willing to pay to see them. In the prologue to the Pardoner's Tale, he admits that he is a hypocrite; preaching against sin despite being a sinner himself. He also confesses his detachment from his congregation; he doesn't care how such a large money contribution will leave them in financial ruin, as long as he has the money. On the contrary, his story is the exact opposite of his personality. These are three men who are punished by God for being greedy, greedy and above all sinners. However, it still fits the character of the forgiver in how it is used: to make people feel guilty and give money to the forgiver. Overall, even though the Forgiver is one of the worst human beings in the novel, he is truly the most fascinating.