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A summary and analysis of the Pardoner's Tale, a cautionary story about three rioters who find a treasure and kill each other for greed. The Pardoner is a hypocritical and corrupt character who preaches against sin but practices it himself.
Setting out to kill Death, three young men encounter an Old Man who says they will find him under a nearby tree. When they arrive they discover a hoard of treasure and decide to stay with it until nightfall and carry it away under the cover of night. Out of greed, they murder one another.
The Pardoner's Tale is a cautionary story about the dangers of greed and avarice, told by a corrupt and hypocritical preacher. He relates the fate of three young men who find a treasure and kill each other for it, and warns the pilgrims to avoid such sins.
Read the full text of The Pardoner's Tale, one of the stories told by the pilgrims on their way to Canterbury. The tale warns of the dangers of gluttony, gambling and lechery, and the inevitability of death.
The Pardoner’s Tale, one of the 24 stories in The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer. The cynical Pardoner explains in a witty prologue that he sells indulgences—ecclesiastical pardons of sins—and admits that he preaches against avarice although he practices it himself. His tale relates how three.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Read the full text of the Pardoner's Tale from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, with commentary and translation. Learn about the Pardoner's character, his sermon, and his story of three rioters.
Learn about the Pardoner, a pious fraud who sells false relics and tells a morality tale of three riotous young men who try to kill Death. Explore the sources, analogues, and interpretations of this tale and its prologue.
