Chaucer's Reeve and St. Paul's Old Man

Author / Editor
Smith, Charles R.

Title
Chaucer's Reeve and St. Paul's Old Man

Published
Chaucer Review 30 (1995): 101-06.

Description
The Reeve's four burning coals ("Avauntyng, liying, anger, covetise" (CT 1.3884) are taken from the description of the spiritual old man in Ephesians 4:22-28.
They serve to characterize not only the Reeve but also the four main characters in the tale, who, however young, are spiritually old men as well.

Chaucer Subjects
Reeve and His Tale.