'Why sholde I sowen draf out of my fest?': Chaucer and the False Prophet Motif

Author / Editor
McCormack, Frances.

Title
'Why sholde I sowen draf out of my fest?': Chaucer and the False Prophet Motif

Published
Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin and John Flood, eds. Heresy and Orthodoxy in Early English Literature, 1350-1680. Dublin Studies in Medieval and Renaissance Literature, no. 3. (Dublin: Four Courts Press, 2010), pp. 39-48.

Description
Ambiguous depictions of the Parson and Pardoner reflect contemporary debate regarding false prophets. The Pardoner's negligence, hypocrisy, and language suggest heresy, but he is not accused. The Parson is orthodox, but in his rejection of oaths, glosses, and fables, he seems a Lollard. The Parson's unwillingness to expound the Ten Commandments also suggests a fear of heresy charges, such as those leveled by the Shipman and the Host.

Contributor
Ní Chuilleanáin, Eiléan, ed.
Flood, John, ed.

Alternative Title
Heresy and Orthodoxy in Early English Literature, 1350-1680.

Chaucer Subjects
Parson and His Tale
Pardoner and His Tale