The Nun's Priest's Tale : Themes
The Nun's Priest's Tale is a notable literary work by Geoffrey Chaucer. A complete discussion of this literary work is given, which will help you enhance your literary skills and prepare for the exam. Read the Main texts, Key info, Summary, Themes, Characters, Literary devices, Quotations, Notes, to various questions of The Nun's Priest's Tale.
Themes
Dream: Chaunticleer dreams of being attacked by a beast-like creature, which scares him. He believes that dreams can warn of danger. Pertelote, his wife, mocks him and says dreams mean nothing. She thinks bad dreams come from a bad stomach. Chaunticleer disagrees and tells stories to show that dreams can be true. In the end, his dream comes true when the fox tries to catch him. The tale shows that dreams might predict actual events.
Flattery: The fox uses compliments to deceive Chaunticleer by praising his beautiful singing voice. Chaunticleer feels proud, lets his guard down, and allows the fox to capture him. Later, Chaunticleer flatters the fox by suggesting he boasts about his catch. Falling into this trick, the fox opens his mouth, and Chaunticleer gets a chance to escape. The tale teaches that flattery can be used as a tool to deceive or manipulate others. This is a dangerous power.