The Manciple's Tale - Violet Hall

## Description

The Manciple is a fictional character in Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales . The description of The Manciple is shown in the prologue , lines 1210-1245. The Manciple is a man who seems smart and wealthy. He puts himself off that way, though all he's doing is committing fraud. This man is also extremely heart-broken, as his wife committed adultery with another man. He despised her to begin with, as he was forced into this marriage.

**"Weeping and wailing, care and other sorrow I know enough, on even and a-morrow!" Quod the Merchant. "And so do others more That wedded be! I trow that it be so, For well I wot it fareth so with me! I know it goes I have a wife, the worstè that may be; For though the fiend to her y-coupled '***were'***,  She would him overmatch, I dare well swear. What should I you rehearse in specïal tell in detail Her high malice? She is a shrew at all! in every way There is a long and largè difference Betwixt Griselda's greatè patïence And of my wife the passing cruelty. '***Were'* **I unbounden, also may I thee'***,I'* **never would eft come into the snare. We wedded men live in sorrow and care; Assayè whoso will and he shall find That I say sooth, by Saint Thomas of '***Inde'***, As for the more part — I say not all; God shieldè that it shouldè so befall! Ah, good sir Host, I have y-wedded be These monthès two, and morè not, '***pardee'***, And yet, I trowè, he that all his life Wifeless has been, though '***that men'* **would him rive Unto the heart, '***ne'* **could in no mannér Tellen so muchè sorrow as I '***now here'* **Could tellen of my wifè's cursedness."  "Now," quod our Host, "Merchant, so God you bless, Since you so muchè knowen of that art, Full heartily I pray you '***tell'* **us part." "Gladly," quod he, "but of mine ownè sore For '***sorry'* **heart I tellè may no more."**

## Status

The manciple is in charge of getting food and supplies for an institution. In Canterbury Tales, the manciple works in the temple as both a food supplier but also as a person to look up to for the others. This person isn’t royalty, however, they’re considered a role model and someone who is a bit higher than the average person. The Manciple specifically works for a group of lawyers as essentially a caterer.

## Day to Day Life

This person would wake up and eat foods that would have been preserved or freshly picked/baked for breakfast. Then this person would go to work and keep track of the money and balances of the merchants. They would also make sure the food is grown correctly and whether or not it’s good to sell or “cater to lawyers”. The Merchant would serve meals to the lawyers throughout the day as they worked They would then eat food and finish off their workday either preparing food for the next day or gathering supplies for future meals.

The Merchant's TaleThe Merchant was a 60-year-old man who was worried he wouldn't get married before "senility". He sent out a plea wishing for a delightful marriage. A young woman was brought to him and forced to marry him. He had envisioned something completely different and easy. His dreams were soon crushed with sorrow and woe as his love was just a "childish vanity". They argued all the time, he hated her. He often times compared her to Satan.

She was but a servant to his elderly and adulterous needs. His anti-feminism views only made this worse. If he wanted something done, she would say 'yes sir' and oblige. This prompted her to simply wait until the day he dies to be free once again. Her young heart didn't want an old one, she wanted one more her own age. Soon thereafter, she was caught with another man whilst in wedlock. This upset the Manciple leaving him with extremely negative and pessimistic thoughts.

Through all of this happening, it was later found out that the Manciple was stealing from and taking the money from the other Merchants. This was not only blamed on his age, but also because of who he worked with. He tried to keep the image of himself extremely high as he worked with high-end lawyers. It seems as if his philosophy is to be worth the same as those he works for. Doesn't this contradict his anti-feminism?

## Chaucer's Opinion

Chaucer gave the Manciple a “satiric” tone that shows his dislike for arrogance and wrongdoings. Through his fraud, Chaucer praises the Manciple for his financial wisdom and his ability to be wise enough to be able to. It seems as if Chaucer gave the Manciple a contradictory character which could be an example of how much the world was separated and through blank arguments at each other.

 Sources

* Shmoop Editorial Team. “The Manciple in The Canterbury Tales: General Prologue & Frame Story.” Shmoop, Shmoop University, 11 Nov. 2008, www.shmoop.com/canterbury-tales-prologue/the-manciple.html.
* “The Canterbury Tales.” The Manciple's Prologue and Tale, Cliffnotes, www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/c/the-canterbury-tales/summary-and-analysis/the-manciples-prologue-and-tale.
* “What Is the Manciple's Personality like in The Canterbury Tales?” Enotes.com, Enotes.com, www.enotes.com/homework-help/what-manciples-personality-like-canterbury-tales-288920.
* http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/webcore/murphy/canterbury/11merchant.pdf
* Chaucer, Geoffrey. *The Cantebury Tales*. Norton, W.W., and Co., 2004.