One would like to hope and believe that, in this world, there are more compassionate and kindhearted people than there are selfish, helpless individuals. The medieval masterpiece "The Prologue" of The Canterbury Tales, by Geoffrey Chaucer, is a poem, originally written in Middle English during the 14th century. After the murder of Thomas a Becket, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Chaucer meets with 30 other characters of many different social rankings and professions to embark on a pilgrimage to Becket's shrine at the cathedral of Canterbury. Each of the characters represents a contemporary picture of medieval society "[taking] the reader on a journey across medieval society" (pg. 86 in text). In this masterwork, Geoffrey Chaucer, the poet-satirist, describes medieval society by way of contrasts. Chaucer includes the Parson and the Friar to emphasize not only the good that exists within the Church but also the corruption.

Both the Parson and the...