Characterization Of Chaucers Miller

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

Tim Sprague

English 201 (Thurs 7:45-10:00)

Ms. Iris Barbour

Characterization: Chaucer’s Miller

Geoffrey Chaucer’s "The Canterbury Tales" has an intriguing character named Robin, a miller, who ties the group of pilgrims together, filling a gap that is created by having gentry and serfs in the same group on their journey to Canterbury. Robin wears a white coat and a blue hood (Chaucer line 564). Two items mark Robin as transgressive and tie the gentry and the serfs together, one being the blue hood, and the other being the sword and buckler (Smith 342). This miller is depicted as lower class in several ways and still shows ties to the upper class as well with a few traits and characteristics.

A miller ties the classes of gentry and serf together financially by the fact that a miller was considered to be wealthy among serfs and poor among gentry yet didn’t fall into either class if he was a freeman. A miller was actually considered to be in the same class as the serfs, as it was in the roman times, and often would fall into a social disrepute. A miller could be free and would no longer be a serf, but would still not be considered gentry. Miller’s made a lot of money by exploiting the serfs that were forced to come to their mills, with this money they would buy garb and apparel that would distinguish them from the serfs they were over, trying to tie them into the gentry’ class, but never actually being able to do so. Wearing of colored garments was considered illegal for lower classes to wear, but the millers were able to and did so to expressly identify them as not being lower class. Once a miller was free and no longer a serf, they could bear arms with exception of taverns as they were considered drunkards and would cause a ruckus. (Jones 6-7). According to Lambdin and Lambdin a miller would actually fall right between the lines of serf and gentry, depending on who was assessing them, the serfs they were in charge of considered them gentry and the gentry considered them as serfs with the privilege of carrying weapons, they were not trusted or wanted by either set of classes (275). Millers earned bad reputations for many different reasons, among these reasons were that the serfs on many lands were required by their lords to use the miller or pay a fine, the miller knowing this would charge the serfs extra money knowing they couldn’t go elsewhere, there was no competition to keep their rates low or even treat the serfs properly. The miller would charge the serfs a toll on top of the extra fee they were already charged and would often scrape out extra grains to the side and use their thumb to add extra weight to make the scales look right, making up for the missing grain, or add extra weight to charge them more (Jones 9), this was known as the "golden thumb" (Chaucer line 563). Millers often would charge serfs to utilize the land that the mill sat on, the millers owned all the land it was on, such as the water and the wood near it, and all the animals located within those boundaries which would all further increase the amount of money flow the miller made, Chaucer only makes mention of the golden thumb one time and no other reference to this particular miller being of sleight of hand or thieving (Lambdin and Lambdin 273).

Robin is definitely looked upon as a serf and is so defined by the description of the miller in the "General Prologue" by Chaucer. Physically the miller is a large man, as big as any, big in statue as well as muscles (Chaucer Lines 545-549). The physical attribute of the miller to be big and strong was due to the work he did, trading out mill stones and taking care of the land he worked (Jones 6). Robin’s hair color on his beard and even the hairs on the wart at the end of his nose is described as red, which many would commonly attribute to a miller; the color was also attributed to lechery and being as cunning as a fox (Lambdin and Lambdin 276). Robin was described as his nostrils were big and dark, and his mouth being a great furnace from which he told many jokes and stories which were crude and full of sin (Chaucer Lines 557-561). The description of the miller being that of a furnace is something that many people could relate with being filthy and nasty as were the things that would commonly come out of the miller’s mouth (Lambdin and Lambdin 276). The words that come from the millers mouth are not so surprising when he tells his story to the group as it is filled with lust and fornication, as well as crude gestures. The poor Absolon who lingers for a kiss and ends up kissing the naked rump of Alison, then then later returns to repay the favor with a hot branded weapon, when Nicholas sticks his bare rump out the window and farts in his face, only to be met with a red hot poker. The act of copulation between Nicholas and Alison, while her husband is in a tub suspended from the roof (Gerald 495).

Physically the miller is tied to the serf class by all the previous statements but he also is able to be tied to the Knight, who is part of the gentry’ class, by physical attributes as well, and that is his wrestling ability and his size. Chaucer specifies wrestling in the description of the miller as a sport and not an occupation, as miller would be his occupation, this physical feat ties the knight and the miller together equaling the playing field, according to Semenza (66). To many scholars the act of wrestling often does nothing more than affirm the crudeness and low level of serfdom that the miller represents, but as Chaucer describes the miller he points out his physical attributes and even as an accomplished wrestler in his field, but Chaucer also points out that the Knight too is an accomplished brawler and is a skilled, and highly athletic fighter (Semenza 72). More than 15 battles has the knight won, and fought at Tramyssene, and was in three different tournaments and slayed his foe all three times (Chaucer 61-63). The miller too wins his wrestling as is pointed out in the "General Prologue" that he would win the ram at every show (Chaucer Line 58). While fighting a tournament to the death and wrestling are different in the end result of winner and loser, they both serve to display that both of these men were not mere participants but that they were both accomplished in their tasks and enjoyments, both were victors of one-on-one combat which further blurs the social hierarchy. This is an important tie between the two men to level the playing field since they would be doing essentially the same thing with their stories to earn a prize at the end of a journey, using words instead of physical feats. Wrestling is a unique sport among medieval times, as it was practiced by all classes, upper as well as the lower; the concept was that this would provide training and skills required in war. Wrestling was one of the few activities that were allowed to mix social orders and be accepted, much as the contest of the story telling put forth by the host, which is happening on the journey to Canterbury (Semenza 75-77).

The miller manages to fill the missing gap between the serfs and the gentry’ while on this pilgrimage to Canterbury by spanning the gap in both financial and physical differences. Chaucer makes strong direction toward the color of his cloak and hood, being white and blue, as well as that he wears a sword and buckler (Lines 558-564). The fact that he wore a blue hood means that he is not a serf, as they were not allotted to wear such colors, only gentry were allowed, and the carrying of a sword and buckler meant he was a freeman as well, but his job, being a miller, was certainly a job held by serfs, free or not (Jones 6-7). Physically the miller spans to the gentry’, standing equal to the knight in the arena of wrestling, in the accomplishments of the miller’s feats, his winning of shows, just as the knight wins his tournaments, as wrestling was a sport that spanned across all the orders, it was to show that he not only did it, but was as accomplished at it was the knight was (Semenza 77). Chaucer’s miller was a beautiful connection between the "commoner" and the "lords" of their time, as he was as brash and bold as a serf, he knew how to work hard and play hard, but he also was able to meet the gentry’ on their field and dress appropriately, could afford nicer things, and could physically hold his own in a confrontation.