In the Canterbury Tales, Chaucer portrays many aspects of the lives of people in the medieval era. He shows that there is more to someone than his or her class. This is especially true in his portrayal of the clergy in the general prologue and in the tales themselves. In the days of Chaucer, when the Christian church was the driving force behind most the political and moral decisions, to be part of the church was to be in a position of power and importance. These men and women were to be holy in every way and to be good examples of how others are to live. This was not always the case and Chaucer explains how, in his parody of the clergy. Chaucer criticizes the church from appearance to practice and shows that it's not what's on the outside that counts.
             The Canterbury Tales exhibits many examples of how life was in the Middle Ages by having people from all classes and social status on the pilgrimage to Canterbury. There are many members of the clergy on this journey, and Chaucer explains how they try to act holy and show themselves to be morally bankrupt in doing so. A nun was one of the characters traveling in the party. Chaucer writes that "...Frenssh she spak ful faire and fetisly (elegantly), after the scole of Stratford at the Bowe for Frenssh of Paris was to hire unknowe." (124-126). He was saying that she would try to impress the others by speaking French, even though it wasn't in the traditional French accent, showing her falsehood even in her speech. Also, "hir smiling as ful simple and coy" (119) and that during meals she would "leet no morsel from hir lippes falle, ne wette hir fingers in hir sauce deepe." (128-130) This shows that she was always trying to have a nice appearance even during meals. This is not a bad flaw in itself, but she would only do so to act in a clean matter in front of others. Chaucer continues, "She was so charitable and so pitous she wou...