The characterization is important in a literary work because it adds on to not only the form but also the content of a story. Geoffrey Chaucer, in his work The Canterbury Tales uses the action of characterization so brilliantly that the reader can grasp the aim of each narrator in each tale. One such character from the tales is The Miller and his story about the wife of a carpenter. The miller, in the prologue, is described as a drunk, rude, and an unstable person; whereas in his tale, as he tells the story, we see him as a man who is trying to teach the moral action through parody and entertainment.
The Prologue of The Miller, even though very short, gives us a very clear-cut image of what kind of a man the Miller is- both in appearance and in character. His faulty appearance, which is his black nostrils, big mouth and the wart on his nose, paint an almost ugly picture and even cause some prejudice for us. His great built-up posture reminds us of big strong and sometimes scary men. A combination of suspense describes his clothing; where the sword makes us suspicious of why he carries a sword to a pilgrimage, and deception; where the colors of his white coat and blue hood give us a false-seeming that he isn’t a bad person. Since he is described as a drunk and because he swears in many different ways, we get the impression that his character and what he says cannot be trusted. The way he ambitiously claims that he will “cap the knight” shows his rude and even slang language and nature. Even though the main aim of these tales, as the Host describes in the general prologue, is to entertain and to make the journey easier, the Miller has taken the contest so seriously that he is going to dishonor the Knight. This shows his aggressive and crude behavior. Another characteristic we can say about the Miller is his instability both physically and mentally. Since he is a drunk, we can presume that he has difficulty in standing, or speaking; even though this physical instability does not abstain him from telling his tale. His mental instability comes from his untrusting nature towards his wife. His remarks on how he trusts his wife and that she would not cheat on him makes the reader ask the question: if you trust her then why do you feel like you have to say so? His remark shows how he is unconfident with himself and that he does not trust his wife. We may also presume that this mental instability is the reason for his drunkenness. In short, The Miller appears as a character that we would not like and the society would not approve of. However, the reasons for his character are uncertain: it could be the fact that he is drunk that makes him act in such a way, or it could just be his sole nature.
Despite the description of the Miller in the prologue, the tale he tells conveys not only a funny story for the audience, but also has a moral lesson behind it. The male characters, more specifically Fly Nicholas, resemble the Miller in personality traits. This makes us wonder if the Miller is criticising himself and is seeking for redemption because he is aware of his faults. We can presume that through the representation of himself by the character, Fly Nicholas, the Miller is giving the moral lesson he aims. The mistakes of the characters and their punishment are conveying a message to the readers: do not fall for your desires and make such mistakes; otherwise, you will be punished severely-like being burnt on the ‘bum.’ The naivety of the carpenter also makes us wonder if this is the way the Miller sees himself: an old, naïve, very much in love man who is tricked because of his naivety by his wife and his friends. The fact that the carpenter’s wife cheats on her husband also reveals the truth that we suspected in the prologue: the miller does not trust his wife, and in his tale, he tells us why through the representation of another character. As the story develops, we are entertained by silly jokes that the characters do to each other. We can presume from these jokes, that the Miller is trying to give us something to smile, while he is teaching (or maybe preaching) a lesson (a sermon). One other quote that makes us wonder about the very nature of the Miller is his words that follow: “For there are some who will be won with riches, / And some with blows; and some again with kindness.” (Chaucer, 88) These lines show some character traits of the Miller such as he is aware of some realities that Plato would call Forms; namely kindness, desire, appetite. The fact that he can make such a general remark shows his rational thinking, which is ironic because he is drunk. From these interpretations, we wonder the very nature of the Miller; is he the drunk, irrational man as explained in the prologue, or is he the rational person who aims in improving the society and maybe in redeeming himself?
The Tale and the prologue, in this sense, differ from each other in the depiction of the character of the Miller. However, regarding content, both the tale and the prologue states that the story told will be entertaining and will be a challenge for the Knight. We may not know Chaucer’s intentions in creating a character such as a miller, but we can understand the character. However, the way we understand the character of the Miller depends on the way we interpret his actions, what he says, the way he is represented and the way we understand the tale.