Consider the significance of the role of the Old Man in The Pardoner's Tale

Although the character appears for only a few lines in Chaucer’s The Pardoner’s Tale, the Old Man is a character of great significance to the text. He appears to act as a foil to the other sinful characters in the poem, may symbolise the supernatural idea of death and is presented as an arcane figure that intrigues the reader. It is clear that many of these significant aspects to the Old Man’s role link with elements of the Gothic genre.

  Chaucer presents the Pardoner as an ambiguous, arcane and mysterious character in his poem. We as a reader never truly know anything about him because his name, as well as information with regards to where he has come from or where he is going, are not revealed to us. The most significant mystery about his character is his role in the reveller’s death later in the text. The Old Man sends them up the “croked weye” towards the money and where they ultimately die. Whilst the word “croked” could connote how their “abhominable” behaviour is corrupt and immoral, and that it can only lead to destruction, a much greater significance is its ambiguity. We do not know whether it is their “grisly” behaviour or the Old Man’s intervention that leads to their damnation and death at the end of the tale. There are hints that it could be the Old Man’s sinister plan when he ominously says “in age, if that ye so longe abide”. This appears to strengthen the argument further that the Old Man does intend to send them to their death. Despite this, we still do not truly know for certain. This uncertainty and obscurity about the Old Man’s character may have been used to create tension and unease. We often fear what we do not understand, so Chaucer may have wished to use this absence of information to evoke a thrilling sense of terror and uncertainty from the reader.

  A much greater significance of the Old Man is his role as the antithesis of the corrupt and sinful characters in the text. When we are first introduced to the Old Man, Chaucer presents him as humble, gentle and benign: he is described as “ful mekely” and wishes upon the revellers that “God yow see!” them through their day. This connotes his innate goodness; the Old Man appears to be a welcoming character who treats the revellers with kindness. Chaucer juxtaposes this with other immoral characters in the text, such as The Pardoner who narrates this tale. The Pardoner is the antithesis of the Old Man: he is a “ful vicious man” of “avarice” rather than selflessness. This use of the word “vicious” suggests corruption, wickedness and a decayed sense of morality- qualities the Old Man does not appear to possess. The Pardoner, in contrast, would easily let “children sterve for famine” or take from the “povereste page” to satiate his covetousness. Some would argue that Chaucer does this to highlight how monstrous The Pardoner truly is. The Old Man may act as a foil which highlights why the narrator, whose only intention is to “winne” money, is someone the reader should be utterly repulsed by. The poem appears to be didactic in its message as it presents us with a symbol of virtue, the Old Man, to juxtapose with and condemn the corrupt Pardoner. However, a much stronger reading suggests that Chaucer is not creating revulsion for the Pardoner; rather, he may be highlighting the irony and folly of his Christian role. In Medieval England, the Pardoner and all religious clergymen would have been expected to be a good-natured, holy and moral. Chaucer presents the reader with the complete opposite, subverting our expectations of a religious man. Through the Old Man’s virtues, Chaucer may be choosing to satirise the corruption of the Catholic Church. After all, it is almost comic how a ‘fictional character’ in the Pardoner’s moral tale is actually more virtuous than the preaching narrator himself.

  The greatest significance of the Old Man is his complex relationship with death. He is initially presented as a supernatural character who could be the personification of death itself. Chaucer has lexicalised the description of the Old Man- “forwrapped”; “bones” and “vanisshe”- so that it evokes a sense of decay and withering. The Old Man’s striking physical description is one that appears to symbolise erosion and decay; contextually, it may even represent the Black Death which had plagued Europe. It could be argued Chaucer wished to use him as symbolic of death itself. After all, the revellers do describe him as death’s “espye”. By doing this, Chaucer does appear to be suggesting that the Old Man has greater, otherworldly powers than we first imagined. When the three revellers die at the end, we as readers naturally remember the macabre Old Man who sent them up the “croked weye”. However, a much stronger interpretation does suggest that the Old Man is a character we sympathise with, rather than fear, because he has lost the ability to die. The character is presented as having been cheated of the one quality every human being shares- the ability to die. Instead, he is a “restless kaitif” who is often pleading for his death to come: “leet me in!” to my grave he begs; he is often despondent over the fact “none.. chaunge his youthe for myn age”. The sympathy lies in the fact he has lost something he clearly seeks, but cannot have (even if he travelled from here to India). Death is something everyone has, even the “abhominable” revellers are allowed the right to this very human experience. Yet, the Old Man does not, and this ultimately creates a lot of sympathy for this almost victimised character who is denied the experience he wants the most.

  Chaucer uses the minor character of the Old Man to create a lot of meaning. The ambiguity about him, his juxtapositioning with the Pardoner and his supernatural immortality all appear to have been used to evoke different emotions from the reader. Whilst these evoked emotions could be negative ones, such as fear and unease, it is clear the Old Man represents the virtues and goodness of humanity when juxtaposed with many of the other characters lack in this poem. Thus, a lot of sympathy is created because he is punished to the greatest extent through immortality, whereas morally corrupt characters such as The Pardoner and the revellers do not experience such comeuppance.

"Macbeth is a play about the nature of evil rather than the nature of ambition". To what extent do you agree with this view of the play?

Shakespeare's Macbeth is a play that initially appears to be about the nature of evil. There are many monstrous and wicked acts committed in this play, such as Duncan's Murder, Lady Macbeth's rejection of her humanity and the slaughter of the Macduff household. It could be argued that Shakespeare explores the nature of these evil acts, and how they affect the characters involved. However, it could also be argued that this play is about the nature of ambition that underlies this evil. With characters such as Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, it is often the nature of their aspirations and their desire to transgress beyond limitations that this play examines. Often, their evil behaviour is just a method of appeasing their ambition, rather than a theme the play explores in depth. 
   Through the aftermath of Duncan's murder, Shakespeare could be exploring the horrifying nature of evil. This pivotal moment within the play is presented as a disastrous catastrophe that should never have occurred. It is an event which leaves all the characters in a state of "o horror, horror", and even the setting of the weather appears to be "troubled with man's act". In the night following the murder, the setting is described as "dreadful and strange", which appears to reflect how appalling and abhorrent this act of regicide is. Contextually, this use of setting may reflect a Jacobean audience's response to Duncan's death. It could have been considered to be so evil in nature, and such a challenge to the natural order, that many audiences are left feeling nothing but contempt for Macbeth's crime. Thus, it could be argued that Shakespeare is exploring the horrifying and appalling nature of evil through this pivotal moment in the text. 
   However, a much greater reading suggests that this pivotal scene is actually about the corruptive nature of ambition. At the opening of the play, Macbeth is a "brave", loyal and patriotic soldier who would do anything to protect his king- he was a "sparrow eagle" who fought for his country's safety. Once the Witches tell Macbeth about his future as king, this presentation becomes subverted. Macbeth later decays into a man consumed by his "black and deep desires". His ambition to "o'erleap" Malcolm to the throne takes priority over his morality as he murders the king to satisfy his grand aspirations. Shakespeare, through Macbeth's changing characterisation, appears to be exploring the corruptive nature of ambition, rather than the nature of evil. It is this ambition that the play appears to be about, as it changes Macbeth from a "worthy gentleman" into a "devilish" murderer. 
   Nevertheless, the nature of evil appears to take a greater focus within the play through the presentation of Lady Macbeth. She is portrayed as unscrupulous and wicked when she is first introduced; her nature is filled with "gall". This is a character who shockingly defies all expectations. Rather than protect her children, she reveals that she would "dashed the brains out" of them. This cold statement may startle many audiences because the evil nature of what she is willing to do challenges all expectations for how a mother should behave. It becomes clear that this extreme and shocking character is filled with the "direst cruelty", as well as being completely callous and evil. No humanity appears to remain within her. Thus, it could be argued that Shakespeare is exploring the shocking nature of evil, and how it often challenges societal rules and expectations. However, a much stronger interpretation suggests that her presentation is not about the nature of evil; rather, it appears to explore the ruthless nature of ambition to a much greater extent. Lady Macbeth actually appears to be presented as someone who is willing to do anything to reach her goals and ambitions. Lady Macbeth is portrayed as willing to lose her femininity- "unsex me here"- and even her own humanity as she rids herself of the "compunctious visiting of nature". She seems to view her gender and humanity as set-backs that she is willing to work through in order to achieve her goal of becoming queen. Thus, it appears that Shakespeare has actually written a play about the ruthless nature of ambition, and how someone can be so determined to fulfil their aspirations that they would even "dashed the brains out" of their own child. 
   The scene in which the Macduff family are "savagely slaughtered" appears to be the scene which is most about the nature of ambition. Shakespeare presents Macbeth at his most ambitious as he seeks to defy fate itself. After being told that no man born of woman shall harm him, he boldly exclaims that he has no "need to fear thee [Macduff]". He chooses to ignore the first prophecy telling him to beware Macduff, and it could be argued that this defiance against fate is what leads to the death of the Macduff family. He interprets this "sweet bodement" as an indication that he is capable of cheating death and his fate. Whilst the deaths of the most "diminutive", "poor" and vulnerable victims could be interpreted as a demonstration of the depraved nature of evil, it is clear that the scene explores the recklessness of ambition. Macbeth's aspirations to secure his kingship and safety lead to him acting impulsively- "the firstlings of my heart are the firstlings of my hand". The deaths of the Lady Macduff and her children appears to be a consequence of this instinctive and reckless nature of ambition, rather than Macbeth's evil nature.
   Whilst it could be argued that Shakespeare is exploring the depraved and shocking nature of evil through the murders that take place in the play, it appears that the play has a greater focus on the nature of ambition. Underlying these evil acts of murder is a corruptive, reckless and ruthless ambition. It is this ambition that the play appears to be about, rather than the nature of evil.