The Miller

1. The Miller Presenters: Clay Rosales, Ben Ayers, AnwerAdem Type of Tale: Religious

2. The Prologue The Prologue features a verbal exchange between the Host and the Miller. The two are telling stories while riding horses, but the Miller is very drunk. The Miller defames the idea of having a wife, making the Host discontent. The Host then continues to defend them, claiming that the Miller is too drunk to think.

3. Summary The beginning of the tale gives a background on where the Miller lives. He resides in Oxford, living a rich life in which he has guest rooms that he occasionally rents out. The narrator describes the Miller as a man who “led a secret love life, fine and dandy, in private always, ever on the sly, though meek as any maiden to the eye.”

4. Summary The Miller originally studied the liberal arts, but then switched to astrology. He would answer the questions of men concerning conditions such as drought or showers. These men would ask him to predict weather conditions in certain hours but he was unable to answer all the questions given.

5. Summary The Miller, formerly known as Nicholas the Handy, lived alone with some fragrant herbs. He owned books both big and small. Also he used an astrolabe to plot positions in outer space. Along with these hobbies, he sang. During these times, his various friends paid for his rent.

6. Summary As years moved on, he became lonely and eventually decided to wed a wife. He loved his wife a great deal, more than his own life. Although he kept her as if in a cage, she seemingly enjoyed the life that she lived. One day, he caught her with another man. After this encounter, she proclaimed that she didn’t love him, and that she was tired of being held like an animal. He pled until she eventually agreed to grant him her love and she made a promise by Saint Thomas.

7. Summary One year, he became terribly sick and was near death. When he didn’t come out of his house for months, many assumed that he was dead. Eventually a carpenter was sent to check on him. The carpenter surprisingly found the Miller sitting at his table with his astrolabe. The Miller then requests that the carpenter keeps his condition a secret. As their discussion progresses, the Miller explains that he believes there is a devastating amount of water headed towards Oxford. The Miller explains that he could miraculously save the town by building a boat that could hold the many families. His idea was inspired by the acts of Noah. The carpenter agrees to give the Miller food and water in order to keep him alive, but must keep the Miller hidden.

8. Summary At the conclusion of the tale, the Flood of Noel comes, creating chaos in the streets. The Miller shows his created boat to the town, saving the families as promised. He thanks Noah for his help in the creation of the boat and the saving of the people.

9. Literary Devices Foreshadowing “He turned his fancy to astrology…” This line foreshadows the ending of the tale. Since he studied the influence of heavenly bodies of human affairs, the line above foreshadows that he will have some form of communication or interaction of a god.

10. Literary Devices Irony “The student’s name was Nicholas the Handy…” This line is ironic because it gives Nicholas a nickname that infers he can construct and fix certain objects. Yet in the beginning of the tale, he doesn’t do any craftwork or handiwork, and is more focused on math and astrology than the focus of his nickname.

11. Reflection This tale is very religious because it had many references and prayers to certain significant religious such as Saint Thomas and Noah. Towards the beginning it was hard to understand because of the way it was worded and formatted. Eventually it became clearer what the author was trying to express, and the tale made more sense. The overall idea of the story became more obvious as the story progressed, but the difficulty of the introduction made it hard to understand references that were made to the beginning.