The Miller’s Tale MCQs & Summary

Summary:

“The Miller’s Tale” is one of the most famous and humorous stories in The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer. It is a fabliau, a type of comic and often bawdy tale common in medieval literature. The story is a response to the noble and romantic Knight’s Tale, as the drunken Miller insists on telling a more crude and satirical story about love, deception, and foolishness.

The tale follows an old carpenter named John, who is married to a much younger and beautiful woman, Alisoun. A young scholar, Nicholas, who rents a room in John’s house, falls in love with Alisoun and convinces her to have an affair. Meanwhile, a parish clerk named Absalom also desires Alisoun and tries to woo her. Nicholas tricks John into believing that a great flood is coming, convincing him to sleep in a tub hanging from the ceiling as a form of “Noah’s Ark.” While John is distracted, Nicholas and Alisoun spend the night together.

Later, Absalom tries to steal a kiss from Alisoun at her window, but instead, she plays a prank on him by making him kiss her bare bottom. Enraged, Absalom returns with a hot poker and attempts to take revenge. This time, Nicholas sticks out his rear, and Absalom burns him with the poker. In pain, Nicholas screams for water, waking John, who crashes to the ground. The townspeople laugh at John, believing him to be mad.

The tale is a satire of courtly love and social status, emphasizing trickery, lust, and the foolishness of jealousy.

MCQs:

1. Who tells The Miller’s Tale in The Canterbury Tales?
   A) The Knight
   B) The Miller
   C) The Wife of Bath
   D) The Pardoner
   Answer: B) The Miller
2. What type of story is The Miller’s Tale?
   A) Tragic Romance
   B) Fabliau
   C) Allegory
   D) Morality Play
   Answer: B) Fabliau
3. What is the name of the old carpenter in the tale?
   A) John
   B) Nicholas
   C) Absalom
   D) Geoffrey
   Answer: A) John

   

4. Who is John’s young wife?
   A) Emelye
   B) Alisoun
   C) The Prioress
   D) The Miller’s Wife
   Answer: B) Alisoun
5. What trick does Nicholas play on John?
   A) He convinces him that his wife is unfaithful
   B) He tells him a great flood is coming
   C) He locks him in the attic
   D) He pretends to be sick
   Answer: B) He tells him a great flood is coming
6. What does Absalom do when he first tries to kiss Alisoun?
   A) He kisses her hand
   B) He kisses her lips
   C) He kisses her bottom by mistake
   D) She slaps him
   Answer: C) He kisses her bottom by mistake
7. How does Absalom take revenge?
   A) He tells John the truth about Alisoun and Nicholas
   B) He stabs Nicholas
   C) He burns Nicholas with a hot poker
   D) He burns down John’s house
   Answer: C) He burns Nicholas with a hot poker
8. How does John react when he hears Nicholas shouting for water?
   A) He laughs at Nicholas
   B) He jumps from the tub, crashing to the ground
   C) He runs away from his house
   D) He kills Nicholas in rage
   Answer: B) He jumps from the tub, crashing to the ground
9. What do the townspeople think about John at the end of the story?
   A) That he is wise
   B) That he is mad
   C) That he is noble
   D) That he is the best carpenter in town
   Answer: B) That he is mad
10. What is the main theme of The Miller’s Tale?
    A) The power of love and destiny
    B) The foolishness of jealousy and trickery
    C) The importance of wealth in marriage
    D) The nobility of knights
    Answer: B) The foolishness of jealousy and trickery