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Teaching The Canterbury Tales: The Clerk's Tale

Who needs bawdy sex and belly laughs when you've got...a Clerk?

  • Activities: 13
  • Quiz Questions: 30

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Arguably, "The Clerk's Tale" is probably one of the Canterbury Tales' most low-key offerings. It's the story of how a nobleman named Walter tests the loyalty of his virtuous, lowborn wife in a series of horrendous ordeals. It might not be as fun as some of the rowdier stories, but there's so much in it about human choice and loyalty that all teenagers can relate to.

And bonus: If you read this one and then go back to one of Chaucer's funnier, sexier, more Wife of Bath-y tales, you might find that even the silly ones are saying a lot more than you'd think.

In this guide, you'll find

  • an exploration of the ever-important theme of loyalty, and how it functions in the tale.
  • an activity based on what it means to make hard choices, and how stressful times in a person's life can prove to be an opportunity for growth and reflection.
  • a deep dive into the qualities of a good leader, applying those standards to Walter, the Marquis.

All students can benefit from the hard work (clerk's work?) it takes to really get Chaucer, and our guide will show you how to make the most of this tasty tale.

What's Inside Shmoop's Literature Teaching Guides

Shmoop is a labor of love from folks who love to teach. Our teaching guides will help you supplement in-classroom learning with fun, engaging, and relatable learning materials that bring literature to life.

Inside each guide you'll find quizzes, activity ideas, discussion questions, and more—all written by experts and designed to save you time. Here are the deets on what you get with your teaching guide:

  • 13 – 18 Common Core-aligned activities to complete in class with your students, including detailed instructions for you and your students.
  • Discussion and essay questions for all levels of students.
  • Reading quizzes for every chapter, act, or part of the text.
  • Resources to help make the book feel more relevant to your 21st-century students.
  • A note from Shmoop’s teachers to you, telling you what to expect from teaching the text and how you can overcome the hurdles.

Want more help teaching Teaching The Canterbury Tales: The Clerk's Tale?

Check out all the different parts of our corresponding learning guide.



Instructions for You

Objective: News flash: just because someone holds a position of power or authority doesn't necessarily make him or her a good leader. Identifying the qualities of good leadership is really important. If you're the leader, you need to have some standards for what you're going to do and how you're going to behave. If you're a follower, you want to follow good leadership, so you need to know the standards too.

Chances are that throughout our lives, we'll find ourselves in both positions at different times. It doesn't hurt to think a bit more deeply about these issues. In this exercise, your students will explore the qualities of a good leader and then apply those standards to Walter, the Marquis, in "The Clerk's Tale." This will take about one hour.

Materials Needed: Shmoop's Leadership Worksheet, a copy of the text and/or our Shmoop summary page

Step 1: Do a bit of brainstorming with the entire class on the qualities of a good leader. You could set up the question like this:

We always hear people talking about what a great leader so-and-so is or that she has leadership qualities. I want you to take two to three minutes and consider great leaders. What are the qualities that make a great leader?

Give the class a few minutes to think about it and then record their answers on the board.

Once you've compiled the list, ask the class to identify the most important characteristics of a good leader. There are no right or wrong answers. Simply allow them to identify the characteristic and explain why. Keep track of each person's response to see if there is an overwhelming consensus on the top quality.

Step 2: Distribute the Shmoop's Leadership Worksheet and explain the instructions to the class:

The worksheet has a variety of different quotes from notable leaders describing great leaders and leadership. Some of the thoughts will contradict one another, which is okay. With a partner, read each quote and explain what each means. Then as a pair determine the three quotes that your team feels best represents great leadership. We'll then discuss your thoughts as a class.

Step 3: Review the sheet with the class and let them get to work in their partners. Gives them about 15 minutes to do this.

Step 4: Keep the students with their partners and ask a few more questions that tie leadership to the tale:

  • Think about "The Clerk's Tale." Do you think Walter is a good leader? Why or why not? (If the class immediately says he is a bad leader, which he is, play devil's advocate and point out that his land enjoys peace and prosperity.)
  • Do any of the quotes from the handout apply to him? If yes, which ones?

Everyone can chime in.

Step 5: With their partners, have them grab a piece of paper and their books, and share the direction for the following exercise:

  • Examine the text and look for examples of Walter's leadership. Find at least five examples, writing down the line numbers.
  • Pick the best three examples of the five, and using those examples, create quotes or sound bites from Walter's perspective (similar in length and structure to the ones on the worksheet).
  • Of the three quotes that you've written, select the one quote that you and your partner think best represents Walter's perspective on leadership and place an asterisk by it. This will be shared with the class.
  • Turn the paper in to your teacher.

Step 6: Take the one selected quote (the one the team placed the asterisk by) from each pair and share the quotes with the entire class. You could write them on the board.

Step 7: Have the class vote on the top three quotes that they think best represent Walter's view of leadership. Up to you what the winners receive. You're the leader, after all.

Instructions for Your Students

News flash: just because someone holds a position of power or authority doesn't necessarily make him or her a good leader. You might already know this, having dealt with your fair share of teachers already. So you're aware that identifying the qualities of good leadership is really important. If you're the leader, you need to have some standards for what you're going to do and how you're going to behave. If you're a follower, you want to follow good leadership, so you need to know the standards too.

Chances are that throughout our lives, we'll find ourselves in both positions at different times. It doesn't hurt to think a bit more deeply about these issues. Today you'll explore the qualities of a good leader and then apply those standards to Walter, the Marquis, in "The Clerk's Tale."

Step 1: First up, you're going to do a bit of brainstorming with the entire class on the qualities of a good leader. Teach might pose a question like this:

"We always hear people talking about what a great leader so-and-so is or that she has great leadership qualities. I want you to take two to three minutes and consider great leaders. What are the qualities that make a great leader?"

Take a few minutes to think about it, and then your teacher will record your answers on the board.

Once the list is compiled, your teacher will ask you to identify the most important characteristics of a good leader. There are no right or wrong answers. Simply identify the characteristic and explain why.

Step 2: Your teacher will hand out Shmoop's Leadership Worksheet, which has a variety of different quotes from notable leaders describing great leaders and leadership. Some of the thoughts will contradict one another, which is okay.

With a partner, read each quote and explain what each means. Then as a pair determine the three quotes that you feel best represents great leadership.

Step 3: Review the sheet and then get to work with your partner. You've got about 15 minutes to do this.

Step 4: Once you're finished, your teacher will pose the following questions:

  • Think about "The Clerk's Tale." Do you think Walter is a good leader? Why or why not?
  • Do any of the quotes from the handout apply to him? If yes, which ones?

Everyone can chime in.

Step 5: With your partner, grab a piece of paper and your book.

  • Examine the text and look for examples of Walter's leadership. Find at least five examples, writing down the line numbers.
  • Pick the best three examples of the five, and using those examples, create quotes or sound bites from Walter's perspective (similar in length and structure to the ones on the worksheet).
  • Of the three quotes that you've written, select the one quote that you and your partner think best represents Walter's perspective on leadership and place an asterisk by it. This will be shared with the class.
  • Turn the paper in to your teacher.

Step 6: Your teacher will take the one selected quote from each pair and share the quotes with the entire class on the board. The class will vote on the top three quotes that you think best represent Walter's view of leadership.

It's up to your teacher what the winners receive. Hopefully he or she is a benevolent leader.