Study Questions
1. What is the reaction of the Summoner to The Friar's Tale?

2. What happens in the Summoner's joke about the friars?

3. What happened to the prayers that were supposed to be
offered for all who donated to the friars?

4. Why is Thomas so angry with the friar?

5. How does the friar try to calm his benefactor's anger?

6. What new donation does Thomas make by way of response to the friar's sermon?

7. To whom does the friar take his case against Thomas?

8. What distracts the lord of the shire from dealing with the
insult?

9. Who finally solves the problem of dividing the "gift"?

10. What does the lord's failure to punish such an insult against the clergy say about his own attitude toward friars?

Answers
1. He is infuriated.

2. A friar visiting hell finds thousands of his fellow monks tucked in the devil's rectum, as close as they can possibly get to him.

3. All the names of those who donate are erased so the prayers never get offered.

4. Thomas doesn't understand why he has not gotten well with all the prayers he has purchased.

5. The friar preaches a sermon about what happened to men who became angry and vindictive.

6. He gives the friar a fart.

7. The friar goes to the overlord of the district.

8. He becomes distracted by the problem of dividing the fart into equal parts.

9. The young squire of the lord concocts an outlandish
solution.

10. Apparently, the lord finds the monks as dishonest as
Thomas did.