her to be alone with other men. He does not seem to have married her for any other reason—certainly not for tender love or because she would make a good homemaker or mother.

The Miller seems to criticize the carpenter's vanity and foolishness in choosing such an unsuitable bride. If he is making any point about marriage in this farce, it might be that one should think beyond sexual satisfaction when picking a marriage partner.

I believe that "The Miller's Tale" is a cautionary tale about marriage that emphasizes the importance of equality and mutual respect between a husband and wife. 

"The Miller's Tale" satirizes the stereotypical thought that a man should pursue and hopefully marry a younger woman.  I'm not talking about a difference of a couple of years.  I'm talking about a big age split.  In the story, the carpenter marries a woman that is much younger than he is.  He is married to a very attractive woman that is eighteen.  Some men might think that marrying a younger "trophy wife" is awesome; however, the story warns against this kind of marriage.  Because his wife is so young and so attractive, the carpenter lives in a constant state of jealousy.  He is threatened by any man that looks at his wife, and this makes him incredibly protective of his wife.  In fact, "wife" might be a generous term.  Alisoun is basically a prize that he is trying desperately to hold on to.  The marriage is not a healthy marriage between two equal partners.  

The equality of marriage partners is another idea that "The Miller's Tale" is illustrating.  The story illustrates how women are not typically given equal footing within a marriage.  This is true of the marriage between the carpenter and his wife.  He treats her like a possession instead of a partner.  She exists for his sexual pleasure, and she resents being treated as an object.  Objects are acted upon by subjects.  Alisoun doesn't want to always be an object.  She wants some control of a relationship, which is why she begins cheating on her husband.  It's her way of taking control of a relationship and getting revenge on her husband.  

It seems to me that the story is putting a big emphasis on the importance of marrying somebody of similar age.  Similar ages will likely put two people at similar maturity levels.  That should lead to increased respect between two people.  That mutual respect will likely lead to a marriage with more equality between the husband and wife.   I believe that Chaucer's main point of this story is to show how equality between partners is key to a healthy marriage. 

Well, you wouldn't want to assume this tale represents Chaucer's position; he takes various positions that don't fit together smoothly in this set of stories. However, this story shows marriage as anything but the sacred bond the church would have it. Marriage is shown as entered into by the ignorant, who don't really know one another. This allows for deception, and makes those involved look stupid. Broadening the question a little, the story shows how sexual desire can make us look like fools.

"The Miller's Tale"is a wonderfully bawdy comic creation, featuring naked bottoms, wind breaking, and an adulterous liaison. It also provides another take on the subject of marriage extensively dealt with elsewhere by Chaucer in The Canterbury Tales. But the vision of married love set out here is far removed from the more elevated, romantic notion shared by the Wife of Bath.

John the carpenter seems to have done rather well for himself. As well as having a nice house and all the other trappings of wealth, he has a young, attractive wife named Alisoun. In recounting his tale the miller tells us that John loves Alisoun more than his life. But only a couple of lines later, he goes on to says John is jealous of her and keeps her "in a cage." He does not mean this literally, of course, but the implication is clear. John may say he loves Alisoun but we get the impression that she is nothing more than a trophy wife to him.

"The Miller's Tale" demonstrates the belief that the main problem with having a trophy wife is that, sooner or later, younger men will want to have her. And that is precisely what happens in the story. Not one, but two young upstarts try to have their way with the comely Alisoun. First on the scene is Nicholas, an astrology student who lodges with John and Alisoun and has more on his mind than the course of stars and planets.

Then there is Absalom, a merry scholar with a fine voice and a gift for music, who lusts unsuccessfully after Alisoun, ending up with little more than a fart in the face for his troubles.

Beneath all the bawdiness, bottoms and broken wind, Chaucer makes a serious point about marriage. He puts forward a conventional understanding of what marriage meant in the Middle Ages. For medieval folk like Chaucer, marriage was a true union of spirit and flesh, part of the much larger, cosmic marriage between Christ and his Church.

Clearly, the marriage between John and Alisoun does not in any way live up to this noble ideal. All of the characters in their own individual way violate the sanctity of marriage, and all of them eventually come to grief in some way or another. "The Miller's Tale"is essentially moralistic and didactic in its purpose. But as Chaucer is so skillful at getting his point across with humor, we never feel that we are being preached at.