Two of the most interesting and diverse characters are the Pardoner and the Knight. These two characters represent the two extremes in the array of storytellers. Their complete difference shows the diversity of the group. Also it shows how Chaucer plays upon real vs. unreal events and emotions, while the Knights tale is a fairytale and very unreal the Pardoners tells about the real misery and unfairness of life.
The Knight, who seems to be one of Chaucer's favorite characters, is a very noble, honest, and trustworthy man. The narrator describes him as having four main qualities: his love of ideals, his impressive military career, his humble, calm manor, and finally his dress. The story which he tells is very reflective of the man the Narrator perceived him to be. His story is a romance that contains a sense of honor and chivalry; all the things described as ideals he held.
On the complete other end of the scale, there is the Pardoner, a dishonest man with long, greasy, yellow hair, who made the person and the people his apes." Chaucer looks upon the pardoner as a very untrustworthy man. He sells indulgences and gives out pardons to the people at a great fee, which by todays standards, meant that he was a hustler. His tale of deceit and treason among brothers, reflect his own image quite well. Even during the journey to Canterbury, at a time when all the others were telling tales of how to live well and treat others fairly, the Pardoner was still trying to sell his indulgences, which showed how he had learned nothing from his fellow companions. This shows the desire that each man has somewhere deep down buried.
The Knight and the Pardoner are quite possibly the most unrelated characters presented in The Canterbury Tales. One represents honor and courage, where the other represents greed and deception. The two can be used to understand how diverse the group of people was in the story. While the Pardoner may not have been the most respectful of men at the time, his story is still of equal importance, and he adds a sense of variance to the tales, in the same time the Pardoners tale mocks the Knights tale, because his seems more realistic then the other one
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