The Nun`s Priest Tale
By: Jahquele Burks
Summary
A rooster named Chanticleer he has many hen-wives, but he loves most truly a hen named Pertelote. She is as lovely as Chanticleer is magnificent.One night as all of Chanticleer’s ancillary hen-wives are roosting, Chanticleer has a terrible nightmare about an orange houndlike beast who threatens to kill him while he is in the yard. Pertelote makes fun of him for letting a dream get to him. She believes the dream comes from a physical illness, and she promises him that she will find some helpful herbs.One night in May, a hungry fox stalks Chanticleer and his wives, watching their every move. The fox reaches out and grabs Chanticleer by the throat, and then slinks away with him back toward the woods.Once Pertelote finds out what has happened, she burns her feathers with grief.The widow and her daughters hear the screeching and spy the fox running away with the rooster. Chanticleer cleverly asks that the fox turn and boast to his pursuers. The fox opens his mouth to do so, and Chanticleer flies out of the fox’s mouth and into a high tree. The fox tries to flatter the bird into coming down, but Chanticleer has learned his lesson.