The Canterbury Tales: The Miller's Tale Sex Quotes

One of Nicholas's many talents is conducting illicit love affairs. The word "solas" (solace) refers to the cure for love-sickness: sex. This way of talking about love and sex comes from the medieval courtly tradition in which young bachelors complained to their unobtainable lady-loves of horrible suffering, which could only be relieved by the woman's sexual favors.

John is terrified that Alisoun will cheat on him, thus making him into a "cokewold" (cuckold, a man cheated on by his wife). It was a common belief at this time that an older husband could not possibly keep up sexually with a young wife, and that therefore she would find her satisfaction elsewhere.

This is an example of "The Miller's Tale" as a parody of the romance genre, which praised women in much higher terms. The women in romance are worthy of the gods; Alisoun is worthy of being a lord's concubine.

Nicholas's claim that he will die if he does not have sex with Alisoun is an echo of the moment in courtly romance in which the young bachelor complains of his love-sickness to his beloved. Of course, those lovers don't usually begin by grabbing their ladies' "queynte," or genitals.

The assertion here that Alisoun "granted" Nicholas her love – which suggests that she has control over the situation – contrasts with the animal imagery that makes her seem like only an object of others' desires.

Nicholas "thakked [Alisoun] aboute the lendes weel," the medieval equivalent of saying he slapped her butt This is an example of the crude, bawdy terms with which "The Miller's Tale" often describes sex. The fact that Nicholas concludes the episode by playing his sautrye (harp) suggests that his conscience is carefree, untroubled by the sin he has just committed.

Nicholas's reference to the possible sin "in looking" refers to the Catholic belief that if you look at a woman lustfully, you've already had sex with her in your heart. Beyond conveniently separating John and Alisoun so that it's easier for Alisoun to sneak away, Nicholas's warning subtly flatters John by making it seem that Nicholas thinks of him as a virile man with uncontainable sexual desires.

This passage emphasizes the audacity of Nicholas and Alisoun making love in John's bed by calling it a "revel" – which can mean both festive occasion and disorderly conduct – and by juxtaposing it with the religious observances of the nearby friars.

The "more" Absoloun refers to is sex, which he hopes will follow from Alisoun's kiss. Absoloun's assumption of a kneeling position contrasts with his reference to himself as a "lord," and, as the subsequent events confirm, the kneeling position is a more accurate reflection of his true status in his relationship with Alisoun.

In this clever passage, "queynt" means both "quenched" and female genitals. Absolon's love is "queynt" by Alisoun's "queynte," but not in the way he was hoping. The reference to Absolon's being healed of his sickness reflects the courtly love language in which a lovesick man is "healed" by getting sex. But here again, Absolon's "cure" is not quite what he had wished for.

"Swyved" is a vulgar term for sex. This quote, which tells us that John was cuckolded (cheated on by his wife) despite his best attempts to avoid it, hearkens back to the moment in the Miller's Prologue in which he insists that all men's wives will be unfaithful to them – it's better for men just not to know about their wives' "pryvetee."