While Chaucer told many tales that fit into the category of the fabliau, The Miller's Tale fits the concept perfectly and is generally considered the best told fabliau in any language. Here we have the old carpenter, John, married to the young wife, Alison, whom he keeps very tight reins on. But he is foolish; he allows a virile young student, Nicholas, to live in a room in his house, wrongly assuming that nothing can happen because he does his carpentry at home and has his young wife under constant surveillance. Although Alison acts surprised and angry when Nicholas initially grabs her, the two are attracted to each other. At first, this attraction is only physical, yet a stronger bond develops as they contrive a most intricate and elaborate plot to get the carpenter out of the house so that they can have sex.
The comedy lies in the intricacy of the plot, which is complicated by the interference of another admirer, Absalon. As with all fabliaux, the obscenity involves how Nicholas and Alison play an obscene trick on the unsuspecting, delicate young man and force him to commit an obscene act — kissing her arse — that is especially repugnant to him. Absalon's retaliation, sticking a hot poker up Nicholas' arse, brings about the denouement of the story in a marvelous bit of madness.
Part of the charm of The Miller's Tale is that each of the males gets what he deserves. John the Carpenter, for having married a young lass and keeping her so confined, is awarded for his stupidity and pride by becoming even more of a laughing stock than he was before. The scheming young scholar, Nicholas, is left with a severely burned "arse," and the persnickety church clerk, Absalon is left with a foul taste in his mouth. Only the young bride, Alison, is left untouched by the events.
