Though she protests at first, she gives in to his pleading and promises to love him. Ab-salon, another admirer of Alisons, serenades her while she is lying next to her husband. When he later asks for a kiss, she presents him with her backside, and Nicholas impersonates her voice with a rude expulsion of air. They are as comfortable expressing themselves, in whatever manner they wish, as the Miller. The Reeves Tale is starkly contrasted to this. Os-walds characters are as plain as his story, the height of their scheming consisting of a relo-cated cradle and an untied horse. The personalities of the two university students are irrele-vant; all that matters is that they deceive the miller. And Symkyns importance is based only in his thieving nature and his eventual status as a victim, the purpose of the story being the Reeves revenge. The mother has a more lengthy character sketch, but only because it shows that the miller wedded an illegitimate woman. Both women are objectified and valued only in the distress they cause the miller through their ravishment. Adultery is again committed in this tale, but it is done mechanically rather than from any sexual desire on the part of the students. The wooing by Nicholas and Absalon may have been brief, but they at least made an effort to win Alison. John and Alan have intercourse with the wife and daughter before any words of acceptance or denial are spoken by them, and just as soon as they are in the same bed as a fe-male. As I mentioned earlier, the five characters spend the night in the same room, but not all are aware of what is occurring. John does know his friend slept with Malyne, but only be-cause Alan told him his plan. The next morning Alan tells the miller, believing he is John, I have thries in this shorte nyght Swyved the milleres do...
