The Abbot Of Canterbury (Poem 6) - Words Meaning, Summary & Central Idea - English (Compulsory) For HSC Part 1

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English I (Compulsory)
For HSC Part 1
Poem 6 - The Abbot Of Canterbury

Anonymous (Unknown) Poet

Words Meaning

S.NO.	Words	Meanings
1.	Ancient	Old, Primitive / قدیم
2.	Anon	Soon / جلد
3.	Apparel	Dress / لباس
4.	Array	Elegant dress / پوشاک
5.	Cheer up	Chin up / خوش ہوجانا
6.	Concerning	About / کے متعلق
7.	Crown	The highest Kingdom / بادشاہت
8.	Crozier	A staff / ایک چھژی
9.	Devise	Plan / منصوبہ بندی کرنا
10.	Doubt	Suspicion / شک و شبہ
11.	Endeavour	Effort / کوشش
12.	Fold	Enclose / بند کرنا
13.	Forfeit	Confiscate / ضبط کر لینا
14.	Frown	Curves on forehead, Sneer/ ناراضگی کا اظہار, غصہ
15.	Gallant	Brave, Bold / بہادر
16.	House keeping	The way of living / گھریلو معاملات کا نظام
17.	Jest	Fun, Joke / مذاق
18.	Liege	Lord / آقا
19.	Leige-men	The followers of a lord, Noblemen/ معززین, رعیت
20.	Merry	Happy, Interesting / خوش وخرم
21.	Might	Force / طاقت
22.	Mitre	Headdress / کلاہ
23.	Nobles	Gold coins / سونے کے سکے
24.	Notable	Distinguish, Famous /ممتاز, مشہور
25.	Pardon	Forgiveness / معافی
26.	Prince	Young king / نوجوان بادشاہ
27.	Quarrel	Dispute /جھگژا
28.	Renown	Famous, Fame / مشہور, شہرت
29.	Rochet	A religious garment, A big shirt /چغہ, پادریوں کا جبہ
30.	Ruled	Governed / حکومت کی
31.	Savior	Jesus Christ / حضرت عیسٰی
32.	Shallow	Not deep, Superficial / کم گہری, سطحی، واجبی
33.	Shrink	Move back / پیچھے ہٹنا
34.	Smite (Smitten)	Kill by (striking), Cut off / مارنا, نقصان پہنچانا
35.	Sumptuous	Expensive, Luxurious / ہہت مہنگا, پر تعیش
36.	Swore	Took oath / قسم کھائی
37.	Thee	You / آپ کو
38.	Treason	Treachery / Revolt / بغاوت، غداری
39.	True-gotten gear	Earning through honesty / حلال روزی
40.	Wit	Intelligence, Intellect / ذہانت, عقل
41.	With main and might	Powerfully / طاقت کےبل پر
42.	Worth	Value / قیمت
43.	Velvet	A specific cloth / مخمل

SUMMARY & CENTRAL IDEA

• By Practical Center (Summary)
• By Practical Center (Central Idea)
• By Sir Abdul Raheem (Summary)
• By Faridi's Guide Book (Summary)
• By Master Coaching Center (Central Idea)
• By Admin (Summary, Central Idea & Moral)

By Practical Center

Introduction:
"THE ABBOT OF CANTERBURY" is an interesting poem. Although the name of poet is not known, the poem is amazingly witty and humorous. The form is ballad in which there is a story element.

SUMMARY

The poet begins by saying that he will tell a story, a story so merry about the Abbot Of Canterbury. The Abbot was very popular among his people in Canterbury. He was famous for his wealth and house-keeping.

King John was told that the Abbot kept a far better house than himself. There was a fire of hatred in the king's heart. The Abbot was summoned by King John to his court in London to explain, how he became so rich. He also asked him why he should not be tried for treason and beheaded.

The Abbot told the King that whatever the wealth he possessed, it was earned by honest means. But the King was not convinced. The only way the Abbot could save himself was by answering the King's questions. His questions were:

1. As he was the King, with the crown of gold, on his head, tell, exactly what his worth was.
2. How soon he would ride, the whole world around.
3. To tell him truly, what he was thinking.

The Abbot was of shallow-wit, so he did not know the answers to the three questions. The King gave him three weeks time to answer his three questions. Thus, the Abbot got back, very sad. He visited the Oxford and Cambridge Universities, hoping that the learned doctors would help him. But alas! It was not so. On reaching home, he was welcomed by he shepherd, who asked him, what news ha had brought from King John. The Abbot told him the whole story. The shepherd comforted his master and told him not to worry.

He suggested to the Abbot, that he (the shepherd) would go in disguise as the Abbot and answer the King's questions. The Abbot got angry at firstr and then finally agreed. The shepherd in disguise as the Abbot, presented himself to the King. The King him welcome him in his court.

To the first question, he replied that the Prophet Jesus Christ was sold among the Jews for thirty pence. So his (the King's) value was a penny lesser than the Christ that is twenty-nine pence. To the second question, he replied that if the King rose with the sun and travelled with its speed, it would take him only twenty-four hours to ride round the earth.

To the third question, he replied, "You are thinking I am the Abbot of Canterbury. But I am his poor shepherd". He begged pardon for himself and his Abbot.

The King was very pleased with the replies; therefore, he wanted to appoint the shepherd in place of his master. But being uneducated, the shepherd declined the King's offer.

However, the King was so happy with the shepherd that he rewarded him with four nobles a week for his intelligence, and wisdom. He also pardoned the Abbot.

Central Idea

The Abbot of Canterbury' is an interesting poem. The main idea of the poem is that it urges the readers not to judge the people and their wisdom on the ground of their appearance and profession. Education is not the legacy of any university or other institutions. It is not confined to book learning or registering oneself in any colleges or elsewhere. It is attained through experience, so one should try to learn from everywhere.

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By Sir Abdur Raheem

Introduction:

• Poem: The Abbot of Canterbury
• Anonymous
• Olde Lyrical Ballad
• Folk Ballad
• South of England, Southern Ballad

About poem:
"THE ABBOT OF CANTERBURY" is an anonymous poem. The time of the poem is Medieval England, particularly the days of King John.

Theme:
Theme of the poem is England and as to type it is southern ballad. The style is entertaining even conversational.

Who is called Abbot?
Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery.

What is Canterbury?
Canterbury (KENT) has been a European pilgrimage site of major importance for over 800 years since the assassination of Archbishop Thomas Becket in 1170. Today it is one of the most beautiful and historic cities in England.

SUMMARY

The Abbot of Canterbury was a wealthy man. John the King of England grew envious of him. He sent for the Abbot to his court. The king notified the abbot that if he failed to answer his three questions, his head would be cut off from his body. The first question was to tell the exact price of the king, along with his Crown, throne and courtiers. The second was to tell how much time it would take to go around the world. The third was to tell what the king was thinking at that moment. The king gave a time of three weeks to find out the answers.

The Abbot met many scholars, but no one could answer the questions. Eighteen days passed. One day the Abbot’s shepherd asked his permission to go to London and answer all the questions. The Abbot allowed him to do so. In the guise of the Abbot, the shepherd reached the court. In reply to the first question, he said that Prophet Christ was sold for thirty pence and so the price of the king was twenty- nine pence. In reply to the second question, he told that if the king got up with the sun, and travelled with it, he would complete the journey in twenty-four hours. In response to the third, he lets know that the king was thinking that he (the shepherd) was the Abbot, although he was his shepherd. The king was very happy. He gave the prize to the shepherd and forgave his master.

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By Faridi's Guide Book

Introduction:
"THE ABBOT OF CANTERBURY" is an Anonyms poem. The form of poem is ballad in which there is a story element.

SUMMARY

King John was the ruler of England. He ruled with great pomp and show. He could not see anyone in a better position than himself. The Abbot of Canterbury lived more luxuriously than the King. King John could not tolerate it. He got envious of him. He blamed him for treason and asked him three questions. He gave him a warning that he would be beheaded if he failed to answer the questions correctly.
The three questions were:

• What was King's worth?
• How long would it take the king to ride the whole world about?
• What was the king thinking?

The King gave him three weeks to answer his questions. Abbot went to Oxford to get the answers to these questions but to no avail. His shepherd came to his help and answered the questions in his place. The shepherd told the King that his worth was 29 pence, one penny less than that of Jesus Christ. The King would take 24 hours to ride the whole world about if he rode with the sun. The shepherd told him that the King was thinking that he was Abbot, however, he was only his shepherd. The King was pleased with the answers and pardoned him and his Abbot and agreed to give him four nobles a week.

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By Master Coching Center

Central Idea
The Abbot of Canterbury was unable to find out the answers of the three difficult questions asked by King John. Then he met shepherd and told him the story. The shepherd reminded Abbot the famous proverb and remelted that sometimes a foolish person might be able to teach a lesson of wisdom to wise man. Therefore, the shepherd appeared into the court of King John and answered his questions using his wit and wisdom that the king was pleased and delighted. He forgave the Abbot and the shepherd and also announced that he would give shepherd four nobles a week. Hence, we can say that wisdom is a God-gifted thing which can be bestowed upon anyone without education.

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By Admin

Introduction:
"The Abbot of Canterbury" is an anonymous ballad, describes the story of King John and the Abbot of Canterbury.

Summary
The Abbot of Canterbury was the leader of a wealthy monastery known for his generosity and rich lifestyle. King John, a cruel ruler, becomes jealous of the Abbot's luxurious life.
To show his anger, King John asked the Abbot three tricky questions:

i- What is the worth of King John with all his power and wealth?
ii- How long would it take the King to ride around the whole world?
iii- What is the King thinking at that very moment?
The Abbot was confused and couldnot answer these questions. However, his shepherd, who was loyal to him, decided to help by disguising himself as the Abbot. He gave clever answers to the King's questions.

For the first question, the shepherd said that King John's worth was like that of thirty pence, comparing him to Jesus Christ, who was betrayed for thirty pences of silver. He justified that even a king was not in any way better than the savior.

For the second question, he explained that if King John could travel with the sun, he would go around the world in just twenty-four hours. For the last question, he revealed that King John was thinking that the shepherd was the Abbot of Canterbury, had no idea that the man who was standing before him and answering the questions was not the Abbot, but his poor friend shepherd.

In the end, King John is impressed by the shepherd's smart answers. He rewards the shepherd and forgives both him and the Abbot. This ballad shows how wisdom and cleverness can win over power and pride.

Central Idea
The central idea of the poem "The Abbot of Canterbury" focuses on wit and cleverness as tools for overcoming adversity. When King John, driven by jealousy, threatens the Abbot with execution unless he answers three difficult questions within three weeks, the shepherd disguises himself as the Abbot and successfully answers the questions with intelligence and humor. This act not only saves the Abbot's life but also highlights the importance of quick thinking and resourcefulness in challenging situations. Ultimately, the poem celebrates the triumph of wisdom, which is a God-given gift that can be bestowed upon anyone, regardless of education, as well as the value of loyalty and friendship.

Moral
The moral of the poem is that wisdom does not come with education, It is the blessing of God. A person commonly understood as fool can some times teach the Wiseman well.

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