Throughout The Canterbury Tales, people of potentially good character are thrust into situations that make them act in ways they never would have. If not for the situations the characters were placed in, they would surely have acted differently and their dark sides would not have emerged. We see this in the following three tales -- "The Miller's Tale", "The Knights Tale", and "The Pardoners Tale".
The first example of this thesis is found in "The Miller's Tale." In this tale, Nicholas seduces and sets bad examples for Alison, and puts her in a compromising situation. Alison is introduced as a very young, beautiful, and smart woman. She is also said to be fit to marry any lord or yeoman. One day, when Alison's husband isn't there, a man named Nicholas begins to seduce her, and uses his charm to try to get her to sleep with him. She agrees. However, a man named Absolon is also after Alison, but unlike Nicholas, he truly loves her. Even so, Alison is still set with Nicholas, the man that seduced her. Nicholas gets her to trick her husband, which ultimately leads to people thinking that her husband is insane. She also tricks Absolon into kissing her naked "ass" and embarrasses him greatly. If it wasn't for Nicholas, she would have never disobeyed her husband and been put in this difficult situation to begin with. Alison was very respectful to her husband and obeyed him, but Nicholas changed how she behaved and conducted herself. Nicholas is a bad influence on Alison and makes her act in ways she never would have if he wasn't in her life. .
Another example which demonstrates the thesis is found in "The Knight's Tale." In this tale, Palamon and Arcite fall in love with a girl and this ultimately causes death and much sorrow. The story begins when these two men get thrown in jail. In jail, they see the princess of Athens (Emily) and immediately fall in love with her. Years later, when they are both out of jail, Arcite and Palamon begin to fight over Emily.
