Read the excerpt below and answer the question. He had a latten cross set full of stones And in a bottle had he some pig’s bones, But with these relics, when he came upon. Some simple parson, then this paragon In that one day more money stood to gain ( The Canterbury Tales; “General Prologue,”lines 701-704) Based upon the above context, the word paragon best means _____ .

Respuesta :

Based upon the context, the word 'paragon' best means "model of excellence".

The word 'paragon' is used to refer to a person that is the best at doing something. However, in this excerpt from the "General Prologue", Chaucer resorts to this word to show irony since the Pardoner is actually a selfish and deceptive man who earns money by selling false relics and indulgences. Therefore, he is  the opposite to what he represents; In other words, he is not the holy man that he pretends to be. The Pardoner is a model of excellence but in the negative sense.