The priest just wants a married couple to live in harmony and not quarrel. With his story the priest tells the young man that "Scholars who heard this story wrote it down to teach that obedience may well bring a man to love and give him happiness, as it did this knight- (Florent 3). The priest wants to convey a message of love and happiness with the submissiveness of men.
Each tale conveys the same message but with different morals for each. The Tale of Florent that is told by a priest, is a very well rounded story that involves a man's loyalty to his word when faced with difficulty. The knight was loyal to the old hag and agreed to marry her because she had saved his life. It is when they are in bed that the old hag changes into a beautiful eighteen-year-old girl (Gower 3). The young knight is overjoyed, but he is then faced with a difficult choice. His beautiful wife asks, "[You] can have one of two things, whether [you] would have [me] like this at night or by day, for [you] can not have both- (Grower 3). The choice was too difficult for the knight so he allows his mistress to choose for the both of them in trust that she will make the best choice (Gower 3). After he gives the choice to his mistress she becomes overjoyed, because now she will be beautiful all the time for the rest of her life. By giving the power to his mistress to make the choice, she is freed from a spell that was put on by her evil stepmother (Grower 3). Overjoyed and extremely happy the couple lives happily ever after. .
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The moral of the Tale of Florent is neatly summed up by the words of the priest at the end of the tale. "Therefore, my son, if you do right, you will obey your love and follow her will in all ways- (Florent 3). The moral given by the priest is just advice that if heeded will turn out for the better. The moral allows a man to be submissive to his wife without feeling inferior and manipulated.