There is physical corruption, of decay, disfigurement and decline throughout The Pardoner's Tale, especially in the demonstration sermon: O Dronke man, disfigured is thy face, is a blunt picture of a drunkard's ravaged face.
Decay also casts a shadow: The image of the poverste widwe in a village after been relieved of money from the Pardoner is bleak and cruel. The plague ravished village where Death can be found: I trowe his habitacioun be there is a dark gothic image.
Sins like drunkeness and gluttony result in physical disfigurement such as bloating and foul breath. Many of the relics the Pardoner has are physically unpleasent and are the residue of physical decay, bones and rags. Chaucer focuses again and again back to the idea that while all things will decline and rot away, wickedness accelerates the process.
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