The Franklin's Tale is one of The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer.
The story tells of a young knight named Arveragus and a young woman named Dorigen , who fall in love. Unusually for a early English text, the two lovers decide that their marriage should be one of equal status, Avergus deciding however that in public, he should make decisions so as not to draw suspicion. Arveragus is then called to Britain for military reasons, leaving Dorigen in France alone.
While he is gone, Dorigen falls into a deep depression. In an attempt to cheer her up her friends invite her to a party where a squire, Aurelius, declares his love for Dorigen, who refuses his love because of her great devotion to her husband. However, she hastily says that she will be his lover if he can make the rocks in the sea, upon which she fears her dearest's ship will crash, disappear. Aurelius pays a law student, with knowledge of astrology, to help him achieve this. The student studies the stars and is able to tell Aurelius when the tide will be high enough for the rocks to be covered and hidden from view.
The high time comes as predicted just as Arveragus returns safely, and Dorigen is promptly confronted by both men claiming her hand. Arveragus insists that Dorigen keep her word, demanding that she go to Aurelius. (In this, Arveragus mirrors the Franklin, who aspires to a idealistic standard of nobility and "gentilesse").
However, Aurelius himself defers to nobility when he recognizes that the couple's love is true, and Arveragus noble; he releases Dorigen from her oath. The magician is so pleased that he cancels the debt that Aurelius owes him.
At the end of the Tale, the Franklin asks the rhetorical question about the three men, "Which was the mooste fre?" (ie, "Who is the most generous?")
