The Wife Of Bath, By Geoffrey Chaucer - 1091 Words

Gender roles are given, rather than created. Throughout history, women have lived in a male dominated society. â€Å"Millions are condemned to a stiller doom than mine, and millions are in silent revolt against their lot.† As Charlotte Brontà « and many other authors have found, it is seemingly unfair that these roles are the way they are. Geoffrey Chaucer also explores this reality with his creation of the Wife of Bath’s Tale. Although her thoughts may have been a bit different from Brontà «Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s, the character portrayed in this tale explores the duality of both challenging and upholding the patriarchy simultaneously. The Wife of Bath consistently uses her own interpretations of the Bible in order to explain the logic behind her actions. The prologue of the tale serves as a means for the Wife of Bath to attempt to explain the reason as to why she has wed so many husbands. On the surface, Chaucer writes her in such a way that portrays her to be strong and radical. Although her explanations seem articulated, they are all nearly related to her odd interpretations of the bible. As she describes her frequent marriages, she uses various biblical characters in quoting, â€Å"each of them had more than two wives.† (Chaucer 56-57) In another attempt to clarify her position, she refers to Christ in teaching all of his followers to lead a life similar to his. While she recognizes this, she denies this message was for her and states, â€Å"I will use the flower of my life in the acts and fruits ofShow MoreRelatedThe Wife Of Bath, By Geoffrey Chaucer880 Words   |  4 Pagesindividual concepts, within female characters, illustrates feministic divergences within specific writings of Geoffrey Chaucer, the Pearl Poet, and Margery Kempe. In Chaucer’s frame story The Canterbury Tales, the account of â€Å"The Wife of Bath† demonstrates a mixture of feminine ideas. The prologue of to the tale shows a complexity of medieval female characteristics and roles. Alyson, the Wife of Bath, challenges the conventional behavior of women. She speaks her mind freely and feels no shame about herRead MoreThe Wife Of Bath, By Geoffrey Chaucer1251 Words   |  6 PagesThe Wife of Bath, emphasizing â€Å"The Prologue of the Wife of Bath’s Tale† and the â€Å"The Prologue† in Geoffrey Chaucer s Canterbury Tales, is an example of the Middle English concept that male authors reflect misogynistic ideals of society onto female characters.With the Wife of Bath, she is a fictional character, as told by Chaucer, going on a Pilgrimage, with constant ridicule for her sexuality and multiple marriages. Chaucer portrays her as a previously battered wife who uses her sexual promiscuityRead MoreGeoffrey Chaucer s T he Wife Of Baths1171 Words   |  5 Pages Short Creative Essay Draft The Prologue to the Wife of Baths Tale is a poem by Geoffrey Chaucer s that provides a satirical insight on the experience of Alice, the wife, and her response to autocratic judgement. The prologue takes a stance against the view of women and uses the life style of Alice as a way of dismantling stereotypical ideology of women. The very beginning of the poem Alice is stated to have five husbands. This is especially unconventional because of the timeRead MoreThe Wife Of Bath, By Geoffrey Chaucer Essay1487 Words   |  6 Pages14th century, as they were subverted into a secondary class position that deprived them of agency and sexual satisfaction. Throughout Geoffrey Chaucer’s â€Å"Canterbury Tales,† the Wife of Bath provides didactic social commentary on the discrepancies between marriage and virginity and expounds the idea of giving sovereignty to women in relationships. Although the Wife of Bath is portrayed and characterized to some antifeminist stereotypes, her fer vent and unorthodox commands enrich the reasoning behind herRead MoreGeoffrey Chaucer s The Wife Of Bath2255 Words   |  10 PagesGeoffrey Chaucer’s The Wife of Bath Prologue, we are told the story of the wife of bath Alyson and her many marriages. The role of the woman in this time period was to follow what her husband’s rules, and to obey the men in her life since a woman was considered incapable of running her own life and making decisions. When Alyson married her first husband, she was only twelve years old by the time she married her last husband she was forty. Although it was frowned upon for a woman to remarry AlysonRead MoreThe Wife Of Bath s Prologue By Geoffrey Chaucer1324 Words   |  6 Pagesnoteworthy difference in reference to other works. The first literary work that will be examined is The Wife of Bath’s Prologue, written by Geoffrey Chaucer. Throughout this work it is clear that the focus is that of the plight of a woman. The Prologue begins with the story of a woman whose name we later find out is Alisoun, before that however, she is simply referred to as the Wife. When Chaucer was planning out this particular character, he â€Å"drew upon a centuries old tradition of misogynist writingRead MoreThe Wife Of Bath s Prologue By Geoffrey Chaucer1694 Words   |  7 Pagesthis was the socially accepted norm. Quite often, however, this was not the case as seen in the â€Å"Wife of Bath’s Prologue† written by Geoffrey Chaucer. The Wife of Bath was an unconventional woman who acted like the men of the age in multiple ways. The male pilgrims in Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales were uncomfortable with her behavior because she was manlier than they were. The prologue begins with the wife, Alys, immediately stepping out of line and asserting herself as an expert on a subject matterRead MoreAnalysis Of Geoffrey Chaucer s The Wife Of Bath 1371 Words   |  6 PagesTa Lor Mr. Kaplan ELA 12 Period 1 27 February 2015 Pilgrim Evaluation Geoffrey Chaucer, the Father of English Literature, was the first to write in English for folks to read. One of his best known works of art would be The Canterbury Tales, which was written between 1380 and 1400 in England, but was never completed due to his death. It was composed in Middle English and portrays a great example of frame narrative. The Canterbury Tales begins with a group of pilgrims traveling from England to CanterburyRead MoreGender Oriented Analysis in Wife of Bath by Geoffrey Chaucer Essay1424 Words   |  6 Pages Of all the numerous females depicted in literature throughout the centuries, Geoffrey Chaucer’s Wife of Bath has inspired more in-depth discussion and gender-oriented analysis than the majority. She is in turn praised and criticized for her behavior and her worldview; critics can’t seem to decide whether she is a strong portrayal of 14th century feminism or a cutting mockery of the female sex. Both her tale and its prologue are riddled with themes of conflict and power struggle between the sexesRead MoreThe Wife Of Bath s Tale By Geoffrey Chaucer And Le Morte D Arthur1133 Words   |  5 Pageshusband and take care of the home. They were treated very unfairly compared to men. The stories, â€Å"The Wife of Bath’s Tale† by Geoffrey Chaucer and â€Å"Le Morte d’ Arthur† by Sir Thomas Malory reveal the values of society by adding satire and characterization. Chaucer incorporates satire in â€Å"The Wife of Bath’s Tale† to highlight the values of gender roles in society. Throughout the story, Chaucer demonstrates courtly love, sovereignty, and loyalty. In â€Å"Medieval Women†, women did not live â€Å"comfortable