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Gender Equality Article Introduction Short
Womens roles in the bible
Gender Equality Article Introduction Short
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But the answer to the old woman’s question proves that he has learned his lesson after all. With this tale, the Wife of Bath is trying to portray a message that women are strong and determined, which goes along with her belief in the equality of the
In the second-to-last stanza, it appears that the woman had decided that the knight had fully learned his lesson, and they were able to have a happy relationship. The last stanza seems to be an ideal that the Wife of Bath holds. Instead of wives being, “meek and young and fresh in bed,” the Wife of Bath wishes for men to be held to that same standard. She also prays that any man who, “won’t be governed by their wives” to be killed, meaning that she wants men to hold the same amount of respect for their romantic partner as anyone else, otherwise they should be punished. These stanzas offer a satisfying conclusion, while also adding in the Wife of Bath’s ideas of gender equality and respect.
He describes her face as being “Bold, handsome, and red in hue”(468). Handsome is an adjective used to describe men. Chaucer purposefully characterizes her this way to compare her to men. The Wife of Bath struggled with healthy relationships because she wanted to be the dominant and most powerful figure in her relationships. The Wife of Bath yearned for power and was determined
In the Wife of Bath’s, she broke all the stereotypes Medieval society thought a wife is. She tells the people that being married intercourse is part of marriage and God has made privates parts to make generations, not to waste in doing nothing. Being categorized or stereotyped in Medieval society was hard for married women in the Medieval era because often they were portrayed as disloyal, uncontrolled sexual beasts because of the lack of marriage
The Wife of Bath and her tale are the most similar out of all the tales because they both share a domineering outlook over others. In the general prologue she is told to have had five husbands and is described as a looker, “Her face was bold and handsome and ruddy,” (Chaucer 39). In her prologue she goes more in depth of her time spent with her five husbands. Wife of Bath talks most about how she gains control over her husbands. For instance, her fifth husband was the controlling force in their marriage until he made the mistake of hitting her and telling her he would do anything to keep her with him and said, “My own true wife, do as you wish for the rest of your life…” (335).
The Wife of Bath wanted from her five husbands was she wanted sex, “only once should I be wed” in line thirteen and “Now you have five husbands” in line sixteen in the tale The Wife of Bath’s. She was very forceful and demanding to her husbands to make them marry the wife of bath. She is also very bright and her clothes are very colorful more than all of the characters because she is very good at making her own clothes. She is also the most interesting in the story and she was also wealthy with her money.
The Wife of Bath attempts to spiritually justify own lust and desire by comparing herself with men’s ability and stance in medieval era. In the medieval ages, the married men could have sexual affairs with most women while married women were not allowed to have any sexual relations. She sees sexuality as God given gift to men and women equally, so she refuses to be condemned for her lusts and desires. However, for Margery Kempe, abstain from sexual desires is the perfect model, and connection with God converts lost chastity for an
The Wife of Bath’s behaviors are questionable but are inherently aided by the social injustices that face women of this time period. The Wife of Bath discloses that for her first three marriages she sought out older wealthy men for sex and money. Her intentions included making her husbands fall in love with her and then making them have enormous amounts of sex until they die. In addition, the wife elaborates on her occasional tumultuous tirades of accusing her husbands of being unfaithful to her. Her uproars chided her husbands into persistently obliging into her every request.
The Wife of Bath doesn’t let societal restrictions of the time to dictate how she should live. “But of no nombre mencioun made he, Of bigamye or of octogamye; Why sholde men speke of it vileinye?” () In her own mind it doesn’t make sense for a person particularly a woman to be labeled as unholy or impure just because of how many times they have been married. She uses the bible to back up her reasoning.
One inference I can make about the Wife of Bath is that she is very wise. I believe she is wise based upon what she says and does in the story "The Tale of the Wife of Bath". One way she is wise is because she knows how to help the knight. He does not know what all women want and the Wife is here to give him that answer. The answer ends up saving the knight's life.
Many female critics have looked towards The Wife of Bath as a feminist role model (Reisman) She wanted authority over her five husbands, “She’d been respectable throughout her life, with five churched husbands bringing joy and strife, Not counting other company in her youth;” (Chaucer, l. 459-461) In Othello, the society centered around the men having all the control over women except in their beds, which was when the women could take control. Othello uses his power to over Desdemona to mock her,“Ay, you did wish that I would make her turn. Sir, she can turn, and turn, and get go on, And turn again.
She states that she too is capable of doing so, for the Biblical text is nothing beyond her comprehension. Unfortunately, she strives to justify her intelligence through the word of God, yet comes of as one who simply tries too hard to confirm her feministic behaviors. During her life, the Wife of Bath is known for having five husbands and referring to herself as a so-called “expert.” While the church community rebukes her life choices and values, she once again alludes to the bible as a support mechanism.
Throughout her introduction of the tale, and the story itself, we see the Wife of Bath as an experienced, intellectual woman, who despite living in a world of patriarchal power, provides for herself financially, emotionally, and physically. As a feminist icon, she confronts serious social issues that illustrate the subjugation women faced. During her prologue and her tale, it is very clear that the Wife of Bath is proud and not ashamed of her sexuality. She views sex as a good ideal, and argues it, using references from the Bible, that God’s intentions
The Wife of Bath: An Analysis of Her Life and Her Tale The Wife of Bath’s Prologue stays consistent with the facts that experience is better than the societal norms, specifically those instilled by the church leadership. Chaucer uses the Wife of Bath to display the insanity of the church, but through switching and amplifying their view of men and chastity onto the opposite gender. The church doctrine at the time held celibacy in an idolized manner, forgetting the inability for humans to ever reach perfection, or live up to this standard. They also did not hold women in a high regard at all, again this is where Chaucer flips the role, as the Wife of Bath describes her five marriages in her prologue, essentially describing each as a conquest, where the result is her having all control.
The Wife of Bath states, “You have two choices; which one will you try? To have me old and ugly till I die, but still a loyal, and humble wife that never will displease you all her life, or would you rather I were young and pretty and chance your arm what happens in a city where friends will visit you because of me, yes, and in other places too, maybe. Which would you rather have? The choice is all your own” (395-403).
