Although John and Nicholas both demonstrate some typically female qualities, the greatest example of gender confusion in The Miller’s Tale is Absolon. He is effeminate to the point of being camp, although he makes some pitiful attempts to assert his masculinity. The Miller describes him in terms usually reserved for romantic heroines: “Crul was his heer, and as the gold it shoon” (Chaucer 3314), and, “His rode was reed, his eyen greye as goos” (Chaucer 3317). He is fastidious, and dresses fashionably, “ful small and proprely” (Chaucer 3320), with all the care that a beautiful woman would give to her appearance. Despite his obvious femininity, Absolon pursues Alisoun with as much determination in his own way as does Nicholas. His object …show more content…
Indeed, she moves between the feminine and the masculine aspects of her personality with apparent ease and versatility. The reader must look more deeply into the Miller’s descriptions of Alisoun’s physical person to find the homoerotic subtext. Amid the lengthy description of her face, body, and clothing, which the reader is meant to understand are beautiful and desirable (i.e. feminine), are clues to Alisoun’s masculine side. For example, “she was wylde and yong,” (Chaucer 3225), and, “As any wezele hir body gent and small” (Chaucer 3234). It is unlikely that “wylde” was a flattering descriptor for a young matron of the time. Furthermore, a weasel as defined by the Oxford English Dictionary, is “remarkable for its slender body” (“weasel”). A woman shaped like a weasel would have a figure more like that of a young boy, than a mature woman. Later, the Miller says that she is “softer than the wolle is of a wether./ And by hir girdle heeng a purs of lether” (Chaucer 3249-3250). A wether is a castrated male sheep. The reference to the leather purse hanging at Alisoun’s waist is reminiscent of the Host’s speech in The Miller’s Prologue, when he says “unbokeled is the male” (Chaucer 3115). The Wadsworth Chaucer glosses this phrase as “the pouch is opened” (66). Both of these references to a leather pouch or purse hanging between the legs …show more content…
She has a “likerous ye” (Chaucer 3244), meaning “lecherous, lustful, and wanton” (OED “likerous”). Alisoun is not just the object of men’s desires, she has desires herself, and looks to satisfy them, as a man would do. Rather than waiting modestly to be chosen by a man, as would be expected of a traditionally submissive woman, Alisoun picks and chooses from among her potential lovers, and uses them as she pleases. Nicholas gives her sexual pleasure. John gives her a home, wealth, and security. Even the effeminate Absolon brings her drinks, cakes, and money. Despite her husband’s supposed jealousy, Alisoun moves about freely and goes where she likes. She enjoys her independence and takes her pleasure in a very masculine way, all while exercising her feminine wiles. I would argue that Alisoun represents a near-perfect example of gender
“I believe that the common man is as apt a subject for tragedy in its highest sense as kings were” ( Tragedy and the Common Man). Arthur Miller follows his Millerian conventions of tragedy in the writing of The Crucible. Often literature uses tragedy to display a depressing theme represented by the tragic hero.
Cox, Catherine S. Gender and Language in Chaucer. Gainesville, Florida: U of Florida P, 1997.
Being an individual and trying to separate yourself by being different is not usual in the puritan community. They do everything as a whole and that is what they believe in. In this article it says, “Such an adamantly ridged society of course implies that any form of individuality will be considered subversive and dangerous” (Bonnet 32). The main cause of this entire process is a mixture of individual and social forces. The character Abigail is out of lust for Proctor and out of jealousy for Elizabeth Proctor which was mentioned earlier. In the article it also approaches that “Every single person can avail himself of the opportunity to weak his own personal vengeance on his neighbor. At the same time that fallen state of things becomes a social
Hansen, Elaine Tuttle. Chaucer and the Fictions of Gender. Berkeley: U of California P. 1992. Print. (Kennedy Library PR1928.W64 H36 1992)
The use of euphemism and crudeness in “The Wife of Bath’s Prologue” is simultaneously unnerving and amusing, and begs the question of how a “wicked” woman like The Wife could ever actually progress in medieval society. Chaucer incorporates subtle allusions to female sexual organs and it is this bluntness (that would raise eyebrows even today) which establishes the Wife as such a powerfully outspoken character. Because courtship in Chaucer’s time was considered worthy of complete submission, the fact that the Wife places such emphasis on domination and even psychological power hints at her being an object of irony (and not a feminist figure “before her time”). It is for this reason that Chaucer’s delicate use of “queynte”- a term from which
...“A war-maker” “A ruler” From this the reader learns that there has been a distinct split between men and women since the beginning of time. It is interesting that Alette is hearing this information from a headless woman. (Notley 91) The woman being headless symbolizes women being praised for their bodies, sexuality, or feminity not for their brains or education. The headless woman says, “my body” “still danced then-” “but my head” “played audience” “to the achievements” “of males” (Notley 91)
When we consider that Chaucer chose his pilgrims with careful precision to present a cross section of late-medireview society, the small number of women travellers can be seen as a clear reminder of the patriarchal culture in which the Wife existed. Nevertheless, despite Alisoun's vigorous assault on 'olde and angry nigardes' she is the first to recognise the political ascendancy of men. Her prologue is peppered with allusions to great biblical patriarchs such as Abraham and Jacob:
...en compared with modern day women this is a truly outdated stereotype that carries very little weight if any at all. Chaucer’s work in the Wife of Bath stereotypes women as manipulating, sinful, and yearning to gain power over their husbands. And although not always projected in an entirely negative light, it seems that as a whole Chaucer attempted to create an evil stereotype of women.
The Wife of Bath’s insecurity and cynicism are just two of the ways in which she fulfils negative stereotypes of women. She tries to separate herself from other women of her time by taking control of her life by means of sex, but if she were truly progressive, she would have found a way to elevate herself without using her body. Alisoun is exactly what men fear and dislike about women; she is promiscuously sneaky, and she takes advantage of men. This is why while trying to present herself as strong and independent, her actions ultimately confirm misogynistic stereotypes of women; in the end, she is even more digressive to the cause feminism than a normal woman would be.
In the Miller’s tale, the Miller tells of a carpenter, John, his wife Alisoun, and a student named Nicholas. In this tale, unbeknownst to the carpenter, Alisoun and Nicholas have an affair, but events begin to take a crazy turn when a local parish clerk tries to convince Alisoun to have an affair with him as well (99). In this case, women, through Alisoun, are rendered immoral - a trait that no one desired. Finally, in the story told by the wife from Bath, women are portrayed as being powerful and worthy of respect, as previously discussed. However, all one has to do to discover more about
Chaucer, in his female pilgrimage thought of women as having an evil-like quality that they always tempt and take from men. They were depicted as untrustworthy, selfish and vain and often like caricatures not like real people at all. Through the faults of both men and women, Chaucer showed what is right and wrong and how one should live. Under the surface, however, lies a jaded look of women in the form that in his writings he seems to crate them as caricatures and show how they cause the downfall of men by sometimes appealing to their desires and other times their fears. Chaucer obviously had very opinionated views of the manners and behaviours of women and expressed it strongly in The Canterbury Tales. In his collection of tales, he portrayed two extremes in his prospect of women. The Wife of Bath represented the extravagant and lusty woman where as the Prioress represented the admirable and devoted followers of church. Chaucer delineated the two characters contrastingly in their appearances, general manners, education and most evidently in their behaviour towards men. Yet, in the midst of disparities, both tales left its readers with an unsolved enigma.
In the Middle Ages, the roles of women became less restricted and confined and women became more opinionated and vocal. Sir Gawain and The Green Knight presents Lady Bertilak, the wife of Sir Bertilak, as a woman who seems to possess some supernatural powers who seduces Sir Gawain, and Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Wife of Bath Prologue and Tale, present women who are determined to have power and gain sovereignty over the men in their lives. The female characters are very openly sensual and honest about their wants and desires. It is true that it is Morgan the Fay who is pulling the strings in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight; nevertheless the Gawain poet still gives her a role that empowers her. Alison in The Wife if Bath Prologue represents the voice of feminism and paves the way for a discourse in the relationships between husbands and wives and the role of the woman in society.
Hansen, Elaine Tuttle. Chaucer and the Fictions of Gender. Los Angelos, CA: University of California Press, 1992. Print.
The “Wife of Bath’s Prologue” shows that Alisoun was empowered by the ability use her sexuality. As she introduces her tale, Alisoun makes it clear that she sees marriage as a way to gain money and status, “Of fyve husbondes
As a man fascinated with the role of women during the 14th Century, or most commonly known as the Middle Ages, Chaucer makes conclusive evaluations and remarks concerning how women were viewed during this time period. Determined to show that women were not weak and humble because of the male dominance surrounding them, Chaucer sets out to prove that women were a powerful and strong-willed gender. In order to defend this argument, the following characters and their tales will be examined: Griselda from the Clerk's Tale, and the Wife of Bath, narrator to the Wife of Bath's Tale. Using the role of gender within the genres of the Canterbury Tales, exploring each woman's participation in the outcomes of their tales, and comparing and contrasting these two heroines, we will find out how Chaucer broke the mold on medievalist attitudes toward women.