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How women in the Canterbury tales
Chaucer's representation of women in Canterbury tales
Chaucer's representation of women in Canterbury tales
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In a society, there are many different opinions on how a women figure is seen. These ideas have changed overtime with the progress of women bring consider equal to men. There are two ways a woman can be interpreted, one brings lower to the men and the other being equal to men. Women play an important role in shaping lives, directly or indirectly. The tales depicted in this book shows the reader the broader insight of how women were seen as in previous years. The different ideas of what women meant to men are seen in the tales told by the characters in the book, mostly the men. The perspective of a woman for a male and a female is different. If we were to compare two tales from each side, the opinion would only be in favour for the individual who is narrating the tale. In Geoffrey Chaucer’s “Canterbury Tales”, the role of women is portrayed in two different ways, one …show more content…
In this novel, in comparison, there are more men than women. Most of the tales told by the men stretch over a wide range of how female should be. On the other hand, the women tend to focus on one idea and stick to it to prove their point. Since there are more men, the women tend to loose the importance and focus from the men. The women figure in this book are the Prioress, the Wife of Bath, and the Second Nun. Chaucer description of the women in this novel is very stereotypical. Although he describes them with great elegance and respect, there is always a condition to it. These conditions then tend to leave no importance for the reader. The Nun is described a “charitable solicitous” who “weep[s] is she … saw a mouse caught in a trap”1. These small details put a wrong impression on the readers therefore leaving no interest and meaning for the tales the women have to say. Even after the tales are done, the Host says things that discourage the
There are many different roles for women shown in “The Canterbury Tales” and “The Decameron”. Both books take place around the same time frame, 1300AD. “The Canterbury Tales”, takes place in London, England and “The Decameron” takes place in Florence, Italy. It would be just to think that since both books take place in a western civilization, both books would reflect the same morals and daily life styles. This is not the case at all. Throughout this paper I will attempt to show how these two books portrayed a totally different lifestyle.
Wife of Bath. Her character is noted to be strong and bold and we learn
Traditional female characteristics and female unrest are underscored in literary works of the Middle Ages. Although patriarchal views were firmly established back then, traces of female contempt for such beliefs could be found in several popular literary works. Female characters’ opposition to societal norms serves to create humor and wish- fulfillment for female and male audiences to enjoy. “Lanval” by Marie De France and “The Wife of Bath’s Tale” by Geoffrey Chaucer both show subversion of patriarchal attitudes by displaying the women in the text as superior or equal to the men. However, “The Wife of Bath’s Tale” also incorporates conventional societal ideas by including degradation of women and mistreatment of a wife by her husband.
In The Canterbury Tales, written by Geoffrey Chaucer, the stereotypes and roles in society are reexamined and made new through the characters in the book. Chaucer discusses different stereotypes and separates his characters from the social norm by giving them highly ironic and/or unusual characteristics. Specifically, in the stories of The Wife of Bath and The Miller’s Tale, Chaucer examines stereotypes of women and men and attempts to define their basic wants and needs.
Now that we have that to think about, I would now like to suggest another thing that I think Chaucer is doing: pointing out some misogynistic characteristics of men in his society. In the prologue, Chaucer portrays the Wife of Bath as having controlling characteristics. We see that when she tells her audience about her husbands and how her various marriages went. The Wife tells us that during her first few marriages, she was the young, beautiful wife and she got what she wanted from her wealthy, older husbands. She tells her male audience that she controlled her husbands by mentioning that “[She] governed hem so wel after [her] lawe/ That ech of hem was ful blisful and fawe”, and that they always sought out ways to please her (219-220). With
Geoffrey Chaucer has an interesting view on women’s roles in life. Through his tales he shows his differentiation in how he feels women are in life. He stays true to his time and the oppression of women that was happening, but he adds a twist. In The Canterbury Tales he shows women being weak and at the mercy of the men in their lives on one hand, and on the other hand the women are in control and their men are at their will.
... allows the present day reader to gain insight into commonly held beliefs regarding women during the 14th century. By allowing Alison to have a sense of humor and joke about aspects of her marriage, Chaucer was able to make numerous points regarding women that would not have been acknowledged had a female author created them. By making Alison a laughable character, Chaucer was able to make points about women such as the unfairness of double standards, the acknowledgement of female desire, and the reality of women marrying well to improve their economic situations. Chaucer also provides us with detailed examples of commonly held stereotypes regarding women that are still relevant approximately seven centuries later.
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.
The roles of women was an issue in medieval times and in The Canterbury Tales. In A Knight 's Tale, the women were portrayed as objects. To men they didn 't mean much. Women for them were there to help only when needed and didn 't hold an important role in society. Women were treated differently and had not much of importance.
In medieval England, society’s roles were dominated by men and women were either kept at home or doing labor work. Among the most famous medieval English literature, “The Canterbury Tales” by Geoffrey Chaucer, lies ‘The Wife of Bath's Prologue’ and ‘The Wife of Bath's Tale.’ Within, Chaucer shares his perspective of the Wife of Bath, the Queen, and the Crone. Through the use of symbolism and diction, Chaucer aims to change society’s expectations of women.
In Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, The Wife of Bath is a strong woman who loudly states her opinions about the antifeminist sentiments popular at the time. Chaucer, however, frequently discredits her arguments by making them unfounded and generally compromising her character. This brings into question Chaucer's political intent with the Wife of Bath. Is he supportive of her views, or is he making a mockery of woman who challenge the patriarchal society and its restriction and mistrust of women? The Wife's comedic character, frequent misquoting of authorities, marital infidelity, and her (as well as Chaucer's) own antifeminist sentiments weaken the argument that Chaucer supported of the Wife's opinions.
One of the most prominent themes in Fragment VII of the Canterbury Tales is the attitudes of the pilgrims towards women. There are two distinct sides in the dispute: that women are simply objects of lust that must never be trusted, and that women are highly respectable and loving.
Madonna once said, “I 'm tough, I 'm ambitious, and I know exactly what I want. If that makes me a bitch, okay” (Madonna). Madonna is saying that she can do what she wants and that should be okay, no matter what society says. Society should not be the one to determine how women act. This accurately embodies Geoffrey Chaucer’s message on how women should act in regards to what society tells them to do. In the fourteenth century, Madonna would be seen as a rebellious person that no one should follow. Many of the characters in The Canterbury Tales live by the words that Madonna said, yet Chaucer still makes them admirable. In The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer illustrates that the societal norms should not be upheld through his use of women.
Geoffrey Chaucer used his characters in Canterbury Tales as a way to illustrate stereotype of medieval society. The Wife of Bath, one of the pilgrims in Canterbury Tales demonstrates an authoritative role in marriage The Wife of Bath’s unusual behavior and attitudes can be interpreted by two motives: feminist ideals or sexual indulgence. When considering feminist viewpoints, it can be concluded that the Wife of Bath’s behavior is motivated by sexual indulgence.
The debate of which individual should have the authority in a marriage, the man or the woman, is a topic that has remained unanswered for centuries. While he does not solve this debate, Geoffrey Chaucer attempts to unpack the different elements that factor into it. In Canterbury Tales, primarily in the prologue of the Wife of Bath and both tales of the Wife of Bath and the Clerk, Chaucer displays different types of marriages. These marriages analyze how a man or woman can gain authority over the other. These marriages vary in terms of their dynamics due to the unique individuals and their environments. Through an analysis of the marriages depicted by Chaucer in the prologue and tales of the Clerk and the Wife of Bath, one can see the different