The Wife Of Bath And His Play With Gender Essay - 1698 Words

Amber Cohens Professor Robichaud Brit. literature 1 10/18/16 The Wife of Bath and his play with Gender (Feminist and or Misogynist) Like most of literature, The Wife of Bath can be read in multiple perspectives. Within The Wife of Bath, it can be read as feministic and or misogynistic. Chaucer projects his views towards feminism through the wife and her views and attitudes. Many literary critics explored the feministic views of The Wife of Bath. She is a strongminded and dominant woman who knows exactly what she wants and doesn’t need a man to achieve such unless in regards to sexual behaviors but one must examine the definition of feminism and this is not it. A feminist is someone who believes that women and men are equal. Which leads the reader to wonder if Chauncer is playing upon genders or maybe even confused. Alisson, also known as the wife of Bath is a renowned character of Chauncer. She is blunt and open and offers the readers a modern outlook on a woman’s place in male-controlled society. Most crown her as one of the first feminist due to her stand against being portrayed as the â€Å"wikked wyves† (Chaucer 685) as she is described by the male characters in the tale. Still one can notice the contradictions between what the Wife of Bath has acknowledged throughout the tale and her behavior. So What is Chaucer really trying to say about the women of that time? Does Chauncer really belong to the Feminist bunch or not? David Reid discusses chauncers confused outlook onShow MoreRelated Chaucers Canterbury Tales Essay - The Strong Wife of Bath1112 Words   |  5 PagesThe Strong Wife of Bath       Alison of Bath as a battered wife may seem all wrong, but her fifth husband, Jankyn, did torment her and knock her down, if not out, deafening her somewhat in the process. Nevertheless, the Wife of Bath got the upper hand in this marriage as she had done in the other four and as she would probably do in the sixth, which she declared herself ready to welcome. Alison certainly ranks high among women able to gain control over their mates.    The Wife of BathsRead More Womens Roles in Epic of Gilgamesh, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and The Canterbury Tales1481 Words   |  6 Pagessociety. This change is clearly reflected in many works of literature, one of the most representative of which is Plautuss 191 B.C. drama Pseudolus, in which we meet the prostitute Phoenicium. Although the motivation behind nearly every action in the play, she is glimpsed only briefly, never speaks directly, and earns little respect from the male characters surrounding her, a situation that roughly parallels a womans role in Roman society of that period. Women of the time, in other words, were to beRead MoreFeminism In Chaucers The Wife Of Bath1216 Words   |  5 Pagesliterature deals with interpreting the original meaning of a work and attempting to understand how it applies to modern day readers. As with other pieces of literature, this is also true for Chaucer’s â€Å"The Wife of Bath’s Prologue,† where many contemp orary scholars hail Chaucer as feminist icon for his depiction of an eloquent, independent woman. This interpretation, however, is flawed because it is highly anachronistic. Feminism, as we understand the term today, did not emerge until the 19th CenturyRead MoreAnalysis Of Annie John, Annie, And Her Mother1059 Words   |  5 PagesThroughout history, society has convinced women and men they have to look and act a certain way depending on their gender. Kincaid’s Annie John illustrates how expectations of men and women differ not only in Antigua, but in many places of the world in the 1950’s. From the beginning, Kincaid portrays women as feminine and males as masculine. The novel shows women as handlers of the domestic roles while men support their families’ financial needs. Furthermore, women and men have to live up to differentRead MoreThe Wife Of Bath s Prologue And Tale2067 Words   |  9 PagesThe representation of gender in â€Å"The Wife of Bath’ s Prologue† and â€Å"The Wife of Bath’s Tale† by Geoffrey Chaucer functions as a way to both satirize and represent female equality. In particular, The Wife of Bath challenges the stereotypes of what may appear to be â€Å"normal† treatment of women during this time period (TheBestNotes.com). She identifies the distinctions between â€Å"traditional† gender roles and relates them to passages from the bible, which are then taken out of context. These passages areRead MoreFeminist Analysis Of The Wife Of Bath 1419 Words   |  6 PagesFeminism in the Wife of Bath The story of the Wife of Bath provides an insight to the role women were expected to play during the late middle ages. In the Prologue, Alice narrates her story guided by her life experience and religious beliefs. Alice is a reformed woman who goes against the patriarchal community’s expectation of women being suppressed by their men (Carter, 309). According to Kittredge (440), the wife of bath contradicts the church’s expectation that the wife should be loyal and holyRead MoreWomen From The Medieval Times1500 Words   |  6 Pagesmade very interesting characters. The majority of gender expectations came from the church and biblical history. Since Eve was the cause for the fall of man, there were a lot of anti-feminist feelings. Women were held accountable for the majority of man’s suffering, and were consequently inferior and to be dominated by men. Purity, holiness, and chastity, were all presumptions of women from outstanding role models like the Virgin Mar y. The Wife of Bath contains three issues that were pretty extremeRead MoreThe Role Of Gender As A Symbol Of Femininity1240 Words   |  5 PagesThe role of gender was evidently defined before the twentieth century. However, the twentieth century brought a lot of changes to women and their condition, inside and outside the house. Women started getting appreciated in the previously male dominating society. However, this didn’t last for long and by the mid-century men continued their dominating role back in the society. Tennessee Williams wrote this play in the fifties when this change was happening in society. In this play, male dominanceRead MoreThroughout History, It Has Generally Been Accepted That1327 Words   |  6 Pageswhole, a noteworthy 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 misogynistRead MoreThe Wife Of Bath s Prologue By Geoffrey Chaucer1324 Words   |  6 Pageswhole, a noteworthy 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