Long before the enlightened women of the 1960s enthusiastically discarded their bras, at a time when anti-feminist and misogynistic attitudes were prevalent, lived Geoffrey Chaucer. Whether Chaucer was indeed a feminist well before his time, or whether he was simply conveying an alternative and unpopular point of view, is irrelevant. Her portrayal of the Wife of Bath in The Canterbury Tales is a fascinating study of medieval feminism. Ostentatious, domineering, deceptive and selfish, the wife, or Alisoun, systematically defies the idea that women should be submissive to their masterful husbands. As a seemingly radical feminist, Wife rejects even moderate feminist ideals that hold both sexes equal and instead lives in a utopian existence where women rule over their gelding husbands. But it doesn't stop there. The Bride hates all forms of traditional authority and weaves her tale in such an eloquent, if somewhat disjointed, manner that the listener is forced to believe that the Bride is as flawless as fresh snow. In reality, she's mud-stained at best and never quite achieves the "maistrye" she so desires. For all her faults, the Wife is certainly an astute student of human behavior and is very content, as long as she believes that women have sovereignty over their male counterparts. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay It is important to note that the term “feminism” as we know it did not exist at the time Chaucer wrote The Canterbury Tales. Today we assume that a feminist is one who believes that men and women are created equal and therefore deserve to be treated equally. This was not the case in 14th century England. Women had very few social rights and there was no organized movement to increase their civil liberties. So when we describe Chaucer or the Wife of Bath as feminist, we simply mean that he or she recognized that there were power disparities and that men did not necessarily have the right to control the daily activities of women. women. Although some might argue that the Wife of Bath, or Alisoun, wants to completely discredit all authority figures, Mary Carruthers, in her article "The Wife of Bath and the Painting of Lions", asserts that "Alisoun does not does not deny authority when the authority is true... It insists, however, that authority makes itself responsible to the realities of experience” (209). Carruthers makes an interesting point, but a difficult one to validate, because The Wife of Bath never discloses to the reader an experienced source of authority that she respects, other than herself, of course. The authority she struggles against belongs almost exclusively to male philosophers and poets. In order to “undermine the tyranny of authority, the Wife of Bath feels the need to claim a certain type of authority herself, establishing her experiential credentials from the outset of her speech” (Gottfried, 208). She argues that the experience, even though it is in this world, is fair enough for me to talk about what marriage is (1-3). Because she has been married five times since the age of twelve, the Wife of Bath certainly has more working knowledge of this particular institution than so-called authorities, such as the Apostle Paul. In defense of her many marriages, she rightly argues that Paul himself advised people to remain chaste, but to marry if their lustful passion became unbearable. However, what she doesn't recognize isthat this advice only gives people the right to marry, and not to freely copulate with all kinds of men, whether “short, or long, or black, or white” (624). That the Wife of Bath was an astute student of the Bible is undeniable; it is also evident that she possesses the mental agility to twist Scripture to best suit her needs. For example, she compares the multiple marriages of Lameth (Lamech), Abraham, Jacob, and King Solomon based on her specific situation. Fortunately, she does not mention that all of these men lived before the birth of Christ, at a time when different biblical guidelines applied. Alisoun, however, also presents very logical arguments. It is true that the belief of many male authority figures that Christ's presence at a single recorded marriage indicated that people should only marry once was a gross misinterpretation of Scripture. It is also true that if every person were to remain a virgin, the world would be devoid of human life in a very short time. Although she herself has a tendency to misinterpret Scripture, pointing out the misinterpretations of others, the Wife of Bath deliberately challenges the notion of the passive, uneducated woman. As noted previously, the authority that Alisoun herself perceives arises directly from her experience. It has discovered, over years of experience, that the only way for it to achieve sovereignty is through economic independence. One of Carruther's strongest arguments is this: As Alisoun knows from experience, the true fruits of marriage are described neither in Jerome nor in the behavior books, but take place in the marriage bed. Her important booty for her is neither children nor sensual satisfaction but independence. Marriage is the key to survival, and this is what Alisoun seeks and finds? The root of marital “maistrye” is economic control... The logic is clear: sovereignty is the power of the purse (214). The Wife of Bath therefore seeks sovereignty through a combination of experience and independent wealth. The only reason she is freer than other women is because she is not beholden to anyone. We know from the general prologue that she is an accomplished weaver, one of the most lucrative professions in England at the time. Normally, her husband would have control of all the money she earns, but, as she is a widow, she is allowed to own independent wealth. For Alisoun, this, combined with his experience of the world, gives him the right to claim authority. For the Wife of Bath, authority is a primary concern. In each of her marriages, Alisoun gains sovereignty over her husbands through a sordid succession of lies and deception. She complains about her husband's complaints against her and even concocts false accusations to counter those made against him. She proudly declares that I played first, so did our work. They were ready to excuse their blyveOf, which they never agilded their lyve. -394). Ironically, Alisoun frames her allegations from the very acts of which she is guilty. Invariably, her husbands react with all the vigor of helpless field mice; they acquiesce and bow humbly before his authority. Alisoun's most difficult challenge is her fourth husband, which probably explains why she holds him in such low esteem. Even after his death, she has little respect for him, and considers it “but it was to bury him carefully” (500), even though she certainly has the means. The woman's three previous husbands are much older than her, and she considers them to begeriatric idiots because they cater to his every whim. The fourth husband suits her more. He is younger than the others and frequently visits his mistresses. His refusal to let himself be dominated exasperates Alisoun. In retaliation, she aggressively flirts with another man, with whom she denies any involvement, but marries shortly after Number Four's death. The Wife of Bath presumes that she has finally triumphed over her husband's authority, but much of her story betrays this feeling. Alisoun's narrative begins to unravel in her description of her fifth marriage to an employee named Jankyn. Alisoun's first four husbands are very rich and it is for this reason alone that she marries them. Jankyn, however, is a student, and therefore is not rich. For the first time, the Wife of Bath is interested in someone for reasons other than financial gain. Independently wealthy, Alisoun is physically attracted to Jankyn, and "thought he had a pair/of legs and feet so clean and beautiful/that al myn herte I went into his hoold" (l. 597-599) . It is precisely at this point that the Wife of Bath begins to lose her sovereignty. Before this point, Alisoun never gave up her heart, or anything else, to a man. She doesn't fully realize the consequences of falling in love. In any relationship, the partner who loves the most is in a vulnerable position. Clearly, Alisoun finds himself in this unguarded position in his relationship with Jankyn. Jankyn seems distant to him at best, and bitter and hateful at worst, but Alisoun still cherishes him and cares about his memory, even though he beat her so badly that her ribs still hurt. Although she claims that ultimately she managed to tame Jankyn and he began to treat her "like kynde/like any woman from Denmark to Ynde" (823-824), some say this perception is a complete fabrication of Alisoun's idea. Towards the end of his prologue, Alisoun tells the story of his last fight with Jankyn. Jankyn read his book about "wikked wyves" aloud, which infuriated Alisoun. She retaliates by tearing three pages out of the book and hitting him in the head. Jankyn responds by hitting her in the ear, making her deaf. Alisoun chastises her husband: O! hastow killed me, false thief.?... And for my land, hastow bit me like this? Uh, I am, but I won't kiss you (800-802). This is all perfectly clear and entirely plausible. What follows, however, is not. Immediately afterwards, Alisoun enters a new paragraph and Jankyn undergoes a sudden change of character. It is from this moment that DJ Wurtele believes that Alisoun is lying. In his article, Chaucer's Wife of Bath and the Problem of the Fifth Husband, he argues that it is precisely at this point that the wife may be transitioning from fact to fiction... For now , Jankyn's malicious nature seems to change at some point. stroke. According to Alisoun's story, he asks for forgiveness for hitting her and swears never to do it again... This very much fits the fairy tale ending of the example of the Loathsome Lady that 'Alisoun... proposes to pilgrims as a variation on the same theme of the sovereignty of the wife (119). It is very likely that Alisoun will change the ending of his story of his relationship with Jankyn to fit his specific worldview. She may even believe that the ending she interpreted actually happened. She wants sovereignty so badly that if she can't achieve it, she alters reality in her mind to achieve it. According to Wurtele, Alisoun is ultimately frustrated in her quest for sovereignty. Some people are more forgiving of Alisoun's apparent contradictions. She admits that she must fight for control of two of her husbands, andthis revelation alone causes Anne Laskaya to respect her. In her book Chaucer's Approach to Gender in the Canterbury Tales, Laskaya says that "For the woman, an accurate depiction of marriage includes an account of the power inequalities and struggles for power that she knows exist within marriage." , rather than a sort of classical gender hierarchy” (181). In other words, Alisoun is not simply a power broker. She simply refuses to subscribe to the ideal of a dominant husband-submissive wife relationship. In reality, this situation does not exist. The balance of power constantly shifts from one spouse to the next. Peggy Knapp seems to share many of Laskaya's sentiments. Knapp believes that the Wife of Bath does not want to completely usurp male power, but simply desires some sort of self-definition and justification. She sees the loathsome lady of Alisoun's tale as a form of herself, and neither personality is there to "catch" men. Knapp says this about Alisoun's tale: "Deep in this story is the idea that men must learn from women...The loathsome woman arranges to have a husband with whom she can share in both authority and experience" (49). Knapp and Laskaya think that Alisoun is willing to compromise in her relationships, but what they both think. What I don't understand is that even if Alisoun admits that sometimes she doesn't have complete control over her relationships, and while the loathsome wife ends up obeying her husband in "everything", Alisoun is completely unhappy when she's not the one in power, and. never chooses to give up even a small part of her sovereignty if she can prevent it in any way Although it seems that Laskaya is only partially correct in the previous argument, she. highlights the importance of Alisoun's deafness; people simply see his damaged hearing as some sort of "war wound" from his abusive relationship, Laskaya sees it as something more. She considers her wife's deafness as a kind of shield, or weapon, because "she fights against deafness." discourse of a patriarchal culture, what better defense than the inability to hear? If Alysoun cannot hear the impressive and oft-repeated voice of antifeminism in her culture, neither can she be easily persuaded of its 'truth'" (182). Alisoun's deafness then becomes a sign of his resistance to misogynistic culture. in which she lives. She is no longer constrained by verbal definitions of what she should be and is free to interpret her own life as she wishes. Others believe that Alisoun has little, if any, freedom. For Richard Griffith, although the story of the Wife of Bath "seems to be a simple statement in favor of female domination...there is much mitigation in this position" (109) Alisoun still loves and obeys Jankyn after their horrible fight, and even. Arthur's queen must beg her husband to spare the rapist knight's life. At the end of his story, “the obedience of the woman and the happiness of the couple are emphasized” (Griffith, 111). It's curious, because according to his prologue, one would never suspect it. that Alisoun would subscribe to the ideal of the obedient wife. Alisoun may want to believe that she has achieved sovereignty, but in reality, the only sovereignty she has is that which men have allowed her to possess. Alisoun not only doesn't have the sovereignty she claims to have, but she also doesn't have as much confidence in herself. the morality of her actions as she claims to be. In her prologue, the Wife of Bath proudly boasts of all the tricks she has played on her lovers and encourages others to do the same: Now I 23(2) (1988): 117-127.