Wife Of Bath's Five Marriages example essay topic

In Canterbury Tales, Geoffrey Chaucer includes and exploits individuals from all walks of medieval society. He uses irony and satire in varying types of narratives to reveal the components of virtually each pilgrim. Unfortunately Chaucer delegated only two of his tales to be told by women, the tales of the Wife of Bath and the Prioress. These two female characters in Canterbury Tales are not quite typical of their class and status. The Prioress's grace, elegance, affectation of speech and manners, as well as Wife of Bath's five marriages, apparently does not fit into medieval stereotypes. The Prioress is a peculiar character.

When Chaucer introduces her we quickly begin to understand that something is wrong with this her and that she is concerned with other issues than her ecclesiastical lifework. By title she should be concerned with helping the poor and dedicating her life to God. There is nothing lacking in the Prioress' character as a medieval woman; she has good manners, speaks French "ful faire and fetidly" (a sign of belonging to the upper classes), albeit French "after the school of Stratford-at-Bow", the vulgar London pronunciation compared to elite Parisian French. She is "of greet disport" (that is to say, merry and good-tempered), she is pretty and "charitable".

However, Chaucer describes some attributes and features that cannot be reconciled to the idea of a perfect medieval nun. The first example of this comes at the end of line 119, when Chaucer calls her "coy". Although not a bad thing in itself, this has the effect of causing the reader to begin to doubt the real suitability of this woman to her profession. In line 139, this doubt is strengthened by the word "countrefete", which suggests both that she does not come from a courtly background, and that she tries to make people believe that she does; a symptom of pride, one of the seven deadly sins.

Lines 151-162 talk of her appearance, and here there are also signs that things are not quite as they should be. Chaucer talks of her full figure and "fair for heed" (high foreheads were much admired and sought after in women at this time), although ideally neither should have been visible underneath the nun's habit and wimple. Her brooch is ambiguous as to its meaning; "Amor vinci t omnia", meaning 'love conquers all', is perhaps an acceptable sentiment if meant religiously. However, 'amor' was usually taken to mean romantic, rather than religious, love. In any case, a "brooch of gold ful sheen e" is a sign of the breaking of the vow of poverty which all ordained people had to take, as is the fact that she feeds her dogs so extravagantly, on food which should surely be given to the poor. The strong emphasis on her table manners and the fact that her moral character is not mentioned until approximately halfway through the description, suggest that she is quite a superficial character.

Furthermore, she weeps at the mere sight of a dead mouse, a gross overreaction to a small tragedy. She is rather too kind to animals, while there is no mention of her kindness to people. Some of the Prioress' faults can perhaps be forgiven when taken in context of medieval society. Religion was central to life, and often upper-class families would send an unmarried or scandalized daughter to a convent, whether or not she felt it was her vocation. It is likely that this is the situation of this particular nun, as she does not seem particularly devout. In contrast, the way the Wife of Bath dresses and behaves suggests the directness of her character.

The Wife is not beautiful, but forceful and vivacious. Her bright clothes and elaborate headdress are ostentatious rather than elegant: her hat is as broad as a "bokeler" (a buckler or small shield). Her clothes are of good quality "fyn scarlet reed" and her shoes are "moist e and newe". The effect is perhaps to advertise herself and her wealth. Of her life we are told that (apart from "other compaignye in you the") she has had five husbands. This means, of course that she has been five times widowed (no divorce for women in 14th century England).

Her habit of going on pilgrimages suggests a devout woman, but her real reasons for such travel are a love of adventure and the social opportunities these trips bring. While the Prioress embodies fastidiousness, the Wife of Bath is the manifestation of vitality. We see the Prioress as a woman who submitted to the institution of the Church, trying to fit her temperament into it. She is "simple and coy" and she never curses. However, she subtly violates the laws of her order by keeping pets, overdressing and taking on to a pilgrimage. Opposed to Eglantine's passiveness and subtlety are the Wife of Bath's outspokenness, aggressive demonstration of her instincts, appetites and willpower.

The Wife of Bath makes the institutions of church, pilgrimage and marriage serve to her temperament. Chaucer does not portray two typical women, but rather the opposite poles of woman's nature.