...The Wife of Bath’s Tale in Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales is about a knight in King Arthur’s court that sexually assaults a young maiden. He is saved by the Queen, but she sends him on a quest to find out what women desire most. Most readers see this as either a tale about growth and understanding of women and human emotion in a time where they were not equal, or about a knight that could care less about women’s emotions and cares more about their physical forms. (add more about thesis about which one is right) This story is usually interpreted in two ways; as a story about self growth and understanding, or as a story about a selfish, bratty knight that acts like most high school students in January. For many reasons, it’s seen as a...
Words: 721 - Pages: 3
...MAIN CHARACTERS IN “THE CANTERBURY TALES” BY GEOFFREY CHAUCER COURSE PAPER PRESENTED BY LILIA YAREMA a fourth year student of the English department SUPERVISED BY SPODARYK O. V. an assistant professor of the English department LVIV 2012 TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………………… 3-4 CHAPTER I. THEORETICAL ISSUES IN LINGUISTIC ANALYSIS…… 5-16 1.1 Linguistic analysis……………………………………………… 5-8 1.2 Discourse and Text analyses….…………….………………….. 9-11 1.3 Stylistic analysis ………………………………………………… 12-16 CHAPTER II. LINGUISTIC ANALYSIS OF CHAUCER’S CHARACTERS 17-28 2.1 “The Wife of Bath’s Tale” ……………………………………… 18-22 2.2 “The Pardoner’s Tale” ………………………………………….. 23-28 CONCLUSION………………………………………………………………. 29-30 REFERENCES...… ………………………………………………………….. 31-32 INTRODUCTION The theme of the course paper is “Linguistic means of portraying main characters in “The Canterbury tales” by Geoffrey Chaucer”. This paper intends to make an analysis of the language in the collection of stories “The Canterbury Tales”, written by Geoffrey Chaucer at the end of 14th century. We will analyze the language used to describe characters. It was based on the idea that every choice made by the author of a sentence is meaningful. Therefore, once we understand the choices the author makes when describing a character, we are able to have a better understanding of what this author expects of the readers. Geoffrey Chaucer is recognized as...
Words: 9013 - Pages: 37
...Divine Hypocrisy (A literary analysis of Chaucer’s use of satire to reach his audience) As you go through life you learn that many times most people do not agree with what you do. They all have their own interests as we have our own. People of all denominations perform many different jobs some even the same jobs, but others out do the others in their field. Chaucer is considered to be one of the greatest English poets of all time. Many refer to him as the father of the English language. Chaucer wrote one of the best known books titled Canterbury Tales. Chaucer’s literary work is one of the most famous books to ever be written. Within his book there are many smaller stories told by different characters told within it. All of the smaller...
Words: 1174 - Pages: 5
...The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer talks about a pilgrimage. In this story “a group is gathered at Tabard Inn to go on a pilgrimage to the shrine of Saint Thomas à Becket at Canterbury.” (Chaucer, Geoffrey. The Canterbury Tales. South Carolina McDougall Little British literature. Ed. Janet Allen et. al. Houghton Mifflin, Co. 2009. p.140 ). The host decided to let the group to tell stories to pass time on their way. In this story there are Chaucer’s saints who are honest, ready to help, faithful and on the other hand, there are scoundrels who are greedy, hypocrites, liars. Chaucer's saints are Knight, Parson, and Plowman, and the rest where bad and good in ways. Every character on this pilgrimage have differences and similarities. Saints and...
Words: 503 - Pages: 3
...have developed due to different pieces of literature and society in general. Men court women and rescue them from danger. Women learn the necessary skills to become a proper housewife and mother. For a man to successfully complete the requirements of his “part” in the relationship, he must provide for his spouse and assert his dominance as the head of the household. The woman must then complete the dance by deferring to her husband’s wishes and presenting the perfect picture of a cultured, subservient wife. The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer and Lanval by Marie de France challenge this notion. In both works, the women represent the dominant force in the relationship, reversing gender roles and overturning modern-day gender stereotypes. However, despite the fact that both pieces of literature oppose the standards of the time, the social commentary the two works provide greatly contrast. Although Lanval still incorporates many of the common romantic stereotypes, The Canterbury Tales does not address these stereotypes; not only does the work present a profoundly different picture, illustrating a highly negative image of what occurs when women contain the power in a relationship, but also it also gives this classic piece of literature less relevancy in the eyes of the modern-day reader. Traditionally, women held little to no power in a relationship; however, Lanval challenges this long-standing idea. Lanval, a knight “far from his inheritance,” gains his wealth through the success...
Words: 1694 - Pages: 7
...Tales’ summaries The Wife of Bath’s Tale starts with a Prologue in which she gives an account of her colorful life with five husbands. The tale continues the main question of women’s desire for sovereignty over men. A young Knight rapes a maiden while she was returning home. As a punishment for his heinous act he has to discover within a year what women most desire. The Knight was searching in the whole country in search of the answer. At the end he promises to grant a wish to an ugly old hag in return for the right answer. When he has given the answer in court and secured his liberty, the old hug jumps up and demands that he marries her. The Knight begs her to reconsider and wish for something else but the old hag stubbornly refuses. The Knight marries her secretly. At night as they lay in bed, the Knight keeps on turning restlessly. The old hag asks him if he would prefer her ugly and faithful or beautiful and faithless. The Knight allows her to decide. The old woman is delighted to have won ‘sovereignty’ over her husband and rewards him by becoming faithful and beautiful all the time. The Knight’s Tale describes how two kinsmen Arcite and Palamon fall in love with the same woman named Emily, whom they first see out of their prison window. Emily is the niece of King Theseus. Arcite gains his freedom but is banished from Athens. He comes back masked since he cannot bear to live away from Emily. In the meanwhile Palamon breaks out of prison and coincidentally meets Arcite...
Words: 1862 - Pages: 8
...Geoffrey Chaucer’s collection of stories titled The Canterbury Tales and Dante Alighieri’s three-part poem The Divine Comedy have certain similarities and some differences that often have a religious theme. One of the most obvious comparisons between the two is that both authors wrote about significant journeys. While Dante wrote about traveling through Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven, Chaucer wrote about a group of people occupying their time while they traveled. The two authors had contrasting writing styles when discussing those journeys; Chaucer’s was more light-hearted and sometimes even risqué, while Dante’s was more consistently solemn and meticulous. Chaucer, author of The Canterbury Tales, and Dante, author of The Divine Comedy, had some...
Words: 1420 - Pages: 6
...The Canterbury Tales Geoffrey Chaucer Key Facts full title · The Canterbury Tales author · Geoffrey Chaucer type of work · Poetry (two tales are in prose: the Tale of Melibee and the Parson’s Tale) genres · Narrative collection of poems; character portraits; parody; estates satire; romance; fabliau language · Middle English time and place written · Around 1386–1395, England date of first publication · Sometime in the early fifteenth century publisher · Originally circulated in hand-copied manuscripts narrator · The primary narrator is an anonymous, naïve member of the pilgrimage, who is not described. The other pilgrims narrate most of the tales. point of view · In the General Prologue, the narrator speaks in the first person, describing each of the pilgrims as they appeared to him. Though narrated by different pilgrims, each of the tales is told from an omniscient third-person point of view, providing the reader with the thoughts as well as actions of the characters. tone · The Canterbury Tales incorporates an impressive range of attitudes toward life and literature. The tales are by turns satirical, elevated, pious, earthy, bawdy, and comical. The reader should not accept the naïve narrator’s point of view as Chaucer’s. tense · Past setting (time) · The late fourteenth century, after 1381 setting (place) · The Tabard Inn; the road to Canterbury protagonists · Each individual tale has protagonists, but Chaucer’s plan is to make none of his storytellers...
Words: 2900 - Pages: 12
...Role of Marriage in "The Wife of Bath" Canterbury Tales In most modern marriages today, both men and women contribute to the same relationship roles such as being the provider, communicator, negotiator and so on. In the 14th century, most marriages were arranged and the woman had to obey her husband’s commands. During this time, Geoffrey Chaucer's wrote The Canterbury Tales. His stories demonstrate a variety of attitudes toward the perceptions of marriage, with some of these ideas being extremely conservative while others are wildly liberal. While several of these tales are rather comical, Chaucer gives us a representation of his attitudes toward marriage at that time in history. When addressing the question of who has correctly identified the proper roles in marriage, it is The Wife of Bath, a tale that satirically demonstrates the wife's overall desire for mastery within the marriage by her manipulation of the husband's weaknesses of both the flesh and the mind. It is these peculiarities of the Wife of Bath's tale that uniquely answer the question of who deserves the mastery in marriage. The Wife of Bath's prologue introduces the pilgrim who narrates this tale, Alison, a gap toothed, partially deaf seamstress and widower of five husbands, claiming to have great experience in the ways of the heart by remedying whatever might ail it. Alison, unlike the other tales in comparison, describes marriage as a miserable experience. The Wife of Bath's tale sets itself apart by presenting...
Words: 1111 - Pages: 5
...In The Canterbury Tales, Geoffrey Chaucer shows the faults through the rights and wrongs of how to live of both men and women in the Wife of Bath, Miller’s, and Merchant’s Tale. Geoffrey Chaucer shows the liberal perspective of women in the “Wife of Bath's Tale.” The liberal perspective is shown in women in the beginning of the tale by the king granting the Queen the power and decision to whether the Knight would live or die. Unlike most women during the Middle Ages the Queen had a mind and a voice of her own. Even though the Queen intimidates people by the power she possess, Chaucer depicts her as what men don’t want. The Queen has the power over life or death “And suretee wol I han, er that thou pace, thy body for to yelden in this place,”...
Words: 638 - Pages: 3
...Gender Roles Back in the 1800s women were submissive to all men. Men were educated for knowledge and women were educated only to please their husbands and entertain guest. Mary Shelly went against the typical women of her time, she was educated and even wrote books. Mary Shelly was raised by her father which helps us to understand her dominate personality. Mary Shelley wrote a lot of her books with significant gender roles such as her novel, Frankenstein. This extreme gender differences is also shown in “The Wife of Bath's Tale” which is among one of Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. In ‘the wife of baths tale’ Chaucer’s make the main character a stereotypical jock, arrogant and conceded. Then the female characters, the queen and the old...
Words: 828 - Pages: 4
...In Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales, the Wife of Bath presents her bold views throughout the course of her narration. Her prologue provides insight into her real-life experience with marriage, which she seems to view more as a game than as a consecrated relationship. Per the Pardoner’s request, the Wife of Bath shares her stance on marriage through a captivating tale, in which she highlights the idea of gentillesse in her vision of an ideal relationship. However, even though the Wife of Bath’s tale seems to go against the patriarchal society of the Middle Ages, further analysis of the text supports the fact that she views marriage as an opportunity for personal profit and not for equality. Thus, her tale and prologue not only support...
Words: 823 - Pages: 4
...TITLE · The Canterbury Tales AUTHOR · Geoffrey Chaucer TYPE OF WORK · Poetry (two tales are in prose: the Tale of Melibee and the Parson’s Tale) GENRES · Narrative collection of poems; character portraits; parody; estates satire; romance; fabliau LANGUAGE · Middle English TIME AND PLACE WRITTEN · Around 1386–1395, England DATE OF FIRST PUBLICATION · Sometime in the early fifteenth century PUBLISHER · Originally circulated in hand-copied manuscripts NARRATOR · The primary narrator is an anonymous, naïve member of the pilgrimage, who is not described. The other pilgrims narrate most of the tales. POINT OF VIEW · In the General Prologue, the narrator speaks in the first person, describing each of the pilgrims as they appeared to him. Though narrated by different pilgrims, each of the tales is told from an omniscient third-person point of view, providing the reader with the thoughts as well as actions of the characters. TONE · The Canterbury Tales incorporates an impressive range of attitudes toward life and literature. The tales are by turns satirical, elevated, pious, earthy, bawdy, and comical. The reader should not accept the naïve narrator’s point of view as Chaucer’s. TENSE · Past SETTING (TIME) · The late fourteenth century, after 1381 SETTING (PLACE) · The Tabard Inn; the road to Canterbury PROTAGONISTS · Each individual tale has protagonists, but Chaucer’s plan is to make none of his storytellers superior to others; it is an equal company. In the Knight’s Tale, the...
Words: 25904 - Pages: 104
...century’s obsolete standards through the use of his characters by criticizing the utopian view of a married life and the role of women in it. The Canterbury Tales reveal his view of behaviors and manners of people of the late Middle Ages. He depicts two contrasting women through the personages like May and Dorigen. By the use of the description of her gestures, words and actions in the Merchant’s Tale, May serves as an illustration of a dissenter female, that most fully acts on her desire. On the contrary, we see Dorigen, who is a finer model of womanhood of that period; she is virtuous and of a moral high ground. These Chaucer’s opposing characters demonstrate how women behave in society, both the correct and incorrect ways. In The Merchant's Tale, Chaucer depicts January, who lives “in great prosperity” as a bachelor for “sixty years”, who one day decides to be a “wedded man”. He believes that a wife is a “gift of God”, who is going to obey him and make him live like in “paradise” on earth. After “clever and prudent negotiations” he marries a beautiful girl, named May. Therefore, we assume that this is an arranged marriage between an aging man and a young maiden. Subsequently, one can undertake that, a younger, more handsome male would cuckold the old man. Chaucer pictures May as a less passive personage than many other women in his tales. Her desire for sexual pleasure is as strong as the desire of any man. Chaucer doesn’t reveal how May feels about her marriage and old husband;...
Words: 2336 - Pages: 10
...light of this statement, analyse the role that power plays in a text you have studied. In Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales, the role of power is widely explored through Alyson, The Wife of Bath. The Wife’s ability to manipulate and gain dominion over her husbands can be a result of her sexual and libidinous nature, as she uses this attraction to gain pecuniary and societal power. Furthermore, marriage is portrayed as a crucial tool in the gaining of power, as it plays an extremely important role in Alyson’s “wynning” of status and money, as without her husbands one would be without these fortunes. However, the Wife’s dominance and power is questioned by the raw youth of her later husbands, as one experiences the endearing aspect of her fifth husband, Jankyn, as he represents the power left in the patriarchal hegemony of the era, withdrawing all the previously gained power the Wife had obtained. Firstly, the gain and control of power in the Wife of Bath can be seen through the role of sex within the tale, as sex not only secures money and land for the Alyson, but also rewards her with great dominance within the patriarchal hegemony: “I wo lde no lenger in the bed abyde, If that I felte his arm over my syde, Til he had maad his raunson unto me; Thanne wolde I suffre hym do his nycetee. And therefore every man this tale I telle, Wynne whoso may, for al is for to selle.” Here, the Wife explains that whenever one of her husbands displayed some sort of misconduct, she would...
Words: 1754 - Pages: 8
