Analysis Of Chaucers Wife Of Bath Prologue And Tale

Chaucer’s â€Å"Wife of Bath Prologue and Tale† focus on the story telling of a woman who has experienced her fair share of marital issues. She is depicted as a promiscuous woman, married five times and had plenty of male suitors, the Wife was not like any other woman during this era. Although her reputation was how most perceived her, she was not a fan of being scrutinized for what she considered as her duty as a woman; to not remain single. This is seen through the depiction of women in society, how marriage ought to be in the eyes of religion, and how men were to view a woman like her. The language that is used throughout Chaucer’s prologue and tale allude to the evolution of women as well as how they struggled to gain any recognition in†¦show more content†¦The wife gives evidence here stating, â€Å"You say some people desire us because of our wealth, some for our figures, and some for our beauty, †¦ so, according to you, everyone goes to the devil. You say one can’t defend a castle wall, but in the end it will be stormed† (257). This section exemplifies how women are desired for multiple things but if the virginal image is not clear and she is far too beautiful, she is considered to be friends with the devil. There is also the last part that if a woman is beautiful she will have men after her, there is no defending that from occurring. Does this bring into question the lack of integrity in men during this period or is it more of a power struggle when a woman is too beautiful? If a man is more worried with how his wife appears to others could this be a correlation between their own infidelities and inner struggles with beautiful women. The language implied in this section allows for more insight into the Wife’s struggle but also giving more about how men struggled to contain their lust. The discussion of the Wife’s five husbands describes her evolving role as a woman and how she overcame the mo st ridiculous obstacles to maintain this idea or illusion of marriage. The Wife’s depiction of her marriages was that three were good and two were bad. The initial marriages were to older rich men where she kept up this idea of marriage in order to receive money, but was not faithful byShow MoreRelated Character Analysis of The Wife of Bath of Chaucers Canterbury Tales1623 Words   |  7 Pages Character Analysis of The Wife of Bath of Chaucers Canterbury Tales The Canterbury Tales is Geoffrey Chaucers greatest and most memorable work. In The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer uses a fictitious pilgrimage [to Canterbury] as a framing device for a number of stories (Norton 79). In The General Prologue of The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer describes in detail the pilgrims he meets in the inn on their way to Canterbury. 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