Last week's comments were splendid; thanks to everyone who posted! Here's the questions for the Wife of Bath's Tale; keep on quoting and citing those details from the text. If you didn't get a copy of the translation in class, they're outside my office door (B507) for pick-up whenever you like. They're in a little black box--just be sure you take the one that says "Fragment III (Group D) - The Prologue of the Wife of Bath's Tale" at the top.
Q1 (Jill): Before we hear her in her own tale, we are given the Poet's description of the Wife of Bath in the General Prologue. Translate, in your own words, lines 447-478 (pp. 229-30 in the Norton). What details do you think are important for the development of her character?
Q2 (Eleana): So far in this class we have seen examples of several different genres of literature: the Old English Epic (Beowulf), Romance (Sir Gawain), and the "Fabliau" or Satirical Romance (Miller's Tale). How would you characterize the genre of the Wife of Bath's Prologue (pp. 219-240 in the handout)? Does it parody anything? Does it remind you of anything else you've ever read?
Q3 (Jason): In the first lines of her Prologue, the Wife of Bath says "Experience, though noon auctoritee / Were in this world, is right ynough for me / To speke of wo that is in mariage" (ll. 1-3). Aside from relating her own experiences, how does the Wife attempt to prove her authority in the subject of marriage and the relations between men and women? Does she reference anything--(or manipulate our understanding of it)? (Hint: Remember, the two traditional sources of authority in late-fourteenth-century England were the Church, and church doctrine, and the Court, and its literary traditions.)
Q4 (Demi): After her ribald Prologue, we might expect the Wife of Bath's Tale to be more like the Miller's fabliau. But instead, we get a tale about "the'olden dayes of the King Arthour" (l. 863, Norton; p. 240, handout). Admittedly, it is not your ordinary courtly romance, but why do you think she tells that particular tale in that particular form?
Q5 (Kate): On pages 235-39 of your translation (lines 672-834, Norton) the Wife of Bath makes fun of all the "anti-feminist" literature that her fifth husband was reading, and then confronts him about how awful it is. And yet, the Wife of Bath herself sometimes is depicted as a stereotype of a particular sort of woman. Do you think that The Wife of Bath's Prologue and Tale successfully criticizes and satirizes the anti-feminist literature collected in Jankin's Valerie and Theofraste (line 677), or is it simply an example of such literature? In other words, is the tale feminist (pro-woman), anti-feminist, some of each, or neither? Cite some specific examples.(Hint: the footnotes about the different texts in Jankin's book might help you; the translation you have doesn't have any notes).
Q6 (Tina): Same as Q5. What do you think?
Q7 (Rachel): What exactly is the Wife of Bath's description of how marriage works? Is a good marriage possible in her eyes? How? And, finally, do you think that the power structures that she finds in marriage are necessary to any marriage, or just certain marriages? Why?
Q8 (Annie): A different version of the Wife of Bath's Tale is called Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnell, in which the Knight is Sir Gawain, and the magical woman is Lady Ragnell. Does this Knight resemble Gawain from Sir Gawain and the Green Knight? What do each of them learn? Why do you think Medieval poets would think this Knight is like Gawain?
Q9 (Vicky): At the end of the Wife's tale, does the magical woman regain her "maistrye" ("mastery"; line 1242, Norton; p. 250 in the handout)? Is the "maistrye" that she and the Wife of Bath describe the sort of thing that more than one person can hold in a relationship?
This is Demi trying to figure out Question 4. In my opinion, though they are told in the different forms, but they are centered on the same thesis.
回覆刪除In the former of the prologue, she focused on the problem of being chaste. And in the following she moved on introducing her five husbands. As the question goes, I was really surprised to read that the wife of bath’s tale is totally on a different form from the prologue. But I think they are still coherent to some extent. The main plot of the tale is the process of the knight searching for the answer to the question. However, the question, “what is the thing that women most desire?” and the answer,”Women desire to have dominion over their husbands, and their lovers too.”(p.245, handout) Then I will suppose that the points of the tale is finding the answer, however; as the story moved on, the thesis of the tale went back to the problem of keeping chastity. “For ugliness and age, it seems to me, are the best bodyguards for chastity.” (p.249, handout) It points out that the relations between being chaste and the appearance.
In the prologue, she said that the three previous husbands are nice because they were old and rich. But the later two she loved more did not own the features of the nice ones. By telling the tale, the relations between appearance and chastity became clearer. The knight asked the woman to choose for herself. The core got back to the answer to what women desire the most. The knight gave the woman dominion over him. Above all, during answering the question, I found that the prologue and the tale is closely connected, but presented in a different kind of forms.
This is Jill trying to figure out Q1.
回覆刪除My Translation of line 447~478: There's a good wife beside Bathe. She is a little bit deaf, what a pity! Of cloth-making she is no doubt a master, surpasses all the craftsman in Ypres and of Gaunt. About her character, she is the one who will certainly get angry when being asked offering to the church in congregation, for she is out of that kind of charity. She wears a headcover full of fine texture, I dare say that they weight at least ten pounds and she has to be take heed of it. Her leggings are fine scarlet red, at the same time being tightly laced and supple. Her face is bold and fair, also, she is a worthy woman in all her life. Five is the number of her standing in front of the church door of legal marriages, not to mention the suitors when she was young, yet it is not important now. In addition to had been in Jerusalem three times, she had been to many places, including Boloigne, in Galice at Saint Jame, and at Coloigne. Gap-toothed is her appearance, since she is experienced, she know the way of wandering well. Upon a horse with a easy gait is where she sit, veiled well by her hat which is almost as big as a small shieldings. Wearing a riding skirt approximate her hips large, and a pair of sharp spurs, she is a person who can amuse all of the audiences by laugh and talk in fellowship, besides, she know how to remedy love by heart.
About what details do I think are important for the development of her character:
I would conisder that her appearance, experience and her feelings against church as the most important part in developing her character. At the begining of the wife of bath's tale, the wife have claimed that experience, is good enough authority for her to speak of trouble in marriage. Owing to Chaucer want to challenge the authority about marriage in this tale, if he let a person though experienced but not highly-educated by the church as speaker, it would be more convincing for the readers. For people always believe that experience can exceed text book knowlege. In other words, real experience can be more persuasive than athouritative theory to people. As for her appearance and personal adornment, all indicate that she is a woman of wide experience; therefore can renforce the authentication of her words. In addtion, she hold an attitude somewhat against the church also can be regard as the representation of Chaucer's attitude about marriage affair of the church's authority. People also may respect person who dare to rebell the main stream opinions. For that, people will consider what have said by the wife is truth rather than what have taught by the church.
This is Jason answering question 3.
回覆刪除At the first of the prologue, the Wife is going to tell her opinion toward marriage through her own experience, which means having five husbands. But in spite of only basing on her experience which may not be objective enough to debate, she quotes many ideas and sayings from other people. Since the two traditional sources of authorities in late-fourteenth-century were the Church and the Court, it seems more convincing when taking examples from there.
Firstly, the Wife asks opinions about King Solomon, who had more wives than one. If Solomon could have so many wives at the same time, why could not a woman like her who remarried after her ex-husband died? That is the Wife’s question. If men can do that and be accepted by the society, why women cannot? From this point, the Wife complained about this unfairness.
After taking examples from the Court, one of the two traditional sources of authorities, the Wife then take another example from those related with Church. Says the Apostle Paul, she is free to wed, in God’s name, where it pleases her. He also says that to be married is no sin, better it is to marry than to burn. Since the words are quoted from an apostle, it becomes more convincing. She then turns to say that many men have more than two wives, and many another holy men do as well. Once again, she challenged our ideas and different attitude toward men and women’s status in marriage, and the different expectations we have on them.
There is no precept can tell whether Jesus Christ ordained virginity. Although the Apostle wished everyone to have high credit for virginity, it is only to advise virginity, not command. Moreover, based on the fact that the intention of creating organs of generations were for a necessary function of the emission of urine and for enjoyment in procreation both, the Wife argues that it is human who have the right to decide how to use it. Since God did not bid anything about it, she will use her organs in her marriage life as generously as God gave it.
In conclusion, the Wife challenged our ideas toward what women should perform like in a marriage and makes us see our prejudice clearer. Taking examples and quoting the sayings from the Church and the Court is convincing since they are the place where many people’s judging doctrines come from. In later part, the Wife adds her own experience and a story to develop her argument further, which gives us a funny look at how men usually underestimate women.
It is Vicky trying to figure out Q9
回覆刪除At the end of the Wife’s tale, the old woman challenges the tradition and wins the mastery of the knight. Even in the beginning, the knight is unwilling to marry the ugly and aged woman. But, after the old woman explained “For ugliness and age, it seems to me, are the best bodyguards for chastity”( p.249, handout), also she gives two choices to her husband. Her husband retune the chance to his wife, in other words, he place himself in his wife’s governance.
The wife of Bath describes her marriage that her first three husbands are old and rich and willing to do what she said. However, the situation changed, the fourth husband resists his wife to dominant him. The bitterest struggle to the wife of Bath is the fifth husband, with whom she is madly in love. The story of wicked wives strongly frustrated her that she tore three pages out of his book, and then her husband punched her at her head. So far we might consider that the wife of Bath lost her mastery in her marriage, but after her husband hurts her, things are different. Her husband asks her to forgive him and agrees to burn his book. In the end, the wife of Bath regains her mastery. We can find out that husbands are dominated by their wives both the prologue and the tale. It points out that only one person can hold the mastery in a marriage, in other words, the other should be dominated. And it come back to the question that” what is the women most desire?” The prologue and the tale reply the same answer that women desire to have dominion over their husbands.
This is Eleana figuring out the question 2
回覆刪除I think the type of the test we read is quiet different from the previous text I read. I think it is interesting and exceptional that the text was not narrated by a man but rather by a woman which is quite awkward because at that time women were not authorized or given the power to make a speech especially such an “immoral” speech.
Form the beginning “experience –and no matter what they say in books- is good enough authority for me to speak of trouble in marriage”, I argue that the author give the women the right or power to convey her experience. Below her personal experience, the woman actually confessed her sins or the wickedness of the women.
Therefore the text might be the form of allegorical “confession.” From her narration, she would use some scholar ways to make her speech and perspective of the marriage more reasonable and more credible by providing the example of the saints such as Apostle Paul who once said that to be married is no sin and that it is better to marry than to burn. The woman also argue her points by pointing out the intension of the organs. She pointed out that the function of the sexual organ is not just pass urine but for procreation. Her explanation to support her thesis can actually tell that woman is actually finding excuses for themselves even if the excuse is not correct at all. It indirectly shows that women are prone to distort the fact. Form the experience with her husband “I’d scold them even when I was at fault”, the character of the women was exposed to the audience. I was not sure whether I am correct to think that the text “the prologue of the wife of bath’s tale” is actually not help women establish a more respectable position but a text that confirm the stereotype of the women that women are lust, wicked and so on and so forth.
The text make me think of Petronius’s “form the satyricon”. In Petronius’s text, the language he used is colloquial and vulgar which is quite like the text “the prologue of the wife of Bath’s tale” we read. From the Satyricon, there are lots of things the character did or experience can tell the character of the people at that time which I think familiar with the tale we read that the experience she share can be the analysis of her character.
This is Kate trying to figure out Q5.
回覆刪除To those anti-feminist literature collected in Jankin's Valerie and Theofraste which “wrote all wrote anti-feminist tracks that preached of the wickedness of women and that it was best for men to avoid them entirely” (footnote from another text), I think the wife of Bath argue successfully by supposing that “had women written histories like cloistered scholars in oratories, they’d have set down more of men’s wickedness than all the sons of Adam could redress” (p.236). Women have no right in the medieval years and the books of history are always written by authority, the men only while those so-called “wicked women” have no chance to justify their behavior. She also debate “that our little differences are there to distinguish between the sexes” but “experience teaches that it is not so”. The sexual organs do not only “make for emission of urine” (p.222) but also bring up different “experiences” of male and female such as whether to be virginal or faithful to one mate or not. The wife of Bath points out the conflict between her female “experience” against the male authority and quotes many tale or scriptures of king and saints who are able to have more than one wife to defend her woman right, to justify her behavior against authority of male and being proud of it.
According to her speech of female experience, it provides a profile woman who is bold, unrestrained and confident as a modern woman to me. Despite the old woman in the tale finally repays the knight by becoming beautiful, submissive and obedient to her husband as “she obeyed him in all things that might afford him satisfaction or delight” (p.250) which is different from the wife of Bath who still has the mastery of her husband, both of them make emphasis on their status in the marriage for life of “no more debate” or “perfect joy” by fighting for their right in different ways and provide the prototype of modern feminist.
This is Rachel trying to figure out Question 7.
回覆刪除According to the Wife of Bath’s description, I think a marriage works under dominion (power structure) and sex. Why? I find out the interpretation at the last 10 lines on page 239. She said she become a kind wife after the scholar Jankin was willing to be dominated by her. In addition, I find out additional interpretation at the no. 11 line to the no. 17 line on page 245. The Knight spoke out that “Women desire to have dominion over their husbands and their lovers.” And as we can learn that the scholar Jankin and the Knight both had good marriage and wives finally. Therefore, I think “dominion” is important to the Wife of Bath's. Then, I want to talk about “sex.” No matter in the prologue or the tale I think “enjoyment in sex” is always indispensable. Also, I consider that these two things can also answer the second question── if women have “dominion” and “sex” in their marriages, their marriages can be good in her eyes. Furthermore, it means women can have their own liberty and lust. (I realize that after I read Alison and Jankin’s plot.)
I think she wants these are necessary to any marriage. However, in reality, it only happens to certain marriages. It only happens in the marriages that have the wives just think like her. Because in her tale, I find out some women do not think too much of “dominion” and they only desire something else when they answer the Knight’s question.
And I think there is something makes me feel confused in the text: in the prologue, she described that men felt nervous if their wives became pretty, they will became cuckolds. However, when their wives became old, men started complaining “Women can’t keep the marriage vows they make!” (Page 236) Conversely, in the tale, the Knight became sad when he saw his woman was old and ugly. However, at the last 2 paragraph on page249, age and ugliness are her bodyguards for chastity. Wow! I think that’s the reason why the Wife of Bath's wanted to speak of trouble in marriage.
This is Annie answering Q8.
回覆刪除In some ways, I think the knight in the Wife of Bath’s Tale resembles Gawain from Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. The knight in the tale is responsible for his fault after the judgment of the queen. He also keeps his word to marry the old lady even it is not his will. It is as same as Sir Gawain who keeps his promise with the green knight. However, there are still some different between two knights. Sir Gawain is loyal to King Arthur, but the knight in the tale gives his loyalty to his wife who has the sovereignty of her husband. The knight’s responsibility and loyalty are similar to Sir Gawain that maybe it is the reason why Medieval poets would think this Knight is like Gawain.
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