Wife of Bath's Prologue - Explanatory Lecture
Summary
TLDRThis video script delves into the character of the Wife of Bath from Chaucer's 'Canterbury Tales,' exploring her as a symbol of economic autonomy and defiance against medieval misogyny. It discusses her physical descriptions, which suggest a lusty nature, and her life as a frequent pilgrim and cloth maker. The script also analyzes her monologue, where she argues for a woman's right to remarry, and her 'confession,' revealing her views on marriage, control, and the use of her sexuality as a commodity. The Wife of Bath's narrative is seen as a step towards literary realism, presenting a complex character who challenges societal norms.
Takeaways
- 📜 The Wife of Bath's Prologue from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales is a significant piece of English literature that explores themes of marriage, gender, and societal norms.
- 🎨 The Ellesmere manuscript provides a visual representation of the Wife of Bath, contrasting with Chaucer's written descriptions in the General Prologue.
- 🧶 Alice, the Wife of Bath, is depicted as a cloth maker, highlighting the importance of the textile industry in medieval Britain and her economic independence.
- 💍 She is married five times and widowed four, reflecting the relative economic autonomy women had in the later Middle Ages, especially in urban areas.
- 👗 Alice is shown as a frequent pilgrim, indicating her wealth and the unusual status of a woman traveling alone during that era.
- 😁 The Wife of Bath is characterized by certain physiognomies, such as being gap-toothed, which was believed to suggest a lusty disposition in the Middle Ages.
- 💊 She is said to know 'remedies of love,' sparking debates about whether this implies knowledge of herbal contraception, though this remains unproven.
- 🎭 The character of the Wife of Bath is contrasted with the Prioress, who represents a different social class and is depicted through her manners and knowledge of French.
- 📖 The Prologue's structure includes a 'wife's sermon' advocating for a woman's right to remarry after widowhood, followed by a confession of her own life.
- 🤔 The Wife of Bath's use of the Bible in her arguments is scrutinized, with some suggesting it both undermines and satirizes the misuse of biblical authority.
- 💰 The Prologue delves into Alice's motivations for marriage, including sex, money, and prestige, and her acknowledgment of her sexuality as a commodity.
Q & A
What is the Wife of Bath's Prologue from Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales about?
-The Wife of Bath's Prologue is a part of Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales that features a monologue by the Wife of Bath, a character who has been married five times. It discusses her views on marriage, her experiences, and her life story, often challenging societal norms and expectations of women during the Middle Ages.
How is the Wife of Bath depicted in the Ellesmere manuscript?
-In the Ellesmere manuscript, the Wife of Bath is illustrated as a cloth maker, which reflects one of the major industries of Britain at the time. She is shown wearing fancy clothes to church and is characterized by her assertiveness and independence.
What does the Wife of Bath's frequent pilgrimage indicate about her social status?
-The fact that the Wife of Bath is a frequent pilgrim suggests that she has some economic means, as pilgrimages were often costly endeavors. It also indicates her relative economic autonomy, which was notable for women during the later Middle Ages.
What are some of the physiognomies attributed to the Wife of Bath in the Canterbury Tales?
-Chaucer describes the Wife of Bath with certain physical characteristics that were believed in the Middle Ages to indicate certain dispositions. She is described as gap-toothed, which was considered an indication of a lusty disposition, and as being able to ride her horse well, laugh, joke, and know remedies of love.
What is the significance of the Wife of Bath's knowledge of 'remedies of love'?
-The mention of the Wife of Bath knowing 'remedies of love' is intriguing and has been a subject of debate. Some scholars have speculated that this could imply knowledge of herbal contraception, although this interpretation has not been definitively proven.
How does the Wife of Bath's character challenge traditional gender roles of the Middle Ages?
-The Wife of Bath challenges traditional gender roles by being economically independent, assertive, and experienced in matters of love and marriage. She is not portrayed as a submissive wife but rather as a woman who takes control of her own life and relationships.
What is the structure of the Wife of Bath's Prologue in terms of its narrative?
-The structure of the Wife of Bath's Prologue can be divided into two main parts: lines one to 198, sometimes called the 'Wife's sermon,' where she argues for a woman's right to remarry, and lines 235 to 378, which contain her confession and life story, revealing aspects of her character and experiences.
How does the Wife of Bath use the authority of the Bible in her arguments?
-The Wife of Bath uses the authority of the Bible to justify her views on marriage and to argue for a woman's right to have more than one husband. However, she is selective in her use of biblical texts, often taking them out of context to support her arguments.
What is the significance of the Wife of Bath's confession in the context of medieval literature?
-The Wife of Bath's confession is significant as it belongs to a literary genre with origins in the Middle Ages called a 'confession.' It implies revealing normally kept secrets and provides a deeper insight into her character and experiences, contributing to a sense of literary realism.
How does the Wife of Bath's Prologue reflect Chaucer's anti-clerical satire?
-Chaucer's portrayal of the Wife of Bath and other characters in the Canterbury Tales reflects an anti-clerical satire, critiquing not the institution of the Church or faith itself, but the people who worked for it and their failure to live up to its ideals.
What are some of the key themes explored in the Wife of Bath's Prologue?
-Key themes explored in the Wife of Bath's Prologue include the nature of marriage, the role and autonomy of women, the use and misuse of religious authority, and the interplay between societal expectations and personal desires.
Outlines
📖 Introduction to the Wife of Bath's Prologue
The script begins with an introduction to the Wife of Bath's prologue from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. It discusses the character of the Wife of Bath, Alice, who is depicted as a cloth maker, a profession significant during the time. Alice is portrayed as a wealthy, independent woman who has been married multiple times, reflecting the economic autonomy some women had in the late Middle Ages. The script also mentions the Ellesmere manuscript, where Alice is illustrated, and contrasts it with Chaucer's portrait of her. It touches on the cultural stereotypes of the time, including physiognomy, which linked physical traits to character dispositions, and describes Alice as gap-toothed, indicating a lusty nature. The Wife of Bath is presented as a complex character who is both a product of her time and a unique figure in English literature.
📚 The Wife of Bath's Argument for Polygamy
This paragraph delves into the Wife of Bath's monologue, where she argues for a woman's right to remarry after widowhood, challenging the biblical notion of monogamy. She uses a confessional style to recount her own life experiences and control over her husbands. The script highlights the Wife of Bath's use of biblical texts to justify her stance, often taking them out of context, and her acknowledgment of the societal norms and misogynistic views of her time. It also discusses the Wife's lament for her lost youth and beauty, and her pragmatic approach to using her sexuality as a commodity for economic gain.
💸 Economic Autonomy and the Wife of Bath's Power
The third paragraph explores the Wife of Bath's economic autonomy and her understanding of the value of her sexuality. It discusses her focus on economics and her assertion of power within her marriages. The script mentions her ability to manipulate her husbands for financial gain and her desire for control, significance, and security. It also touches on her aging and the changing value of her beauty and sexuality, contrasting this with the wealth she has accumulated. The Wife of Bath's character is further examined through her interactions with her fifth husband, who is described as young and difficult to control, yet loved the most by her due to his 'dangerous' nature.
📚 The Influence of Medieval Misogyny on the Wife of Bath's Tale
The final paragraph examines the influence of medieval misogyny on the Wife of Bath's narrative. It discusses the historical context of the church's stance on celibacy and the subsequent rise in literature that portrayed marriage and women negatively. The script describes how the Wife of Bath's fifth husband, a clerk, reads to her from a book detailing the evils of marriage and the dangers of women. This leads to a climax in their relationship, which is left for the audience to interpret. The paragraph invites the audience to consider the coherence and reliability of the Wife of Bath's account, suggesting there may be gaps and contradictions in her story.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Wife of Bath
💡Canterbury Tales
💡Physiognomy
💡Economic Autonomy
💡Confession
💡Courtly Love
💡Anti-Clerical Satire
💡Literary Realism
💡Sexuality as a Commodity
💡Experience
Highlights
Introduction to the Wife of Bath's prologue in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales.
Illustration comparison between the Ellesmere manuscript and Chaucer's portrait of the Wife of Bath.
Alice's profession as a cloth maker and its significance in the British textile industry.
Alice's marital history, having been married five times and widowed four.
The Wife of Bath as a frequent pilgrim indicating her economic status.
Economic autonomy of women in the later Middle Ages, especially in urban areas.
Physiognomy beliefs and their influence on character interpretations in the Middle Ages.
Alice's gap-toothed description and its connotation of a lusty disposition.
Debate over Alice's knowledge of 'remedies of love' and potential herbal contraception.
Contrast between the Wife of Bath and the Prioress in terms of class and religious background.
Chaucer's anti-clerical satire and its focus on the failings of the Church's representatives.
Structure of the Wife of Bath's prologue and its significance as a monologue.
Alice's justification for multiple marriages using biblical texts and her interpretation of them.
The Wife of Bath's confession and its relation to the literary genre of confessions.
Alice's portrayal of controlling and nagging behavior towards her husbands.
The Wife of Bath's lament for her lost youth and beauty, and her focus on economic gain.
Alice's use of the Bible to argue for the value of marriage and challenge traditional views.
The Wife of Bath's view on sex, money, and power, and how they motivate her actions.
Alice's description of her fifth husband and the dynamics of their relationship.
The Wife of Bath's narrative on the value of experience and the role of a woman in society.
Alice's reconciliation with her fifth husband and the implications of their relationship.
Transcripts
[Music]
alright here's a short one to talk about
the Wife of Bath's prologue I will try
to keep it short and dense though so
gonna talk quickly so pay attention and
feel free to rewind and relist in two
parts if it goes by too quickly we're
talking about the Wife of Bath's
prologue and Chaucer's Canterbury Tales
pictured here is the Wife of Bath as she
is illustrated in the famous Ellesmere
manuscript compared this image of her
with the portrait of her in Chaucer's
portrait and general prologue 447 to 478
I will post the slideshow independently
of this video in weekly folder for as
well what we learn about Alice in the
bath from that portrait feel free to
look it up is that she's a cloth maker
and this is one of the major industries
of Britain at the time that can textiles
and wool
she wears fancy clothes to church and
gets mad if anyone goes to the offering
before her she is married five has been
married five times in widowed four times
we learned that she is a frequent
pilgrim and this meant you had some
money and also it was an interesting
thing that a woman should travel on her
own so much and it speaks to an
interesting situation in the later
Middle Ages which was the relative
economic autonomy of women especially in
the towns and cities who make can make
money from their own trades such as
textile making and brewing we'll see
more of that when we talk about Margaret
Margery Kemp until laws later in the
early modern period restricted women's
economic activity in public life to a
greater degree all of this is
interesting enough but Chaucer also
notes some physiognomies I own aa
McPheeters about her in the Middle Ages
up through the 19th century there was
but there were beliefs that certain
physical characteristics indicated
certain dispositions certain kinds of
characters so you know we still have
some of these stereotypes you know that
like really skinny people are sort of
serious and you know more ample people
will be sort of jolly and funny these
are kind of cultural stereotypes that we
see still
communicated in our movies than TV and
so forth and she was she's described as
gap-toothed which in the Middle Ages was
an indication of a lusty disposition of
a woman who liked to have a good time
she's also described as being able to
ride her her horse well to laugh and
joke and it's and she said to know
remedies of love which is interesting
given the courtly context there's a lot
of been debate about what that means as
well some have even argued that that
that that implies that she has knowledge
of herbal contraception and a board of
factors but that's never been proven and
it's hard to really sort of it's an
interesting idea anyway so that's
Allison 2bath one of the great
characters of English literature she's
riding on her own with this know with
these Knights and his monks and partners
and his most sweet men the one other
woman who really get much a picture of
among the pilgrims is the Prioress who
is the head of a nunnery the kind of
Mother Superior and she's described as
this sort of dainty kind of twee a wrist
Arista crow well upper Gentry kind of
background she's described as having a
little dog and like you know crying when
when she sees an animal hurt even if
it's it's a mouse and having the very
best table manners and knowing French
very well and and being like we get much
more of a picture of her sort of class
image depiction than her religious
background and this speaks to what a lot
of people have talked about with Chaucer
is his anti-clerical satire he's a
satire on not the institution of the
Church of the faith itself but the kind
of people who worked for it and the way
that they failed to live up to its ideas
frequently that's a picture of Chaucer
there there's the Randy friar sort of I
guess like
harassing her planner No anyway the
Chaucer's portrait yeah so what about
the prologue itself what about this
extensive 180 20 line narrative poem
that's actually longer than the tale
that she tells well this is what her
sort of rambling monologue that she
delivers to the other pilgrims before
she gets to her story and the this slide
indicates an overall structure of that
text lines one to 198 is sometimes
called the wife's servant almond it's
interrupted by the partner who's saying
what is this woman preaching that she
keeps referring to biblical texts and of
course what she's arguing is that a
woman should be allowed to have more
than one husband not at a time oh you
know see really you know that is to say
after she is widowed she should be able
to marry again and after she gives this
this justification for her having been
married five times before she then
begins what we might call her first Tale
not not a tale of that she's heard but
the tale of her own life and this
belongs to a kind of literary genre with
origins in the Middle Ages called a
confession and please review your
vocabulary hand up for a considered
description of what that means it
doesn't necessarily mean an
acknowledgement of wrongdoing it does
imply that one is revealing things that
are normally kept secret them and in two
three wines 235 to 378 we get a
wonderful description of how she
describes or how she Badgers and
controls her husband's the it is in many
ways leads into this
misogynistic discourse this this sort of
received ideas about what women are like
and she's sort of acting out the fantasy
of a woman as this controlling deceptive
monster that is ubiquitous in Western
culture and particularly in medieval and
early modern and also modern literature
we then get she could give us this brief
sort of sorrowful lament for her own
banished to youth we're talking about
the death of the fourth husband and true
romance with her fifth husband maybe I
want you to read that carefully I'm not
gonna talk about it extensively because
some of the quiz questions are about
that but I want you to pay close
attention to the details of that
that's strange narrative in the sermons
she talks about how her five husband of
her five husbands three were good
because they were rich and old and also
she could boss them around some of the
questions to ask about are as how does
the Wife of Bath use the authority of
the Bible out like as in line 20 when
when Jesus says that woman that people
shouldn't get married more than once or
that the woman at the Samaritan well
hadn't had only been married once she
says what that he meant better be it
cannot sign what that he meant thereby I
cannot say so watch for how she argues
and how she uses evidence some have
argued that while this is meant to sort
of sell her short as a biblical
authority it also makes fun of the way
that people in general can use the
authority of the Bible to justify
anything in Middle English the word
gloss meant both to interpret and to lie
so look it for the word Gloucester it's
spelled Glos II in Chaucer's text in 165
to 168 we get a really really
interesting little biblical exegesis on
the relative value of the verging life
versus the married life
where
she really kind of does it toward a
force of taking Bible quotes out of
context some of our other questions that
we can ask is how does she view sex what
motivates her sex money prestige
remember the beginning of this course
sex money power Fame one of the
fascinating things about Alice of Bath
is that she is a step forward even if
she is a collection of stereotypes in
some ways she's also a step forward in
what we might call a certain kind of
literary realism in that she's not the
courtly lady she's not a witch but she's
not the the beautiful beloved from a
distance there's many things about her
that we community that taste of reality
the taste of experience and experience
is what the Wife of Bath is all about it
is after all the first word in her
prologue experience if known Authority
were enough to tell me the whoa that is
in mariage
[Music]
so in her confession we can ask a few
questions what her husband's good for to
the Wife of Bath well she says you ease
away of us that can understand ah
thus surely he speak and hear him wrong
on Hornet for half so boldly can there
no man swear and Leah as a woman can
have so bold we can there no man swear
and why as a woman can sure on the one
hand that's misogynistic but on the
other hand it sort of claims a kind of
power for this woman in a society where
the stack where this deck is very much
stacked against them against her here at
3:19 and following is a wonderful
example of how she imitates herself
bothering and controlling and nagging
her husband why hidest ow that's that's
why do you hide the words are kind of
run together in the middle english why
hide us through the keys of my chest
who shall not both though who would be
meister of me body and me good now these
lines have jumped out to me and many
other scholars as being at the heart of
the Wife of Bath's confession and her
complaint she's talking to this husband
and she says to him you will not even if
you're angry
that's what wood means even if you're
mad crazy you will don't hide the keys
to my chest
don't take my debit card away from me
don't take my credit card you will not I
don't care what for anything do not be
the master
both of my body and my good and good
here means wealth world with property
466 she talks about for winning would I
all his lust endure sorry that's
supposed to be fixed for winning and
winning it here again it doesn't mean
winning like in a game or in a war it
means it means profit earning and so
she's somebody who's very much focused
on economics and very much appreciates
the fact that her sexuality is a
commodity and she's not ashamed of it
and she says if that's the way things
are then I'm gonna make the most of it
in Lyons 472 479 she gives the sad
little speech about how she is getting
older and has lost her beauty and this
follows the revelation that the forth
that her fourth husband cheated on her
and there's a kind of wistful
reminiscence for her vanished youth the
fact that her beauty is fading and that
that commodity of that of her sexuality
is fading but she has gained a lot of
the other kind of commodity the
commodity that is gue actual wealth and
she's used that wealth to win a fifth
new husband and to travel and to you
know wear the most fabulous clothes that
she wants to and to make sure when she's
at church in bath that she's gonna be
near the front of that line when it
comes to go their confessions that's
where you want to be that's where that's
where the important people are right she
wants what everyone wants she wants
control significance security just a
little bit more than just an assemblage
of anti-feminist stereotypes though
there's plenty of that going on
focus in on her description of her
husband this is where the rubber really
hits the road she talks about how he
wasn't as nice to her as her other
husbands weren't wasn't as easy to
control and she says that feel I on my
ribs there is a kind of reversal now
Allison is older and rich and she
marries this young beautiful man who
mistreats her and who she talks about
how he was the most dangerous this is
the lines 5 13 to 5:30 and therefore she
loved him the most
be aware that dangerous here does not
mean what it means now it doesn't mean
physically dangerous
it means standoffish hard to get kind of
emotionally inaccessible let's see a
line six forty two forty two and and
following we get a description him read
it well there's a whole lot of him
reading we a book to her and her
describing the contents of this book and
the contents of this book this book of
wicked wives is based on real medieval
authorities talking about the evils of
marriage and the dangers of women there
was a huge uptick in this kind of
writing after the 12th century when the
church officially made it policy that
priests could not marry monks could
never marry bishops could never marry
but your average parent parish priest
could marry to get to go into any any
kind of clerical order you had to be
celibate after the 12th century for a
bunch of reasons
Google Gregorian reform if you're
interested in that if you're a history
buff but I'm gonna repress myself and
not talk to her 20 minutes about that
now but for various reasons the church
decided that the rank and file the
church should not be able to marry
anymore and this was not something that
you could just implement over over
it took generations of cultural
retraining and transformation in order
to agree to make a lot of the most
talented and educated and aspirational
and ambitious and well-connected people
across Europe manure a lot of the people
who go into the church and go into
scholarship and go into administration
civil administration was mostly made up
of church people most of these people
need to convince these people to give up
family to give up the marriage to give
up having children to give up all the
honor that accrued to that required a
lot of programming and so there's tons
and tons of writing about why marriage
is terrible and why it's dangerous and
why women are bad why why they're evil
and so we get the weird situation in
Chaucer's day we're starting to get a
literate class that's that's married um
and minor orders lower clerics you are
gonna advance to too high in the
priesthood are are marrying but they're
still infused in this misogynistic
culture this culture of rejecting
marriage and so Jenkin who's a minor
who's described as a clerk and somebody
who's gotten to a certain degree into a
certain degree of education well maybe
he didn't go farther because he got
married to the white bath because she
kind of trapped him who knows it's just
I'm just speculating not a good basis
for literary scholarship but um in any
case he has this big book that's an in
tholly a collection and remember what I
said about books being treasures you own
a book revalue it he's got this big book
about all the bad women throughout
history and he reads it to her every
night night after night to me the climax
of this
book is when he describes this is at 763
to 770 this this story it's almost like
a bar joke where a guy says to his
neighbor oh man I've got this tree and
it's terrible then you know I'm on my
third wife who's hung herself from it
and the neighbor says can I get a
clipping yeah anyway at a certain point
not long after this
Alison uses it I'll let you read that
for yourself but then they have a
reconciliation and there I like to hear
what you guys think about that how that
works out and how that comes together
and whether you buy it whether you think
that Alison has told a coherent and
reliable account of her story or whether
there are gaps and contradictions and if
there are why our courts talk
[Music]
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