"The Wife of Bath" as an Anti-Feminist

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that, in Geoffrey Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales", the Prologue and subsequent Tale of "The Wife of Bath" section make the most blatant use of a persona, or mask, in comparison to the other pilgrims' sections when The Wife presents herself as a feminist; however, she is actually an anti-feminist. The author points out that, before the Wife begins the story of her experiences with men, she inserts a disclaimer that gives more insight into her possible motives: She tells the pilgrims not to be annoyed at what she says because it is all according to her fantasy. The paper argues that the Wife is hiding behind a facade of feminism, which is the very persona that she presents through her personal experiences by using the textual authority and the undertones of her story to present her true feelings about women's subservience to men.

From the Paper:

"After reading the Prologue and Tale, some could arrive at the aforementioned feminist conclusion. Unfortunately, they wouldn't be reading into the true heart of things if they did. In the Prologue, there is an excerpt that totally turns things around. The Wife makes quite an observation after she mentions the book of wicked wives; "Who peyntede the leon, tel me who? / By God, if wommen hadde writen stories, / As clerkes han withinne hire oratories, / They wolde han writen of men moore wikkednesse / Than al the mark of Adam may redresse" (III, ls. 692-695). She is referring to an old Aesop's Fable, in which a lion and a man come across a stone portrayal of a hunter killing a lion; the lion tells the man that if a lion would've portrayed the scene, it would be the other way around ("The Man and the Lion")."

More papers on "The Wife of Bath" as an Anti-Feminist:

• Analytical Essay # 66207 : "The Wife of Bath: Hurting Rather than Helping Feminism"
• Book Review # 122340 : "The Wife of Bath"
• Analytical Essay # 41810 : "The Wife of Bath's Tale"

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