Also in the story the part where the knight commits the crime that propels the rest of the story, “He saw a maiden walking all forlorn ahead of him, alone as she was born. And of that spite maiden, spite of all she said. By force he took her maidenhead” (61- 64). In the first quote the knight learns a valuable lesson that when finding a woman to wife and love, you must evaluate her on how she will treat you and love you. It doesn 't matter how pretty she is because then it is more likely she will be entertained by some other man and be disloyal.
In “The Wife of Bath’s Tale” the knight’s punishment for raping a girl is to set out on a year long journey to find out what women desire most. This story is sexist portraying women in a negative light. The tale portrays women as tricksters and seducers. The answer to what women desire most in the tale is “A women want the self same sovereignty over her husband as over her lover” (143). Once a women married a man has no fear of losing her, she can no longer use her charms against him.
In the story though, the knight is introduced when he rapes a young woman, thus breaking the honor code of a hero knight. It first mentions of a wise and just leader, in the story it is King Arthur. The knight of the story committed the crime of rape, in which King Arthur immediately decides the consequence to this terrible deed. Although his wife, Queen Guinevere, is able to intervene on behalf of the knight, it is no doubt that
With the knight's quest fulfilled, the old woman tells him of her request, that they must become husband and wife. Reluctantly the knight marries the old woman, yet he constantly complains about how old and hideous she is. Therefore, the old woman offers her husband a deal: either she can become young, beautiful, and a cheater, or she can remain old and faithful. The knight tells his wife that he wants her to choose whatever shall make herself happy, for that will make him happy as well. The old woman becomes young and beautiful, while also remaining faithful to her husband.
Both the Wife of Bath’s tale and Sir Gawain have trials assigned to their main characters by women. The knight in Wife of Bath’s tale is being punished for raping a young woman and his punishment is to find an answer to the question, “what do women want most?” instead of death. He learns that women want sovereignty, but in return for obtaining his answer he needs to marry the hag that provided him with the answer. The hag later transforms into a beautiful woman once she wins over the right to choose and rule at her own will. This tale is based on the Celtic Sovereignty myth about a king marrying a goddess who initially appeared to be hideous, but with the willing kiss from the king, turned into a beautiful woman.
The more you complicate it, the more difficult it is to love and fall in love. One should not over think when it comes to loving someone. It was easy for the two of them to fall in love. They just allowed love to play its course and over time it happened. One of the major themes of the novel is growing in love.
The Wife of Bath’s Tale is about a knight. This knight is asked a question by queen for punishment because he rapes a woman. He asks a lot of women without a same answer. However, when he asks a old women who may know the answer, he marries her in return of help. When old woman asks him if he wants to turn old woman to a young beautiful woman, he let her to decide herself.
Overcome by lust and his sense of his own power, he rapes her. The court is scandalized by the crime and decrees that the knight should be put to death by decapitation. However, Arthur’s queen and other ladies of the court intercede on his behalf and ask the king to give him one chance to save his own life. Arthur, wisely obedient to wifely counsel, grants their request. The queen presents the knight with the following challenge: if, within one year, he can discover what women want most in
In The Wife of Bath’s Tale, the knight is sent to find out what it is that women desire most. This task was especially difficult considering the knight received many different answers from many different people. “Some said that women wanted wealth and treasure, Honor said some, some jollity and pleasure.”(80) The task of understanding the position of the opposite gender is difficult to start with and even more so because the knight is struggling to get a definitive answer. The knight
Stereotypically, if not saint, the woman must be deceitful, manipulative, dangerous for men and it is possible to interpret the Wife of Bath in this way. However some may say that she is a feminist heroine, expressing her feelings and desires openly, rebelling against the domination of men. This interpretation has some evidences, for example, she evokes arguments with her last husband over a book Valerie and Theofraste which contains a stories about the most untruthful wives in history. Frustrated Alisoun wants to destroy the book, she provokes Jankyn and in a result of the fight, she loses hearing in one ear. Nevertheless, her behaviour cause laugh rather than admiration for her attitude to life and marriage.