Essay Comparing Women In Federigo's Falcon And The Canterbury Tales

Similar to other time periods, women during the Medieval Era didn’t have the easiest or the most vivid lives. This rough time for women was a result of men ruling society and having difficult lives during this era. Women were required to understand their value and standing in society as constantly below men. Medieval women tend to have been associated with men, often as their beloved lesser half. Two well-known medieval women, who both were in relations with men, are Monna Giovanna and The Wife of Bath. Monna Giovanna is a married woman who dearly cares about her son in “Federigo’s Falcon” by Giovanna Boccaccio. On the other hand, The Wife of Bath is a woman who has been married five times, yet remains enthusiastic and lively, in “The Canterbury Tales” by Geoffrey Chaucer. Giovanna remains to be more of the static standard medieval woman, while The Wife of Bath is recognized for vastly expressing her feelings towards the criteria expected of women along with marriage during the Medieval Era. Both of these ladies were wives and so have experience with marriage and men. The Wife of Bath had

In “Ferderigo’s Falcon”, we have Monna Giovanna, who desperately wants to save her son that is suffering from an illness. The Wife of Bath’s Prologue and Tale, has the Wife of Bath deal with the topic of authority in marriage, as some other tales do in the “The Canterbury Tales”. Giovanna’s story is ironic and has readers feel sympathy for both she and her son, while the Wife of Bath’s story is almost a revelation and an attempt of a defense and self-justification. The Wife of Bath wanted readers to understand her and her situations, but for Giovanna, readers already did. Although both stories are told differently, considering “Ferderigo’s Falcon” is told in third person, as the Wife of Bath’s Tale is told by her, we still have a sense of who both these women