Wife of Bath - Passages

Question 1

Age and Youth

Answer 1

1. 605-623: Has just married Jankin, and claims she is young when she is actually 40
2. 1250-1264: very end of the tale where the old lady becomes beautiful and young, that is the man’s reward for raping a woman

Question 2

Feminine roles

Answer 2

1. 1-13: opening, claiming divine authority
2. 894-905: King Arthur’s queen sends “lusty bacheler” on a quest to discover what it is that women most desire, see a woman dictating a man’s fate, queen is playing the role of the intercessor (more emotional than men)

Question 3

Dominance vs. Submission

Answer 3

1. 804-820: We see acts of both: Wife hitting Jankin and him granting the Wife total freedom, Wife gets J to burn the book of wicked wives
2. 1228-1241: knight allows the lady to decide who she would like to become, potentially she submits to society’s norms through her decision

Question 4

Masculine roles

Answer 4

1. 804-820: we see the Wife assert her control over husband (when she hits Jankin)
2. 882-898: when the knight rapes the “maide”, forcefully and physically asserts his dominance, yet he receives a punishment

Question 5

Power

Answer 5

1. 146-162: power is shown through her sexual imagery and her numerous references to biblical exegesis
2. 889-906: queen sends knight on a quest

Question 6

Sexuality and religion

Answer 6

1. 62-76: Wife uses her deceptive knowledge of Bible to exploit and provide an excuse for her sexuality
2. 146-162: Wife asserting that she is in charge of the marriage both powerfully and sexually, supported through biblical exegesis