Themes and sections Flashcards
(18 cards)
Give a section from WOB’s prologue on authority, sexuality, and femininity.
26-43
“Men may devyne, and glosen up and doun,// But well I woot withoute lye,//God bad us for to wexe and multiplye:”- Male command comes second to Bible scritpture. Here WOB deviates from typical experiential female authority (as exposed to Chaucer through writers like Margery Kemp) but she appears to distance herself from these sources so that, while she condemns masculine power, she uses features of it to elevate her above other women (“God bad us for”- reflecting the typical teaching position of men in the Bible and the clerics she condemns in contemporary society). In this way, WOB is unsuccessful as an protofeminist and is mocked by Chaucer, the male mediator of her work. (Rhyminb couplet links own speech to Bible scripture, compounded by enjambment, modal verb “may” shows dismissal of the male voice- condemnation, but still neglects to uplift female voices, meaning WOB’s methods serve only to isolate her).
“…the wyse king, daun Salomon.// I trow that he hadde wyves mo than oon.”- Ironic in several ways, showing WOB to be a fiure of fun, not a protofeminist figure. “wyse king”- ironic, as Salomon was condemned in the Bible as a sinner. Specification using the feminine noun “wyves” (rather than a term more applicable to Medieval women such as “got married”) furthers this irony, as, while bigamy in Britain was illegal, men having multiple wives was more tolerated in Biblical communities than women having multiple husbands. Furthermore, Kings 11 describes how Salomon’s wives “led him astray”, showing not only the immorality of bigamy, but also how women were percieved as immoral temptresses, undermining WOB’s authority rather than supporting it as she hopes. Ultimately, Chaucer continues to mock WOB using Biblical context and consideration of masculine authority.
“… many a myrie fit// With ech of them, so well was him on lyve.”- use of the adjective “well” completely neglects the Biblical sources she sites previously, suggesting sensory pleasures validate life and dismissing spirtual life entirely. “myrie fit”- masculine term of sexuality, showing again how the rules and authority she applies are (at best) borrowed from men or (at worst) contradicted by her position as a woman, leading to her mockery and immorality deriving from stupidity.
Give a section from WOB’s prologue on authority, virginity, and marriage.
49- 65
“For thanne th’Apostle seith that I am free// To wedde, a Goddes half, where it liketh me.”- rhyming couplet pairs “free” and “me” reinforcing the idea of women’s freedom (or WOB’s freedom alone). “th’Apostle” references the Apostle Paul in Corinthians who states of widows and the unmarried “But if they cannot control themselves, let them marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion”. While this is a permission of marriage, it is a reluctant one. Furthermore, citation of St. Paul is ironic as he is notoriously antifeminist in his works so, while he may permit WOB to marry, he would not accept her authority, demonstrating the inaccessibility of masculione forms of authority (such as Bible citation) WOB uses, deviating from typical experiential authority.
“I woot well Abraham was a hooly man,// And Jacob, eke, as ferforth as ev’r I kan;”- WOB uses scriptural authority to support her multiple marriages, but is unable to find Biblical support of a wife who had multiple husbands, citing only men. Abraham and Jacob were noble men of the OT and had successive, not simultaneous marriages. The lexical field of masculinity in these lines and the lines which follow (repetition of “man”, “he”, “wyves”) shows the irony of WOB’s words and confirms Chaucer as an antifeminist mocking her stupidity.
“He seyde that precept thereof hadde he noon.// Men may conseille a woman to be oon,// But conseille is no commandment.”- “He” here refers to St. Paul, who, while not explicitly condemning sexuality, advises those who are able to be virgins as he was (Corinthians 7). Furhtermore, citation of St Paul restricts a protofeminist message, as he was very explicit in his misogyny, requesting women remain silent in church. This detracts from WOB as a subversively powerful figure. “May” again invalidates male authority, repetition of “conseille” also invalidates male authority, suggesting their power is no more than advice, and should be taken as such. Furthermore, the noun “commandment” draws upon Biblical use, demonstrating how, while patriarchy offers men power in the Medieval period, it does not given them God-like status on earth. This may position Chaucer as a protofeminist, giving a critical analysis of patriarchy and its derivation from religion. However, the contrast between men and women WOB syntactically presents emerging protofeminist views as creating disharmony between sexes, suggesting Chaucer takes an antifeminist stance, as he does in WOB’s citation of male-authored scipture.
Give a section from WOB’s prologue on sexuality and Biblical authority.
80-100
“…thogh he wroot and sayde,// He wolde that every wight were swich as he, // Al nys but conseil to virginitee.”- WOB concedes that virginity is preferable to marriage, using the Apostle Paul. However, the reference to Corinthians here (“I wish that all of you were as I am.”) is ironic, because, in the same passage, Paul forbids women to speak in church or assume any authority over a man. In this way, WOB either cherry-picks Paul’s statements or misunderstands them, showing her to be ignorant or unintelligent. It may be most convincing to consider her as cherry-picking his commands, as this allows Chaucer to comment on WOB’s lack of social awareness, and disregard of the respect she loses by non-conformity to St Paul’s suggestions, perhaps negatively commenting on the mismatch of gentillesse and wealth resulting from the increase in social mobility after the Black Death. In this way, Chaucer the author aligns himself with Paul, suggesting WOB’s sexual immorality (the overwhelming sentiment of 1Corinthians) has a negative effect on her social class and wider society, something she is blind to. Rhyme between “he” and “virginitee” may show emerging protofeminist sentiment, as WOB subverts tha traditional expectations of female virginity by reminding the reader that this expectation is universal. Here, particularly by citing Paul, Chaucer the author is able to align himself with Biblical views while also representing a subversive gender commentary; that bigamy is wrong and virginity should be encouraged, but this is true of any gender, not just women who were held paradigm as virgins. Though, this sentiment could be seen as weak, considering both Chaucer’s accusations of rape and his blatant mockery of women throughout WOB’s tale.
“This is all and som: he heeld virginitee// Moore parfit than wedding in freletee.”- rhyming couplet juxtaposes “virginitee” and “freletee”, suggesting marriage represents a lack of self-control and is directly opposed to virginity- placing the two in contrasting positions, encouraging conflict. While Corinthians does not address marriage and virginity as being in direct conflict, virginity is held as a paradigm way of life and Paul constantly attacks sexual immorality.
“… a lord in his houshold// Hath not every vessel al of gold;// Somme been of tree, and doon hir lord servyse.”- paraphrases 2 Timothy 2 but obviates the phrase “some for special purposes and some for common use” perhaps showing some awareness of her disrespected position in society. Again, this may be a negative comment on the influx of social mobility following the Black Death, as Chaucer commentates on the lack of gentillesse possessed by WOB, despite her wealth and therefore the disrespect she garners. However, Chaucer’s consistently negative references to working class social mobility appear to be at odds with his upbringing and literary factors such as his writing in vernacular English rather than prestigious languages like French and Italian. Perhaps this suggests Chaucer aims to appeal to his audience self-referentially, perhaps targetting an audience of similar upbringing and social mobility, presenting his work as most impactfully influened by the Black Death as he aims to present a commentary on its effects on society, ironically discussing his social contemporaries. This view is strengthened by the treatment of prestigious figures like the Pardoner and the Friar who are characterised as churlish, meaning that Chaucer, while criticising those who benefitted from more available social progression, equallly criticises those who are broadly respected in society. While this does not depict Chaucer as a social revolutionary or protofeminst, his criticisms of feminine sexuality aren’t explicitly misogynistic.
Give a section from WOB’s prologue on virginity, authority, feminity, and shame.
139- 165
“Crist was a mayde, and shapen as a man, // And many a seint, sith this world bigan”- painstaking dedication to establishing the similarities between men and women- men are also expected to stay virgins, not just women (“man”, “bigan”). This may suggest WOB is a proto-feminist speaker, voicing the need for equality between sexes based on Bible scripture. Following her biological defenses of marriage ands sex (“to what conclusioun// Were members maad of generacioun”), WOB clearly respects virginity as she is commanded to do, citing “Crist” and “seints” as examples of virginity. This shows her relative disregard for societal respect, allowing Chaucer to humourously comment of the lack of Gentillesse among members of the new middle class who were raised in the working classes and found social mobility following the Black Death. However, considering the great upward mobility experienced by Chaucer and his family, it is likely that he wrote this passage not to show disdain for WOB, but to encapsulate the humourous changes to the feudal system following the plague, wherein people like himself were displaced into environments they were ill-suited to, reflected in his attempt to make a prestigious language out of vernacular English. In this way, WOB is not explicitly a figure of proto-feminism, but a humourous depiction of social mobility and religion in the medieval period. This is reflected in the liminality of the epic poem, both the liminality of the act of pilgrimage itself and the liminality between the known and unknown world as the pilgrims move between prologue and tale which is often set in a time and place entirely removed from the pilgrimage, both of which reflect the uncertainty of Chaucer’s time.
“Let hem be breed of pured whete-seed,// And lat us wyves eat hoten barley-breed.”- use of dichotomy and food nominates for women shows the contrast in power WOB feels between virgins and married women. Perhaps WOB feels powerful in her ignorance to male command of female virginity, shown in the contrast between the auxiliary verb “be” and the transitive verb “eat”, showing WOB and other wives to have greater control over their lives than virgins who merely follow male command. However, the protofeminist sentiment may be lost as she concedes that virginity is a purer way of life (“pured whete”) showing the inevitable shame concerning female sexuality- WOB feels the need to proclaim virginity as more sacred than marriage. Chaucer suggests it is inevitable that virginity be recognised as superior to marriage among women (specified by the marked term “wyves”). Perhaps this shows Chaucer’s real intention in his characterisation of WOB as, while her churlishness is a clear demonstration of working class upbringing, her womanhood is pertinent to this. Combining these ideas, WOB’s churlishness demonstrates the displacement of working class people into wealthier classes following the Black Death, her discussion of sexuality is most impactfully abhorrent because of her gender. This allows Chaucer to appeal to his audience, who
Give a section from WOB’s prologue on marriage, Biblical allusion, and irony.
10-40
“Sithen Crist ne went nevere but onis// To wedding” (10-11)
“the wyse king daun Salomon…” (35-36)
“I have pyked out the beste// Bothe of here nether purs and of here chest” (39-40)- rhyming couplet “beste” and “cheste” reveal true intentions.
Give a section from WOB’s prologue on marriage and female power.
211-256
“But sith I hadde hem hooly in myn hond// And that they hadde me yeven al hir lond.” (211-212)
“She may no whyle in chastitee abyde// That is assailed on every side.” (255-256)
Give a section from WOB’s tale on virginity and conseille.
65-105
“Men may conseille a womman to be oon.” (66-67)
“He hath not every vessel al of gold;// Somme been of tree, and doon hir lord servyse.” (100-101)
Give a section from WOB’s prologue on sexuality and possession.
165-205
“On my flessh so deere?// Yet hadde I levere wed no wyf to-yeer.” (Pardoner, 166-167)
“Might they the statut holde// In which that they were bounden unto me.” (198-199)
“I made hem swinke”, “hir lond”, “hir treesor” (202, 204)
Give a section from WOB’s prologue on the destructive nature of a woman’s love.
366-380
“an hateful wyf” (366), “a sely wyf” (370)
“to bareyne lond”, “to wylde fyr”, “as worms shende a tree// Right so a wyf destroyeth hire housbonde.” (372-377)
Give a section from WOB’s prologue on masculinity.
429-442
“he looked as a wood leon” (429)
“we shal yow teche”, “oon of us two moste bowen” (438-440)
“And sith a man is more resonable// than womman is.” (441-442)
Give a section from WOB’s prologue on justice and wealth.
204-212
“They had me yeven hir lond and hir tressor” (204)
“myn hond”, “hir lond” (211-212)
Give a section on justice and virginity.
142-159
“I nyl envye no virginitee:// Let hem be breed of pured whyte seed,// And lat us wyves eat hoten barly-breed.” (142-144)
“I wol use myn instrument// as freely as my Makere hath it sent” (149-150)
“I have the power duringe al my lyf// upon his propre body and noght he.” (158-159)
Give a section from WOB’s prologue on biblical authority.
69-84
“hadde God”, “But ther as God list give it of his might”, “And… he yaf me leve” (69-84)
“Who runneth best lat see” (76)
Give a section from WOB’s prologue on biblical authority and conseille.
134- 169
“But I seye nat”, “Mark telle kan” (parallelism shows comparable power of words) (134/ 145)
“God hath cleped us” (149)
“As frely as my Makere hath it sent” (150)
“th’Apostle…// bade our housbands…” (159-161)
Give a section from WOB’s prologue on authority of a wife over a husbands.
197-220
“As thre of hem were goode and two were badde.// The thre were good…” (197-198)
“(Ye wot well what I meene of this pardee!) (200)
“As God me help, I laughe when I think//…” (201-202)
Give a section from WOB’s prologue on aging.
455-473
“And I was yong and ful of ragerye// stiborne and strong and joly as a pye.” (455/456)
“Upon my yowthe and on my jolitee” (470)
“It dooth myn herte boote// That I have had my world as in my tyme.” (472-473)
Give a section from WOB’s prologue on women’s authority
163-205
“Up sterte the Pardoner, and that anon.”, “Yet hadde I levere wed no wyf to-yeer”, “Abyde!” quod she.”My tale is nat begonne.”- pardoner’s intteruption weakens WOB’s argument, revealing the real lack of power she posseses over the group of male pilgrimage. This is compounded by the exclamation “Abyde!” which shows WOB to be emotional and somewhat irrational, contributing to the nagging woman archetype and shwoing her to be irrational. Here it seems evident that Chaucer is an antifeminist influence, characterising WOB as uncontrolled and unconvincing. (“Up sterte”- femininity of the Pardoner contrasted with WOB’s feminine discourse power, gutteral alliteration “Abyde”, “tale”, “nat”, “begonne”- shows the anger in WOB, potentially demonstrating the annoyance at constant conversational oppression and depicting Chaucer as a protofeminist in this characterisation, alternatively this may show WOB to be irrational and uncontrolled).
“Whoso will nil be war by othere men,// By him shul othere men corrected be.” These same wordes wryteth Ptholomee;// Rede in his Almageste, and take it ther.”- erroneous reference. It is possible that, as the quotation is not from Ptolomey’s Almageste, but from another of his works, this mistake can be attributed to Chaucer himself. However, considering the previous mocking of WOB and churchmen by Chaucer, it may be more convicing to view this as a manifestation of the inaccessibility of scripture to both women and the lower classes. Furthermore, this conveys Chaucer’s mockery of the chruchmen present, who often misused/ misquoted scripture to justify their actions.
(“him”, “men” x2), likelihood that advice/ conceille would be available to women only through men- no direct access to literature and scripture.
“Dame, I wolde praye yow, if youre wil it were”,// Seyde this Pardoner, “as ye bigan,// Telle forth youre tale, and spareth for no man”- rhyming couplet “bigan” and “no man” is particularly ironic, reminding the reader that this is the pardoner’s second interruption, as he stops WOB for the second time to remind her to “spareth for no man”. Here, Chaucer may use this to show the irony of male oppression, and the ways patriarchy is reinforced by all members of society, particularly the men surrounding WOB on the pilgrimage, as they deny her adequate power.
“The thre were goode, and riche, and olde,// Unnethe mighte they the statut holde// In which that they were bounden unto me”- “goode, and riche, and olde”- triplet shows the degradation/ homogenisation of her husbands, perhaps mocking the way women were homogenised in religion and, therefore, wider society at the time. “bounden unto me”- obligation, duty, gives WOB the illusion of power/ authority.
“As help me God!” (596) + (604)
“Of legges and of feet so clene and faire// that all myn herte I yaf unto his hoolde” (598/7)
“And I was fourty, if I shal seye sooth;// But yet I hadde alwey a coltes tooth.” (601/602)
“As help me God! I was a lusty oon,// And faire, and riche, and yong, and wel-bigoon” (605/6)
