The Wife of Bath’s Tale - What does the Knight discover in Chaucer’s tale?

The story of The Wife of Bath opens with sexual assault, prompting the queen to urge the knight to assess what women want in partnerships (Chaucer stanza 70). Although women have traditionally been deemed less equal than males, it is clear from the story that women want spouses who are ready to cede control to them (Chaucer Stanzas 120). Wife of Bath’s Tale depicts women as dominant, making decisions about punishment, fairness, and even settling disputes. Although the married lady at the end has powers granted by her husband, she freely gives it back further contending that women desire to have respect and the willingness of men to include them in their power-sharing. (Chaucer stanzas, 415)

What protagonists in Goblin Market would Say

The protagonists, Laura and Lizzie in the Goblin Market would contend the same. However, it is evident that the actors would prefer men to be gentle and acknowledge that women have free will which should be respected at all times. Forcing Lizzie to take the goblin fruit was nor fair, and it just demonstrates a society where men seem to make overall decisions including what and when their women eat (Rossetti Line 431).Mishandling Lizzie also illustrates the notion that men have that women are weak and hence cannot make free choices(Rossetti Line 394-398).

How social norms empower or limit women

Social standards and expectations seem to limit women in the two poems. In The Wife of Bath’s Tale , the knight rapes a lady, and although he manages to escape the death penalty, he leaves her miserable and vulnerable to future attacks (Chaucer stanzas 60). In Goblin Market, the two sisters seem to face hostility from the men who tend to believe that they must have their way when it comes to dealing with the weaker sex. Women’s vulnerability is also demonstrated when Laura is tempted to take the goblin fruit without cash which not only makes her surrender her hair but her health also deteriorates (Rossetti line 277).

Works cited

Chaucer, Geoffrey. The wife of Bath’s prologue and tale. Cambridge University Press, 2016.

Rossetti, Christina. The Complete Poems of Christina Rossetti: A Variorum Edition. Vol. 2. LSU Press, 1986.