Wife of Bath, Essay Example

Wife of Bath – a tale, fictional autobiography of an Arthurian Romance with strong vibes of feminism, persuasiveness and naivety to express the real things that goes in the heart and minds of women. Written by Chaucer, it an indication of the womanly feelings which are always judged on moral of good and bad…the sexual insight which are so strong and imbedded in women; feelings that are often ignored by the women themselves in parameters of faith and goodliness. In a mock sermon the author portrays his protagonist, the Wife of Bath…she is a woman with five husbands who are all dead. She visits the church regularly and an ardent Christian. That however, in no way stops her to exploit her passionate entanglements and neither her sexual infringement…nor that deters her to be independent and express her free will on arduous relationships with many males. She is indeed a reformer, a radicalized women with a heart that knows how to be a woman. She was not cliché and never did she hold firmly her pent up feelings. She exploited her beauty, her sensuous virility to win over her men, only to realize that there was more to get from other men. She believes in monogamy and thought it was a pleasure to be in the sexual affluence of many a man. Thus Chaucer deliberately creates a character and creates a satire over the moral indemnity and sexual appetite in women.  Her experience with every man gave a different experience in bed; she lured them with her beauty and always took an upper hand to dominate them…all because she had more to offer them, and knew that her beauty could emolliate their riches. She was not the ‘goody goody’ Christian wife, who sacrificed her life, desires and her feelings to save her marriage and be the so called good and loyal wife of a single man. Her narration does revoke a sense of cheap ridicule within our minds but at the same time tickle our conscience – ‘oh that guy in the subway was too hot’ …only to shun ourselves and laugh in our minds…I have a husband waiting at home.