Standards In The Wife Of Bath

In the story the Wife of Bath, there is an old woman who is a main example of a ‘loathly lady’ standard that is portrayed in many medieval works of poetry. Many who read this genre would be familiar with her story of being an ugly woman who was ‘a fouler wight ther may no man devyse’ (1005). She also has no children and is older than the prime age for a woman to become a bride which makes her one of the last prospects for marriage for the knight who marries her. The older woman recognizes, however, that regardless of her appearance, the knight has made this promise to her and she repeats this in front of the court. The use of strategy is a key similarity between her and the Wife of Bath. She is also very wise with what words to say to alter the situation in her favor; an example of this being the speech that she gives to her husband when talking about the advantages of being in a relationship with an older woman that is possible because of her old age and life of poverty which convinces him of the accurate foundation of gentility. Also, like the Wife of Bath, the old woman is above marriable time of life who marries a man younger than her and once he whines about things she cannot change, criticizes him for it. another important similarity between both characters is the determination to establish female sovereignty in a primarily male-dominated world.