The Wife of Bath as a Feminist Character
While reading Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales, it is apparent that the Wife of Bath is not a normal woman. She acts out in many different ways and catches the attention of everyone in doing so. These actions make her stand out as an independent woman who is trying to break the constraints of society. Chaucer has adequately sculpted the Wife of Bath as a feminist character through her prologue by acting in ways customarily reserved for men, by controlling her husbands instead of vice versa, and by being open with her sexuality.
The most evident aspect of the Wife of Bath that makes her a feminist character is her many actions that are atypical for a woman who lived in the 14th century. Most women did not have occupations and were housewives, but Lady Alisoun was a capable cloth-maker. In the general prologue, Chaucer describes her cloth making skills showing “so great a bent she bettered those of Ypres and of Ghent” (Chaucer 15). Ypres and Ghent were famous cloth making centers in Belgium (Hodges 360). Mary Carruthers also agrees with this idea: “[t]here is every reason to believe that Alisoun’s cloth making … was big business” (Carruthers 210). Lady Alisoun somehow managed to acquire or start a very successful cloth making business. It is doubtful that very many women, if any at all, could say that they owned a business of any sort, not to mention one that is even more successful than the top cloth making centers in Europe at the time. Nonetheless, it would not be unusual for a woman to assist her husband in running a business, although the husband was more often than not the one who actually owned the business. This was by no means a small accomplishment; it was extremely rare for a woman to accomplish such a feat during her time.
Another uncommon characteristic of Alisoun is her financial independence. After a short interaction with the Pardoner, she continues her personal tale and mentions that her husbands “[had] given [her] their treasure” and “yielded
The most evident aspect of the Wife of Bath that makes her a feminist character is her many actions that are atypical for a woman who lived in the 14th century. Most women did not have occupations and were housewives, but Lady Alisoun was a capable cloth-maker. In the general prologue, Chaucer describes her cloth making skills showing “so great a bent she bettered those of Ypres and of Ghent” (Chaucer 15). Ypres and Ghent were famous cloth making centers in Belgium (Hodges 360). Mary Carruthers also agrees with this idea: “[t]here is every reason to believe that Alisoun’s cloth making … was big business” (Carruthers 210). Lady Alisoun somehow managed to acquire or start a very successful cloth making business. It is doubtful that very many women, if any at all, could say that they owned a business of any sort, not to mention one that is even more successful than the top cloth making centers in Europe at the time. Nonetheless, it would not be unusual for a woman to assist her husband in running a business, although the husband was more often than not the one who actually owned the business. This was by no means a small accomplishment; it was extremely rare for a woman to accomplish such a feat during her time.
Another uncommon characteristic of Alisoun is her financial independence. After a short interaction with the Pardoner, she continues her personal tale and mentions that her husbands “[had] given [her] their treasure” and “yielded