1 Hunter Stinson Professor Jacobson English 1102 21 February 2012 Same Old Thing?

What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 1:9 NIV). Is The Wife of Bath's Tale a traditional fairy tale? A traditional fairy tale is seen by most to be a brief story, with a lesson, that is told by an omniscient character. Fairy tales must include some form of magic or enchantment similar to Cinderella and Beauty and the Beast, and they always have that happy ending: a happy marriage, a problem solved, and widespread joy. Although the lesson, setting, and character type are transformed in many different ways such as location changes and differing moral lessons; The Wife of Bath's Tale follows the fairy tale checklist closely. The Wife of Bath's Tale follows the standard formatting of a fairy tale, while also capturing the audience with a lesson that calls for action. The standard formatting consisting of only 407 short lines of poetry, making it a simple story that can be told and passed down through generations easily. At the same time, it is interesting and informative. The story breaks the barrier of that time, the barrier where women are seen as unequal with no rights or power, by giving women power and responsibility, which allows for the lesson we see in all fairy tales. This is a bold statement during this time-period because women were seen as inferior to men and not given the right to make important decisions. Earlier in the Canterbury Tales, Chaucer describes the Wife of Bath as an independent woman who travels and is very promiscuous; he goes on giving women different forms of equality with men and also magic. In the end, it gives men a perspective that good can come out of letting women make decisions and that men can learn from women. At the

2 end of the story the knight says: My lady and my love, and wyf so deere, I put me in youre wise governance; Cheseth youreself which may be moost plesance And moost honour to yow and me also. I do no fors the wheither of the two, For as yow liketh, it suffiseth me. (1236-1241). Here, the knight lets his wife choose between her being beautiful and dishonest or unattractive and faithful. He learns that all his wife wants is to have power and when he finally gives his wife the power she wants, he is rewarded: Kiss me," said she, "we'll be no longer wroth, For by my truth, to you I will be both (1245-1246). The wife tells the knight that she will not only be good and fair, but also young. He gets the best of both worlds when he makes the choice not to follow the norm and to give his wife a say in the relationship. The king also learns a lesson by noticing that something beneficial comes from letting his wife decide the punishment for the knight's actions. So longe preyeden the kyng of grace Til he his lyf hym graunted in the place, And yaf hym to the queene, al at hir wille, To chese wheither she wolde hym save or spille. The queene thanketh the kyng with al hir myght, And after this thus spak she to the knyght, Whan that she saugh hir tyme, upon a day: "Thou standest yet," quod she, "in swich array That of thy lyf yet hastow no suretee. I grante thee lyf, if thou kanst tellen me What thyng is it that wommen moost desiren. (901-911). Here the king grants his wife control of the knight's penalty. She chooses to put him to the test. He learns his lesson by accepting the challenge, which in turn was a lot more effective than him just being killed. Since the knight learns his lesson, the king notices that he has made the right choice by giving power to his wife. It was abnormal to allow a woman to make any sort of judgment. Since men would not normally give their wives power it makes the story interesting and different. There are two different lessons in the story: women want to be considered equal and giving women

3 what they want can be beneficial. The knight and king learning these lessons and gaining this moral installation is characteristic of a traditional fairytale. The Wife of Bath's Tale also has a mystical component to it. The old hag holds all the supernatural power in the tale. She has the answer to the unanswerable question (what women want) and she has the ability to change her appearance. She ends up saving the knight's life and also teaches him a valuable lesson. Without her ability to change appearance, he would not have understood the benefits of giving women power and responsibility. Just after the knight hands over the decision the old hag, she immediately transforms: That she so fair was, and so yong therto, For joye he hente hire in his armes two. His herte bathed in a bath of blisse. A thousand tyme a-rewe he gan hire kisse, And she obeyed hym in every thyng That myghte doon hym plesance or likyng. And thus they lyve unto hir lyves ende (1257-1263). The quote shows the big event in the tale that changes everything. Here, the knight sees the benefits of the lesson he learned from the old hag. These benefits appear to be mainly physical/sexual rewards if taken at face value, just because they are lying in bed and she becomes beautiful. Although the knight's heart can not be interpreted by the reader. Magic is the big modifier in most fairy tales. It either creates a big problem or fixes it. In this case it is used for good and it brings joy and hope to the story. Every fairy tale has a happy ending. In the case of The Wife of Bath's Tale the knight gets the total package: a pretty and faithful wife, he doesn't have to die, and the tale ends with him happily married lying in bed with his wife. A thousand tyme a-rewe he gan hire kisse, And she obeyed hym in every thyng That myghte doon hym plesance or likyng. And thus they lyve unto hir lyves ende In parfit joye; and Jhesu Crist us sende (1260-1264).

4 Just as the characters in all fairy tales, the couple lives happy ever after. The knight is happy and has also changed the way he thinks and acts. He is settled down and married, and has learned that there is no need to chase women around and be disrespectful. The women of the town can now be content as well, because the knight is no longer a threat to them. They have now shown the men that they know what they are doing, and have some confidence because of the point they have proven. So the story ends in total harmony, which is generic of any traditional fairy tale.

5 Works Cited Chaucer, Geoffrey. "The Wife of Bath's Tale." Canterbury Tales. The Norton Anthology of English Literature: The Major Authors. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt. 8th ed. New York: Norton, 2006. 226-234. Print. Zondervan NIV Study Bible. Full ref. ed. Kenneth L. Barker, gen. ed. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2002. Print.