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Wife of Bath |
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Medieval Marriage |
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Role of Women in Medieval Society |
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Wife of Bath Ana= lysis |
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The attitude towa= rd women in medieval times was that they were inferior to men. As a result = of the views of the Church, women were taught they should be submissive and= obedient to their fathers and husbands. Despite these tea= chings, medieval women had a lot of responsibility and were not inferior to= men in terms of daily effort. Most worked and did not stay at home. Many w= orked with their families in the fields, and some were employed in workshop= s. Women sometimes h= ad the responsibility of running large estates, due to the death of a husba= nd. They settled local disputes and arranged estate finances. They even too= k charge of defending castles or manors from attackers. It was also not unu= sual for a medieval woman to lead troops into battle. Unmarried women w= ere allowed to hold lands and were thus powerful and had the same rights as= men. However, when a woman married, she gave up her lands and rights to he= r husband. Women held many d= ifferent types of occupations in medieval society varying in importance. So= me of these occupations include shopkeepers, bakers, spinners, alewives, fa= rmers, and silk weavers, and writers. It was common for a woman to hold mor= e than one job because they were paid much less than men. Young single wome= n often wore their hair loose, but once married almost all medieval women w= ore a linen wrap up to cover the hair as a sign of modesty. |
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For = a more in-depth look on specific marriage traditions and customs go to this site. |
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The Wife of Bath has been marri= ed five times and also had many other affairs in her youth. She presents he= rself as a person who loves marriage and sex, but as seen throughout the st= ory, she mostly takes pleasure in talking and arguing. She enjoys expansive= clothing, evident by her extravagant attire. She has travelled the world o= n many pilgrimages. The Wife of Bath is deaf in one ear and has a gap betwe= en her front teeth, which was considered attractive during the time in whic= h this story took place. Through her experiences in her = life the Wife of Bath has learned how to provide for herself in a world whe= re women had little independence or power. She has been able to gain contro= l over her husbands by using her body as a bargaining tool. She withholds s= ex from her husband until he gives her what she wants. When first analyzing the Wife o= f Bath the similarities between her and common medieval women seem few and = far between. The Wife of Bath seems vociferous and lazy while common mediev= al women were hard working often working multiple jobs. Despite these diffe= rences, in the end, the Wife of Bath, like other medieval women, is in cont= rol. Although the way in which the Wife of Bath gains power is unorthodox c= ompared to other women of her time, she is similar to the common medieval w= oman in that she is the controlling figure in her life, rather than a man.<= /span>
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Marriage was very= important in the life of a medieval woman. For many noble-born and royal w= omen, marriage often took place at a young age. In fact, there are some ins= tances in which medieval woman were married under the age of ten. The commo= n perception during these times was that once a girl had begun her period, = she was of marriageable age. On the other hand, men were often married at o= lder ages regardless of the age of the bride. The processes of marriage for we= althy people and poor people were quite different. Marriages were usually arranged = by family and friends for wealthier people. Love was not a factor in the ar= ranging of marriages, but wealth and status were large considerations in th= is process. In many cases, marriage was used by families as a tool to gain = economic and social benefits. As a result of the importance of marriage for= not only the bride and groom, but for the both families, marriage contract= s involved detailed planning. While marriages for wealthy fami= lies were carefully planned and thought out, marriages for people from poor= er families were more like what modern people think of marriage. Since poor= families had little to negotiate with, they simply married whom they pleas= ed. Marriages were not arranged and there was no thought given to the effec= t marriage would have on the two families because both families had little = of value. |
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To take a further= look into the role of women as well as learn about some famous medieval wo= men and other aspects of women’s roles watch this video. &n= bsp; |
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"Medieval= Marriage Customs." Marriage during the Middle Ages. 2001. Web. 1= 1 Nov. 2010. <http://www.medieval-weddings.net/marriage_customs.htm>.= "Marriage= Tradition During Medieval Times | Wedding Customs | Condition of Women.&qu= ot; Marriage, Marriage Proposals, Love Marriage, Arranged Mar= riage, Marriage Problems, Marriage Divorce.= 12 Nov. 2007. Web. 11 Nov. 2010. <http://marriage.ygoy.com/marriage-in-= middle-ages/>. "Medieval= Women." Castles of Britain. Web. 11 Nov. 2010. <http://w= ww.castles-of-britain.com/castlezb.htm>. Carter, By Rac= helle. "M." Marriage Ceremonies. 1998. Web. 11 Nov. 2010. <ht= tp://www.dfwx.com/medieval_cult.html>. Teacher Tube &= lt;http://www.teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=3D100935&title=3DM= edieval_Women>. |