Hood College Chaucerians

And if that he may feelen, out of drede, That ye me touche, or love in vileynye, He right anon wol sle yow with the dede, And in youre yowthe thus ye shullen dye; (155-158)

In al his drede unto the fox he spak, And seyde, "Sire, if that I were as ye, Yet shoulde I seyn, as wys God helps me, Turneth agayn, ye proude cherles alle! A verray prestilence upon you falle! giphy.com

Now, goode men, God foryeve yow youre trespas, And ware yow fro the synne of avarice! Myn hooly pardoun may yow alle warice, So that ye offre nobles or sterlynges, Or elles silver broches, spoones, rynges. (904-908)

"Grisilde is deed, and eek hire patience, And bothe atones burned in Yitaille; For which I crie in open audience No wedded man so hardy be t'assasille His wives patience in trust to fynde Grisildis, for in certain he shal faille" (1177-1182) giphy.com

  Ther nys, ywys, no serpent so cruel, Whan man tret on his tayl, ne half so fel,  As womman is, whan she hath caught an ire; Vengeance is thanne al that they desire. (2001-2004)

The Wife of Bath is my favorite character, without question. She’s an expert in all things relating to marriage and doesn’t care about authority, therefore, making her experiences far more worthwhile. In the time of Chaucer, women didn’t have many options when it comes to free will, so divorce was out of the question. But the Wife has been married five times, and I like how she takes the scripture of God and turns it around to benefit her. Nowhere in the bible can she find where it says women can’t be married more than once, so obviously, she’s the most reasonable human being in the Canterbury Tales. I also appreciate that the Wife is someone who has gone through a lot of hardships in her life, therefore losing her beauty, but she can live her life by her standards, and no one is going to diminish her happiness. 

The last part of this tale has always been the most enjoyable part for me. The theme of chance throughout this story is what I find most interesting. By chance, Emily walks by the prison, where both Arcite and Palamon notice her. Also, the God of destiny decides how the story ends by altering the outcome of the fight. I think reason goes out the window when they are acting out of emotion, such as the strong affection both men feel towards a woman they don’t know. By the end of the tale, both knight’s get some semblance of what they asked for, which makes me feel better about someone else controlling their destinies. 

And with that sighte hir beautee hurte him so, That if that Palamon was wounded soore, Arcite is hurt as muche as seide pitously: 'The fresshe beautee sleeth me sodeinly Of hire that rometh in the yonder place, And but I have hir mercy and hir grace, That I may seen hire at the leeste weye, I nam but deed; ther is namoore to seye.' (1114-1122)

In felawshipe wel koude she laughe and carpe; Of remedies of love she knew par chaunce, For she koude of that art the olde daunce (474-476) giphy.com