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Tazhiana Campbell
Mr. Tawes
Honors British Literature
06 March 2015
Geoffrey Chaucer is an Anti-Feminist
As a culture oozing in sexual tension, a book such as 50 shades of Grey seems culturally
acceptable, but based on its scenes that illustrate the abuse of women, the book ultimately loses
its luster. For example, Anastasia Steele, one of the main characters, signs a contract that
essentially gives complete control of her body and choices to Christian Grey, the male lead role.
The hashtag #50dollarsnot50shades, urges people to donate fifty dollars to a womens shelter
instead of watching the anti-feminist movie. Misogynistic illustrations of women draw parallels
between the fourteenth-century and the twenty-first century. In the fourteenth-century women
were defined by their husbands position. Women had to tolerate arranged marriages and deal
with any problems that came with a marriage because without a man, women did not socially
exist. During a time such as that, Geoffrey Chaucer wrote The Canterbury Tales, a book that had
immediate success, especially with women. The Wife of Bath's Tale is commonly viewed
from a feminist perspective, but numerous aspects of Chaucer's depiction of women make the
tale a better example of misogyny rather than feminism.
Is Geoffrey Chaucer empowering women with The Wife of Baths Tale or is he
mocking the feminist movement with the use of a character like Alison? Through close
examination and thorough research, The Wife of Baths Tale can be characterized as antifeminist satire. Feminism is the belief that women should have equal rights and opportunities
(Feminism). Chaucers protagonist, Alison, defines feminism as the control a women should

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have over a man in their relationship, which completely contradicts the true translation of
feminism. She views men as the lesser gender,They[men] were not made for nothing, you can
bet!...They were only made for the emission of urine (Chaucer 153). Feminism is not the ideal
that women are superior to men, but that both genders are equal. Alison is also an egregious
character who is not the preferential spokeswoman for feminism. So treated, she [Alison]
appears to be a sociopath, homicidal, nymphomaniacal, a mass of bizarre symptoms (Crane
156). Chaucers character is flawed with deceit and fraud. She even admits to marrying her first
four husbands only to outlive them and inherit their wealth after they died. Chaucers
characterization of Alison depicts women as deplorable beings who are only out to gain profit in
deceptive ways.
The act of rape has not always been a crime. In the fourteenth century it was uncommon
for a man to receive punishment for rape. Fourteenth century women could not be raped, but
somehow consented to sex through what they wore, said, or did. As feminist critics over the last
twenty-five years have shown, medieval texts and images (and, all too often, criticism about
them) often code rape as seduction and thereby eroticize violence against women (Edwards 2).
Rape itself was seen as a part of the female autonomy not an atrocity against womankind. In the
tale the Knight is granted impunity for raping an unnamed victim, the victim vanishes as the tale
goes on, and the rape is not mentioned again. The queen also shadows the rape with her
authority, seeing as though the queen is a woman it is puzzling that she would not address the
crime. Which may emphasize the point that rape is not a serious act: if women do not care, who
should?
Although Geoffrey Chaucers female characters are strong-minded individuals they all
depend on a male character. Chaucer's women are imbued with a variety of traitscourage and

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cunning, purity and duplicityyet, reflecting the society that Chaucer knew, they are nearly all
dependent upon male protectors, whether they be her father, brother, husband, or lover
(Canfield-Reisman 51). Alison does not necessarily depend on a man, but she deceives them out
of their wealth through marriage. Alison is also a woman in control who does not follow the rules
of a patriarchal society and she is evil, but the queen who is of the utmost power, seemingly
became queen because she does as she is told and does not act without the proper consent. The
correlation-created by Chaucer-between women and control is negative.
Chaucer includes a book in Alisons prologue, called The Book of Wikked Wyves. This
work was created and maintained by Jankyn, Alisons fifth husband. It contains records of
historys most villanous women. In the tale, Jankyn and Alison quarrel over the books blatant
misogyny and after Alison rips pages out of the book Jankyn beats her. Although Alisons anger
is not misdirected, it is odd that she, or any woman would marry a man that is clearly prejudicial
towards women. Alison is not a woman of rational thinking,But however ironically,
she[Alison]thereby endorses..the misogynist view that women are naturally irrational (Hansen
274). The Book of Wikked Wyves fortifies Chaucers anti-feminist perspective and reinforces the
idea that women are naturally irrational. The Wife of Baths Tale repeatedly reiterates that idea,
whether it be through the disregarding of the rape or Alisons marriage. Even in todays quasiequal society, women fight against feminism. In late 2014 a trend was started that showed
pictures of cats who were against feminism.The cute antifeminist cats of Confused Cats Against
Feminism often stubbornly refuse to buy into feminism because it's not directly in their best
interests, echoing arguments of some of the Women Against Feminism (Newsweek Global 6).
Metaphorically, the cats represent women against feminism and because the cats have no clue
what they are talking about, neither do women against feminism. It is unreasonable that women

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would fight against feminism-an ideal built just for them.
In conclusion, The Wife of Baths Tale is not as pro-feminist as it seems, but rather a
tale littered with the mocking of women and their idiotic semantics. In the fourteenth century,
Chaucers work was highly acclaimed, but upon closer examination the book can be classified as
misogynistic. Although the twenty-first century is not completely eradicated of misogyny,
women, as a gender, have grown and reach heights that in the fourteenth century were not even
fathomed. Gender roles have changed and women are now actual people in the eyes of the law
and in society. Based on todays cultural and societal norms, Chaucers The Wife of Baths
Tale is not a tale aimed towards feminism.

Works Cited
Citation. Def. 1. Merriam-Webster Online. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 27 Feb . 2015.
Chaucer, Geoffrey. The Wife of Baths Tale. The Canterbury Tales: Oxford UP, 2008.

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3-481. Print.
Crane, Susan. Critical Insights: The Canterbury Tales Alison's Incapacity and Poetic
Instability in The Wife of Bath's Tale. Ed. Susan Crane. Salem: Salem Press. 15 June
2012. Web. 27 Feb. 2015
Edwards, Suzanne. The Rhetoric of Rape and the Politics of Gender in the Wife of Bath's Tale
and the 1382 Statute of Rapes. Critical Insights: The Canterbury Tales. p156-157.
Salem Press. 15 June 2012. Web. 27 Feb. 2015
Hansen Tuttle, Elaine. Critical Insights: The Canterbury Tales Feminist Criticism. Ed. Elaine
Hansen. p.273-288. Salem Press. 15 June 2012. Web. 27 Feb. 2015
Newsweek Global. New York City. 22 Aug. 2014. p6. Print