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Sorry it's sideways

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This poem reflects the themes of feminism and the power struggle between men and women in the Wife of Bath's Tale.

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This poem reflects the themes of feminism and the power struggle between men and women in the Wife of Bath's Tale.

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Dianne  Sep 2014

I am fighting.

I am no longer the
Steady thrum of heartbeats
When issues against women are
Comically displayed on televisions.
Like there's something to
Laugh, guffaw, snicker, snort--
Tell you what, I can name a little
Too many synonymous words
And I can slap them all to your face, too.

I am no longer a suppressed voice,
Unable to tell you and all the other people
That as a girl (and a woman, later),
I have the right to be here.
I have the same rights to life,
To be alive, to be secure,
To have a good life!
And yet, you, who calls yourself a
Man of power, tells me,
"You are nothing."

I am angry with the absurdity
Of it all. Men continuing to abuse,
Women constantly cowering down--
Why are you so intent on showing power
When you are not God?
Why are you so afraid of fighting
For yourself?

I am seething with rage
For those who refuse to accept
Feminism just for the reason
That they do not want to be labeled--
Well, guess what? They have already
Shoved you underneath Weak and Submissive.
Who taught you that you are born
To impress men?
Who taught you that you only exist
To please them?

I will not have any of that shit.
I am a person of my own.
I am a human being, with rights.
And I AM FIGHTING to have
The same rights as you do.
Whoever told you that that's
Never gonna happen, can shove it up
Their asses.

I will not sit still on my chair while
The next police officer
Asks "Well, what were you wearing?"
To the next rape victim.
You and I both know that is not
The issue here.
No girl should hung their head in shame
That they got touched without consent.
It's not their fault! No one
Deserves to be raped.
And no, it's not snuggling, for you who
Even thought rape jokes on t-shirts
Are funny. It's not.

I am for Gender Equality.
For both men and women,
Gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender,
To be treated with equal respect.
With equal opportunities.
With equality.
With no judgment.
Why must you counter that?

Look, I've been sitting in that same chair
For too long while issues spread and get
Larger like the plague.
I thought, let them handle it.
I thought, a small voice would be of no help.
But when did sitting down and staring
Get people somewhere?
When did any of passivity help us?

We already have everything to lose
So why not fight?
Bruce Banner told the other avengers
The secret of Hulk.
And I tell you the same:
Get angry.
Smash inequality.
I will always be right behind you.

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"Rapist gets girl in the end."
I chose this as my six word memoir because it was the thing that bothered me the most about this tale. The rape in the beginning is used solely as a reason for the knight to get in trouble and as an example of how he doesn't know what women truly want. He receives very little punishment for his actions and in the end is actually rewarded even though he was only able to love his wife when she turned beautiful and young, and he showed no significant change from the beginning of the tale to the end. Also, if that wasn't bad enough, the victim of the rape is never shown or heard from again in the tale. She doesn't get any justice and is treated as an object that can just be tossed aside.

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Essay Response: Character Analysis of the Knight from the Wife of Bath's Tale 

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Essay Response: Character Analysis of the Knight from the Wife of Bath's Tale 

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In this essay, the author claims that the knight from the tale is unlikable, uninteresting, and unable to make decisions for himself. They back this up by giving examples. First of all, the knight is not very intelligent. He does not consider the consequences of raping the girl, seeking instant gratification without thinking of possible repercussions or the damage he is causing to another human being, demonstrating a lack of compassion as well. Second, he is easily convinced by the Old Hag that her answer is the correct one simply because she says it is. He makes a blind promise, putting his life in the hands of a stranger and promising to do whatever she says. He then tries to go back on his promise, publicly insulting the woman who helped him and not staying true to his word. Finally, he simply adopts the thoughts and opinions of others without hesitation. This can be seen when he immediately accepts what the hag is saying and relinquishes control to her without a second thought. I agree with the author's observations of the knight, as I think he is a deplorable character who does not deserve a beautiful and good wife in the end.

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The knight comes across to the reader as a mindless fellow, who tries to avoid confrontations, who has no respect for other people, and who doesn't like to think and does so only when he has to, which is to say when thinking is necessary to protect himself.

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1.) In the tale the Wife tells, the knight is forced to marry the Old Hag and on their wedding night she lectures him on "gentility" (gentilesse in the middle English) and defends her appearance, age, and poverty. What exactly does she say about in this sermon on gentility?

The Old Hag says that gentility is not something that can be defined by one’s lineage, status, or wealth. Rather, it is defined by one’s actions and their attitude. During her speech, she says, “If you would be esteemed for the mere name/ Of having been by birth a gentleman/ And stemming from some virtuous, noble clan,/ And do not live yourself by gentle deed/ Or take your father’s noble code and creed/ You are no gentleman, though duke or earl./ Vice and bad manners are what make a churl.” This was in response to the knight’s shame over his ugly, low-born wife. The Old Hag explains to him that a title cannot make him a gentleman, nor her a gentlewoman. A person with a noble title who is hateful and unkind has no true gentility. On the other hand, a poor person with no title who is kind and generous is a truly gentle person.

2.) How does the ending to the tale fit the Wife of Bath's goals (consider her desire to be young and have young men in bed and have control over them)?

At the ending of the tale, the knight, instead of choosing the hag’s fate for her, allows her to choose for herself. In doing this, he gives her the control over him that she had said was a woman’s greatest desire. As a reward, the hag turns into a beautiful young woman who will be a good and faithful wife to the knight. This fits the Wife of Bath’s goals which are to have power over her lovers and husbands, thus giving her control over their land and goods.