THE WIFE OF

BATH

“A portrait of a wordly, dynamic and passionate woman”

INTRODUCTION

The Wife of Bath decided

to go on the pilgrimage

because it was a chance

to socialize, to meet new

people, to give a rest.

She loved company and

she was able to entertain

everyone.

Her name was Dame Alice

and came from Bath,

a roman british town.

She was a widow and represented earthly qualities.

The Wife of Bath ignored the

sacramental aspect of

marriage: Chaucer mentionsed

that she has been married five

times and has had innumerable

affairs in her youth.

THE PROLOGUEA worthy woman from beside Bath city

was with us, somewhat deaf, which was a pity.In making cloth she showed so great a bentshe bettered those of Ypres and of Ghent.In all the parish not a dame dared stirtowards the altar steps in front of her.And if indeed they did, so wrath was sheas to be quite put out of charity.Her kerchiefs were of finely woven ground,I dared have sworn they weighed a good ten poundthe ones she wore on Sunday, on her head.Her hose were of the finest scarlet redand gartered tight; her shoes were soft and new.

Bold was her face, handsome and red in hue.A worthy woman all her life, what's more

she's had five husbands, all at the church door,apart from other company in youth;no need just now to speak of that, forsooth.And she had thrice been to Jerusalem,seen many strange rivers and passed over them;she's been to Rome and also to Boulogne,St James of Compostella and Cologne,and she was skilled in wandering by th way.She had gap-teeth, set widely, truth to say.Easily on an ambling horse she satwell wimpled up, and on her head a hatas broad as is a buckler or a shield;she had a flowing mantle that concealedlarge hips, her heels spurred sharply under that,in company she liked to laugh and chatand knew the remedies for love's mischances,an art in which she knew the oldest dances.

↑Clickhere to listen the prologue

Pilgrim Transportation

Major Physical Traits/ and Distinguishing Features

Follies/Vices/Negative Qualities

Positive Traits /Virtues/Attributes

The Wife of Bath

Horse Very fancy dresser, fancy red stockings, widely spaced teeth, large hat, new shoes, somewhat deaf

Always wanted to be first at the alter to give her offering and would be angry if someone was ahead of her; vain, very concerned with outward appearance

Well travelled been to Jerusalem and to Rome. Friendly and happy; likes to laugh and chat: her special knowledge and talent is remedies for love. Married five times, a good seamstress.

RED COLOUR: ANALYSIS

Red is a vibrant colour and it was the colour that the narrator associated with the Wife. Her “hose” was “of finest scarlet red” and her bold face was “red in hue”. These details added to the sense that Chaucer was describing a figure who attracted and demanded attention. Red was the colour of the passion and lust.

The narrator also noticed that the Wife’s large hat was “as brood as is a buckler or a shield” (as broad as a shield, or as a large shield). Again her dress or equipment became a sign of her sense of her own importance and her dominance. 

CLOTHING “Her kerchiefs were of finely

woven ground”

“Her hose were of the finest

scarlet red and gartered tight;

her shoes were soft and new.”

“Well wimpled up, and on her

head a hat as broad as is a

buckler or a shield.”

Clothing was important in the narrator’s description of the Wife.

He drew attention to the fine fabric

of her ‘kerchiefs’ (her head-dress) and

Speculated on the heavy head-dress

that she wore in church on a Sunday.

We could well suspect that this was a

woman who was displaying her wealth

and sense of importance of fabric that

she wore.

ABILITIES The Wife was a confident rider. She sat

comfortably on “a horse”. This suggested her desire for power and control. She had a manageable, not particularly fast, horse, but the “heels spurred” could enable her to drive it on to keep up with the company.

Her actions might, at first seem, be a rebellion against the male-dominated society in The Canterbury Tales, and more generally, the medieval period for women. It’s a example of a revolutionary women of her time.

Economic skills: “In making cloth she showed so great a bend” so she was very

good at making clothes; she was a cloth maker.

Social skills: “And she had thrice been to Jerusalem, seen many strange

rivers and passed over them; she’d been to Rome and also to Boulogne, St James of Compostella and Cologne, and she was skilled in wandering by the way” this suggested that she also liked to travel which was suspicious for a woman in the Middle Ages. The fact that the Wife of Bath had been on so many pilgrimages might be indicative of her piety, and yet, the reader senses Chaucer's irony in the geographical description of the places.

“In company she liked to laugh and chat and knew the remedies for love’s mischances, an art in which she knew the oldest dances” so she was very entertaining and she loved staying with people. Her knowledge about the remedies of love was probably a reference to Ovid’s “Remedia amoris". The irony was in her knowledge of “Remedia amoris" rather than "Ars Amatoria".

PHISICAL DESCRIPTION

“she had gap teeth”, “large hips’’, “bold was her face”, “handsome”“red in hue”

These phisical aspects referred to the beautiful woman’s idea. “gap teeth” was a sign of love and passion to other men. The description suggested a sensual woman who cared about earthly pleasures.

Written by

Chiara Tavarozzi & Lucy Plescia